Harry Potter: The Dark Lord's Downfall
by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx
Summary: For ten years she was kept a secret, now it is time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord. Includes: Weasley!Bashing. Elemental!Magic. Warning: Don't like? Don't read! Flames are not appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

**Harry Potter:** _The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

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><p>"Congratulations Mr Malfoy," the Healer said smiling proudly at the older Malfoy in the waiting area of St Mungo's "You are the proud father of twins!"<p>

Twins. The word hung in the air as silence followed the statement. The Healer frowned considerably as his patient's husband did not respond immediately, and merely put it down to surprise at the revelation. Even he would admit that he had been surprised when Narcissa Malfoy had told him she felt the need to push after her son had been born, he was for sure that she was only expecting a son, but nope another child had been developing for the past 9 months and no magic or scans had picked up on the small bundle.

"Twins?" Lucius Malfoy finally asked "Are you positive?"

"Yes, sir" the Healer nodded "Your wife has given birth to twins. A son and daughter." he beamed brightly once more "Would you like to see them?"

Lucius nodded and swept around the man and into the room in which his wife occupied.

Narcissa was propped up in a small bed, her black hair hung in ringlets over the pillows and she looked positively exhausted, however, she smiled upon his entry and motioned with her eyes towards the two tables beside her. In one lay a tiny baby wrapped in a blue blanket, while in the second lay another baby in a pink blanket "I was just as surprised," Narcissa said, her voice tired.

"Twins," Lucius repeated himself as he approached the two bundles that were his son and daughter "there must be some mistake, Narcissa"

"No," his wife answered "No mistake. They are both ours. She has your eyes, Lucius"

Lucius stared at the female baby in front of him; he could not see her eyes at this very moment because she was sound asleep just like her brother, and so he would have to take his wife's word for it at the moment. He nodded firmly and withdrew his presence from the children "You look tired," he spoke, addressing his wife this time "Rest"

Narcissa nodded as she settled down into her pillows, her eyes drooped and soon she was asleep.

Lucius sighed heavily as he turned away from his wife and children, and shook his head it was not possible that he had twins. He could not have twins. Only a son. His son would inherit everything from him when he became of age, his son was the heir to the Malfoy fortune, but now he had a daughter to provide for too...

...unless...

Turning swiftly from the window Lucius crossed the room and left the ward, he had a letter to send urgently. He knew that Narcissa would hate him for this but it was the only possible way that he could be sure that the Malfoy fortune would go to his son. A female heir was trouble and he could not afford trouble when it came to his legacy. His reputation within the Wizarding world resided on this, if people were to learn that he had a daughter, he did not even want to _think_ about what they would attempt to get his hands on his fortune.

Females were only good for one purpose. Wives. They could not be trusted when it came to upholding family traditions, or family names. His daughter would not be a Malfoy forever...

...no, today...today would be her first and last day as a Malfoy.

_~*Ten Years Later*~_

Phoebe blinked as a bell rung from the outside of the store signalling that someone had just entered, Madam Malkin's who had been in the middle of pinning up the black robes that the eleven year old was wearing paused, and looked over her shoulder "One second dear," she smiled at Phoebe "I will be right back"

"Please," Phoebe responded with a smile "Take your time"

Madam Malkin's nodded once as she disappeared out into the main part of her store, Phoebe could hear faint voices, but allowed her attention to drift as she looked around the store, it was covered in various different robes all of which were different colours; there were basic black ones, but then there were baby blue, gold, pink, green, purple and there were even yellow robes.

"- got a young lady being fitted up just now, in fact" Madam Malkin's voice sounded quietly, as she returned to the back room

Phoebe looked towards the door and watched interestingly as a Platinum blonde followed the shop keeper into the back room, from first sight Phoebe would have honestly said that the boy looked ill! He was so pale in comparison to his hair he looked like he was on his death bed; he had a pointed face and stormy grey eyes.

"Hullo," he drawled, stepping up onto the chair beside Phoebe "Hogwarts too?"

"No," Phoebe responded "I'm an eleven year old who is buying school supplies that I intend to use at home for the whole term! Of course I am going to Hogwarts, you idiot!"

The boy glowered distastefully at her "What is your name?" he asked

"What is yours?"

"Draco," the boy responded "Draco Malfoy. And it will do you well to show me some respect"

Phoebe smirked _oh, so this is my dear old brother_ she thought to herself "Well, honey, if you don't know who I am, then you clearly do not deserve to know" she smiled sweetly

"You're done dear," Madam Malkin's declared, finishing up Phoebe's robes "Would you like duplicates?"

"Yes please," Phoebe smiled, jumping down off the stool and hurrying to the corner where she had deposited her overhead bag and jacket, she slung them over her shoulder and turned back to Draco "Bye _Dragon_" she drawled, before turning toe and leaving the back of the store.

Draco stared dumbfounded after her

After paying for her essentials, Phoebe reached for the handle of the door just as it was pushed open from the other side "Oh," she squeaked withdrawing quickly as not to get smashed into, on the other side stood a scrawny looking boy with glasses; he had messy black hair and emerald green eyes.

"Oh, sorry about that," the boy apologized, stepping aside and allowing her to pass

"Thank you," Phoebe curtseyed politely, and she skirted around him and out onto the cobble-stone path beyond the door "See you around sometime," she told him as she turned back to face him. She then waved and danced off down the street in search of her guardian.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Serefina Blackheart surveyed her goddaughter who was munching happily on a Blueberry and Raspberry ice-cream with chopped chocolate chips as they walked through the streets of Diagon Alley, Phoebe had been so quiet since she had returned from Madam Malkin's, and Serefina couldn't help but wonder if something had happened while they were away from one another "Phoebe, are you okay?" she asked with concern "You've been awfully quiet"

"Everything's fine," Phoebe smiled "Why wouldn't it be?

"You just seem very quiet," Serefina responded "Did everything go all right in Madam Malkin's"

Phoebe nodded "Yes. She stitched me up. A boy interrupted mid-way through, I paid and I left..."

"Who was the boy?"

Phoebe hesitated

"Phoebe..." Serefina warned, her eyes darkening quickly sending a slight tremor throughout Diagon Alley

Phoebe stared up at her Godmother "Draco Malfoy" she answered

Another tremor hit this time bigger...stronger. People screamed near-by and Phoebe had to grab her guardian to calm her before she exposed herself and destroyed half of the alley "Aunt Serefina!" she hissed "Stop it! You will draw attention to us!"

"Why didn't you tell me that Malfoy was here?" Serefina demanded angrily "You know how I feel about them Phoebe!"

"Yes," Phoebe nodded "but this is exactly why I didn't tell you! But don't worry; I don't plan on any family reunions anytime soon. Lucius is an arrogant son of a bitch, and his son is a mini duplicate!" she seethed "Besides, Draco does not know who I am, it would seem old daddy dearest kept the fact that he had a twin a secret from him! Plus...I didn't even tell him my name." she smiled

Serefina seemed to calm slightly at her words, but the one sentence that caused her to regain full control of her emotions was when Phoebe said "Lucius will be his own downfall!" after that Diagon Alley remained still, and Serefina's temper disappeared.

"Next time you see him," Serefina started, her gaze fully on her goddaughter "you avoid him at all costs, understand? We cannot afford him to find out about you, Lucius will not be happy, and I fear he will do something incredibly drastic to keep you away from his precious little boy"

Phoebe nodded "Don't worry, I have as much desire to meet my brother, as I do to meet my father" she smiled "Now, can we finish shopping while the Alley is in one piece?" she asked, turning and walking way, tossing aside the cone of her ice-cream in a near-by trashcan "Oh, did I mention I met Harry Potter too?" she added over her shoulder, before scampering off down the cobble-stone path as her Godmother chased after her.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Morning dawned early the next morning, and Phoebe awoke to the voice of her guardian calling her from downstairs. Laying with her arm hanging off the side of the bed, and the blankets twisted both beneath and around her legs, Phoebe lay still in her half-awake half-asleep stage as she breathed in and out with shallow gasps; finally realizing that she couldn't ignore the fact that her body was slowly waking up Phoebe rolled over onto her back and pushed herself up onto her elbows as she glanced at the clock on the right hand side of her bed. It was ten in the morning and Phoebe had the sudden urge to shout down to her guardian to leave her alone, she hated waking up much before 12 on a Sunday.

"Phoebe!" Serefina's voice shouted again

Phoebe groaned and flopped backwards onto her bed and closed her eyes in hopes of dropping off back to sleep and waking up at a much more desirable time, but alas sleep had been driven from her body the moment she had lifted her head from the pillow.

"Phoebe!" Serefina shouted again

"Go away!" Phoebe retorted "It's a Sunday! And it's before 12!"

There was a brief pause before "Phoebe Avalon Blackheart!" Serefina was back with a vengeance, and she was starting to get annoyed. Phoebe knew that because she never used her full name unless she was annoyed with her goddaughter.

"Fine!" Phoebe shouted back, as she kicked back the blankets and rolled out of bed. Shuffling across her bedroom floor, the eleven year old roughly pulled open the door and stumbled sleepily into the bathroom to finish her morning routine. Once she was showered, Phoebe made her way downstairs into the kitchen for breakfast.

Serefina sat at the kitchen table reading the morning post that had been delivered while Phoebe had been asleep, she looked up as her Goddaughter entered the room "Good," she smiled "You're awake"

Phoebe glowered

"Are you packed?" Serefina asked ignoring the look she was receiving "I have to drop you off at Kings Cross station before 11."

"Why?" Phoebe asked

"Because the train leaves at exactly 11 o'clock"

Phoebe frowned "What train?"

"The Hogwarts Express, of course" she answered simply

Phoebe paused in her breakfast and glanced up at her guardian "But I thought you were taking me straight to the school?" she questioned

Serefina looked up from the newspaper and surveyed her goddaughter "Now what kind of parental figure would I be, if I did not allow you to get the full experience of going to Hogwarts like every other child your age?"

"A good one!" Phoebe protested "Please! I don't want to go by the train"

Serefina laughed "Don't be silly Pheebs," she smiled "You will have a chance to meet all your future class-mates and house-mates. Trust me, you will enjoy it"

Phoebe slumped in her seat and muttered under her breath "That's easy for you to say! You didn't attend Hogwarts!"

Silence fell around the table following her statement. Once breakfast was over, Serefina sent Phoebe back upstairs to wash, brush her teeth and dress. When she was finally ready it was 10:45am, they had exactly fifteen minutes to get to Kings Cross station and onto the platform.

"Are we disapparating?" Phoebe asked, as she stood in the den, she was wearing her best faded converse all-star trainers, black sweatpants and a white converse off the shoulder t-shirt, her black hair hung in curls around her shoulders as two strips of white contrasted against it they framed her face rather nicely.

"Yes," Serefina nodded, grabbing her goddaughter's arm and disapparating directly onto Platform 9 and 3/4

Phoebe frowned and looked around "I thought you wanted me to get the 'Whole experience'?" she asked, air quoting her words "How is disapparating directly onto the Platform getting the whole experience?"

Serefina looked down "We do not have time," she answered "If you had gotten up when I had first called you then you would have the chance to get the whole experience" she reminded her

Scrunching up her nose, Phoebe stuck her tongue out

"Oh, yes, very mature" Serefina nodded

"I'm eleven," Phoebe shrugged "Are you sure you don't want to take me straight to Hogwarts?"

"Positive. Now, we need to go over a few ground rules before we separate"

Phoebe sighed "Like?"

"Do not use your powers in front of anyone!" Serefina warned

"On the train, or when I am at school?" Phoebe inquired

"Both!" Serefina answered "You are to be especially careful in front of the Slytherin's, they are children of Death Eaters, and you do not want them to know what you are"

Phoebe pouted "You make me sound like I'm some sort of creature!" she retorted "It's not _what_ I am, it's _who _I am!"

"Phoebe!" Serefina snapped "This is not about who or what you are! This is about your protection; now promise me, you will not use your powers?"

"I promise," Phoebe nodded, jumping as a shrill whistle cut through the air and a conductor's voice shouted for anymore stragglers to quickly board the train.

"Quickly now," Serefina said, waving her wand and levitating her goddaughter's trunk and cat onto the train, and then turning to help Phoebe up herself "Be careful. Be safe. And I will see you in a few hours" she said.

The two hugged and Serefina stepped back as the door slammed shut.

Leaning out of the window Phoebe waved goodbye; and watched her godmother disparate from the platform, before she turned and dragging her trunk behind her went off in search of a compartment.

_~*Phoebe*~_

The train had already started moving by the time Phoebe had reached the end of the train, every compartment she had passed had been full and she prayed that the last compartment had room for her to sit down; right now she didn't really care if it was half full of first years, or returning students. Her arms were starting to ache from pulling her trunk the length of the train, and she as growing tiresome of the looks she was receiving from people beyond closed doors.

_Don't they have anything better to do?_ She growled mentally to herself, as she reached the end compartment and sighed in relief as she saw only two people beyond the glass. "Excuse me?" she said, as she pulled open the door on the two occupants "Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full"

"Sure," nodded a black haired girl

The boy who sat near the window nodded, and turned his attention back to the passing scenery

"Thanks," Phoebe smiled, as she heaved her trunk inside, and slid it under the chair near the door "I'm Phoebe," she added as she plopped down beside the girl

"Nice to meet you, Phoebe" the girl smiled "I'm Ashlyn," she pointed at the boy "this is my cousin. James"

Phoebe smiled "What? No last names?" she laughed

James glowered as Ashlyn chuckled "Black," she answered "Ashlyn Black"

"Black?" Phoebe questioned "Like Sirius Black?"

Ashlyn laughed again "The very same," she nodded "Although he is my uncle. Regulus, Sirius's younger brother is my father" she explained "James is Sirius's son though"

"Thanks' for that, Ashlyn!" James retorted "But I think it is rather easy to figure out that I am Sirius's son, if you are my cousin"

"Not necessarily," Phoebe jumped in "You could be related to her through the Lestrange's or the Malfoy's for example"

James cringed "Moving on, what is your last name?"

"Blackheart," Phoebe answered promptly "Phoebe Blackheart"

"Who are your parents?" James inquired

Ashlyn threw him a warning glance "James..."

"What?" James asked "she knows ours. It's only fair"

"It's okay," Phoebe smiled, looking between the cousins "Truth is I never knew my parents. I was raised by my Godmother, her name is Serefina Blackheart"

James nodded and slumped back in his seat

"James, don't slouch!" Ashlyn scolded "It's not very becoming"

"Yes, mum" James replied. Ashlyn glowered and swiftly extended her leg to kick him in the shine. "Ow!" he yelped, pulling his knees up to his chest and glaring at his cousin from across the compartment.

Phoebe looked between them and laughed, so far this year was starting out to brilliantly.

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><p><strong>AN: So this is the first chapter of my new Harry Potter story. The Phoebe Malfoy series. I will admit it has taken me a while to write this up, mostly because I have been trying to look for a way that it did not possibly cross with the Muggleborn Witches series, and I hope I have managed to do that. Alas...Even I will admit that not even I know how this is going to turn out, so I hope you bear with me.**

**I would like to thank KingdomHeartsNerd and Wild-In-Spirit for taking the time to fill out Character application forms for this story, and creating the wonderful characters of James Black who belongs to KingdomHeartsNerd and Serefina Blackheart (Phoebe's godmother) belongs to Wild-In-Spirit.**

**Also, I would like to say that even though I am updating this now, I will be going on holidays/vacation from Saturday 30th of July until Saturday the 6th of August, so there will be no updates until then.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy.**

**Let me know how the first chapter turned out in a review. Please.**

**Thanks.**

**~*Kara*~**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx._

_Chapter updated 29 July 2011 at 03:51am_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **_Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OC's and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications: **_Shout out to _**Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Wild-in-Spirit, BeckyBoo12221, KingdomHeartsNerd** _and_ **Red Neo Ranger**._ You guys are awesome; you made my first chapter worthwhile by reviewing. Thanks very much._

**In Response:** _To __**Fan of Fics: **__Regulus and his wife became Pregnant with Ashlyn just before he died; he turned his back on Voldemort because he feared the life of his child. Ashlyn is a Pureblood, but he didn't want her growing up in a world that Voldemort envisioned. Does that make sense?_

_To __**10th Squad 3rd Seat**__: Powers? What are these powers of which you speak? Lol. More will come later on Phoebe's powers I promise. =)_

_That is all. Enjoy._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong>_ The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p>It was late.<p>

It was late and it was cold.

Phoebe shivered as she hauled herself out of the small rowing boat and up onto dry land underneath what she had already guessed to be the magnificent Hogwarts Castle. It looked like something straight out of a fairy-tale.

Re-grouping on solid ground, James, Ashlyn and Phoebe turned back to the half-giant Hagrid as he followed them up from the docks, through the side of the mountain-top on which Hogwarts was perched, and into the courtyard of the school where he was dismissed by a rather strict looking woman in green robes.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." she greeted them "I am Professor McGonagall. But before you may join your classmates, you must first be sorted into your Houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin"

Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged a look as they stood side-by-side in the courtyard

"The sorting ceremony will begin momentarily," Professor McGonagall continued "While you are here your house will be like your family. Triumphs will earn you points, any rule-breaking then you will lose points. At the end of the year the house with the most points will be awarded the House Cup"

She walked away and entered the Great Hall

Swallowing Phoebe turned to Ashlyn and James "Which houses you aiming to be getting into?" she asked

"Gryffindor," James answered, with a grin "Like my dad"

"Ash?" Phoebe asked

Ashlyn sighed "My parents were both in Slytherin," she answered "and so were my whole family, other and Sirius. I think I'm doomed to that house too"

"That's what my father thought too," James pointed out "and he was sorted into Gryffindor"

Phoebe patted her friends shoulder "My whole family has also been in Slytherin," she assured her "Maybe we'll get to stay together? You never know!"

"And if we don't?" Ashlyn asked

"Then you're on your own," James snickered

Phoebe glared "Then we'll just have to bend the rules," she smiled "Don't worry. You'll be fine"

Ashlyn smiled and wrapped her arm around Phoebe's shoulders, as Phoebe wrapped hers around Ashlyn's waist. They had only just met, and they felt like they had known one another since forever.

Soon Professor McGonagall returned, and led the first years into the Great Hall, she led them down the aisle between two tables full of students; their house colours were red and gold on one side, and green and silver on the other. Reaching the end of the isle, Phoebe and Ashlyn came to a halt as an old frayed hat was set in front of them.

The whole hall fell silent, as a rip near the bottom of the hat opened and it began to - Sing?

The song lasted for a good five minutes, before the hat fell silent and the Great Hall erupted in applause. Exchanging looks Phoebe shrugged as James and Ashlyn turned in her direction "Don't look at me," she murmured "I had to refrain myself from strangling the damn thing!"

James and Ashlyn smirked as McGonagall stepped forward once more and held up a roll of parchment "When I call your name, you will come up here. I shall place the sorting hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your houses" she consulted the list "Hannah Abbott"

A girl with blonde pigtails stumbled up onto the stool, McGonagall placed the hat on her head and it fell down covering her eyes. There was a brief pause before the hat shouted "_HUFFLEPUFF!"_

The table on the far right cheered and clapped as Hannah joined them.

"Susan Bones!"

_"HUFFLEPUFF!"_ the hat shouted once more

"Ashlyn Black!"

Ashlyn froze at the sound of her name, causing both Phoebe and James to shove her forward; hurrying up the steps she sat on the stool and stared at her friends, before the hat concealed her vision.

There was a heavy pause, in which people could hear a pin drop before the hat shouted "_SLYTHERIN!"_

The table between the Hufflepuff's and the first years cheered as Ashlyn pulled off the hat, offered Phoebe and James a small wave, before she joined her new house-mates.

"James Black"

James smirked at Phoebe as he hurried forward, and plopped down on the stool. The hat touched his head and shouted _"GRYFFINDOR!"_

The Red and Gold students on the other side of the first years, cheered as James joined them.

"Phoebe Blackheart!"

Phoebe perked up at the sound of her name and confidently stepped out of the throng of first year students which had congregated around the front of the steps leading up the Professors table in the Great Hall of Hogwarts and sat on a small three-legged rickety stool, the hall instantly fell silent as the hat was placed on her head and all she saw was darkness.

**Oh my! An elemental, it has been a while since one of your species walked amongst us.**

Having heard so much about Hogwarts from her guardian, Phoebe knew instantly that this little voice was not in her head, but it was the voice of the Sorting Hat.

Phoebe smirked _Sweet. I get to be the first._

**Yes, my dear, you are by far the first elemental that Hogwarts has seen since the founders were teachers here.**

_Cool. That is even more interesting..._

The hat chuckled **so let's see...A Blackheart, you say? Are you sure?** Asked a voice

_It is not my legal name, but it is what I am listed as everywhere_ Phoebe answered

**Yes. We have never had a Blackheart at Hogwarts, although your real family have been in Slytherin since the founding days...you would do well in there. Cunning, clever...but not as clever to that which makes one a Ravenclaw. I also detect a nature that makes one a Hufflepuff...but there is something else, lots and lots of bravery and loyalty...so much to the point that you would happily put your own life on the line for others...**

_Only if they deserve it_ Phoebe answered, she only protected those that she redeemed worthy of saving _so? What's it going to be?_

**Cheeky too** the Hat chuckled **Hmm...Better be**

**"**_GRYFFINDOR!"_

The Gryffindor table burst into loud applause, as Phoebe scurried off to join them, dropping into a vacated seat opposite James. Several older students patted her back in congratulations, in which Phoebe returned with a small nod before turning back to the sorting as Lavender Brown was called.

_"GRYFFINDOR!"_

Phoebe and the Gryffindor's cheered for their new house-mates as she joined them.

Millicent Bulstrode then became the second Slytherin.

"Hermione Granger!"

"_GRYFFINDOR!"_ the hat shouted, and Hermione run off to join the Gryffindor's, sliding into a seat alongside Phoebe

"Hello," Phoebe smiled brightly

Hermione returned the smile

"Neville Longbottom!"

The Hat sat on Neville's head for a whole two seconds, before shouting "_GRYFFINDOR!_"

"Draco Malfoy!"

Phoebe watched as her non-existent twin strode up to the stool, and the hat had barely brushed his hair before it shouted "_SLYTHERIN!"_

Draco smirked as he took a seat beside Ashlyn and Millicent at the Slytherin table

"Harry Potter!"

The whole hall fell silent as a timid looking, scrawny boy with messy black hair and glasses sat upon the stool. From where she sat, Phoebe watched closely as the Sorting of 'The-Boy-Who-Lived' seemed to take longer than hers, soon the hat shouted "_GRYFFINDOR!"_ and Harry joined them as many students stood to shake his hand and clap him on the back.

"Hi," Phoebe smiled, as the older Gryffindor's settled down and the Sorting continued.

With Ronald Weasley becoming the final Gryffindor and Blaise Zabini became the last Slytherin. McGonagall rolled up her parchment and took her seat at the high table, as Dumbledore stood.

The hall fell silent.

"Welcome! Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our feast, I have some beginning of term announcements. First of all, all students should know that the Forbidden Forest is strictly off limits to all students. Also this year, the third floor corridor on the North side of the Castle is off limits to those who do not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you!"

Phoebe frowned and exchanged a look with James "Well, that was..."

"Interesting?" James suggested

"Very," Phoebe nodded, before smiling as her stomach gave a rumble at the sight and smell of the food that had appeared.

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><p><strong>AN: I am going to end it there, I wanted to get at least 2 chapters out before I leave. Next chapter will be posted 6th of August. Will miss you all, hope you miss me. =)**

**Sorry its a short chapter. They will get longer.**

**Bye**

**Review**

**~*Kara*~**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

_Chapter updated __30 __July __2011 at 03:28am_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **_Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications:** _Shout out to _**DJScales, KingdomHeartNerds, Red Neo Ranger, BeckyBoo12221, XxX-Fire-Fairy-Witch-XxX, Fan of Fics** _and_ **10th Squad 3rd Street. **_You guys are awesome. Thanks very much._

**In Responses:** _To __**Fan of Fics**__: Yes. It is strange to me too for writing Draco in this way, given what I have done with MWS. But like I said I'm not sure where this story is going at the moment. Draco may not be as evil as he seems in this =)_

_To __**10th Squad 3rd Street**__: Yes. Phoebe is an Elemental._

_That is all. Enjoy._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to fiinally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord_

* * *

><p>"There are how many stairs?" Phoebe exclaimed, as she stood at the bottom of the Marble staircase the next morning after breakfast, she was flanked either side by Ashlyn and James as the three of them consulted their times tables that they had received a mere few minutes ago.<p>

Ashlyn turned to her friend "One hundred and forty two," she replied, relaying the information she had learned that morning from one of the 5th year prefects in Slytherin

"You have to joking!" James complained, looking up at his cousin "Please, tell me you are joking..."

Ashlyn shook her head, shattering the pleading looks of her cousin and friend "But lucky for you the older Slytherin's provided us younger students with a map of the whole school, including the staircases and directions on how to get to class on time," she explained, pulling out what appeared to be a blank piece of parchment. She tapped it once with her wand and instantly writing and drawings appeared. Each classroom within the castle was labeled with a different symbol that represented the lesson in which was taught. For example: Potions, which was in the dungeons, was labeled with a bubbling cauldron and Defence Against the Dark Arts was taught on the second floor corridor, and was labeled with two wands crossed over one another as if in a duel.

"Wicked..." Phoebe grinned, popping up over Ashlyn's shoulder and staring transfixed at the map "And the older students gave you this?"

"Yeah," Ashlyn nodded "Its apart of the 'look-after-your-own' thing that we have going on"

"So not fair," James pouted "Why don't the older Gryffindor's help us?"

Phoebe glanced his way as she snagged the map and consulted it alongside her timetable "Because they wish to help us build character," she answered "What would become of us if we relied on older students to get us around the school? We'd never learn the route ourselves because we would be too busy following them!"

"Hey," Ashlyn exclaimed "are you saying we Slytherin's are more of followers than we are leaders?

"That is exactly what I am saying," Phoebe confirmed, with a wide grin "are you sure you were sorted into Slytherin? With a brain capacity and complexity that you have, you would have made a decent Ravenclaw"

Ashlyn glowered, her eyes narrowing "Start running, Blackheart!" she growled

"See you in Transfiguration, James!" Phoebe yelled, as she took off up the marble staircase. Ashlyn hot on her tail.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Reaching the door to the Transfiguration classroom first, Phoebe threw it open and stumbled inside as Ashlyn finally caught her. The Slytherin had launched herself through the air and landed directly on Phoebe's back sending the pair of them crashing to the ground as soon as the door was open.

"Dog pile!" James snickered, reaching his friends in record time and easily climbing over them into the class.

Thankfully enough Professor McGonagall was not present as Phoebe and Ashlyn extracted themselves from one another and made it back to their feet. Wincing Phoebe rubbed the back of her head "Stupid Slytherin!" she grumbled as she slipped into a seat beside James "You mind telling your cousin that it is wrong to jump people who are not expecting it?"

"Ash," James said, glancing down at his cousin and repeating exactly what Phoebe had told him. Phoebe rolled her eyes and proceeded to remove her equipment from her backpack and spread it out over the desk in front of her. "She said you started it," James replied, pulling back and turning to face Phoebe again.

"I heard her," Phoebe responded

James smirked and mimicked his fellow Gryffindor's actions as the door opened behind them and the rest of the class entered.

"I wonder where McGonagall is," murmured Ashlyn, after the final bell had rung signaling the beginning of the lesson.

James and Phoebe shrugged as they too wondered where their Professor had gotten too, after everything Phoebe knew about Hogwarts; Professor McGonagall had not once been late to a lesson. Suddenly, the cat on the teacher's desk pounced forwards and instantly shifted into the same strict looking woman from the previous night.

"Wow," the class breathed in amazement

Ron Weasley looked astounded "That was bloody brilliant!" he exclaimed

"Why thank-you Mr. Weasley," McGonagall smiled bashfully "Now I would like to welcome you to first year Transfiguration. What you just witnessed is an advanced form of shape shifting, unfortunately, you will not be learning that this year but if you do manage to achieve outstanding and make it into my seventh year NEWTS class you will begin to learn the basics..." she explained. The majority of the class groaned. "Now please turn to page one of your text books," McGonagall went on "and copy the following text..." she pointed her wand at the blackboard as the chalk flew into the air and scribbled out words which the students started to copy down immediately.

_~*Phoebe*~_

The rest of the morning went by in a blur, and very soon Phoebe found herself sitting at the Gryffindor table chatting once again with Katie Bell, Oliver Wood and James.

"How are you finding your lessons so far?" Katie asked, her soft hazel-coloured eyes locking gazes with Phoebe from across the table

"Classes are brilliant," Phoebe answered "We've only had Transfigurations and Charms this morning. We've got Potions, Herbology and our first flying lesson after Lunch."

Oliver grinned "Madam Hooch will teach you everything you need to know about flying," he promised

"I have no doubt," Phoebe nodded, looking up at the sound of an explosion which had resided halfway down the table. Turning in the direction of the explosion she found Seamus Finnegan in the centre of it all

James snickered

Phoebe rounded on her friend "What did you do?" she asked

"Nothing," James responded, holding his hands up in surrender "I cannot take credit for this. I may be a prankster...but this is no prank" he swore

Phoebe eyed him curiously, before turning back to Seamus. The poor kid looked absolutely bewildered at the sudden turn of events. Shaking her head Phoebe turned her head skyward as the screech of owls echoed and several hundred owls swooped into the hall. As many owls flew to their respective owners' one bird stood out amongst the rest, a screech echoed around the hall as a white-tipped golden eagle swooped in through the high window and headed in the direction the Gryffindor table.

"What is that?" exclaimed a Hufflepuff from the table behind the Gryffindor's

"I dunno," answered a fellow Ravenclaw

James frowned and looked up "Phoebe..." he trailed

"Athena!" Phoebe exclaimed jumping to her feet as the eagle soared through the air towards her. The first year Gryffindor held out her arm and the eagle perched itself delicately on her arm seconds later.

The whole hall stared at the bird and the Gryffindor

"What?" Phoebe asked, looking around as she smoothed out the feathers of the bird "You act like you haven't seen a bird before!" and with that she turned back to her friends

James, Oliver and Katie stared at her as if she was insane "Pheebs..." Katie started "That's not your average messenger bird"

Phoebe smiled "I know," she nodded "My family do not use owls," she explained "In Portugal most Wizarding families, like mine, use Golden Eagles. It's a tradition that has gone back many generations. Athena has been in my family since 1905; she was passed down to Serefina by her mother when Serefina was 17."

Her fellow Gryffindor's exchanged looks at the minor back story, before Katie reached forward bravely to stroke the golden feathers of the bird. Athena eyed her curiously with a big golden eye before letting out a coo.

"I think she likes you," Phoebe smiled, as Katie pulled back "So. What do you have for me today, Athena?"

The bird cocked her head to the side and surveyed Phoebe through her clear golden eyes, opened her beak and cawed loudly, before holding out her leg where a letter had been tied. Phoebe took the letter and placed it on the table "Thank-you" she smiled at the bird, promising her with a few mice for supper; and the bird took once more to the skies and disappeared through the high windows once more.

The Great Hall watched as the bird disappeared, before going back to whatever they had been doing before the mail arrived. Oliver and Katie had each reached letters and packages from home, James had received a parcel of sweets from his mother; while Phoebe inspected the letter she had received from Athena.

It was a very short letter. Only a few lines:

_Tonight. Entrance hall. 8:00pm._

_~ Serefina._

Phoebe smiled and glanced up at the staff table; she caught her guardian's eye and nodded. Serefina winked back and returned to her conversation with Professor Flitwick.

"Shall we go?" James asked, turning Phoebe "Flying lessons start in 10 minutes..."

"Okay," Phoebe agreed "You want to get Ashlyn and meet me in the Entrance Hall?"

James shook his head "its okay, you can get her"

Phoebe rolled her eyes, swung her legs over the bench and stood up "You're such a wimp" she said, poking James in the shoulder "I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall," and she snagged her backpack from the ground and hurried across to the Slytherin table.

_~*Phoebe*~_

After making it to the Entrance Hall, Ashlyn, Phoebe and James stepped out into the bright rays of the afternoon light.

"Have either of you flown before?" Phoebe asked, as she walked between her two friends as they headed across the courtyard towards another and late down onto front lawn where their lesson was to take place.

Ashlyn and James nodded

"Yeah. Marcus and Adrian taught me when I was five," Ashlyn answered

James nodded "My mum's brother taught me" he responded

"Good morning class," Madam Hooch said once everyone had arrived "Welcome to your first flying lesson. I want everyone to step up to the left side of their broomsticks, place their right hand over it, and say 'UP.'"

Phoebe stepped up to the left side of the broom in front of her, held her right hand over the item and spoke clearly "Up!"

Nothing.

With a small frown Phoebe turned to see both Malfoy and Harry who had successfully gotten their brooms into their hands on the first and second try. Her frowned deepened further when James managed to successfully get his broom on the third try.

"Up!"

Again, nothing happened

"With feeling!" Madam Hooch told them, as she watched from her spot at the front of the class.

Ashlyn frowned "With feeling?" as she turned to face Phoebe; she too had failed to get her broom to respond

Phoebe shrugged before turning quickly to the sound of Ron Weasley's voice, and managed to witness the broom slamming into his face. She hadn't been the only one who had witnessed it, nor was she the only who laughed.

Turning back to her broom, Phoebe tried again "Up!"

The broom didn't move.

Phoebe was growing annoyed

"It would seem the broom doesn't like you, Blackheart!" Draco Malfoy sneered, as he watched her from the opposite side of the front lawn

Phoebe glared at him "It would seem that it is _only_ the broom that likes you, Malfoy!" she retorted

"Up!" Ashlyn said, and the broom shot into her hand

Phoebe growled "Oh for the love of -" she cut herself off "Get. UP!" the broom zoomed up into her hand and she wrapped her fingers around the handle, staggering slightly as the broom knocked her off balance

"Now, once you've got hold of your broom, I want you to mount it" Madam Hooch continued, as she walked amongst the students "Grip it tight. You don't wanna be sliding off the end."

She waited as the student mimicked her instructions

"When I blow my whistle, I want each of you to kick off from the ground, hard." Madam Hooch's gaze swept over Phoebe and Ashlyn as she continued "Keep your broom steady, hover for a moment, then lean forward slightly and touch back down..." her gaze swept over James and Neville, and raised her whistle to her lips "On my whistle...three...two..." she blew hard, as a shrill sound echoed through the grounds.

Many students who were used to being on brooms instantly kicked off from the ground, Phoebe, Ashlyn and James amongst them. Pulling to a halt in mid-air, Phoebe looked around at her fellow students and watched as many of them showed off by pulling stunts and performing ticks -like Draco Malfoy- and others, like Hermione Granger was puttering around about three feet off the ground.

Leaning forward on her broom Phoebe tilted it towards the ground and swooped down beside Hermione "Hey," she smiled

"Hi," Hermione responded, she remembered Phoebe from the previous night; she had been the only girl in the first years dorms that actually talked to her

Looking around at the rest of the class, Phoebe turned back to Hermione "Come on," she said, nodding towards the open skies "You'll never learn to fly if you stay down here"

"I'm not particularly good on a broom," Hermione admitted

"No one is," Phoebe answered "But you'll never be good if you don't practice"

Hermione looked nervous "I do my best thinking on my feet"

Phoebe snorted "Hermione, nothing is going to happen to you, you know?"

"How can you be so sure?"

"I can't," Phoebe shrugged "But flying a broom is like riding a bike. Once you've gotten control of it, it just comes naturally. Remember the first time you rode a bike?"

Hermione nodded "Yeah...it was difficult, my father had to run alongside me to keep me balanced, and then he let me go alone"

Phoebe smiled "Well, learning to ride a broom is just like that,"

"But there is no one there to hold me," Hermione answered

"What am I?" Phoebe questioned "Invisible? Come on..." and she held out her hand "I won't let you fall. Besides, what's the point in anything if you're not willing to take the risk?"

Hermione contemplated her words before nodding stiffly and pushing off from the ground, Phoebe grabbed her broom quickly as it shot passed her, Hermione's broom gave a jerk and nearly bucked the bookworm off.

"Easy," Phoebe chuckled "Not so fast, okay?"

Hermione nodded numbly

After being joined by Ashlyn and James, Phoebe and her two friends taught Hermione the basics of flying a broomstick. They taught her how to go forward, backwards, how to stop and how to turn; before finally giving her full reign of the broomstick for herself.

"Now, give it a go" James encouraged "Just remember, we're right here if you need us"

Hermione nodded, a look of fear still in her face, but she leaned forward and shot into the air; she tilted her broom slightly to the right and swept around her friends. A cry of joy escaped her lips.

"They grow up so fast," Phoebe sniffed

James rolled his eyes "Oh boy," he muttered, before turning to the sound of a terrified scream.

Spinning around in the air Phoebe was able to witness the quick descent of Neville Longbottom as his broom disappeared from beneath him "Neville!" she yelled, pressing herself flat against her broom and darting forwards; unfortunately she was seconds too late and Neville hit the ground with a sickening crunch. Phoebe jumped from her broom and landed on both feet beside him "Neville..." she whispered

"Ow," Neville whimpered, as James -who had landed beside Phoebe- attempted to help him to his feet

"What is it?" James asked "Your wrist?"

Neville nodded clutching his left wrist loosely in his right hand

"What's going on?" Madam Hooch demanded, as she came hurrying towards the three Gryffindor's

"We think Neville has broken his wrist, Ma'am" Phoebe answered, helping her house-mate to his feet

Madam Hooch surveyed the three of them "How did this happen?" she asked

Neville sniffled and shook his head

"He was doing just fine," James answered "I was watching him. Then suddenly his broom just disappeared from beneath him and he dropped" he explained

Phoebe nodded "I heard him scream," she added in "I tried to help him, but by the time I had got close enough he was already on the ground."

"So neither of you saw who did this?" Madam Hooch asked

Phoebe and James shook their heads "No ma'am, we didn't" they answered together

Madam Hooch pursed her lips "Very well!" she nodded "I will take Mr. Longbottom to the Hospital Wing. The rest of you are to stay here! If I see a single broom in the air, the one riding it will be out of Hogwarts faster than they can say Quidditch! Understand?"

"Yes, Madam Hooch," the class chanted

Madam Hooch nodded, wrapped her arm around Neville and escorted him back to the castle.

Once the flying instructor and Neville were out of side, Draco Malfoy gave a loud laugh and caused the rest of the students to turn in his direction "Did you see his face? Maybe if the fat lump had given this a squeeze, he'd have remembered to fall on his fat arse!" he laughed, along with all the Slytherin's, minus Ashlyn. In his hand he was holding a glass ball, which the Gryffindor's recognized as Neville's Rememberal.

"That's Neville's!" Phoebe exclaimed "Give it back!"

"No!" Malfoy answered

Gripping her broom tightly in her hand, Phoebe knocked it against the blonde's head. Hard. "I said give it back!" she ordered

"Why should I?" Malfoy asked

"Because she said too," Harry Potter said, stepping forward.

Phoebe and Draco snapped out of their glaring competition and turned in his direction "Oh, the big savior of the Wizarding world, has come to help the pretty little damsel, has he?" Draco taunted "You want this? Come and get it!" and he mounted his broom, and took to the sky.

Phoebe moved to follow him, but Harry beat her too it.

"Harry, no way!" Hermione interrupted "You heard what Madam Hooch said. Besides, you don't even know how to fly"

But Harry wasn't listening and had taken to the skies after Malfoy.

"What an idiot." Hermione muttered

"Give it here Malfoy," Harry shouted as he became level with Draco "Or I'll knock you off your broom!"

Malfoy smirked "Is that so?" he asked

"Oh, what I would give to knock that smirk off his face," Phoebe fumed, suddenly she squeaked as Harry dropped down, and flew up behind Draco.

The Slytherin spun fully around on his broom and glared over his shoulder "Have it your way, then," he sneered, pulling his arm back and throwing the glass ball towards Hogwarts.

Pressing himself down onto the broom, Harry sped after the glass ball and caught it seconds before it hit the window.

"Yes!" Phoebe shouted, punching her fist into the air "He caught it!"

With Harry returning to the ground, the Gryffindor's -with Ron, Phoebe and James in the lead- pummeled Harry with pats on the back and others ruffled his hair as he disappeared between them, still holding the glass ball.

"Nice going, Harry" Ron cheered

"That was wicked, Harry!" James agreed

Phoebe grinned and much to everyone surprise, hugged Harry "That was brilliant!" she told him

"Harry Potter!" Everyone turned as Professor McGonagall hurried forward, her emerald robes flowing behind her. She stopped short before the students. "Follow me."

All cheering grounded to a halt, as with a heavy heart the Gryffindor's parted and watched as their house-mate obediently followed after their head of house.

The Slytherin laughed quietly to themselves as the Professor and Student both left the other three houses in silence.

**A/N: I am so sorry. I am such a bad author...truth is I returned from my Holiday on Saturday, and have been catching up on many things. It kinda feels like jet lag and since I never left my own country it makes it even stranger as to why I am going to bed earlier than usual.**

**Anyway; here is chapter 3.**

**If I have any readers from England, then please keep safe. I have been watching the riots and I wish anyone from England to be safe at this time. Just know that we here in Wales are thinking about you all.**

**Reviews (please)**

**~*Kara*~**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

_Chapter updated 10 August 2011 at 22:56pm_


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** _Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications:** _Chapter dedicated too _**BeckyBoo12221, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics**_ and_**KingdomHeartsNerd**_. Thanks for taking the time to read and review, makes me smile every time open my emails to see I have reviews. You guys are the best._

**In Responses: **_Not much to say here, except to __**BeckyBoo12221**__; yes there have been mini riots in Cardiff, but we are not ruling them as anything that is connected to the riots in England. Wales is determined that the riots in England will not making it across the border into Wales. So don't fear Cardiff is a great place, and I hope you have lots of fun =)_

_Also too__** 10th Squad 3rd Seat**__: Thanks. I wanted a change from the original 'owls' to be messenger birds, so I thought I'd do a new twist. Originally the name was meant to be Athene. But Athena stood out more. ^_^_

_Lastly to __**Fan of Fics**__: The sibling rivalry? Yes, it is strange considering the circumstances, but Phoebe knows who Draco is, and I guess she just wants him to learn more quickly as too who she is. I guess you could say she wants to tell him, but she also wants him to guess; so she doesn't get in trouble for dropping the secret. If you get me...if not don't worry =D_

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><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:**_For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>"You're <em>joking!"<em> Phoebe gasped as she sat opposite Oliver at the Gryffindor table that evening. It was dinner time and Oliver had just finished telling her that McGonagall had managed to find him a new seeker for the Gryffindor team, although when she had asked who it was she hadn't been expecting Harry's name to leave Oliver's mouth "Seeker? But I thought there was a rule about first years not being able to play on the house team"

Oliver nodded "There is," he replied "Potter is the youngest Quidditch player in a century!"

"Wicked!" Phoebe grinned; looking impressed "When does training start?"

"Next week," Oliver answered, before turning serious "Why?"

Phoebe smiled and patted his shoulder "Don't worry Oliver, I'm not going to sell you out to anyone, especially Slytherin"

"I didn't say you would," Oliver defended

"No, but I could see it in your eyes," Phoebe responded "Look, I wanted to know when your training lessons were so that maybe I'd come down and cheer you on. You know a moral boost of encouragement" she grinned

Oliver shook his head and shoveled pie into his mouth.

Phoebe grimaced "Ew!"

_~*Phoebe*~_

Dinner ended at 8:00pm, and while the rest of the houses returned to their common rooms, Phoebe remained behind as she awaited the arrival of Serefina from the Great Hall. From where she stood Phoebe was able to bid her friends goodnight as they departed to different parts of the school. Oliver, Katie and James headed up the Marble staircase for the seventh floor corridor, while Ashlyn followed Marcus Flint down into the Dungeons.

"Good night, Pheebs" Ashlyn waved, glancing over her shoulder "Have fun with Professor Blackheart"

"I will," Phoebe nodded "Night Ashlyn, see you tomorrow at Breakfast"

And the two parted.

Several minutes after the students had all filed out of the Entrance hall, Serefina arrived with Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall "Good evening, Miss. Blackheart" Dumbledore greeted

"Good evening, Headmaster" Phoebe bowed "Professor McGonagall"

Professor McGonagall bowed her head "I am to believe that your friends know where you are this evening?" she asked

"James, Oliver and Katie know that I am with Professor Blackheart," Phoebe answered "They do not know what it is I am doing though. They think I am catching up with her, and discussing my first day"

McGonagall nodded "Of course. I will await your arrival back in the common room. Good luck" she wished, before walking away

"Thank-you," Phoebe murmured in response, before turning back to her headmaster and guardian "What exactly _will_ I be doing?" she asked them

Serefina Blackheart smiled "Training"

Phoebe frowned "Training? But I thought -"

"You thought wrong," Serefina interrupted "Just because you are at Hogwarts, Phoebe does not mean that we must allow your abilities training to slip. You are much too vulnerable now for it to do so"

Phoebe looked confused, what did that mean? "But how can you teach me Water bending, you are a Earth bender" she pointed out

"I may not bend the same element as you, Phoebe" Serefina answered "But I have watched my mother move water many times in the past. I know the basic's, we will be fine, if not..." she inclined her head slightly "then Mama will have to come here and train you..."

Phoebe's eyes widened at the prospect of her grandmother arriving at Hogwarts, _what trouble would that cause?_ She asked herself "So..."

"So..." Serefina repeated "...now we practice. Tonight will be a quick lesson. We will always meet at nightfall, there are less people around to witness you, and I do not have to pull you out of class to do so."

Phoebe nodded "Where exactly are we going to practice?"

"The Forbidden Forest," Dumbledore answered "There is a small stream in there that connects with the Black Lake; there should be enough water there for you control. I bid you a good luck, Miss. Blackheart"

"Thank-you, headmaster" Phoebe smiled, before turning back to her aunt "Shall we?" she asked

Serefina smiled and opened the Entrance Hall doors, revealing a full silvery moon in the night's sky "We shall," she repeated

Phoebe grinned as she felt her powers spike as the moon bathed her within its light.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Phoebe smiled as she hummed softly to herself while making her way down the empty hallway of the seventh floor; it was nearly 11:30pm and she had only just returned from Serefina's office. They had come back from their lesson at around 9:30pm, and had spent the remainder of the night in her office talking about Phoebe's first day at Hogwarts. During that time Phoebe told her guardian everything. Everything from her classes to her friends.

"Just be careful around the Slytherin's," Serefina had warned "I'm aware that you are friends with Miss. Black, but promise me you'll be careful, elemental wise"

Phoebe couldn't help but smile at Serefina's protectiveness. If the Slytherin's found out about her and went back to tell their parents, then there was possibly a good chance that they would have an uprising on their hands. People like Phoebe and the Blackheart family, weren't exactly considered natural to the human societies. They had powers that anyone would kill for, and powers that were wielded without a wand were sometimes classed as dark magic; which was why the Blackheart family lived mostly in Portugal and Russia, but never in England.

The Ministry of Magic didn't welcome them into the country rather pleasantly.

"If either of you get us caught..."

Ron Weasley's voice sounded from around the corner, and Phoebe slowed her walk as she neared the floor that would lead her directly back to her tower. She checked her watch and frowned as the big hand struck the nine.

_Why are they out of their beds?_ She wondered, listening closely as Ron continued his threat

"...I'll never rest until I've learnt that 'Curse of the Bogies' Quirrell told us about and used it on you" the red head finished

Phoebe rolled her eyes, and decided to reveal her presence. Stepping around the corner, she folded her arms and cleared her throat.

The group ahead of her, consisted of Neville Longbottom, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger "And what exactly are you four doing out of bed?" she asked, causing them to jump at her presence.

"Oh, Phoebe," Hermione gasped, her hand clutching her heart

"What are we doing out of bed?" Ron glared, his eyes narrowing in the dark "What are_ you_ doing out of bed?"

Phoebe's eyes flickered to his "I happen to have permission," she told him, brandishing a note that she had received from Serefina, just in case she got caught by Filch on her way back up to her common room "You on the other hand have no business roaming the castle at this time of night"

"You sound like Percy," Ron scoffed, before turning to Harry "Come on. We're going to be late."

"Late?" Phoebe questioned, as they bustled past her "Late for what?" she turned to Hermione and Neville who shrugged.

"The Fat Lady has gone," Hermione informed her room-mate, "we can't get back into the tower. I suggest that we all stick together"

Phoebe sighed, and turned in the direction Harry and Ron had disappeared "Fine." she reluctantly agreed

And the five of them set off at a fast pace.

_~*Phoebe*~_

They flittered along the corridors.

At every turn they expected to run into Filch or someone that was patrolling the castle for students who were out of bed.

Finally they reached the trophy room, and slipped inside.

"He's late," Ron whispered, as he realized that Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were not present when they arrived "maybe he's chickened out"

"Or he didn't intend on showing up in the first place," Phoebe retorted "Don't tell me, you honestly expected Malfoy to follow through on his word?"

Ron glared at her through the dim light. Phoebe glared right back.

A noise from the next room caused the five of them jump in surprise, but the next sound that was heard made their blood run cold.

"Sniff around, my sweet, they might be lurking in the corners"

"It's Filch!" Hermione squeaked, covering her mouth with her hands, as she stared fearfully at the others "What do we do?"

Harry pointed towards a door at the other end of the room "Through there!" he whispered, urgently. The five of them darted forwards and Neville's robes had barely whipped around the corner when Filch entered the Trophy room.

"They're in here somewhere," Filch croaked "probably hiding"

"This way," Harry mouthed to the others and, petrified, they scurried down a long gallery full of suits of armor.

All too soon disaster struck, as Neville tripped over his own two feet, grabbed Phoebe around the waist and the pair of them toppled right into a suit of armor. The clanging was just enough to wake the whole castle.

"RUN!" Harry yelled, as Hermione pulled Phoebe to her feet, and Ron did the same to Neville; and then all five of them sprinted at top speed down the corridor. They swung around the doorpost, galloped down two corridors, and burst through a tapestry which led out onto the Charms corridor.

The five slowed to a halt and leant over to catch their breaths, Neville sliding down onto the floor along with Ron.

"I think we've lost him," Harry panted

"I told you!" Phoebe gasped, turning on Ron "Malfoy tricked you, and you fell for it!"

Ron glared at her

"You are so gullible, Weasley!"

"No one asked for your opinion, Blackheart!" Ron snapped

Phoebe growled under her breath "I'd shut your mouth if I was you, Weasley!" she spat "I, unlike you, have permission to be wandering the castle halls. I can just give my note to Filch, and tell him that I was on my way back from Professor Blackheart's office, and Professor Dumbledore would back me up on that." she explained "You, on the other hand," she pointed her finger at him "have no excuse whatsoever to be out of bed this late! So unless you want me to turn you in -"

"You wouldn't!" Ron gasped "You'd be costing your own house points!"

"And Hermione would make up for it tomorrow in lessons," Phoebe cut across him; her eyes flickered to black for a second, but returned to stormy grey as she blinked and turned away.

The hallway was silent for a second, before Hermione spoke:

"We have to get back to Gryffindor Tower," the bookworm stated "quickly!"

The others nodded in agreement. But they hadn't moved three feet away from the end of the corridor, when they found their paths blocked by Peeves.

"Wandering around at midnight, ickle firsties," Peeves cackled "Tut, tut, tut. Naughty, naughty, you'll get caughty"

"Not if you don't give us away, Peeves, please" Ron begged

"Should turn tell Filch, I should," said Peeves "It's for your own good, you know"

"Get out of the way!" snapped Ron, taking a swipe at Peeves

Phoebe smacked him upside the head "You idiot!" she snarled "Now look what you've done!" she pointed at Peeves who was screaming at the top of his voice

"STUDENTS OUT OF BED! STUDENTS OUT OF BED DOWN THE CHARMS CORRIDOR!"

Ducking under Peeves the five Gryffindor's thundered down to the end of the corridor, around the corner and straight towards the door on the end - but it was locked.

"This is it!" Ron moaned "We're done for! This is the end!"

"Oh, move over" Hermione snarled. She grabbed Harry's wand, pointed it at the lock and muttered "_Alohomora!"_

The lock clicked and the door swung open. The Gryffindor's didn't even breathe as they scrambled inside, and shut the door behind them. Listening intently to the conversation that they could hear going on outside. Filch had arrived to Peeve's screaming and was demanding to know where they were; but Peeves was being his tormenting little self and taunting Filch into submission.

"Quick! Tell me!" Filch demanded

"Say 'please'" Peeves teased

"Don't mess me about, Peeves! Now _where_ did they go?"

"Shan't say nothing if you don't say please,"

"All right - _please_."

"NOTHING!" Peeves cackled "Ha haaa! Told you I wouldn't say nothing if you didn't say please! Ha ha! Haaaaa!"

The Gryffindor's heard Filch curse and Peeves whooshing away; before all became silent as Filch's footsteps died away.

"He thinks this door is locked," Harry murmured, as he pulled away from the door

"It was locked," Hermione answered, also turning away.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned to Neville who had squeaked in fear "It's okay Neville, Filch is gone, we'll wait two more minutes then make a break for Gryffindor Tower. 'Kay?" she frowned, however, when she saw the sheer paleness on Neville's face "Neville?"

Neville shook as he grasped Phoebe's wrist and squeezed it tightly "M-Monster!" he stuttered, pointing into the air

Harry, Hermione, Ron and Phoebe paused and looked up, their heartbeats thumping against their chest and rebounding around the room for all to hear. It was like walking into a nightmare. As realization dawned, and each of them realized, that _this_ room was the room that was forbidden. And the reason it was forbidden was because it housed a giant three-headed dog.

"I don't know about you guys," Phoebe spoke "But I'd rather face Filch than be dog food!"

The others nodded in agreement and made a break for the door. Harry reached it first and swung it open, as the others collided with him and shoved him from the room in the haste to leave. The dog barked and lunged at them, snapping its jaws closed on Neville's robes as the others shoved their weight against it. The door slammed shut and locked into place.

Once the door was locked, the five Gryffindor's turned on their heels and returned to the seventh floor where the Fat Lady was sitting in her portrait, looking quite surprised to see them "Where on earth have you all been?" she asked,

"Never mind that," Harry panted "Pig snout! Pig snout!"

The Fat Lady swung open and the five first years scrambled through the portrait hole, and back into the common room.

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><p><strong>AN: Going to have to end it there. Have to get to sleep now, going to meet up with my friend and go watch the new Harry Potter again.**

**A new chapter should be up sometime this week. I don't know when exactly, but keep a look out for it. Hope you enjoyed.**

**While we're here…any Teen Wolf fans out there? Thinking of doing a story on it, and I need some advice on it. Any fans? Let me know. XD.**

**Review**

**~*Kara*~**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to moi xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

_Chapter updated 13 August 2011 at 04:25am_


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **_Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications:**_ Chapter dedicated too _**10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, AvengedSevenfoldLover, Artemis1922, Red Neo Ranger**_ and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.** _Thanks for your kind words._

**In Responses:**_ In response too: __**Fan of Fics**__: Phoebe was not born an Elemental. She was trained by Serefina and the Blackheart family. There is more to come on them as the story goes on, I promise._

_**Artemis1922**__: Since you left your review, I have been struggling to understand what you meant when you said that I went in a direction many don't go. If you could explain that I would be most happy. =) Also, as for the pairings, as of yet, the pairings are N/A._

_Other than that...I have nothing to say._

_Except for any readers of my MWS story, I am hoping to come back to it soon with another update. But I would also like to announce that I am working on a side story for the series. It will be titled: __**Deleted Scenes**__ and it will be a series of scenes that were written but did not make it into the main body of the Muggleborn Witches series._

_Anyway...on with __**The Dark Lord's Downfall.**_

_Enjoy._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p>Next morning Phoebe awoke late.<p>

It was nearing the end of breakfast by the time she had showered and dressed ready for the school day ahead, she was in the middle of stuffing her books into her messenger bag, and stepping into the common room when the portrait of the Fat Lady swung open, and Harry and Ron hurried inside.

"Morning," Phoebe smiled at them, despite their 'adventure' the previous night with Filch and the three headed dog, she was not ignoring them like she knew Hermione would be. Finally zipping her messenger bag closed Phoebe swung it over her shoulder and turned back to the two boys "What's that you got, Harry?" she asked, pointing at the parcel in his hands.

Ron glared at her "Why should we tell you, Blackheart?"

"It was a simple question, Weasley" Phoebe retorted "No need to bite my head off! And if I'm not mistaken I was speaking to Harry, not you!"

"Well, Harry doesn't wish to speak with you!" Ron answered

Phoebe snorted "Well, if that's the case let him tell me for himself" she snapped "Or has he lost the ability to speak?"

The red head bristled angrily, but Phoebe ignored him and turned to the black-haired boy "Well?" she asked "Do you wish to speak to me, or not?" she questioned

"I do want to speak to you," Harry answered

Ron's jaw hit the floor, as Phoebe smirked triumphantly.

Sliding past the two Gryffindor's, Phoebe patted Ron's head "Blackheart - 1, Weasley - 0" she taunted, before hurrying out of the tower and down to what was left of Breakfast.

_~*Phoebe*~_

The school day flew by fast, and soon Phoebe found herself collapsing onto the red couch in front of the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, as James dropped down into one of the chairs and sunk so low it looked like the chair had swallowed him whole.

"I am so tired!" he complained "It's unbelievable!"

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed "Considering we haven't actually _done _anything today, we shouldn't be this tired"

James nodded "So, what happened last night?" he asked "How was your time with Professor Blackheart?"

"It was fun," Phoebe nodded "she asked me all about our first day. I told her about you and Ashlyn, and what happened with Neville in flying. Then I came back up here."

"What time was that?" James asked

"Dunno, about 12"

James sat up straight "12:00am?" he exclaimed "How didn't you get caught?"

"I had permission," Phoebe answered, before looking up as a shadow fell over her "Hey Oliver,"

Oliver Wood smiled as he looked down over the back of the couch at Phoebe "Hey, I'm going to meet Harry, do you want to come?"

"Why are you meeting, Harry?" Phoebe asked "Where are you meeting him?"

"Quidditch pitch. His training starts tonight"

James frowned and glanced at the clock "Isn't it a bit late to be training your seeker?" he asked

"Which is why it's also the perfect time," Oliver answered "no one can see us"

"Sneaky," Phoebe grinned, holding out her hand "Pull me up"

Oliver smirked as he grasped hands with the 11-year-old and pulled her back up onto her feet "I'll take that as a yes, as too you're coming, shall I?"

"Just let me go drop off my things," Phoebe told him, disappearing upstairs. She deposited her messenger bag onto her bed, changed out of her uniform and into a pair of jeans, a jumper, jacket and trainers. Before hurrying back downstairs to re-join Oliver. "Ready?"

Oliver nodded and turned to James "See ya, Black"

"See ya, James" Phoebe waved, as she followed the Quidditch captain out of the common room, through the hallways, and out of the main entrance towards the Quidditch pitch.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Stepping out onto the field, Phoebe looked around for any signs of Harry.

"Where is he then?" Phoebe asked, not spotting her fellow Gryffindor anywhere

Oliver frowned over at her as they placed the box they had been carrying between them down on the ground "Look up, Pheebs" he teased

Phoebe did as instructed "Oh," she smiled "There he is"

Oliver chuckled "Hey, Potter, come down!" he called

Harry stopped in mid-air before tilting his broom downwards and soared towards his house-mates. He landed beside them.

"Very nice," Oliver said, his eyes glinting in the dim light "I see what McGonagall meant...you really are a natural. I'm just going to teach you the rules this evening, and then you'll be joining team practices three times a week"

Harry nodded, as Phoebe opened the crate. Inside were four different-sized balls.

"Right," Oliver started once more "Quidditch is easy to understand. Each team has seven players. Three Chasers, two Beaters, one Keeper and a Seeker. That's you."

"Three Chasers," Harry repeated

Phoebe stooped and grabbed the middle ball from the crate; she tossed it into the air and watched as Oliver caught it.

"There are three kinds of balls," Oliver went on "This one's called the Quaffle. The Chasers throw the Quaffle to each other and try and get it through one of the hoops to score a goal. Ten points every time the Quaffle goes through one of the hoops. The Keeper," Oliver continued "that's me, defends the hoops. With me so far?"

Harry tossed the Quaffle to Phoebe, who caught it with ease "Three Chasers, one Keeper" Harry recited "And they play with the Quaffle. Okay, got that. So what are those?" he pointed at the two black balls in the crate.

"You better take this;" Oliver said, presenting Harry with a small club like bat, he then turned to Phoebe "You better stand back"

Still clutching the Quaffle Phoebe nodded and ducked behind him as he unleashed one of the Bludgers into the air. The black ball rose high into the air before pelting back towards them

"Careful now, it's coming back!" Wood said, as Phoebe shielded herself away behind him. She knew very well that she could have easily defended herself but that meant exposing her powers to Oliver and Harry, and she had promised that she wouldn't do that.

Harry prepared himself and swung at the Bludger seconds before it hit him. The bat came in contacted with the black ball and sent it zig-zagging through the air away from them.

Phoebe nodded "Nice one" she complimented "He'd make a fair Beater" she added, prodding Oliver in the side

The fifth year nodded in agreement, before the air was knocked out of his lungs as the Bludger hurled back towards him. Oliver wrestled with the ball but managed to secure it once more back in the crate.

"What was that?" Harry asked

"Bludger," Oliver panted "They rocket around trying to knock players off their brooms. That's why you have two Beaters on each team. The Weasley twins are ours - it's their job to protect their side from the Bludgers and try and knock them towards the other team."

Harry's eyes widened "Have the Bludgers ever killed anyone?" he asked

"Never at Hogwarts," Oliver answered "We've had a couple of broken jaws but nothing worse than that. Now, the last member of the team is the Seeker. Your job isn't to worry about the Quaffle or the Bludgers -"

"Unless the crack my head open," Harry interrupted

Phoebe touched his shoulder reassuringly "I've gotten to know Fred and George quite well over the past couple of days," she told him "they're like a couple of human Bludgers themselves. You'll be fine"

Harry smiled softly at her

"The only thing I want you to worry about is this," Wood said, removing a large walnut size golden ball from the crate "The Golden Snitch. This is the most important ball of the lot. It's the Seekers job to catch it. You've got to weave in and out of the Chasers, Bludgers and Quaffle to get it before the other team's Seeker, because whichever Seeker catches the Snitch wins his team an extra hundred and fifty points -"

Phoebe jumped in "and wins their team the game" she grinned

Oliver grinned at her enthusiasm "She's right. A game of Quidditch can only end when the Snitch has been caught, so it can go on for ages - I think the record is three months, they had to keep bringing on substitutes so the players could get some sleep"

"So you better catch the Snitch," Phoebe teased "because I'm not sitting in the stands for three months waiting for either your or Higgs to catch the Snitch"

"Who?" Harry frowned

"Slytherin seeker," both Oliver and Phoebe answered, each exchanging amused grins with one another.

"Well, that's it - any questions?" Oliver asked, turning back to his Seeker

Harry shook his head

Oliver nodded "We won't practice with the Snitch yet," he said "It's too dark, we might lose it. Let's try you out with a few of these"

He pulled out a bag of ordinary golf balls, and a few minutes later, he and Harry were up in the air, and Phoebe was in the stands watching them. Oliver hovered a few feet away from where Phoebe was sitting and was throwing the golf balls as hard as he could in every direction for Harry to catch.

Phoebe smiled as she watched Harry swoop and dive through the air with ease, catching every single golf ball that was thrown at him.

When the practice was over, she descended to the pitch and hugged her house-mate and complimented him on his flying skills. Harry felt his face warm at her words, and mentally thanked the gods that it was dark, or both Phoebe and Oliver would have seen the heat rising in his cheeks.

"That Quidditch Cup will have our name on it this year," Oliver said happily as the three Gryffindor's trudged back up to the castle later that evening. "I wouldn't be surprised if you turn out better than Charlie Weasley, and he could have played for England if he hadn't gone off chasing dragons"

Phoebe snickered "Not everyone is Quidditch obsessed like you, Oliver" she teased "some people actually have dreams for after Hogwarts"

"So do I," Oliver defended

"Yeah, playing for a Professional Quidditch team" Phoebe countered

Harry snickered, as Oliver felt his ears burn, Phoebe had only been at the castle for a little under a month, and already she knew him better than half the students he had been around for five years. Including some of his best friends.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Just a short one.**

**Got a headache forming so I'm off to bed.**

**One question before I go...do you want to see Phoebe involved with the Troll incident? Let me know when you review. =D**

**Review**

**~*Kara*~**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx._

_Chapter updated 16 August 2011 at 05:08am_


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:**_ Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications: **_Chapter dedicated too _**Fan of Fics, Grapejuice101, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, AvengedSevenfoldLover, PromptDreamer-PSAscience ** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In Responses:** _To **PromptDreamer-PSAscience**: Thank-you for your kind words. Im glad that my disability isn't affecting my writings. And i'm happy to hear that either my stories or my determination to prove that just because I have a disability doesn't mean you should stop doing what you love has inspired you. You have made me very happy with your review. I cannot thank-you enough. =)_

_On with the story._

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><p><strong>Title: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>Maybe it was because she was constantly busy these days; what with the additional training lessons she had been taken with Serefina. Or maybe it had something to do with the amount of homework she had been given on top of her training lessons, but Phoebe could not believe how fast first term was coming to a close. Halloween was just around the corner and in a few months Christmas would be upon them. The castle was starting to feel more and more like home and the students within its walls her starting to feel more like family with each passing day.<p>

Phoebe's friendship with James and Ashlyn had grown intensively since the beginning of term and they were starting to feel more like her brother and sister. And her friendship with Katie Bell and Oliver Wood was going in the same direction, although she was becoming extensively closer to Oliver more than anyone else, they shared the same interest in many things; including Quidditch and Lessons. But alas as the year drew on Oliver was becoming more and more focused on his Quidditch practices than he was anything else, and Phoebe was pretty much left to fend for herself with the rest of her friends for company. Not that it really bothered her, she still saw Oliver, just not as often as she was used too.

Gryffindor Quidditch practices were held three times a week. Some nights Phoebe found herself sitting in the stands watching the practices, other nights she would stand on the edge of the Forbidden forest during one of her training sessions with Serefina, either way she was intrigued by the skill of her house team, and how much Harry was learning from his practices.

And tonight wasn't any different.

"Phoebe," Serefina called, breaking through her goddaughter's thoughts "Concentration is the key, remember? The sooner you finish here, the sooner you can head over to the pitch and catch the last of Gryffindor's practice. Okay?"

"Yeah. Right." Phoebe nodded, turning away from the edge of the Forbidden forest and following her Godmother towards the lake in the centre of the dense trees. "What are we learning tonight?" she asked

Serefina glanced sideways at the child that was like a daughter to her "The same," she answered. They reached the stream and Serefina motioned for Phoebe to begin.

Phoebe nodded and stepped closer to the lake, she held out her hands and started to curl her fingers into a fist; beneath her hand the water started to rise into the air forming a liquid streamline in the air. In one swift movement, she whipped the water towards Serefina who flicked her wrist as a thick vine exploded from the soil beneath her feet and blocked the water attack.

Serefina smirked and nodded as the lesson continued.

Phoebe using her powers to manipulate the water of the small stream, and Serefina using her Earth powers to block the oncoming water bombs.

The lesson lasted for an hour and a half, before Serefina was walking Phoebe back to the castle.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Soon Halloween was upon them, and the students of Hogwarts were awoke to the delicious smell of baking pumpkins.

Charms was the first lesson of the day for the Gryffindor's, the only downside to this lesson was that it was one of the lessons they shared with Slytherin.

"One of a wizard's most rudimentary skills is levitation," Professor Flitwick was saying from the front of the class "or the ability to make objects fly. For today's lesson I will be splitting you into pairs and we will be attempting to perform this spell on these feathers which have been set out for you."

The first years exchanged excited looks, while Professor Flitwick started pairing them up.

"Miss Black," he pointed at Ashlyn "with Mr. Black"

James and Ashlyn smirked at one another as James and Phoebe swapped seats.

"Miss Granger, with Mr. Weasley"

Hermione groaned inwardly as she got up from her seat at the end of the row and moved to sit beside Ron as Harry took the empty seat beside Phoebe.

"Mr. Potter," Professor Flitwick squeaked (like he usually did when he mentioned Harry) "with Mr. Finnigan"

Phoebe giggled as she waved Harry off as he took his seat once again beside Seamus, who looked positively delighted at the prospect. Professor Flitwick continued to pair the class up before he finally came to Phoebe's name.

"Miss Blackheart, with Mr. Malfoy"

"You've got to be kidding me." Phoebe grumbled as she looked across the room to where Draco was sitting. The Platinum blonde looked almost as horrified as Phoebe felt.

"Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" squeaked Professor Flitwick "Swish and Flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too - never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

Phoebe, along with most of the class, laughed at the mental image they received. Professor Flitwick chuckled himself before motioning for them to continue "Now you give it a go" he smiled

Turning back to Draco and their feather Phoebe scowled at him "Look, I'm not happy with this pairing arrangement either, but can we at least put our differences aside just for this one lesson?" she asked

"I suppose," Draco retorted "But just this one. Do not get used to it"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Phoebe answered, removing her wand and pointing it at the feather. She swished and flicked the small thin strip of wood and felt a small twinge in the palm of her hand as if something was trying to escape. The first year Gryffindor frowned and put down her wand as she stared at her palm. What was that?

Draco stared at her from the corner of his eye as he attempted to levitate the feather. Nothing happened. Growing frustrated the Slytherin turned to his partner "Would you care to explain _why_ you are more interested in your hand than you are in the lesson?"

Snapping out of her trance Phoebe turned to him "Wow, you're actually worried about the lesson. Never thought I would see the day." she teased

"Just shut up!" Draco snapped

Phoebe felt her hands curled into two perfect fists and the twinge which had appeared when she had used her wand returned but she ignored it as she glared at Draco. The blonde gave a started gasp as Phoebe's eyes flashed from stormy grey to cobalt blue and back again. The second her eyes flashed the white feather in front of the two shot straight into the air.

Snapping their attention away from one another Phoebe and Draco watched as their feather floated back down onto the desk in front of them.

"Well done Miss Blackheart and Mr. Malfoy," Professor Flitwick squeaked happily "Five points apiece to Slytherin and Gryffindor. Well done"

Phoebe felt a small surge of pride as Professor Flitwick rewarded her and Draco, but she couldn't help the small twinge of guilt that bubbled inside her because she _knew_ that somehow - she had cheated.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Lessons ended early that afternoon so after Defence Against the Dark Arts Phoebe and the rest of the Gryffindor's made their way slowly back to Gryffindor tower to prepare for the Halloween feast that was taking place that evening.

Soon the afternoon passed and the time for the feast to begin arrived. Phoebe hurried up to her dorm room at least half an hour before to change out of her uniform and it was only then did she notice that Hermione Granger was not present in the common room, in fact she hadn't seen the bookworm since Charms that morning.

_She's probably in the library finishing up her work_ Phoebe reassured herself as she changed clothes and headed back downstairs so she could attend the feast like everyone else.

Phoebe reached the Entrance Hall, arm-in-arm with James and entered the Great Hall to find that it had been decorated in honor of the festivities that they were celebrating. A thousand live bats down from the high walls and the ceiling while a thousand more swooped low over the tables and made the candles inside the jack-o-lanterns stutter and flicker casting eerie glows over the whole hall.

The feast appeared on the millions of golden plates on the five tables within the Great Hall and the feast begun almost immediately.

It wasn't until she was halfway through her Pumpkin pie did Phoebe start to question Hermione's whereabouts again.

"James," Phoebe addressed her friend, who sat across from her and next to Neville "Where's Hermione?"

"Parvati said she wouldn't come out of the girl's bathroom," James answered "She said that she'd been in there all afternoon, crying."

"Why would she be in the bathroom crying?" Phoebe pressed on

James glanced down the table to where Ron and Harry sat with the rest of the Weasley clan "Ron made a snide comment about her after Charms today; she heard him and locked herself in the bathroom for it. She refuses to let anyone in, and she won't come out herself. She is really broken up"

Phoebe sighed and glowered in Ron's direction before putting down her utensils and swinging her legs over the bench.

"Where are you going?" James asked, perking up at his friends movements "The feasts not over!"

"I'm not going to sit here and enjoy myself unless Hermione is with us;" Phoebe answered him "I'm going to go talk to her. She needs a friend that's all."

"She needs to tone the 'know-it-all' act," Ron muttered, which earned him a smack to the back of the head from Phoebe.

Bending down so that her lips were inches from his ear, Phoebe whispered "Watch your mouth, Weasley, because next time it won't be your head I will be hitting"

Ron's face paled in comparison to normal as Phoebe pulled back and turned to leave. She hadn't taken two steps away from her table when the Great Hall doors opened and Professor Quirrell came barreling towards her screaming top note and pointing over his shoulder with his thumb. His turban was askew on his head and his face looked terrified.

"TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" he shrieked "TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!"

Silence fell over the entire Hall as Dumbledore rose to his feet and the students diverted their attention from their conversations and onto Quirrell who was standing in the middle of the hall.

"Thought you ought to know." Quirrell mumbled, before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he slumped forward onto the floor.

Thunder crashed overhead and the entire hall was thrown into uproar. First years screamed in fear as they abandoned their meals and staggered to their feet as the Slytherin's and Gryffindor's climbed over Quirrell in their haste to get to the door. Phoebe found Oliver and Katie in amidst the chaos and froze when Dumbledore's voice echoed loudly over the rest of the noise.

"SILENCE!" he was ordering.

The students of Hogwarts stopped and turned in the direction of their Headmaster as he spoke once more.

"Everyone will please not panic!" Dumbledore continued "Now prefects will lead their house back to the dormitories. Teachers will follow me to the dungeons."

Percy was in his element.

As were the rest of the prefects as they started ordering their houses to follow them calls of "Hufflepuff this way!" and "Ravenclaws follow me!" were heard throughout the hall as well as "Slytherin's with me!".

"Follow me! Stick together, first-years! No need to fear the troll if you follow my orders! Stay close behind me, now. Make way first-years coming through! Excuse me, I'm a Prefect!" Percy was saying as he led the way up the Marble staircase and onwards towards the seventh floor.

Pulling away from Oliver and Katie, Phoebe made her way through the crowd towards James who was walking with Harry and Ron a few feet in front of her. She reached the three boys and pushed them out of the Gryffindor line and into the Ravenclaws who were heading in the opposite direction.

"What's the deal?" Ron demanded

"Because of your snide comments Hermione doesn't know about the Troll!" Phoebe snapped "Normally I wouldn't be asking for your help but I can't take down a fully grown mountain troll by myself. I need help! Your help!"

Ron, James and Harry exchanged looks and sighed "Oh, all right" Ron sighed "But Percy better not see us"

"Percy is more into getting the Gryffindor's back to the common room, he thinks we're all following him" Phoebe pointed out "It's the rest of Gryffindor and the other students I'm worried about."

"If we follow the Ravenclaws that will take us to the other side of the castle," James said "We can make our way down to the second floor from there"

Harry, Ron and Phoebe nodded and hurried off after the Ravenclaws careful not to be seen by any Gryffindor's along the way.

_~*Phoebe*~_

They had just turned the corner onto the second floor when they heard quick footsteps coming towards them.

"Percy!" Ron hissed, pulling Harry behind a pillar. James grabbed Phoebe and mimicked the red head's actions.

But it wasn't Percy who the footsteps belonged too because seconds later Professor Snape crossed the corridor and disappeared from view.

"Why isn't he in the dungeon's with the rest of the teachers?" Harry whispered

"Search me" James answered

Phoebe pressed a finger to her lips and motioned for the three boys to follow her as quietly as possible down the hallway "He's heading for the third floor" she murmured watching Snape's retreating figure.

"Can you smell something?" Ron asked, as a foul stench reached his nostrils, a mixture of old socks and the kind of public toilets no one seemed to clean, followed by grunting and shuffling footfalls of gigantic feet.

"There!" James whispered, pointing to the end of the hallway where something huge was moving towards them. "I think the troll's left the dungeon."

The four of them shrank back into the shadows and watched as it emerged into a patch of moonlight. It was a horrible sight. Twelve feet tall, its skin was dull, granite grey, its great humpy body like a boulder with its small head perched on top like a coconut. It had short legs thick as tree trunks with flat, horny feet. The smell coming from it was incredible and made Phoebe sick to her stomach. It was holding a huge wooden club, which dragged along the floor because its arms were so long.

Phoebe sucked in a breath as she watched the huge creature pause at the doorway to the girl's bathroom, waggle its tiny ears and then slink inside.

"The keys in lock," Harry whispered "We could lock it in"

"Yeah" Ron and James agreed

"No you won't!" Phoebe snapped at them "That's the girl's bathroom! Hermione is in there!"

As if to prove her point a high, petrified scream came from the bathroom causing all their hearts to miss a beat.

"_Hermione_!" they all shouted together, bolting for the doors and throwing them open.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Hermione Granger was shrinking against the wall opposite the door, looking as if she was about to faint. The troll was advancing on her, knocking the sinks off the walls as it went.

"Hermione, move!" Phoebe yelled, abandoning the boys and running forward

The troll stopped a few feet from Hermione. It lumbered around, blinking stupidly, to see what had made the noise. Its mean little eyes saw Phoebe. It hesitated, and then made for her instead, lifting its club as it went.

"Confuse it!" James said desperately to Harry and Ron, and seizing a tap he threw it as hard as he could against the wall.

"Oy, pea-brain!" yelled Ron from the other side of the chamber, and he threw a metal pipe at it. The troll didn't even seem to notice the pipe hitting its shoulder, but it heard the yell and paused again, turning its ugly snout towards Ron instead, giving Phoebe time to run around it.

"Come on, run, _run!"_ Phoebe yelled at Hermione, trying to pull her towards the door, but she couldn't move, she was still flat against the wall, her mouth open with terror.

The shouting seemed to be driving the troll mad. It roared again and started towards Ron, who was nearest and had no way to escape.

It was then that Harry did something very brave, but also very stupid: he took a running jump and managed to fasten his arms around the troll's neck. Although the troll couldn't feel Harry hanging there, but he could feel the wand which had just prodded him in the nose, Harry's wand had been in his hand when he had jumped and it was now lodged in the left nostril of the troll.

Howling with the pain the great creature twisted and flailed its club, with Harry clinging on for dear life.

"Distract it!" Phoebe shouted to James, as she tried to pull Hermione up by the arm

"How?" James asked

"I don't know!" Phoebe retorted "Just. Do. Something!"

Harry felt his grip slipping "Hurry up!" he cried, startling the troll further as it gripped him by the leg and pulled him off of his shoulders and held him upside down by the leg.

Swinging its club Phoebe sucked in her breath as Harry ducked upwards to avoid the blow and the troll swung completely off to the side. He had missed.

Removing their wands Phoebe, James and Ron pointed them at the troll and nodded at one another.

"Swish and Flick!" Hermione instructed from the wall behind Phoebe.

"_Wingardium Leviosa."_ the three Gryffindor's commanded, and Phoebe felt the same twinge she had felt in class surge through her entire hand and into her wand. The three spells combined together and hit the club as it flew out of the troll's hand and raised high above its head.

The troll paused and looked at its hand in confusion to where its club had gone, looking up the five Gryffindor's watched as the club turned slowly in the air - and dropped, with a sickening crack, on to its owner's head. The troll swayed on the spot and then fell flat on its face, with a thud that reminded Phoebe of when her godmother had lost control of her powers over the summer which had caused a minor earthquake to rip through Russia.

Harry got shakingly to his feet and staggered into James who caught him steadily, while Phoebe turned back to Hermione and finally pulled her to her feet while Ron merely stood there with his wand still raised and his mouth open wide at what they had just done.

"Is it -" Hermione spoke, shattering the silence that had fallen "- dead?"

"I don't think so," Phoebe answered, gripping her friends hand and pulling her closer to the three boys "Just knocked out"

Harry nodded as he stooped to pull his wand from the troll's nose. It was covered in what looked like lumpy grey glue.

"Urgh!" James gagged "troll boogies"

Harry wiped them on his trousers.

A sudden slamming of doors and loud footsteps caused the five Gryffindor's to jump and turn in the direction of the bathroom doors as Professor McGonagall, followed by Professor Snape, Serefina Blackheart and Professor Quirrell burst into the room. Quirrell took one look at the troll, let out a faint whimper and sat quickly down on a toilet, clutching his heart.

Snape bent over the troll. Serefina crossed the room and grabbed Phoebe by the shoulder and hauled her towards the door, while Professor McGonagall was looking at Ron, James and Harry. Her lips were pressed together so hard that they were whiter than white.

"Oh, my goodness! Explain yourselves, all of you!" McGonagall demanded, pointing at the three boys

"Well, what it is -" Ron, Harry and James started at exactly the same time, but was cut off by Hermione.

"It's my fault, Professor McGonagall"

Phoebe froze and turned back to Hermione, as Harry, Ron and James exchanged looks of shock at the outburst.

"Miss Granger?" Professor McGonagall stuttered

"I went looking for the troll because I - I thought I could deal with it on my own - you know, because I've read all about them. If Harry, Ron, Phoebe and James hadn't come and found me, I'd probably be dead right now. Harry stuck his wand up its nose. And Ron, Phoebe and James knocked it out with its own club. They didn't have time to come and get anyone. It was about to finish me off when they arrived" Hermione explained

Serefina stared hard at Phoebe who schooled her face in hopes of making it seem that this story wasn't new to her. But having grown up in such close contact with her godmother Phoebe knew that Serefina didn't blame her.

"Well - in that case..." said Professor McGonagall "Miss Granger, you foolish girl, how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own?"

Hermione hung her head in shame. While James was staring dumbfounded at her for lying to a teacher. Hermione Granger: Know-it-all Gryffindor and teacher's pet was standing in the middle of the Girls bathroom defending four trouble-makers and lying through her teeth to Professor McGonagall about what had really happened. She could have easily turned them in but she didn't. Why?

"Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for your serious lack of judgment." said Professor McGonagall "I am very disappointed in you. If you're not hurt at all, you'd better head off to Gryffindor Tower. Students are finishing the feast in their houses"

Hermione left.

Professor McGonagall turned to the four which was left "Well, I shall say you were lucky, but not many first-years could have taken on a full-grown mountain troll, I just hope you realize how fortunate you are. Five points will be award to each of you. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. You may go. Serefina you will see to it that they return to their common room"

"Of course, Professor" Serefina nodded, and gripping Phoebe's arm tightly in her grasp led the way back to the seventh floor.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I know some of you in the MWS asked me quite frequently why I used the DVDs more than the books so I decided to change it up a bit in this series. I used the book mostly for this chapter. So if anyone accuses me of copying it word for word can just bite me because I seriously cannot win with people if they do not want me using the DVDs too much and if they don't want me using the books too much either. The whole point of a re-write is to use a variety of both and that is what I do.**

**Next chapter we see the consequences that Phoebe has to suffer for her actions. What will Serefina do in order to punish her goddaughter for something foolish and inexplicably dangerous? Anyone like to venture a guess?**

**Anyway. I would like to apologize for not updating, this chapter was a right pain in the ass but I finally found the motivation I needed to update.**

**Reviews would be very nice.**

**Goodnight everyone.**

**~*Kara*~**

**Ps. If I have any readers from the East Coast please STAY SAFE!**

_All OCs and anything unrecognizable is copyrighted (c) and belongs to me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

_Chapter updated 29 August 2011 at 04:09am_


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** _Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications:** _Chapter dedicated too: _**10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, A****vengedSevenfoldLover **_and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In Responses:** _Well what do you know? I haven't got any replies to get too. You guys are awesome. =)_

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:**_ For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord_

* * *

><p>As they entered November, the weather turned very cold. The mountains around the castle became icy grey and the lake like chilled steel.<p>

The Quidditch season had begun and the first game was between Slytherin and Gryffindor. It had been scheduled to take place that Saturday down on the school's Quidditch field. If Gryffindor won this first match they would have moved up to second place in the running for the House Championship.

Somehow the secret of Harry Potter becoming the Gryffindor's new team seeker had been leaked to the whole school and it was making Harry seem worse about the upcoming match. Many students were promising him that he was going to do fine, and others -mainly Slytherin's- were telling him that they would be running around beneath him, holding a mattress.

It was the night before the match, and Phoebe had just returned from the Library with James and Ashlyn. They had decided to finish the remains of their homework before the weekend arrived, so that they would be free to do what they liked over Saturday and Sunday.

"_Caput Draconis_," James said, as he and Phoebe reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. She swung open and they scrambled through.

The Gryffindor common room was very noisy that evening. Scanning the room, Phoebe found who she was looking for and pulled James in the direction of the fireplace "Good evening," she smiled, dropping into the vacant seat next to Hermione.

"Hey Phoebe," Hermione smiled, looking up from the book she was reading. Ron nodded his hello as he attempted to finish his homework, while Harry just looked glumly at the flames within the grate.

James nudged Phoebe and nodded at Harry.

"Cheer up, Harry" Phoebe smiled, jumping up and sitting on the arm of the chair her friend was sitting in "Quidditch tomorrow."

"Don't remind me" Harry murmured.

James slipped into the seat beside Hermione "You're still not nervous are you?" he asked.

"It's okay to be nervous," Phoebe said, throwing a cushion over her shoulder at James. He yelped as it hit him in the face. "Everyone gets nervous"

"What if we lose?" Harry asked.

"Then we lose," Phoebe answered, shrugging her shoulders. "No one is expecting you to be amazing, Harry. Just do you best and have fun." she smiled.

Harry gave her half a smile in return. Phoebe was an amazing friend, she didn't pressure anyone into do something they didn't want. She helped in a situation when she was able too, and she was able to bring a smile to everyone's face on any dull day. She was really an all-round amazing person.

"Here I knew you were nervous about your first game so I messaged my Grandfather and asked if he could send me this," Phoebe said, handing him a large worn looking book. _Quidditch through the Ages_ was written on the front. "My Grandfather used to play professional Quidditch when he graduated from Salem. The Salem Warriors. He sends his wishes for your first game, and hopes that you enjoy the book."

"Thanks" Harry smiled, running his fingers lightly over the leather hardback.

Phoebe nodded "No problem. I'm sure you'll find this information when you actually read the book, but there are seven hundred ways to commit a Quidditch foul during a game, and all seven hundred were used in the Quidditch World Cup match of 1473."

"Seriously?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. Also Seekers are usually the smallest and fastest of players and most serious Quidditch accidents seem to happen to them," James jumped in "but people rarely die while playing Quidditch." he added hastily as Harry turned pale.

Phoebe glared at James "Don't listen to him, Harry. Yes, Quidditch is dangerous, but it's also fun. Trust me; I would give anything to be playing on the team this year."

"And me," James nodded "I love Quidditch. Best game ever created if you ask me."

"Well, you're a Pureblood," Hermione pointed out "Quidditch is the only game you have ever known; of course you would think it's the greatest."

Ron looked up "What other games could rival Quidditch?"

"There's soccer" Phoebe answered.

"What?" Ron and James asked.

Hermione, Phoebe and Harry sighed and exchanged looks. It was a little difficult at times with James and Ron because they were from Pureblooded families, and granted Phoebe was also a pureblood she lived in a Muggle neighborhood in the south of Portugal, so she was familiar with Muggle games such a Soccer.

Waving her friends off, Phoebe turned back to Harry "Quidditch referees have been known to disappear for months at a time, but they always seem to resurface in the Sahara Desert"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next morning dawned bright and early. Phoebe awoke to a light scratching at her bedroom window, peeking through one eye Phoebe saw a blurry shape hovering outside the window. Who on earth was tapping her window at this time of the morning?

Rolling out of bed the young Gryffindor shuffled towards the window, opened it and watched as Athena soared in and landed on the bed. A letter tied to her leg.

"Good morning girl," Phoebe smiled, smoothing the ruffled feathers of the eagle "What do I owe the pleasure of this early wakeup call?"

Athena held out her leg as the letter dangled inches above the bed. She screeched.

Phoebe smiled and untied the letter, reached into the draw on her bedside table and removed a packet of dead mice "One for breakfast," Phoebe said, hovering the mouse by its tail over Athena's beak "and one for delivering the letter." she mimicked her last action and watched as the eagle swallowed the mouse whole.

Once she had been praised Athena flapped her wings and took to the air, she swooped out of the window and disappeared into the morning sky. Phoebe watched her go for a moment before closing the window and snatching the letter off her bed. She opened it as she crawled back under the blankets, and emptied the contents onto her bed.

_Dearest Phoebe,_

The letter started. Phoebe frowned as she glanced around the room and much to her relief found the rest of her room-mates asleep. Turning back to the letter she continued reading.

_I hope this reaches you in time._

_It will be short and brief incase it falls into the wrong hands, although I do not misjudge Athena's capabilities of bringing it safely to your notice. I do fear that people may be on the lookout for her. She is not native to the United Kingdom so there is a chance that she may be taken out of sky for inspection._

_We must speak. It is very important that I speak with both yourself and Serefina at once._

_Why am I writing to you and not her? You may very well ask this. The answer is very simple. I am assured that you will not alert anyone to the distress of this letter, and I am sure that no one will wonder who it is writing to you. I am not saying that I do not trust Serefina with this information but as a teacher it will be very difficult for her to keep things a secret from the rest of the staff._

_I must -before I go- congratulate you on making Gryffindor. Your Grandfather and I are so proud._

_Until we meet my dearest Granddaughter, be safe._

_Love_

_~Mama._

Phoebe re-read the letter several times before deciding that Serefina needed to know urgently about it. So, slipping out of bed Phoebe showered and dressed quickly, before snagging her wand and robe from her trunk; she folded the letter and placed it inside her pocket and left the dorm room and her sleeping room-mates behind.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You've got to eat some breakfast."

"I don't want anything."

"Just a bit of toast."

"I'm not hungry!"

"You're going to need your strength.

Harry remained defiant as he sat at the Gryffindor table with an empty plate in front of him, while his friends attempted to get him to eat. But his stomach was in knots and he feared if he ate something now he would throw it back up later.

"Where's Phoebe?" James asked, looking across at Hermione.

Hermione shrugged "I don't know. She was already gone when I awoke this morning."

James nodded as he looked thoughtful. Glancing across the Great Hall, he caught his cousin's eye and shrugged as she motioned towards the empty seat beside him. She too wanted to know where Phoebe was.

By eleven o'clock the atmosphere within and around the Hogwarts castle was one of pure excitement, anxiety and determination. Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws had teamed up against the Slytherin's for the first match of the season each of which was rooting for Gryffindor to take the win. While the Slytherin's were determined that their house was going to win by all costs.

As both Quidditch teams were beneath the stands getting ready for the game, the rest of the student body took to the stands.

Some students had binoculars, because even though the stands where raised into the air, it was still difficult to see what was going on. Hermione, Ron and James climbed to the top row, clutching a surprise for Harry. It was a magical banner which read '_Potter for President_' and had a very well done drawing of a large Gryffindor Lion underneath. Hermione and Phoebe had then performed several charms upon the colours and words causing them to flash different colours, and the lion to let out a tremendous ROAR.

Speaking of Phoebe. She was still missing.

"Where could she have gone?" Hermione asked, starting to worry.

"She'll be here" James promised. "It's not only Harry she has promised that she would be here for. Oliver is playing too."

Ron nodded "See. Now sit down. The game is starting."

Hermione sighed in annoyance and took her seat as she turned her attention towards the field. Phoebe's disappearance from the dorm room that morning, and her continuous disappearance now was starting to affect her nerves, and it wasn't long before she cracked under the pressure.

Madam Hooch was refereeing. She stood in the middle of the pitch, waiting for the two teams, her broom in her hand.

"Now, I want a nice clean game, from all of you" she said, once both Gryffindor and Slytherin had appeared on the pitch and were gathered around her. She seemed to be talking more to the Slytherin Captain, Marcus Flint than anyone else. "Mount your brooms, please."

Madam Hooch gave a loud blast on her whistle and fifteen brooms rose into the air. They were off.

"_And the Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor - what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and rather attractive -"_

_"__**JORDAN!**__"_

_"Sorry, Professor!"_

James laughed as he heard Lee Jordan's voice over the whole stadium. This ought to be fun.

_"And she's really belting along up there, a neat pass to Alicia Spinet, a good friend of Oliver Wood's, last year only a reserve - back to Johnson and - no, Slytherin have taken the Quaffle, Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint gains the Quaffle and off he goes - Flint flying like an eagle up there - he's going to sc - no, stopped by an excellent move by Gryffindor Keeper Wood and Gryffindor takes the Quaffle - that's Chaser Katie Bell of Gryffindor there, nice dive around Flint, off up the field and - OUCH - that must have hurt, hit in the back of the head by a Bludger - Quaff taken by Slytherin - that's Adrian Pucey speeding off towards the goalposts, but he's blocked by a second Bludger - sent his way by Fred or George Weasley, can't tell which - nice play by the Gryffindor beater, anyway, and Johnson back in possession of the Quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes - she's really flying - dodges a speeding Bludger - the goalposts are ahead - come on, now, Angelina - Keeper Bletchley dives - misses - GRYFFINDOR SCORE!"_

The Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws roared with victory as the Slytherin stands howled and moaned in defeat.

_"Slytherin in possession - Chaser Pucey ducks two Bludgers, two Weasley's and Chaser Bell and speeds towards the - wait a minute - was that the Snitch?"_

A murmur rippled throughout the stands as Harry pressed himself flat against his broom and sped in the direction of the glint of gold.

His friends watched with bated breaths from the stands, and although they were watching Harry, Hermione still couldn't shake the anxiety that something was wrong. Phoebe still had yet to arrive.

Terence Higgs, Slytherin's seeker, had seen the glint of gold too and was heading in the same direction as Harry. Neck and neck they hurtled towards the Snitch - all the Chaser had seemingly forgotten that they were in the middle of a game seeing as they hung in mid-air watching their Seekers.

With an extra burst of speed Harry reached the Snitch when -

WHAM!

There was a roar of rage. Marcus Flint had blocked Harry on purpose and sent him flying off course.

"FOUL!" Phoebe's voice echoed over the stadium, as Hermione, James and Ron turned in the direction of the teacher's stands. Phoebe was standing on top of the back bench looking furious as Flint grinned maliciously and blew a kiss in her direction. Harry meanwhile had managed to climb back onto his broomstick and was back to searching for the Snitch once more.

Hermione sighed in relief at the sight of her friend.

"See," James said, nudging the bookworm "We told you she'd turn up"

Jordan on the other hand was finding it difficult to not take sides.

"_So - after that obvious and disgusting bit of cheating -"_

_"__**Jordan!"**_Professor McGonagall growled

_"I mean, after that open and revolting foul -"_

_"__**Jordan, I'm warning you -"**_

_"All right, all right. Flint nearly kills the Gryffindor Seeker, which could happen to anyone. I'm sure, so a penalty to Gryffindor, taken by Spinett, who puts it away no problem, and we continue play, Gryffindor still in possession -"_

Serefina caught Phoebe's wrist and pulled her down onto the bench once more "Mama, said something like this would happen." Phoebe whispered "We have to help."

"We cannot!" Serefina responded in an equally low whisper "We cannot risk exposure. Now shush."

Phoebe huffed in annoyance and turned back to the match. Gryffindor was still in possession of the Quaffle but it seemed Fred and George were having other ideas and instead of focusing on the Bludgers were rather circling one specific spot out in centre field.

_What are they doing?_ She thought.

But it seemed she had been the only one to notice the Gryffindor Beaters lack of attention seeing as Jordan was still following the match "_Slytherin in possession - Flint with the Quaffle - passes Spinett - passes Bell - Slytherin score - oh no..."_

The Slytherin's cheered.

"Serefina," Phoebe nudged her godmother and pointed out onto centre field "What are they doing?"

Serefina followed her goddaughter's finger and spotted the Weasley twins, turning her gaze skyward she gasped as she spotted Harry, whose broom had started to roll over and over.

Suddenly Harry's broom twisted and the boy was thrown from it as he dangled in mid-air.

"HARRY!" Phoebe yelled, shooting to her feet once more. Those who were sitting around her jumped at her shrill cry but had finally noticed the reason behind her distress.

All over the stands students were pointing at Harry as he clung to his broom for dear life.

The Weasley twins on the other hand were attempting to fly up and pull Harry safely onto one of their brooms, but each time they got close Harry's broom would jerk him higher out of their reach. As she watched helplessly, Phoebe failed to notice Hermione scrambling across the back row, but she did feel the bump to the back of the legs which sent her hurtling into the row in front.

"Phoebe!" Serefina yelped, as her Goddaughter was knocked into poor Professor Quirrell, and landed on the hard stands beside Professor McGonagall.

"Ow," the first year Gryffindor whimpered, as she knocked her head on the bench behind her "what the hell was that?"

McGonagall look disapproving at the use of language on her student.

"Sorry, Professor" Phoebe apologized sheepishly, as she scrambled to her feet and returned to Serefina.

Harry was speeding towards the ground when Phoebe had re-taken her seat -holding an ice pack to the bump on her bed. Curtsey of Madam Pomfrey.- reaching the ground, Harry hopped from his broom and clamped his hand over his mouth as if he was about to be sick. Harry coughed and something gold fell into his hand.

"He didn't," Phoebe breathed, rising slowly once more. Serefina holding the back of her robes in case she fell again.

Harry had. He had caught the Snitch.

Phoebe punched the air in victory "He did it!" she cried, jumping up and down excitedly "He caught the Snitch! He caught the Snitch!"

Looking up at his excited friend, Harry grinned and held the Snitch high into the air for all to see. The Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws cheered loudly as the Slytherin's hung their heads in disappointment.

_"Harry Potter has caught the Snitch! GRYFFINDOR WINS!"_ Lee Jordan shouted the final verdict as the rest of the Gryffindor team pummeled Harry with hugs and pats on the back for his win.

Phoebe stood in stands grinning madly and laughing at the look on her friends face.

And despite the letter from her grandmother that morning, she couldn't help but feel that today's match had ended pretty well. But sadly, her grandmother's warning of darkness looming within the upcoming months was still enough to keep both Phoebe and Serefina on their toes and on the lookout for potential Dark Wizards.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©.<strong>

**Did you like? Hope so.**

**Reviews would be nice.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on 07 September 2011 at Wednesday, 12:34am**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** _Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications:** _Chapter dedicated too: _**Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Angel JJK** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In Responses:** _To __**Fan of Fics:**__ Yeah. I figured it would be more original if Phoebe fell into Quirrell rather copying the book word for word and having Hermione do it. Although Hermione did play her part because she bumped into Phoebe, and sent Phoebe hurtling into the row in front._

_Nothing more to say, except...enjoy._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept a secret, not it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>Christmas was coming.<p>

Phoebe could feel it. The air was getting colder, the skies were becoming stormier and snow was starting to set on the highest peaks of the mountains.

A few owls that had made the long trip north had gotten caught in the Blizzard that had hit a week before the end of term and covered the whole castle in six feet of snow, while the Owls were nursed back to health by Hagrid.

One morning Phoebe was awoken to Athena tapping at her window as she tried her very hardest to remain airborne and not get blown away by the high winds. After rescuing the poor eagle, Phoebe found that she had another permanent room-mate seeing as Athena had decided she wanted to make herself a home on top of Phoebe's canopy bed.

About three days before the end of term, Professor McGonagall rounded up the Gryffindor's and took names of those that would be going home for the Christmas holidays. She found Phoebe and James down in the Entrance Hall with Ashlyn and first year Hufflepuff by the name of Amelia Thompson.

"Miss Blackheart, Mr. Black," Professor McGonagall nodded at each of them "I am just enquiring on whether or not you will be staying at the castle for the holidays or will you each be going home?"

James looked up "I'll be going home, Professor" he answered

"Me too." Phoebe nodded "I'm supposed to report to Professor Blackheart's office at the end of the week, just as everyone leaves on the train."

Professor McGonagall nodded in understanding and jotted their names down under the **Going Home** title.

Once the Head of Gryffindor had walked away, Amelia turned to Phoebe "Will you be in England for Christmas?" she asked

"No," Phoebe answered "I'll be going home to Portugal. My grandparents live in Portugal, they're not very welcome here in England for reason's unknown and so I have lived in Portugal my entire life."

Amelia nodded "So how will you get back home?"

"Floo," Phoebe answered promptly. "This is why I have to go to Serefina's office at the end of the week."

Ashlyn looked confused "What I don't understand is, if you were raised in Portugal, how come you're attending Hogwarts? Don't they have Magical schools where you are from?"

"Of course they do," Phoebe nodded. "I was supposed to go to a school out there. But Serefina wanted me here at Hogwarts where she could keep an eye on me."

"Why?" James asked "I know you're a trouble maker and everything, but why would she want to keep an eye on you?"

Phoebe shrugged. "You'd have to ask her."

James smirked.

Amelia looked curious "What school was you going to attend if you had stayed in Portugal?"

"A Academia de Magia Elemental." Phoebe answered

Amelia, James and Ashlyn stared at their friend with wide eyes.

Phoebe snickered at them "Translation: The Elemental Academy of Magic." she answered

"Oh," the other three nodded, before the conversations changed once more.

**xXxPhoebexXx**

"_Notable Magical Names of Our Time,"_ Phoebe read as she plopped herself down into an empty chair beside Harry one night in the Library. She had just finished writing up a Charms essay to hand into Professor Flitwick before the Christmas holidays started the next morning when she had come across her friends working hard through the book shelves. "What'cha looking for?" she asked.

Ron spoke before the others two had a chance "What's it to you?" he asked, ever since Halloween night, the hatred between Ron and Phoebe had seemed to intensify just a bit further. They talked to one another but they weren't on the best of terms like Hermione seemed to be, but then again Ron didn't attempt to make friends with Phoebe as much as Harry and Hermione did. To him she was moving on their friendship, she didn't hang out with them often, and she always seemed to pop up at inconvenient times, poking her nose into things that didn't concern her.

"Nothing." Phoebe answered, with a small shrug as she flipped through pages of the book in front of her. She looked up at Harry and smiled "Enjoying the book my grandfather sent?"

"Yeah." Harry nodded; looking up from the book he was reading "It's really interesting."

Phoebe nodded "So, you here finishing the last of the homework?"

"We finished." Hermione answered, glancing sideways "You?"

"I just finished my Charms essay," Phoebe answered, showing the essay that Flitwick had set.

Hermione frowned "That was set two lessons ago. How come you're only now finishing it?"

"I asked for an extension," Phoebe answered "I had other engagements in between. Professor Flitwick understands and granted me an extra week." she smiled.

"What other engagements?" Ron asked

Phoebe swiveled her head around to face him "What's it to you?" she asked, throwing his words back at him.

Ron glared. He really hated her.

After Hermione and Harry had explained what they were searching for Phoebe fell into silence alongside the trio in hopes of helping them search for what they were looking for. She was sure that she had heard the name Nicolas Flamel somewhere before, but she couldn't remember _where_ she had heard it.

It was highly improbable that her grandparents had mentioned the name; her grandmother was born in Russia, while her grandfather was a pureblooded Portuguese wizard, so why would they know anything about a notable English wizard?

Also, Phoebe was pretty sure that she would have remembered if Serefina had mentioned the name.

After coming up empty doing research, Phoebe, Hermione and Ron left the library meeting up with Harry out in the corridor. He had been caught by Madam Pince outside the restricted section and she had kicked him out, probably thinking that he was up too no good.

"We'll have to keep looking when we return," Hermione sighed, as the four Gryffindor's returned the common room.

Ron turned to her "Can't you ask your parents? It would be much safer."

"Yes, given they are dentists." Hermione answered

"What's a dentist?" Ron asked.

Phoebe rolled her eyes "Someone a Muggle goes too when their tooth hurts." she answered "Point is her parents wouldn't know. They aren't familiar with the Wizarding world and its celebrities."

"Well, can't you ask your guardian?" Harry asked, as they turned onto the seventh floor.

"And be grounded for the rest of my life?" Phoebe asked, "Sure."

Harry sighed dejectedly and gave the password as they finally reached the Fat Lady.

**xXxPhoebexXx**

Next afternoon, Phoebe stood with Ashlyn and James in the Entrance Hall to Hogwarts as they prepared to leave for the Hogwarts Express. She was wearing her favorite split sleeve shimmer gypsy top, denim jeans, purple converse trainers and her hair was hanging around her shoulders in one long braid.

"I'll send your gifts with Athena sometime tomorrow," Phoebe promised, as she embraced Ashlyn

Ashlyn nodded "Okay. And I'll send mine back with her." she replied

James grinned "I can't wait to go home and see Henry and Melissa."

"Who?" Phoebe asked, suddenly confused

"My twin brother and sister." James answered "They're ten and will be starting Hogwarts in next year."

"Cool. Can't wait to meet them." Phoebe grinned.

Ashlyn nodded.

Adrian Pucey appeared behind Ashlyn "We've got to go." he told her "The train will be leaving soon."

"Okay. I'm coming." Ashlyn answered "I was just saying goodbye."

"Well, hurry it up." Adrian barked, his gaze sweeping over Phoebe and James. He didn't seem to have a single problem with Phoebe and Ashlyn's friendship, but when it came to James he didn't like it one bit. James's father -Sirius Black- was a murderer and a blood traitor to his family, therefore James was an associated blood traitor too.

He stalked back out into the snow.

Ashlyn sighed, waved to her too friends and quickly followed after him.

Phoebe and James watched her go, before exchanging hugs and James followed after his cousin.

**xXxPhoebexXx**

After finding Harry, Ron and Hermione, and wishing them a Happy Christmas, Phoebe made her way back to Serefina's office where she would take the Floo Network home to Portugal. She couldn't wait. Not that she couldn't wait to get out of England or the Hogwarts castle but mostly because she hadn't seen her grandparents in over 6 months and she missed them dearly.

Reaching her godmother's office, Phoebe knocked on the door and allowed herself in.

Serefina was stood with her back to her goddaughter, bent over her trunk and stuffing the last of her things into it.

Phoebe approached the desk and frowned "Why are you packing?" she asked

Serefina jumped, her hand flew to her heart, and she spun around. "Phoebe! Do not sneak up on people!"

"Sorry." Phoebe apologized through her laughter

"And to answer your question," Serefina answered "One must pack in order to go home."

"But it's only for Christmas. And we'll have everything we need when we get to Portugal." Phoebe answered "It's not like we need _everything_, just the essentials. Wands. Presents. Athena." she listed.

Athena screeched at the mention of her name, she was perched on the back of Serefina's chair, watching her two owners with amber eyes.

Serefina paused once again in her packing "So you're telling me you haven't packed?"

"Not a single thing." Phoebe nodded "Only my wand. I have spare clothes at Blackheart Manor. And I have gifts for my friends being delivered tonight."

"Well, you're well organized, aren't you?"

Phoebe grinned "Well, duh, Grandmamma taught me well."

"Yes, she did."

Once packed, Serefina waved her wand and shrunk her trunk so that it could fit into her pocket. She then stepped into her fireplace.

Phoebe followed her "Athena!" the young Gryffindor whistled, holding her arm out for the bird.

Athena swooped through the air and landed on Phoebe's arm, digging her claws into the Gryffindor's sin as she held on. The Floo Network really wasn't a place for animals.

Serefina then wrapped her arm around Phoebe's shoulders, dropped the Floo Powder in her hand and shouted - "Blackheart Manor. Golden Triangle. Portugal."

There was a flash of emerald green.

And they were gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Sorry for the late update.**

**Hope you enjoyed.**

**Chapter written by: **_xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated on: **_Friday, September 16, 2011 at 5:33am_


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **_Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Dedications: **_Chapter dedicated to _**Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd** _and_ **10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat.**

**In Responses: **_Once again I have no responses._

**Warnings:** _Portuguese is Phoebe's first language. English is her second. Now I was going to write all conversations between Phoebe and her family in Portuguese but it was taking too long. So instead I have decided to keep it as English but to put it into italics instead. The only Portuguese in this chapter will be in the flashback._

_I hope it was worth it. Enjoy._

_**FLASHBACK ALERT. **__**(All Flashbacks will be centered)**_

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lords Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>Phoebe coughed as she stumbled out of the fireplace and into the family room of Blackheart Manor, there was no one present.<p>

"Isn't Grandmama and Grandpapa supposed to be here?" Phoebe asked; as Athena took off the moment they arrived.

Serefina nodded "Come on. We will find someone." and she led the way out of the room.

Phoebe grinned and followed her Godmother from the room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Blackheart Manor, which had been in the Blackheart Family for generations, was a large four floored mansion. It was secluded and situated in the mountain range of _Serra da Estrela_, also known as 'Mountain Range of the Star,' in Portugal. Behind the manor was a vast open space of over 50 acres of land, on which several tens of horses roamed. Four large chimneys stuck out of the stone roof which made up the top of Blackheart Manor, and at the top of the two highest spikes of the roof were two large, round windows, below which, there was a large square window in each of the rooms on each of the four floors. The manor itself was made of grey bricks, over thousands, if not millions, of years old.

There were three rivers which had their headwaters in the _Serra de Estrella: O Mondego,_ which was the biggest river entirely within Portuguese Territory, and which ran through the vast grounds of the manor. As well as the Mondego, the Zêzere, which was a tributary to the Tagus and Alva, which also had its headwaters in the mountain range, both ran through the 1993 meter high mountain range. Except for the manor, and the land surrounding it, which belonged to the manor, there were no other signs of human occupation.

"_Careful now_," Jacob Blackheart shouted as he stood on the land that had once belonged to his father, he was overseeing the three stable boys unload three new horses for his granddaughter's Christmas. The three horses were Andalusian horses; a mare, a stallion and a foal. Jacob knew that Phoebe was going to love them.

"_Papa!_"

Jacob turned to the familiar sound and smiled as a blur of black landed in his arms "_Phoebe_" he chuckled "_Welcome home_"

Phoebe pulled back "_I missed you, Papa_" she beamed "_Where is Mama_"

"_Gone to town with Rosa to finish some last minute shopping_" Jacob answered "_Where is darling Serefina?"_

Phoebe nodded in understanding "_Aunt Serefina is unpacking"_

"_Shall we go back inside?_" Jacob asked "_Rachel made cookies._"

Phoebe's eyes lit up considerably, dropped from her grandfather's arms and darted back towards the Manor.

Jacob chuckled as he followed her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Dear Ashlyn,_

_ I have returned to Portugal and already I am wondering why I ever left. I absolutely love it here. I hope you feel the same by returning to your guardians. This letter will not be a long one because Rose and Rachel are setting out the dinner plates and I cannot be late for Dinner. I am just writing to wish you a Happy Christmas and send you your gifts. I hope that you like it. I pre-ordered it over a month ago and it has now returned. Wish your family a Happy Christmas from mine and I will see you when we go back to Hogwarts._

_Love Phoebe._

The young Gryffindor put down her quill, folded the letter and placed it carefully into an envelope. She then scribbled Ashlyn's name onto the front and taped it to the small rectangle box beside her.

Once she had finished that, Phoebe lifted the quill once more, dipped it into her ink well, pulled a fresh piece of parchment towards her and started writing her final letter. This time to James. She pretty much wrote exactly what she had said to Ashlyn, and then set it aside next to his present. She would mail them as soon as Athena had returned from her hunt.

"_Phoebe_," Rose called, as she knocked on the door and allowed herself entry "_Dinner is about to begin._"

Phoebe nodded, slid from her chair and left her bedroom. Dinner with her grandparents was one thing she had been looking forward too for the last 6 months. It was always filled with stories of what she had missed while she had resided in England, and she had the chance this year to fill her grandparents in on some interesting stories that she had picked up while she had been a student at Hogwarts.

When the topic of school was mentioned, Phoebe had to restrain herself as she immediately jumped into the deep end and began to ramble on and on about her lessons, the teachers, her friends and most importantly how she was adjusting to going to school with the non-existent twin brother: Draco Malfoy.

"_You were right Serefina; it would seem Lucius did want Phoebe to disappear_." Elena Blackheart, Phoebe's grandmother, nodded as she spooned the last of her meal into her mouth

"_So it would seem_," Serefina nodded "_It is the only possible explanation as to why he does not tell Draco he has a twin sister_."

Usually when the topic of Lucius Malfoy was brought up, Phoebe pulled herself from the equation; she had no desire to hear anything about the family that had given her away on the exact day that she was born. But it wasn't until Serefina mentioned something about her past did Phoebe return to the conversation.

_"I just don't understand how Lucius could go from the boy that I grew up with, to the monster that he is today."_ Serefina sighed, finishing her meal and reaching for the glass of red wine in front of her

"_I'm afraid that it is the parenting skills to Abraxas Malfoy,"_ Jacob answered "_Do not worry yourself Serefina. There was nothing you could have done, after Bridget died, Abraxas' demeanour changed completely, and I am afraid his son was caught in the crossfire."_

Phoebe frowned at her Godmother "_You grew up with my father?"_ she asked

"_Yes. It is how I am your Godmother,"_ Serefina nodded "_Your father and I was childhood friends. We met when we -"_ she motioned to her parents "_- vacationed in England when I was a small child. We lost contact over the years, but I heard from him when his mother died, and then a little later when he told me that he got engaged to Narcissa, he wanted to know if I would attend the wedding..."_

_"But you didn't go, did you?"_ Phoebe asked

Serefina shook her head "_I couldn't. It had been years since we had last saw each other, I didn't know what to expect, I was surprised when he contacted me and told me that he was engaged. I returned his invitation and we didn't speak at all after that. Not until -"_

"_Not until he messaged you about me,"_ Phoebe picked up.

Serefina surveyed her Goddaughter with the utmost sympathy "_Phoebe..."_ she sighed, reaching across the table and touching her Goddaughter's hand "_He messaged me the night you were born; he said that it was urgent that he needed to see me. Against my better wishes I Floo'd straight to England, and stepped foot into a house that I had not been in for years. It was then he told me that Narcissa had given birth to twins."_

_"What did you say?"_

_"I didn't say anything."_ Serefina answered "_I knew that Lucius had his heart set on having a boy, and it scared me to even think about what he would have done to you if I had not taken you. I agreed to be your Godmother, and that I would raise you as my own here in Portugal. He ordered one of his House elves to collect you, and the last that I saw of him was the night I brought you here."_

Elena and Jacob exchanged looks as Serefina told Phoebe everything. Over the years they had not been the people to keep the truth hidden from Phoebe, but there were some things that she did not need to know; but even they knew that it was only a matter of truth before she found out the truth. At least this way, this way they could explain to her in a way that would not cause her to hate them.

Phoebe nodded as Serefina finished her story. She didn't hate her Godmother for keeping this from her, Serefina had always made sure that Phoebe knew the truth about her heritage, and it had been Phoebe's choice to go by Blackheart instead of changing her name back to Malfoy the moment she had learned the truth, she loved the life she got to live here in Portugal and she wasn't about to ruin that. But just like every adopted child she wanted to know the truth about her past.

_"I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, Pheebs"_

Phoebe smiled -much to Serefina's surprise- _"its okay. I understand I really do. I just never thought about how you and Lucius could have known one another, and it wasn't until now did it ever occur to me how you became my legal guardian in the first place. But now I do, and if given the chance, I wouldn't change it for the world."_

Serefina nodded and returned her attention to the desert which had been set in front of her, although she had divulged into this particular moment with Phoebe, there was so much more to her relationship with Lucius Malfoy that her Goddaughter had to understand. But now was not the time for such matters. No, it was Christmas. Now was the time for family, and as much as it pained her to say it - Lucius Malfoy was _not_ a part of this family.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next morning was Christmas morning.

Phoebe was the first to wake as per usual and instantly rolled out of her bed. It was tradition at Blackheart Manor that the first person to awake had to wake up the rest of the house in the weirdest fashions. Last year Serefina had been the first to awake and she had awoken the whole house by standing the middle of the foyer and using her Earth powers to shake the foundation of the manor.

_**Serefina smirked deadly as she turned in a 360 circle, opened her arms wide -palms upright- and started to curl her fingers inwards.**_

_**The Manor began to shake violently.**_

_**Phoebe screamed as she rolled out of her bed and hit the ground with a thud. Her door crashed open and her grandfather swooped in and picked her up, whilst her grandmother swept downstairs used summoned a streamline of water to 'cool' her daughter down.**_

_**"Tens noção do que fizeste, Serefina?" **__**Elena Blackheart shouted in Portuguese "**__**É suposto acordar-nos, não matar-nos a todos!"**_

_**"Desculpa, mama. Não tinha intenção que fosse assim tão forte." **__**Serefina responded**_

_**"Desculpas aceites minha filha. Agora pede desculpa à Phoebe por causa do susto da manhã." **__**Elena motioned the stairs.**_

_**Serefina ascended them two at a time and disappeared down the first floor landing.**_

This year, however, Phoebe was the first to awake, and she had decided that 'Payback was a bitch' and so was she.

After dressing in a pair of jogging bottoms, t-shirt and slippers, Phoebe crept down the hall to her godmother's room and pushed open the door with little sound as possible. Serefina often slept with a jug of water on her nightstand and last night had been no exception.

With a sly smirk Phoebe crept closer, held out her hand and curled her fingers inwards towards the palm. Inside the jug the water started to rise up into the air forming a streamline jet of cool liquid. Carefully elevating the water over her godmother Phoebe opened her hand and watched as the stream of liquid splashed down onto the sleeping form of Serefina.

"_Holy Mother of Merlin!"_ Serefina gasped, as she shot up in bed. Her hair clung to her as the water dripped down her neck and trickled under her shirt.

Phoebe doubled over holding her stomach as she laughed.

"Phoebe Avalon Blackheart!" Serefina scolded "What on Earth?"

"_Payback's a witch, Serefina!"_ Phoebe smirked, before turning toe and leaving the bedroom. Not only to avoid her Godmother's wrath but also to wake up her grandparents.

This time, however, she had decided to go a little more traditional - by jumping on their bed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe smiled as she finally reached the large door on the fourth floor of Blackheart manor. While she caught her breath she placed her hand on the door handle and twisted it.

The door creaked open.

The soft breathing of her grandparents reached her senses and Phoebe had to hide the smile that adorned her features. Tiptoeing into the room the young Gryffindor climbed up onto the bed and started jumping up and down.

"_WAKE UP!_" Phoebe shouted "_WAKE UP!_"

"_What in the name of all things Holy is going on?" _Jacob Blackheart cried as he shot up in bed, catching his granddaughter's legs and sending her flying onto the bed with a bounce.

Phoebe giggled "_It's Christmas, Grandpapa"_ she told him, as she shook her grandmother _"Come on, Grandmama. Santa Claus."_

Elena Blackheart chuckled softly as she rolled over to find her granddaughter's face hovering over her's "_Happy Christmas, little star_"

Phoebe smiled "_Happy Christmas, Grandmama."_

**~*Phoebe*~**

After successfully waking her grandparents and Godmother. Phoebe found herself sitting cross-legged in front of the well-decorated Christmas tree with an assortment of presents around her. The only problem she was having was which present to open first.

"Open this one," Serefina smiled, handing over a small box-shaped parcel with green and silver wrappings.

Phoebe took it "Slytherin colours? Any specific reason?" she asked.

"_Just open it, Princess_" Jacob chuckled. He was standing in the doorway to the kitchen holding a steaming mug of hot cocoa in his hands.

Phoebe nodded, and pulled open the ribbon before tearing into the wrappings. Seconds later a small box sat on the floor in front of her.

Inside the box, was a star pendant with a pearl in the centre.

"_Oh, Merlin, its beautiful_" Phoebe gasped _"There is no note. Who would send me such a beautiful gift, but not sign the card?"_

Serefina looked across at her parents. "_Now is not the time my sweet."_

"_But -_"

Serefina shook her head and Phoebe knew that she was not going to get the answers to her questions. At least not yet.

"_Well, whoever sent it; I thank them a million times over." _Phoebe smiled, placing the necklace back into its box, and closing the lid.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Christmas passed without a problem.

Phoebe received many gifts from her family and friends. Including the mysterious necklace from an unknown source. She still had yet to find out who had sent her the necklace, and Serefina was doing very well in keeping the information from her goddaughter. But Phoebe was resistant.

"Please, Serefina!" Phoebe begged as she followed godmother into the family room at the manor.

It was the day before term started and it was time to return to Hogwarts. They had flooed directly from Serefina's office to Portugal the day term ended for Christmas, and they were returning the same way. This would have been the first time that Phoebe arrived at the castle before any of the returning students. Unless of course it was already evening back home in England.

"I promise. I will not say anything." Phoebe continued "But please, who sent me the necklace?"

_"_One day, Phoebe. You will understand why I keep these things from you." Serefina responded "Now, please, enough questions."

Phoebe sighed in defeat. She knew when she had lost.

Serefina smiled, patted her Goddaughter's shoulder and then stepped into the fireplace.

The moment Phoebe followed her, Serefina dropped a handful of Floo Powder and said "Hogwarts."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©.<strong>

**Did you enjoy? Sorry it's on the short side.**

**Ideas are welcome. Reviews are better. **

**I'm off to bed now. University in the morning. Wish me luck.**

_Portuguese_ to **English** translations.

_Tens noção do que fizeste, Serefina? É suposto acordar-nos, não matar-nos a todos! _- **Are you out of your mind, Serefina! You are supposed to wake us up, not kill us!** (Elena Blackheart.)

_Desculpa, mama. Não tinha intenção que fosse assim tão forte. __- _**Apologies, Mama. I did not mean for it to be that strong.** (Serefina Blackheart.)

_Desculpas aceites minha filha. Agora pede desculpa à Phoebe por causa do susto da manhã. _- **Apology accepted, my child. Now go apologize to Phoebe for the early morning scare.** (Elena Blackheart.)

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Monday, 19 September 2011 at 02:56am**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Just realized that the time is the same in Portugal as it is in England. Ah well, I can hopefully work around it. Enjoy.**

**A/N: Chapter dedicated too: **_KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squad 3rd Seat _**and** _Fan of Fics._

**A/N: Also I just realized that I missed out a dedication on Chapter 9. So this chapter is also dedicated too**_ AvengedSevenfoldLover_ **because I missed them out. My bad.**

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lords Downfall_

**Summary:**_ For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>By the time Phoebe and Serefina had returned to Scotland it was already late. Not knowing the password to Gryffindor tower, Phoebe crashed in the spare room within her Godmother's sleeping quarters with the hope of returning to her dorm room tomorrow morning.<p>

As she lay in bed that night, a thought struck Phoebe.

She had forgotten to search her Grandfather's study for information on Nicolas Flamel.

Phoebe sighed and closed her eyes. Tomorrow, she would write to her grandfather and request the relevant information she needed.

_I just hope it doesn't turn into 20 questions_ she thought wistfully, as sleep ebbed its way into her mind, pushing away her thoughts. The last thing she needed was her grandparents finding out what she was doing at Hogwarts because she knew they would inform Serefina, and then she would have a total uprising on her hands.

And she really didn't need that.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Term started up the next morning and Phoebe was still in the same predicament she was the previous night. She still didn't have access to Gryffindor tower, and therefore was cut off from her clothes and school supplies, this was the reason why she was entering the Great Hall at 7:00am clad in her best black dance shorts, a t-shirt which was two sizes too big for her, her black and blonde hair was thrown up into an untidy ponytail and she was barefooted, providing the rest of the school with the clear statement that she had only just gotten out of bed.

A wolf-whistle echoed from the Slytherin table, and Phoebe didn't need to be told who it was for seconds later the sound of Marcus Flint's voice reached her from the sea of Green and Silver.

"Looking good, Blackheart!" he jeered.

Phoebe rolled her eyes in his direction "Don't be jealous, Flint!" she retorted, before spotting Oliver sitting at the Gryffindor table with his usual cluster of friends. She smiled and hurried up behind him, threw her arms around his neck and smiled "Hi!"

Oliver gave a startled yelp and glanced sideways "Phoebe!" he scolded "Nearly gave me a heart attack, lass"

"Sorry." Phoebe smiled.

"Where were you last night?" Katie asked.

"I didn't get back until late," Phoebe answered "then I realized that I didn't know the password to the Fat Lady, so I spent the night in my Godmother's quarters."

Katie nodded "So, interesting attire for the first day back" she teased.

"Flint seemed to think the same." Phoebe nodded.

Oliver tensed and glanced over his shoulder at the Slytherin table to find Flint staring at Phoebe like a side of raw meat. "Come on, I'll walk you back upstairs." he offered, not liking the glint in the Slytherin's eye.

Phoebe smiled "Thanks."

Oliver nodded, excused himself from his friends, and lead Phoebe out of the hall. Only pausing to throw Flint a glare as he passed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was at least 2 weeks after the start of term did anything particularly strange occur within Hogwarts. And it happened on the one the dullest and wettest nights of the year.

Phoebe was sitting in front of the fireplace reading a letter she had received from her grandfather, as James sat on the other side of the common room with Dean and the rest of the guys from his dorm. They were chatting about something that Phoebe had no interest in so she had decided to sit with Hermione and Ron, and wait for Harry to come back from Quidditch practice.

The portrait hole swung open and the Gryffindor seeker trudged in covered in mud and soaked through to the bone.

"Don't talk to me for a minute," Ron said, without looking up from the chess board. He had been playing Hermione for over the last half an hour, and sadly enough the Muggleborn was losing. But then again even Hermione knew that she wasn't the best at _everything._ "I'm trying to concentrate."

Phoebe, who had looked up from her letter the moment the portrait and swung opened, spotted the look on Harry's features. "What's the matter, Harry?" she asked, swatting Ron across the back of the head for his insensitivity towards his best friend.

"Ow!" Ron yelped, rubbing the back of his head.

"Snape's refereeing the next Quidditch match." Harry told him, his voice low so that no one else could hear.

Immediately Ron and Hermione jumped to protest.

"Don't play," said Hermione.

"Say you're ill," suggested Ron.

"Pretend to break your leg." Hermione countered.

"_Really_ break your leg." Ron answered.

"He can't," Phoebe interrupted "Gryffindor doesn't have a reserve Seeker. If he pulls out now, we can't play at all."

At that moment, Neville toppled into the common room. How he had managed to climb through the portrait hole was anyone's guess, because his legs had been stuck together with what they could only guess was the Leg-Locker Curse.

_He must have bunny hopped all the way up here._ Phoebe thought rolling her eyes at the rest of the house as they laughed at their housemate. Yeah, true Gryffindor support.

As the Gryffindor's fell around laughing, Hermione jumped to her feet and performed the counter curse. Neville's legs sprang apart.

"What happened?" James asked, approaching the fireplace.

"Malfoy." Neville answered "Cornered me outside of the library. He said he had been looking for someone to practice on."

"Go to Professor McGonagall!" Hermione urged "Report him!"

Neville shook his head.

"I don't want more trouble." he mumbled.

"You've got to stand up to him, mate" said James "He's used to walking all over people but there's no reason to lie down in front of him and make it easier."

"There's no need to tell me I'm not brave enough to be in Gryffindor. Malfoy's already done that." Neville choked.

"Here" Phoebe said, throwing him a Chocolate frog "You're worth twelve of him, Neville. The Sorting Hat placed you in Gryffindor. You may not think you're brave, but you are loyal, and Loyalty is a Gryffindor trait."

Neville's lips twitched in a weak smile as he unwrapped the Frog. "Thanks, Phoebe. I think I'll go to bed now. Do you want the card?"

"Keep it."

Neville nodded, and trudged upstairs to his dorm. James bid Phoebe a goodnight and followed after him along with Seamus and Dean.

Once they had gone Phoebe turned back to her letter.

_"...__Espero que não te estejas a meter em sarilhos, Phoebe. Contudo, fiz como pediste e encontrei informação relevante. Espero que a uses bem. Não te metas em problemas, e ver-te-ei quando voltares para casa no verão._

_Amo-te, papa."_

On the second page of the letter Phoebe found a small extraction from a book. It was handwritten which meant that her grandfather had copied it word for word, as her eyes zoomed over the sentences Phoebe gasped causing Harry, Ron and Hermione to turn in her direction.

"What?" the three asked simultaneously.

"I know who Flamel is," Phoebe answered, looking at them over the top of her letter.

Their faces changed considerably.

Reaching across the table Ron's hand snatched the letter from Phoebe.

"Ron!" Hermione scolded.

"It's okay, 'Mione," Phoebe smiled "He won't be able to understand it anyway."

"Why?" Harry asked.

Phoebe grinned "Because it's in Portuguese."

Ron, who had realized his failure, passed the letter back for Phoebe to translate.

"_The ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Philosopher's Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing powers. The Stone will transform any metal into pure gold. It also produces the Elixir of Life, which will make the drinker immortal. There have been many reports of the Philosopher's Stone over the centuries, but the only Stone currently in existence belongs to Mr Nicolas Flamel, the noted alchemist and opera-lover. Mr Flamel, who just celebrated his six hundred and sixty-fifth birthday, enjoys a quiet life in Devon with his wife, Perenelle (six hundred and fifty-eight)._"

Hermione, Harry and Ron were stunned into silence after Phoebe had finished.

"That's what the dog must be guarding," Phoebe said, striking up the conversation.

Hermione was the first to recover. "Yeah. I bet he asked Dumbledore to keep it safe for him and he knew someone was after it, and he figured Hogwarts was safer than Gringotts, and therefore that's why he had it removed from the Gringotts vault."

"A stone that males gold and stops you ever dying!" said Harry "No wonder Snape's after it. _Anyone_ would want it."

"Anyone like Voldemort." Phoebe answered.

Her friends froze and turned to her.

"He's dead." Hermione answered.

Phoebe shook her head "There's no proof that he is dead. He could be out there somewhere, just abiding his time." she explained "What if he had someone break into Gringotts to steal the stone? My Aunt Serefina told me herself that only a powerful dark wizard could have broken into a Gringotts vault without help. And as far as we know Voldemort was the only Dark Wizard in existence, and none have arrived since his downfall."

"Six hundred and sixty-five?" Ron spluttered, still in disbelief of the age, and not paying attention to Phoebe "No wonder we couldn't find him in _Study of Recent Developments in Wizardry._ He's not exactly recent, is he?"

His friends stared at him.

"What?" Ron asked, looking between them.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted<strong>

**Next chapter will be the next Quidditch match. Be on the lookout. :)**

**The letter:**

_Espero que não te estejas a meter em sarilhos, Phoebe. Contudo, fiz como pediste e encontrei informação relevante. Espero que a uses bem. Não te metas em problemas, e ver-te-ei quando voltares para casa no verão._

_Amo-te, papa._

**English translation:**

_I hope you're not getting into trouble, Phoebe. But I did as you asked and found the relevant information. I hope you put it to good use. Stay out of trouble, and I'll see you whe return home for the summer._

_Love Papa_

**Chapter written by **_xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated on **_Friday 23rd September 2011_ **at** _04:12am_.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** _Here is the second Quidditch match. This time it's Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff. Who will come out on top?_

**A/N: **_Chapter dedicated to the following:_ **10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat, Fan of Fics **_and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**A/N: ****Fan of Fics:** _I hope you feel better soon. And to answer your questions: No i'm not fluent in Portuguese. I just use Google Translator for those parts. =)_

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** _You think so? Such a shame Phoebe isn't returning his passes. More to come on this later._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:**_ For ten years she was kept a secret. Now it's time for the Wizarding to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>The day of match arrived faster than anyone expected it too. Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team were more than anxious as the day crept closer, each of them knew that if they won this match today, then they would overtake Slytherin in the House Championship but with Professor Snape refereeing the match none of the Gryffindor's were sure they were going to make it that far.<p>

Minutes before the match was due to begin Phoebe sat with James in the stands waiting for the Hufflepuff's and Gryffindor's to appear on the field and commence play. Hermione and Ron weren't present yet, and when they did finally arrive the grim looks on their faces were enough to make anyone do a double take.

"Would you two calm down?" Phoebe asked "Harry's probably panicking enough as it is. It would be reassuring for him to think that his best friends will actually see him again after today's game."

Ron glared as Hermione sighed "You're right. We're not doing anyone any favors in worrying." she slipped her wand under her sleeve "But just in case."

James frowned "Why do you have your wands?" he asked

"Later." Phoebe answered him.

"I've never seen Snape look so mean," Ron commented, staring at the Potions Master who was on the field when the two teams marched out.

"Hey, Dumbledore's in the teachers stands," James replied, nodding to the stand next to theirs.

Phoebe, Hermione and Ron whipped around. James was right. There was no mistaking that silver beard.

"At least Harry's safe." Hermione whispered "There is no way Snape will dare to try and hurt him with Dumbledore present."

James frowned "Why would Snape want to hurt Harry anyway?"

"I said, later" Phoebe nudged him, jumping as a voice sounded from behind her. Whipping around the young Gryffindor glared as Marcus Flint sat directly behind her, but he wasn't alone Draco Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were also there too.

"Wonder how long Potter's going to stay on his broom this time?" Draco joked "Anyone want a bet? What about you, Weasley?"

Ron didn't answer.

The game had only just begun and Snape had already awarded Hufflepuff a penalty because George had hit a Bludger in his direction.

Ignoring the four Slytherin's behind her, Phoebe turned her attention back to the game and scanned the pitch for Harry.

"You know how I think they choose people for the Gryffindor team?" said Malfoy loudly a few minutes later as Snape awarded Hufflepuff another penalty for no reason at all. "Its people they feel sorry for. See, there's Potter, who's got no parents, then there's the Weasley's, who've got no money - you should be on the team, Longbottom, you've got no brains."

Neville -who was sitting next to James- went bright red but turned in his seat to face Malfoy "I'm worth twelve of you, Malfoy!" he stammered.

Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle and Flint howled with laughter, but Phoebe supported her friend by saying "You tell him, Neville."

"Longbottom, if brains were gold you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something" Malfoy jeered.

"Give it a rest, Malfoy!" James spat, turning around "Nobody cares about your pathetic -"

Phoebe cut him off as she jumped to her feet "Harry -!" she squealed, watching as her friend suddenly went into a spectacular dive, which drew gasps and cheers from the crowd. Hermione was on her feet also, her fingers crossed in her mouth, as Harry streaked towards the ground like a bullet.

"You're in luck, Weasley. Potter's obviously spotted some money on the ground!" said Malfoy.

Ron snapped. Before Malfoy knew what was happening, Ron was on top of him, wrestling him to the ground. Neville hesitated, and then clambered over the back of his seat to help. James quickly moved to stop him but was cut off when Goyle took a swipe at his head, and then all hell broke loose as James jumped onto Goyle.

"Come on, Harry!" Phoebe screamed, leaping onto her seat to watch Harry. He had just blasted past Snape, who had turned just in time to see a scarlet streak shoot past him, missing him by inches - next second, Harry had pulled out of the dive, his arm raised in triumph, the Snitch clasped in his hand.

"HE DID IT!" Hermione screamed "Ron! Ron! Where are you?"

"WE WON!" Phoebe squealed, throwing her arms around Hermione and hugging her as they danced around on their seats "Harry's won! We've won! Gryffindor are in the lead!"

Flint eyed the pair angrily as they celebrated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The game had ended. Gryffindor had won and were in second place for the Quidditch championship, all they had to do was beat Ravenclaw next week and they had won it all. The cup would be in Professor McGonagall's office by the end of the semester and Gryffindor would be champions for the first time in seven years.

With the rest of the students and Gryffindor team heading back towards the castle, the Weasley twins already planning the party that was going to take place due to their recent win, Phoebe opted to hang back and wait for Harry. The boy took longer to change than the average female.

While she was waiting for her friend to appear, Phoebe reflected back on the information about Nicolas Flamel that her grandfather had found for her and the letter from the grandmother during first term. What bad thing was going to happen at Hogwarts that her grandmother had foreseen, but hadn't happened yet? At first Phoebe thought it had been Harry's attack while playing Quidditch against Slytherin but she had ruled that out as misfortune, and the only other thing that she could think of that would make her grandmother to worry about Dark Forces invading Hogwarts and that was the Philosopher's Stone, but who would want to steal it? And for who?

Phoebe knew that Harry, Ron and Hermione suspected Professor Snape, but for some strange reason she was starting to disagree. Why would Professor Snape want a stone that could make you immortal? Going through life never dying, watching your friends grow old and then leaving you as they moved on. Surely death was better?

But what if Snape didn't want the stone for himself? But that also raised the question on _whom_? Who was Snape trying to steal the stone for?

Finally, breaking through her mental reasoning, Harry appeared in the doorway leading to the under-stadium changing rooms. He was surprised to find Phoebe waiting for him. "I thought you'd gone back to the castle?" he asked

"Someone had to stay behind." Phoebe smiled "Congratulations by the way. You beat Cedric."

"Who?"

"Cedric Diggory. Hufflepuff Seeker? Also known as one of the cutest boys at Hogwarts!"

Harry rolled his eyes "Yeah that last one right there, would be why I have not heard of him."

Phoebe giggled "Sorry, but he is" she shrugged "But he's only at second place."

"Who's above him?"

"Oliver." Phoebe answered without realization.

Harry stopped dead and turned to the female beside him, as realization finally dawned on her face and it turned a tomato red.

"I did not just say that." Phoebe mumbled "I did not just say that."

"You said that." Harry laughed "Clear has day. And I'm telling Oliver, the first chance I get"

Phoebe glared "Do not make me hurt you, Harry James Potter!" she warned.

Harry grinned, put his broom in the broomstick shed and made a break for the castle with Phoebe shouting and chasing after him.

The game of cat and mouse continued all the way up the bank from the Quidditch stadium and back towards the front doors of the castle, Harry was in the lead, but Phoebe was gaining. Stopping short of the castle door Harry had no time to tell Phoebe to stop and seconds later she crashed into the back of him, sending the two of them to the floor.

Phoebe laughed loudly as she started to roll backwards down the hill but stopped when Harry pulled her back and placed his hand over her mouth, muffling any further sound. Phoebe frowned and glanced up at him, wondering silently what he was doing.

Pressing a finger to his lips, Harry motioned for her to be silent, and pointed at the hooded figure that had just come down the front steps of the castle, clearly not wanting to seen, it was walking as fast as possible towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Is that Snape?" Phoebe asked, peering over the mound in front of her.

Harry nodded. He recognized the prowling walk of the Potions master. "We should follow him," he suggested

"Or we could just go back inside." Phoebe answered

"No," Harry shook his head "Come on. We'll get my broom; he won't see us in the air."

Phoebe sighed and followed Harry back to the broom shed, mounted his broom behind him and held on tightly around his waist as he kicked off from the ground. The two first years glided silently over the castle and watched as Snape entered the Forest at a run.

They followed.

The trees were so thick that they couldn't see where Snape had gotten too the moment they had entered the trees.

"Lower." Phoebe whispered, into Harry's ear as she rested her chin on his shoulder

Harry nodded and flew lower and lower through the thicket of trees, brushing the top branches until they heard voices. He glided towards them and landed noiselessly in a towering beech tree.

Phoebe climbed effortlessly off of the back of the broom, latched onto the branch above her head and then climbed carefully along the branches. Harry followed her, holding tightly onto his broomstick.

"..d-don't know why you wanted t-t-to meet here of all p-places, Severus..."

Phoebe and Harry exchanged looks as Quirrel's stuttering voice reached them from the clearing.

"Oh, I thought we'd keep this private," said Snape, his voice icy, "Students aren't supposed to know about the Philosopher's Stone, after all."

Quirrell mumbled something but it was lost as Snape interrupted.

"Have you found out how to get past that beast of Hagrid's yet?"

"B-b-but Severus, I -"

"You don't want me as your enemy, Quirrell," said Snape, taking a step towards him.

"I-I don-t know what you -"

"You know perfectly well what I mean."

An owl hooted causing Phoebe to jump and almost fall out of the tree, and she would have done so had it not been for Harry's quick reflexes. The Seeker's arm wrapped around his friends waist and pulled her quickly towards him, holding her in place within the tree.

"- your little bit of hocus pocus. I'm waiting." Snape finished.

"B-but I d-d-don't -"

"Very well," Snape cut in "We'll have another little chat soon, when you've had time to think things over and decided where your loyalties lie." he then threw his cloak over his head and strode out of the clearing. It was almost dark now, but it was not difficult for Phoebe to see that Quirrell was looking quite terrified in the dim light.

"Come on," Harry whispered, tugging on Phoebe's hand and leading her back across the branch.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they had made it back to the castle, Harry and Phoebe ran smack bang into Hermione and Ron on the sixth floor as the two had been searching for them the moment they realized they were not present at the party.

"We won! You won! We won!" Ron was jittery, and Phoebe wondered how much sugar he had already had. She already knew that Gryffindor was celebrating their big win against Hufflepuff and she was sure that Fred and George would have nicked enough food from the kitchens by now. "And I gave Malfoy a black eye, Neville gave Crabbe a fat lip and James broke Goyle's nose."

Phoebe whipped around at the sound of her friends name "He did what?" she asked "Is he okay?"

"He's fine" Hermione promised "He's in the Common room, he's got a few cuts and bruises but it's nothing to panic over. Madam Pomfrey patched him and Neville up just fine."

Phoebe sighed in relief and made a mental note to talk to James later that evening. "Well, talk about showing Slytherin." she commented "such a shame neither one of you thought to take a punch at Flint while you were at it"

"Why?" Hermione asked, but before Phoebe could answer, Harry jumped in.

"Never mind all that." the Seeker said breathlessly "Come on, let's find an empty classroom, we've got something to tell you."

He pushed open a near-by door and led the way inside. Phoebe, Hermione and Ron followed, the latter two intrigued on what Harry had to say. After making sure that Peeves was not hidden in the room Phoebe and Harry told the other two about exactly what they had seen and heard down in the forest.

"So we were right, it _is_ the Philosopher's Stone, and Snape's trying to force Quirrell to help him get it. He asked if he knew how to get past Fluffy -"

Phoebe cut in "Whoa, wait a minute, who the hell is _Fluffy_?"

"That three headed dog." Hermione answered "He belongs to Hagrid."

"I could have guessed that." Phoebe nodded "but _Fluffy_? Who in the name of all things that are Holy names a three-headed dog, _Fluffy!"_

Harry shook his head and pressed on with his explanation "- and he said something about Quirrell's 'Hocus Pocus' - I reckon there are other things guarding the stone apart from Fluffy; loads of enchantments, probably, and Quirrell would have done some anti-Dark Arts spell which Snape needs to break through -"

"So you mean the Stone's only safe as long as Quirrell stands up to Snape?" Hermione squeaked.

Ron groaned "Great. It will be gone by next Tuesday."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 12:22am**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: **_Yes. Another update. I'm trying to get First year over and done with as quick as possible because I have so many ideas for year two._

**A/N:** _Chapter dedicated too:_ **10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd, Razmend **_and_ **Fan of Fic.**

**In responses:** **Fan of Fics:**_ I am glad you are feeling better. It's not nice being sick, yeah; I too wondered why Harry, Ron and Hermione weren't given the chance to act like normal children. I mean, I understand that they are in a Wizarding community but they are only children after all, they deserve time to grow up when they want. This is why I wanted to try and convey that with Phoebe and Harry. Also I didn't like that they had a party with Neville unconscious and in the Hospital Wing, Neville deserved to celebrate their win. But I'm glad you liked it._

**Razmend:** _It's good to hear from you. I'm glad you like the story._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong> _The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:**_ For ten years she was kept secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>In the weeks that followed the Quidditch match there seemed to be a slight change in Professor Quirrell's behaviour he seemed to be getting paler and thinner, but it didn't look as though he'd cracked yet. But in comparison to Professor Quirrell, Professor Snape was sweeping around in his usual demeanour looking angrier by the second, which obviously meant that the Stone was still safe.<p>

However, Phoebe had more on her mind than the Philosopher's Stone. Since the discovery of the Stone she had become so side-tracked that she had completely forgotten about the end of term exams that they had to take in order to secure a spot at Hogwarts in second year. Which was why one Thursday afternoon, Phoebe could have been found sitting in the Great Hall with Ashlyn and James, surrounded by several library books, class notes and highlighters, as she colour-coded the relevant pieces of information that may have come up in the exams.

"Who took my green?" Phoebe asked, breaking the silence that had fallen. She had just finished highlighting the twelve uses of Dragon's Blood in Yellow, and had reached for the green highlighter for her Herbology notes when she found it missing.

James -who was sitting opposite- shrugged "Not me."

"Guilty." Ashlyn said, holding up the 'missing' pen. "Give me two minutes?"

Phoebe nodded, and turned back to her notes. The previous night she had drawn up a perfect revision timetable, where she had listed several different notes that she was going to look over. Today, she had left several squares empty so she could use the library, and sit here in the Great Hall colour coding her notes.

"Why are you stressing so bad, anyway?" James asked "The exams are ages away"

"Ten weeks!" Phoebe responded "That's not ages"

James waved her off.

"You do realize that if you don't pass these exams you won't be returning next year, right?" Ashlyn asked, looking across at her cousin

"Really?" James asked in mock panic "Oh no! Quick someone pass me my notes! I better make a bunch of useless revision timetables, notes and other useless facts that I won't need."

Phoebe and Ashlyn glared at him. They understood that he didn't want to revise, but he didn't have to be a prat about it.

**~*Phoebe*~**

An hour later Phoebe was just finishing up the revision for her Herbology exam when a voice reached her senses, but it wasn't her name they were calling.

"Ashlyn!"

The Slytherin beside Phoebe looked up and around before spotting Adrian Pucey approaching the table "Yeah?" she asked as he got closer.

"We're going to play a round of Quidditch." Adrian told her "You want to join?"

"Can't, got exams coming up." Ashlyn answered, motioning to her notes with her orange highlighter.

"Oh come on, a small break won't hurt." Miles Bletchley groaned, shouldering his broomstick "We need a decent Chaser."

Ashlyn shook her head "Maybe next time."

Phoebe looked up and prodded her friend "You can go if you want we can do this tomorrow."

"What about you and James?" Ashlyn asked "I feel like we never see each other anymore."

"Don't worry about us," Phoebe reassured her "I'll leave him with Seamus and Dean, and I can go find Harry or Oliver - say nothing James!" she added quickly as she saw her friend open his mouth to retort.

James deflated and grumbled, as Ashlyn giggled into her hand. "You sure?" the Slytherin pressed, feeling slightly guilty.

"Yes!" Phoebe nodded "we can pick up tomorrow in the library. And we'll ditch Mr Boring in the process!" she added nodding her head towards James.

"I saw that!" James murmured "Don't think I didn't see that."

Phoebe smiled.

Ashlyn returned the smile "Thanks Phoebe."

"No problem."

Turning back to her housemates, Ashlyn collected her things and said "I got to make a stop in the common room first, Adrian, do you still have my broom?"

"Yeah. It's in my dorm." Adrian nodded, as Ashlyn shoved the rest of her things into her overhead.

While her friend was packing up her things, Phoebe's gaze locked with Adrian's, and it stayed locked until he turned away following Ashlyn from the hall.

James snickered, causing Phoebe to kick him under the table.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Ashlyn off with the Slytherin's, James and Phoebe returned to the Gryffindor common room where James joined Seamus and Dean in the corner of the room, and Phoebe was snatched away by Hermione.

"Hagrid is going to tell us more about the Stone." the Bookworm explained, as she and Phoebe made their way through the school hallways towards the Entrance Hall. Phoebe felt a sense of Deja vu seeing as she had only _just_ this moment walked this same path.

She glanced sideways "I thought he wasn't allowed?"

"Well, he's not exactly going to tell us _everything_," Hermione explained "He just told us to go see him later. It's later."

Harry and Ron were waiting for them on the Marble staircase.

Ron glared when he saw Phoebe "What is _she_ doing here?" he asked

"If you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all!" Phoebe snapped back, already irritated with him.

"This has nothing to do with you," Ron argued "You shouldn't be here!"

"Excuse me?" Phoebe spat "Who was it who found the information you needed? You wouldn't have the slightest idea what is under Fluffy if my grandfather had found information on Flamel. As far as I see it I've done more than you have, Weasley, so maybe it is _you_ that doesn't belong here!"

Ron's ears turned red in anger "Why you little -"

"Watch your tongue, Weasley!" Phoebe snapped "One day you may lose it!"

Hermione and Harry exchanged looks, and made their way out onto the grounds. Phoebe and Ron following, but also still arguing behind them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ten minutes later the four Gryffindor's were sitting inside Hagrid's stiflingly hot hut, with the curtains and window's closed, and despite it be a gorgeously warm day outside, there was a blazing fire in the grate. Hagrid made them team and offered them stoat sandwiches', which they refused.

"So - yeh wanted to ask me something'?" Hagrid asked, rounding on them. He had been surprised when he first saw Phoebe there, as far as he knew she had no idea what was going on with Fluffy and the Stone. And he wondered if Serefina knew of her involvement.

"Yes." said Harry. There was no use beating around the bush "We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Philosopher's Stone apart from Fluffy"

Hagrid frowned.

"O' course I can't," he said "Number one, I don't know meself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn' tell yeh if I could. That Stone's here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts - I s'ppose yeh've worked that out an all? Beats me how yeh even know abou' Fluffy."

"Oh, come on Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you _do_ know, you know everything that goes on round here," said Phoebe in her usual warm, flattering voice. Hagrid's beard twitched and they could tell he was smiling "We only wondered who had _done_ the guarding, really. We wondered who Dumbledore trusted enough to help him, apart from you."

Hagrid's chest swelled at these words. Harry and Hermione beamed at Phoebe as Ron sulked

"Well, I don' s'pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that...let's see...he borrowed Fluffy from me...then some o' the teachers did enchantments ... Professor Sprout - Professor Flitwick - Professor McGonagall -" he ticked them off on his fingers "Professor Quirrell - an' Dumbledore himself did somethin', o' course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape."

_"Snape?"_

"Yeah - yer not still going on abou' that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped _protect _the Stone, he's not about ter steal it."

Phoebe frowned, if Snape was one of the teachers protecting the Stone, it must have been fairly easy for him to find out how the other teachers had guarded it. He probably knew everything - except, it seemed, Quirrell's spell and how to get past Fluffy.

"You're the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy, aren't you, Hagrid?" said Harry anxiously "And you wouldn't tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?"

"Not a soul knows except me, Dumbledore an' Professor Blackheart." said Hagrid proudly.

Harry, Ron and Hermione turned to Phoebe.

Phoebe looked from her friends, to Hagrid and back again "What?" she asked

"Nothing." Harry shook his head "Hagrid, can we open a window? I'm boiling."

"Can't, Harry, sorry," said Hagrid.

Phoebe noticed him glance towards the fireplace, and sliding from her stare she crept closer. "Hagrid - is _that_ what I think it is?"

In the very heart of the fire, underneath the kettle, was a huge, black egg.

Hagrid nodded, looking suddenly very nervous.

"But where did you get it, Hagrid?" Ron asked, crouching over the fire to get a closer look "It must've cost you a fortune."

"Won it," said Hagrid "Las' night. I was down in the village havin' a few drinks an' got into a game o' cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad to be rid of it, ter be honest"

"But what are you going to do with it when it's hatched?" said Hermione.

"Well, I've bin doin' some readin'," said Hagrid, pulling a large book from under his pillow "Got this outta the library - _Dragon-Breeding for Pleasure and Profit_ - it's a bit outta date, o' course, but it's all in here. Keep the egg in the fire, 'cause their mothers breathe on 'em, see, an when it hatches, feed it on a bucket o' brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. An' see here - how ter recognize diff'rent eggs - what I got there's a -"

Ron and Phoebe cut across him "Norwegian Ridgeback."

"Ah, yeh," Hagrid nodded "They're rare, them."

But while Hagrid looked pleased with himself, Hermione was far from it.

"Hagrid, you live in a _wooden house_!" she said.

But Hagrid wasn't listening. He was busy humming merrily as he stoked the fire.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Did you enjoy? I hope you did. I'm off to bed now. Night.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Wednesday, 28 September 2011 at 2:54am**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **_Hello. Would firstly like to say for me to write the Slytherin's as 'evil' in Phoebe is really difficult because of my Muggleborn Witches. I just love the Slytherin house and its students they are so misunderstood and under used, so writing them as evil is a very difficult job for me. And the readers of MWS I bet it's difficult for you to read them as it too. But alas, we all get through it._

**A/N:** _Thank-you to the following people:_ **Fan of Fics, Razmend, 10th Squad 3rd Seat**_ and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd**._ Thanks for the support throughout this story; it wouldn't be as good as it is without you._

_To __**Fan of Fics**__: There is more to Adrian and Phoebe than meets the eye. All will be revealed soon, promise. But yes, it does seem they don't get on, despite Phoebe's friendship with Ashlyn._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong> _The Dark Lords Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>Great. So now they had something else to worry about, but then again they were first year students the only thing they <em>should<em> have been worrying about was their final exams, which was why despite the Dragon and the Philosopher's Stone, Hermione and Phoebe were determined to get as much study time in as possible.

"Wonder what it is like to have a peaceful life," Ron sighed, one evening in the library.

Phoebe, who sat at a near-by desk with James and Ashlyn, looked up and rolled her eyes "You'll get your tranquility once the exams are over." she reminded him "Granted you pass and whatnot. Otherwise you'll definitely have a normal peaceful life next year, at home, with your parents."

"Shove off, Blackheart!" Ron snapped

Phoebe shrugged and returned her attention to her homework. She had almost finished her Transfiguration essay, a few more words and it could join the finished pile which consisted of Charms, Potions, Herbology and History of Magic.

"Damn it, Pheebs," James complained eyeing the pile "Slow down. You're going to wear yourself out."

"I'm okay," Phoebe smiled "I was raised to keep on top of things. This is nothing."

"I have something you can keep on top of, if you want it, Blackheart" a familiar voice sneered.

Phoebe closed her eyes tightly in hopes of burning away the mental image she had received "Thanks a lot, Flint! Now I'm going to have that disgusting imagine engrained into my memory."

Flint grinned "Well enjoy it, because there's more where that came from, just say the word." he winked.

Phoebe gagged and turned back to her work "I think I just threw up a little."

"Shall we go?" James asked.

"Okay. You want to come, Ash?" Phoebe asked, turning to the Slytherin "We can go find Sarah."

Ashlyn shook her head "No, it's okay; I'm going to stay here, almost finished."

"Okay," Phoebe nodded, and started to pack away her stuff "Don't stay too late. Sweet dreams."

"Night Pheebs" Ashlyn waved "Bye James."

Phoebe passed by Marcus as he grabbed her wrist "See you later, in your dreams." he smirked

"If you turned up in my dreams," Phoebe retorted "that would be my worst nightmare!" she shook him off and left the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next morning at breakfast Hedwig arrived with a letter for Harry.

_Its hatching _was scrawled out on the piece of parchment, obviously from Hagrid.

Ron wanted to skip Herbology that morning and go straight to Hagrid's hut. But Hermione wouldn't hear it, and in result the two argued all the way down to the greenhouses forcing Harry to speed up and walk with Phoebe and James.

"What are they fighting about?" James asked "What's so important that Ron wants to skip class?"

"Nothing." Phoebe answered "Ron's just being a prat again."

Ron glared at Phoebe as he heard the comment "No one asked for you to comment, Blackheart!" he yelled

"Then shut your trap, Weasley!" Phoebe hissed "You never know who could be listening!"

Malfoy smirked at the five Gryffindor's as he passed and Ron snapped his mouth shut. How much had Malfoy heard?

But during morning break the Golden Trio agreed to run down to Hagrid's and see what the fuss was all about, and much to their surprise they found Phoebe already sitting at the table with her aunt Serefina and Hagrid watching the black egg shatter on the table. Fang was sitting alongside Phoebe drooling all over her uniform.

"What are you doing here?" Ron asked irritable that Phoebe was there again

Serefina looked up at the last Weasley male "Phoebe has every right to be here as you do, Weasley" she answered "if I remember correctly Phoebe as a weird fascination with Dragons."

Phoebe grinned "It's nearly out!" she squealed pointing at the egg.

Harry and Hermione pulled up stools around Phoebe as Ron followed grudgingly and sat beside Hermione. All at once there was a scraping noise and the egg split open. The baby dragon flopped out on to the table. It wasn't exactly pretty, but looked more like a crumpled, black umbrella. Its spiny wings were huge compared to its skinny jet body and it had a long snout with wide nostrils, stubs of horns and bulging, orange eyes.

It sneezed. A couple of sparks flew out of its snout.

"Isn't he _beautiful_?" Hagrid murmured. He reached out a hand to stroke the dragon's head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fans. "Bless him, look, he knows his mummy!"

"Hagrid," said Hermione "how fast do Norwegian Ridgebacks grow, exactly?"

Hagrid was about to answer when the colour drained from his face - he leapt to his feet and ran to the window.

"What's the matter?" Serefina asked.

"Someone was lookin' through the gap in the curtains - it's a kid - he's runnin' back up ter the school.

Harry bolted for the door and looked out, feeling a presence at his shoulder he turned to find Phoebe glaring at the unmistakable student.

Malfoy had seen the dragon.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There was a hidden meaning behind the way Malfoy's smile over the next couple of days which made the four friends extremely nervous, and Harry knew that Phoebe was spending more and more time down in Hagrid's hut with her Aunt Serefina trying to reason with him.

"Why doesn't he just let him go?" Harry asked, one evening after Phoebe had returned from Hagrid's hut "Just set him free?"

"He won't. Hagrid is afraid that he will die because he is so small" Phoebe answered "But it's grown nearly 3 sizes bigger since the last time you saw him. At this rate Hagrid won't be able to hide him from anyone; it will knock the hut down"

The Trio exchanged looks.

"He's decided to call him Norbert," Phoebe added

Ron snorted "He's completely lost it!"

"He does know that he can't keep Norbert forever, but he can't just dump him, he won't" Phoebe reasoned with a heavy sigh "Aunt Serefina is losing her patience very quickly, she understands that Hagrid cares about the Dragon, but if Dumbledore finds out about this then she could lose her job."

Hermione frowned "How could _she_ lose her job?" she asked

"Because she knows about the Dragon and didn't report it," Phoebe answered "and we could all be expelled for the same reason."

At this the bookworm looked nervous.

Harry suddenly turned to Ron "Charlie," he said.

"Now you're losing it," said Ron "I'm Ron, remember?"

"No - Charlie - your brother Charlie. In Romania. Studying dragons. We could send Norbert to him. Charlie can take care of him and then put him back in the wild!"

"Brilliant!" said Ron "But will Hagrid agree?"

Phoebe shrugged "I think he only wants Norbert looked after, if he believes Charlie will give the dragon the care he deserves then yeah, I think he'll agree." she nodded.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The following week dragged by. Phoebe had already gotten Hagrid to agree to let Charlie Weasley take the dragon, because 1) She didn't want to be expelled from Hogwarts, and 2) She didn't want Serefina to lose her job either. Hagrid had to agree after that point, having watched Serefina do her job as the Care of Magical Creatures professor at the school.

It was a Wednesday night and Phoebe found herself in Hagrid's hut once again, feeding the Dragon. Ron was also with her.

"Wait! Ron! Don't do that!" Phoebe cried wincing slightly as Ron howled as Norbert latched onto his hand, the fangs puncturing the skin within seconds.

Once Norbert had released the human, Hagrid ushered them out of the hut and back up to the castle. Ron wrapping his hand in a handkerchief of Phoebe's as they hurried through the darkness. Neither one said a word to each other as they hurried through the castle hallways, Phoebe still couldn't believe how someone who had a brother studying dragons could have been so stupid around the same creature his brother was studying!

"It bit me!" Ron said, showing Harry and Hermione his hand when he was back in the common room "I'm not going to be able to hold a quill for a week. I tell you, that dragon's the most horrible animal I've ever met, but the way Hagrid goes on about it, you'd think it was a fluffy bunny rabbit."

"It only bit you because you were being careless!" Phoebe snapped "Next time if you listen before you act then you won't get bitten. Both Hagrid and myself told you not to do it!"

"Do what?" Harry and Hermione asked

"Feed him by hand," Phoebe answered "Hagrid specifically told you to put the rats _in_ the case, not hand feed them to the dragon with poisonous fangs!"

Ron glared at Phoebe, who glared right back.

A tap on the dark window snapped them right out of their contest.

"It's Hedwig!" said Harry, hurrying to let the snow white owl into the common room "She'll have Charlie's answer!"

Gathering around Harry, the four of them put their heads together to read the note.

_Dear Ron,_

_How are you? Thanks for the letter - I'd be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won't be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine who are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is they mustn't be seen carrying an illegal dragon._

_Could you get the Ridgeback up the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him away while it's still dark._

_Send me an answer as soon as possible._

_Love,_

_Charlie._

They looked at each other.

"We've got the Invisibility Cloak," said Harry "It shouldn't be too difficult - I think the Cloaks big enough to cover all two of us and Norbert."

The other three nodded.

"But which two?" Ron asked, glaring at Phoebe.

"Well, obviously not you," Phoebe pointed out "Your hand is going to be the size of a gold ball tomorrow. You're going to be stuck in the hospital wing all weekend, and I have plans on Saturday night. So I think it's going to be Harry and Hermione taking him."

"What are you doing that is so important Saturday?" Ron enquired

"Ron!" Hermione scolded

Phoebe glared "To tell you that Weasley would mean that I would have to trust and like you, which in both cases, I don't!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

As Phoebe predicted Ron was in no shape to help with the escape plan of Norbert. The next morning he was bedridden in the hospital wing as his hand had swollen to twice the size of normal, at the end of the day, while Harry and Hermione rushed to the hospital wing to see their friend, Phoebe hurried up to the Library to finish some last minute homework with Ashlyn and James.

That night, after returning to the common room, Phoebe broke away from James and re-joined Harry and Hermione near the fireplace where she learned that Malfoy had taken the same book from Ron that held Charlie Weasley's letter.

"Is he really as thick as he looks?" Phoebe asked, running her hand through her hair

"Well, it's too late to change the plan now," Harry replied "We don't have time to send Charlie another letter, and this is our only chance of getting rid of Norbert. We'll have to risk it. We have the Invisibility Cloak, Malfoy doesn't know about that"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks and nodded in agreement, at least the odds were still in their favor.

"Okay," Phoebe agreed "Well, it's nearly seven, I have to get going. I've told Hagrid you'll be own for the dragon at exactly half eleven, that should give you enough time to get Norbert back to the castle and up to the Astronomy tower without being late"

"Thanks," Harry smiled as Phoebe waved to James and headed for the portrait.

Phoebe nodded "Good luck."

And with her two parting words Phoebe left the common room for her elemental powers training with Serefina.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was nearly midnight when she was returning from her lesson; and Phoebe knew that Harry and Hermione would have been in the Astronomy tower by now with Norbert and Charlie's friends, she just hoped that everything had gone according to plan and they hadn't been compromised or anything.

Hurrying around the corner that led onto the seventh floor, the young Gryffindor smiled as she reflected back on her lesson with Serefina, she had finally managed to disarm the Earth bender by just using her water powers, and this meant that she was becoming stronger and stronger _without_ the influences of the full moon channeling her along.

Serefina had always said that Water benders were at their peak during a coverless moon night, because the moon controlled the way of the water, and hence helped a water bender control the clear liquid when it was in their control.

If Phoebe could do this without the help of the moon then she would be able to defend herself elementally anytime, day or night.

A smile crept onto her face as she continued walking back towards the common room when something struck her across the head, knocking her to the floor. Rolling over Phoebe found herself face to face with Marcus Flint.

"Oh great, now i'm going to have nightmares for a week!" Phoebe sneered getting carefully to her feet.

_SMACK_

Marcus backhanded her across the face.

Phoebe hit the floor again and remained there as she was subjected to several more hits, punches and kicks to the chest and stomach by the sixteen year old above her.

"I'll teach you for dismissing me like that," Marcus sneered, a malicious grin igniting his features "we're going to have some fun tonight, just you and me, and there is no one around to help you this time."

Phoebe felt her throat constrict and tears clouded her vision as Marcus whispered exactly what he was going to do to her in her ear, bile rose in her throat as his fingers traced patterns down her arms and she flinched when he reached her hip. _Serefina_ she cried mentally, wishing and praying that by some miracle someone would appear around the corner and save her.

As her vision started to worsen and Phoebe started to succumb to the darkness that surrounded her, a new voice joined the ruckus.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Flint?"

Phoebe stirred at the new voice, were they going to help her? She hoped so.

Marcus stopped his malicious whisperings and glanced over his shoulder as Adrian Pucey and Ashlyn Black approached the scene. Ashlyn took one look at her Gryffindor friend and rushed to her aid, elbowing Marcus aside in the process.

"Phoebe..." Ashlyn whispered, pressing the bottom of her robes to the Gryffindor's bleeding skull "Phoebe, can you hear me?"

Phoebe murmured something indescribable, but Ashlyn sighed in relief, at least her friend could still hear her. "What in Merlin's name provoked this?" Ashlyn demanded, as she turned to glare at her fellow Slytherin.

"No one dismisses me," Marcus answered "Especially stupid little Gryffindor's!"

"Phoebe isn't just _anyone_, Flint!" Ashlyn snapped "She's a Blackheart. If you actually did your research you'd know that the Blackheart family is the Malfoy's of Portugal. Phoebe is their heir. Jacob and Elena Blackheart are _not_ going to be happy about this! And neither is Professor Blackheart!"

Marcus didn't even flinch at the new piece of information, but merely glared at Ashlyn for reprimanding him for his actions. "Don't sass me, Black!" he snapped.

"Not sassing," Ashlyn responded "Merely stating a fact that you didn't know about. My suggestion to you? Go back to the common room and lay low, the Professors can't reprimand you for doing something if you weren't at the scene. I'll take Phoebe to the Hospital wing and tell Madam Pomfrey that I found her on the way back from the girls' bathroom."

"How are you going to get yourself out of trouble?" Adrian asked "You're not supposed to be out at this time of the night."

"I'm with you." Ashlyn answered "I'll just tell Madam Pomfrey that you walked me to the bathroom so that if we got caught by Professors I wouldn't have detention or points taken for being out after hours. We'll have found Phoebe on our way back down to the dungeons, and instead of leaving her to bleed out in a corridor we took her to the Hospital wing. Okay?"

Adrian nodded.

Marcus growled, he didn't take orders very well, especially orders from a first year. "Fine." he caved, getting to his feet and walking away.

Ashlyn ignored him as he disappeared around the corner and turned her attention back to Phoebe "Can you carry her?" she asked, as Adrian knelt beside her "She's lost a lot of blood, and i'm no medical but I think he's broken a few of her ribs too."

"Madam Pomfrey will be able to fix her," Adrian answered "We just have to get her there first. Come on."

As Adrian lifted the semi-conscious Phoebe into his arms, the Gryffindor winced at the jostling movements "What's happening?" she whimpered.

"You're okay, Pheebs," Ashlyn promised "We're taking you to the hospital wing, just relax, you'll be fine."

"M'kay," Phoebe murmured, as she rested her head on Adrian's shoulder, closed her eyes and allowed herself to sink into the darkness once more.

Walking alongside her 'brother' Ashlyn smirked "Aw..." she teased.

Adrian glared at her "Do not make me regret helping you" he warned.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on **_Sunday, October 02, 2011_ **at** _5:48am_


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** _Thank you to the following people: _**10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine **_and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**A/N:** _In response too:_ _**Fan of Fics**__: Yeah. Marcus is a lot harder to write in Phoebe compared to MWS because I have such a huge soft spot for him. But Adrian is still around =)_

_**Vivi Fontaine**__: I know right! How dare he attack Phoebe! Ah well, soon we will have the __**real**__ Marcus back and that is when I start posting for MWS again. Can you hold on until them =P_

_**KingdomHeartsNerd**__: Slytherin hater! Life is not normal while Marcus is like this! Sadly for now, Marcus will get away with it, but Phoebe will get him =)_

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong>_ The Dark Lords Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>At first, Gryffindor's passing the giant hours glasses that recorded the house points next day thought there'd been a mistake. How could they suddenly have a hundred and fifty points fewer than yesterday? And then the story started to spread: Harry Potter, the famous Harry Potter, their hero of two Quidditch matches, had lost the all those points, him and a couple of other stupid first-years.<p>

Even Ravenclaws and Hufflepuff's had turned on Harry, because everyone had been longing to see Slytherin's lose the House Cup. Everywhere Harry went, people pointed and didn't bother lowering their voices as they insulted him. Slytherin's, on the other hand, clapped as he walked past them, whistling and cheering "Thanks Potter, we owe you one!" they would call.

The only person who seemed to stand by him was Ron...and normally Phoebe.

Speaking of Phoebe - where was she?

"I don't know," James answered the next morning at Breakfast "according to Lavender she didn't return to the dorm last night, and I didn't see her in the common room when I woke up this morning."

"Professor Blackheart is missing from breakfast," Katie said, pointing at the staff table "Do you think Phoebe's disappearance and Professors Blackheart's are related?"

James shrugged and then looked around at the sound of his name being called, Ashlyn was making her way towards him from the Slytherin table, her black hair pulled back and plaited as it hung down her back.

"What do you want, Black?" Oliver sneered.

Ashlyn ignored him as she reached her cousin "Have you been to see Phoebe, yet?"

James frowned "What do you mean?" he asked.

"You know where she is?" Harry asked.

Again Ashlyn ignored him and spoke directly to James "She's in the Hospital wing," she stated "It's a real shame you haven't been to see her yet. I thought Gryffindor's had more loyalty to their house-mates?"

"We didn't know!" James snapped.

"But thanks for telling us!" Oliver hissed, jumping to his feet and leaving the Great Hall. Katie, Harry, Hermione and James following behind him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Four broken ribs, a broken jawbone, fractured cheekbone," Madam Pomfrey explained to Serefina who had refused to leave Phoebe's side from the moment she had walked through the doors "There is no way another female did this to her, this beating definitely came from a male student."

Serefina gripped the arms of the chair she was sitting in tightly at the thought of someone taking a fist to her goddaughter "I will make sure that the attacker is dealt with severely, they will not get away with this!" the room shook violently as Serefina's powers kicked into overdrive as her anger spiked.

"Professor Blackheart, please control yourself!" McGonagall instructed as she entered the Hospital Wing "What is being done to see that Miss Blackheart has a safe recovery?"

Madam Pomfrey looked towards the deputy head as the room became still again "Since she is an elemental I have administrated two doses of Skele-Gro and I want her to stay in here for another night so I can keep an eye on her"

"Two?" McGonagall asked looking stunned.

"Yes. She may be a normal girl but since she has the power over the elements her bones are a lot stronger than the average child her age, one dose will just not heal her completely."

McGonagall and Serefina nodded, before turning their sights onto Phoebe who was still unconscious from the previous night.

Seconds later, Oliver, Katie, Harry, James and Hermione burst through the doors.

"Phoebe!" Hermione screamed, running to the bedside of the unconscious Gryffindor.

"What happened?" Oliver asked.

Serefina shook her head "We do not know. Phoebe has yet to wake up, so we don't know if she remembers anything from the attack."

The other Gryffindor's nodded in understanding and turned their attention back to their house-mate.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe groaned as the haze started to fade and consciousness seeped into her mind, her body ached tremendously and her skull throbbed from the inside.

"Phoebe." Oliver breathed. He had been sitting at the edge of her bed waiting for her to wake up; her slight groan had alerted him to her conscious state.

"Oliver," Phoebe smiled "How long have you been here? Where is here?"

"Hospital Wing" Oliver answered "You were attacked last night, do you remember by who?"

Memories of the previous night flooded her mind and Phoebe suppressed a shiver as Marcus Flint's face loomed in front of her. Swallowing hard she shook her head "No," she lied. She didn't know why she was lying but something was silently telling her that turning Marcus in was going to do a lot more harm than good.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Phoebe answered "I'm sorry."

Oliver shook his head "its okay. You rest up, you've got to stay here one more night and Katie and I will come here tomorrow morning when you're getting out. Okay?"

Phoebe smiled "Okay." she nodded.

Getting to his feet Oliver turned to walk away but a dull pressure on his hand caused him to turn back, Phoebe had slipped her fingers around him and squeezed.

"Thanks" Phoebe whispered, as her eyes started to close.

Oliver squeezed her fingers back "For what?"

"Caring enough to spend the afternoon the whole afternoon with me," Phoebe answered "although I was unconscious."

Her eyes closed once more and her breathing evened out. Oliver shook his head as a smile graced his features "It's what friends do; Pheebs" he answered, tugging a stray strand of hair behind her ear "Get some rest."

And he left her to sleep in peace.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next afternoon Phoebe awoke to find Oliver and Katie waiting for her as promised.

After being dismissed by Madam Pomfrey, Katie helped Phoebe dress and then the three Gryffindor's set off back to Gryffindor tower together. It wasn't even 4:00pm yet, and Phoebe was still feeling tired after her restless night in the Hospital wing. Thankfully it was a Saturday so she didn't have classes to go too and intended on spending her time sleeping until a more appropriate setting.

When they reached the Fat Lady, Katie gave the password and Oliver help Phoebe through the hole. Once on the opposite side, Phoebe was bombarded by her friends and fellow Gryffindor's as everyone wanted to know what had happened and who had done it. But just like she had done with Oliver, Phoebe lied.

Once everyone was satisfied that she was all right, Phoebe slipped upstairs to her dark and cool dormitory and much to her surprise found Athena sitting on her bed, a letter at her feet. "Hey, girl" Phoebe smiled, stroking the eagle.

Athena squawked and nipped at Phoebe's finger.

Grabbing the letter, Phoebe peeled it open as she climbed onto her bed and settled down to read it. Athena flew up onto the canopy and disappeared. "Dear Phoebe..." the young Gryffindor murmured.

_"...Serefina has informed us that you will be returning to your Tower today, do I even need to tell you how worried we are? Your grandfather is furious there has been several fires all over the house today. But we are glad to hear that you are making a full recovery._

_We do not expect you to tell us who did this, we know that you won't, but we wish that you would. We understand if you wish to keep it from your friends but I beg of you Phoebe, please tell Serefina so that she can help._

_Aside from that, I wish I could bring you a brighter note but I cannot little Star, I have foreseen dark forces lurking within Hogwarts once more. You must keep a clear head of you Phoebe; nothing is what it seems there._

_I wish you the best of luck in your exams, and a full recovery. Get lots of rest and I will see you in a few months._

_Love_

_Grandma."_

By the time she had finished reading Phoebe was feeling extra tired, and deciding to heed her grandmother's wishes she tucked the letter under her pillow and lay down to rest.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe stirred as voices attacked her senses and woke her from her slumber, she was still curled up on her bed in the Gryffindor dorms but the only difference this time was Lavender and Parvati were with her. Glancing out of the window Phoebe saw that night had fallen and according to the layout of the moon and stars it was really late.

_Who the hell is awake at this time?_ Phoebe thought as she carefully slipped from her bed and padded her way across to the room, out the door and down into the common room.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were sat - well, Hermione and Ron were sat; Harry was pacing - in front of the fireplace.

"Snape wants the stone for Voldemort..." Harry was saying as he paced "...and Voldemort is waiting in the Forest...and all this time we thought Snape wanted the stone for himself."

"Stop saying the name!" said Ron in a terrified whisper, as if he thought Voldemort could hear him.

"Firenze saved me, but he shouldn't have done...Bane was furious...he was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going to happen...They must show that Voldemort's coming back...Bane thinks Firenze should have let Voldemort kill me...I suppose that's written in the stars as well."

Phoebe decided to make herself known "Of course he would," she said as she stepped off the bottom step and further into the room "Bane believes we humans are inferior to him and his species. Centaurs are wonderful creatures, but they are a new breed compared to us humans."

"You speak from experience," Hermione frowned, a little startled at Phoebe appearance "Have you met many Centaurs before?"

"No. But they are said to have been able to foresee the future by studying the stars," Phoebe explained "It really comes down to if you believe in all that stuff. I for one, do"

Hermione scoffed "Its fake, all of it" she waved her friend off "No one can see into the future. No one has an inner eye."

Phoebe felt her fists shake as Hermione waved her off, oh what she would give to inform the bookworm that her grandmother happened to be a seer and her visions always came true.

"Moving on," Harry said interrupting quickly "All we've got to do now is wait for Snape to steal the Stone then Voldemort will be able to come back and finish me off...Well, I suppose Bane will be happy"

"No one is going to kill you, Harry," Phoebe promised "Not with Dumbledore around. Voldemort is scared to death of Dumbledore, he'd think twice of attacking you with the Headmaster around."

The sky started to lighten outside the windows of Gryffindor tower by the time the four friends went to bed, Phoebe fell back into her comforter without bothering to change her clothes, and once again she was too tired to care about such trivial things. With a wish of sweet dreams to Hermione, the elemental rolled over to face the window, pulled her curtains closed and allowed sleep to take hold of her once more.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated **_Monday, October 03, 2011_ **at** _3:37am_


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: **_Gawd! I have no clue what I am still doing up! I should really be sleeping because I am positively dead on my feet, but for some reason Phoebe will not shift her Elemental butt from my mind so I have decided to update her. You can thank her with your reviews (god knows you never fail and that is why you are truly amazing people)_

**A/N:** _OMG! First year is almost over. I'm not sure if next chapter will be the last. We'll have to see._

**A/N:**_ Chapter goes out to the following people:_** KingdomHeartsNerd, ElleJTrix, 10th Squad 3rd Seat **_and_ **Fan of Fics.**

**A/N:** _Response to __**ElleJTrix**__: Yeah. I do too. Although I stick to the plot it's not exactly the same as the awesome JKRowling (who is my idol), and since I followed the DVDs mostly in my last story I decided to follow the books this time round._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat**__: Thanks for catching my spelling mistakes. I have corrected them and the chapter has been re-posted. I really shouldn't update when I am half asleep because then I rush and everything gets twisted and goes out of context. Lol. Also, to answer your question, yes Phoebe's Grandmother is a seer and her Grandfather is control of the element of fire._

_For those of you who have not yet grasped it. Here are the elements and the people who control them:_

_Serefina Blackheart = Earth._

_Elena Blackheart = Water_

_Jacob Blackheart = Fire_

_Phoebe Blackheart = Water._

_But Phoebe has shown signs of having control over Air too._

_I will stop talking now and carrying on with the next chapter. Enjoy._

* * *

><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>In the upcoming weeks after her attack, Phoebe had less time to worry about extracting her revenge on Marcus Flint or at least reporting him to a professor, because of the ten weeks leading to her exams seemed to fly by and before she or any of her friends could believe it they were crammed into a small classroom somewhere in the castle, given Anti Cheating Spell Quills, a piece of paper and told they had a certain amount of time to answer the questions that were written on the paper.<p>

Phoebe honestly didn't know how she had managed to answer most of the questions, she knew that she had the answers because she had done the research and collection of evidence during her study nights with Ashlyn and James, but when it actually came to sorting through the drafts of information that was stored inside her brain and writing them down on the paper and in the relevant information boxes, the young Gryffindor found that more than often her mind kept sprouting out mindless drabble.

_Concentrate Phoebe_ the young Elemental would remind herself _just breathe and concentrate. Ignore the scorching heat. Ignore the scratching of quills around you. Just focus on your paper and what you have to gain to get out of it._

That's what her grandparents had always taught her. To forget and ignore everything else and just concentrate on what _she_ had to do. And that was how she managed to get through the written portion of the exams.

As for the practical exams Phoebe had no problems in completing them.

Her first practical exam was Charms. Professor Flitwick had his students' line up outside the classroom (but no talking, because technically they were under exam conditions) and he would call them in one-by-one to see if they could make a pineapple tap-dance across his desk. Needless to say Phoebe was pretty sure she had nailed that exam.

Professor McGonagall seemed to take the same approach as Professor Flitwick and had her students mull around outside her classroom as she called them in one-by-one so they could demonstrate to her how they turned a mouse into a snuff-box - points were given for how pretty the snuff-box was, but points were taken if it still had whiskers at the end of the exam.

Then there was Professor Snape's practical exam, and for once Phoebe was glad that she was able to work well under pressure; because during the Potions practical Professor Snape had the tendency to breathe down his student's necks as they tried to remember which ingredients went into a Forgetfulness Potion.

Finally, Friday arrived and the first year's very last exam was History of Magic. One hour of answering questions about batty old wizards who'd invented self-stirring cauldrons and then they she was free. As she sat in the Great Hall Phoebe shed her cloak and hung it over the back of her chair, and then leaned over her desk as she continued to scribble away at her paper.

When the ghost of Professor Binns told them to put down their quills and roll up their parchment, Phoebe couldn't help but cheer with the rest of her classmates, grab her cloak from the back of her chair and her bag from the back of the room, the young elemental hurried out into the Entrance Hall and weaved herself through the other students until she found Ashlyn in the dead centre of the main hall.

"How did you find that?" Ashlyn asked as Phoebe joined her, followed by James and Sarah.

"It was all right." Sarah shrugged "I'm not sure if I passed it though."

"I failed it big time." James answered, without any concern in his tone.

Phoebe rolled her eyes "I don't know. My mind completely went blank the moment I looked at the questions, but I think I did all right."

"Same." Ashlyn nodded "But we've got a week free now before we get the results to see how we did."

"So, what are you going to do now?" James asked wanting to start his free week as soon as possible.

Phoebe looked curious "We could go down to the lake, enjoy the sunshine."

"How about a game of Quidditch?" Ashlyn asked "I'm sure I could persuade Adrian and the others to join."

"Quidditch with the Slytherin's? No thanks!" James retorted.

Ashlyn glared as Sarah rolled her eyes at them, it wasn't that hard to believe that they were cousins. "Would you two give it a rest?" the Hufflepuff asked coming between her friends "We've got a whole week to ourselves, no classes, no exams, no revision, can we at least try and spend it _without_ ripping one another's throats out?"

But before either James or Ashlyn could retort footsteps echoed throughout the Entrance Hall and the four friends looked up to see the Golden Trio rushing past them. Harry in the lead.

"Harry!" Phoebe shouted as her friend run past her.

He ignored her.

"Harry, what's wrong!" Phoebe frowned.

Ron blasted past and Phoebe growled as he knocked shoulders with her causing her to stumble off to the left "Watch it, Weasley!" she snapped.

The red head glared as he disappeared around the corner after his best friend.

Last to arrive was Hermione, deciding it was time for answers Phoebe latched onto the bookworms wrist and pulled her fully around to face her "Hermione! What in Merlin's name is going on!"

"Hagrid told someone how to get past Fluffy!" Hermione answered already short for breath

"W_HAT!"_ Phoebe yelled letting go of Hermione. The Bookworm used this to her advantage and bolted up the Marble staircase after Ron and Harry. "Hermione!"

James, Ashlyn and Sarah stood confusedly as they watched the three Gryffindor's disappear, Phoebe meanwhile was looking torn between staying with her friends in the Entrance Hall or following the Golden Trio in their search for...well...whoever they were searching for.

"Phe - PHOEBE!" Sarah shouted as the Elemental tore off after Hermione, Harry and Ron. Exchanging looks the Hufflepuff, Slytherin and Gryffindor hurried after them determined to find out what was causing four of the school-mates so much distress.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione didn't speak to each other at all until they came to a halt on the second floor corridor, which seemed very cold and gloomy after the news that Hagrid had dropped. Phoebe was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that Snape finally knew how to get past Fluffy and Quirrell's enchantments, there was nothing stopping him now from taking the Philosophers Stone.

"We've got to go to Dumbledore," said Harry "Hagrid told that stranger how to get past Fluffy an it was either Snape or Voldemort under that cloak - it must've been easy, once he'd got Hagrid drunk. I just hope Dumbledore believes us. Firenze might back us up if Bane doesn't stop him. Where's Dumbledore's office?"

They looked around, as if hoping to see a sign pointing them in the right direction. They had never been told where Dumbledore lived, nor did they know anyone who had been sent to see him.

"Phoebe, do you know?" Hermione asked

"Why would I know?" Phoebe asked "My Aunt may be a Professor here but that doesn't mean I know the ins and outs of the castle."

Harry sighed. This was going to be difficult.

"Oi, you four!" James shouted as he, Ashlyn and Sarah rounded the corner behind them and approached at a fast place "What the blazin' is going on? Why did you run off like that? And why are you looking for Dumbledore's office?"

Ron glared at them "None of your business, Black!" he snapped "Why don't you just take your annoying and interfering friend and leave us alone?" he pointed at Phoebe.

The Elemental grabbed his arm and shoved him as hard as she could away from her "Don't talk to them like that!" she spat "and if you wish to keep your arm you'll get it out of my face!"

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but a voice suddenly rang across the corridor.

"What is going on down here? What are seven doing inside?"

It was Professor McGonagall, carrying a large pile of books.

"We want to see Professor Dumbledore," said Hermione, rather bravely.

"See Professor Dumbledore?" Professor McGonagall repeated, as though this was a very fishy thing to want to do "Why?"

Phoebe swallowed and glanced towards Harry as if to say - Now what?

"It's sort of secret," Harry answered, but wished at once he hadn't, because Professor McGonagall's nostrils flared.

"Professor Dumbledore left ten minutes ago," she said coldly "He received an urgent message from the Ministry of Magic and flew off for London at once."

"He's _gone_?" said Ron frantically "_Now?"_

"Professor Dumbledore is a very great wizard, Weasley; he has many demands on his time -"

"But this is important." Harry interrupted

"Something you have to say is more important than the Ministry of Magic, Potter?"

Phoebe stepped forward "With all due respect, Professor, but this _is_ important. It's about the Philosopher's Stone."

Whatever Professor McGonagall had expected, it wasn't that. The books she was carrying tumbled out of her arms but she didn't pick them up. Harry and Hermione were staring at Phoebe like she was crazy; Ron was glaring at her for her intrusion while James, Ashlyn and Sarah were confused on the current situation.

"How do you know -?" Professor McGonagall spluttered.

"That's not important right now," Phoebe shook her head "What _is_ important is that someone is going to try and steal the Stone. That is why we've got to talk to Professor Dumbledore."

McGonagall eyed them with a mixture of shock and suspicion.

"Professor Dumbledore will be back tomorrow," she said finally "I don't know how you found out about the Stone, but rest assured, no one can possibly steal it, it's too well protected."

"But Professor -" Harry started

"Potter, I know what I'm talking about," McGonagall said shortly. She bent down and gathered up the fallen books. "I suggest you all go back outside and enjoy the sunshine."

Harry, Phoebe, Hermione and Ron sighed and turned way leading James, Ashlyn and Sarah down a deserted corridor which led back to the grounds. However, when they got three quarters of the way down, they stopped.

"What are you doing?" Sarah asked "McGonagall told us to go back outside"

No one even acknowledged her.

"It's tonight;" said Harry, once he was sure Professor McGonagall was out of earshot "He's going through the trapdoor tonight. He's found out everything he needs and now he's got Dumbledore out of the way. He sent that Owl, I bet the Ministry of Magic will get a real shock when Dumbledore turns up."

"But what can we -"

Hermione gasped. Harry and Ron wheeled around.

Snape was standing there.

"Good afternoon," he said smoothly.

They stared at him.

"You shouldn't be inside on a day like this," he said, with an odd, twisted smile.

"We were -" Harry began, without any idea of what he was going to say.

"You want to be more careful," said Snape "Hanging around like this, people will think you're up to something. And Gryffindor really can't afford to lose any more points, can they?"

It was like Ashlyn and Sarah had faded out of the picture because Snape made no indication that he had even noticed them.

"Come on, guys" Phoebe said pulling Harry by the hand towards the doors to the grounds, but Snape called them back.

"Be warned, Potter - any more night-time wanderings and I will personally make sure you are expelled. Good day to you."

He strode off in the direction of the staff room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Out on the stone steps, Harry turned to his friends (the ones that were involved in all the Stone business)

"Right, here's what we've got to do," he whispered urgently "One of us has got to keep an eye on Snape - wait outside the staff room and then follow him when he leaves it. Hermione, you'd better do that."

"Why me?" Hermione squeaked

"It's obvious," said Ron "You can pretend to be waiting for Professor Flitwick, you know." he put on a high voice "'_Oh, Professor Flitwick, I'm so worried, I think I got question fourteen b wrong -'_"

James snickered at the impression.

"Oh, shut up!" said Hermione, but she agreed to go.

"What happens when Professor Snape goes to get Flitwick?" Sarah asked "How is Granger supposed to follow him then?"

Phoebe turned to her friend "She raises a good point. I'll go with you, Hermione, that way if Snape _does_ get Flitwick I can carry on tailing him. Okay?"

"Okay," Hermione agreed

Harry nodded "While you two are doing that, Ron and I will go stand outside the third floor corridor," he turned to Ron "Come on."

"Wait, what about us?" James asked

"Go back to the common room," Phoebe called "If we all get caught it will be a disaster. I'll catch you later!"

And she disappeared around the corner with Hermione.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The staff room was located on the ground floor of the castle and it was guarded by two stone Gargoyles that looked up as they approached.

"Ah, what do we have here? Two itty bitty first years?" said a deep male voice.

"Triskull, don't scare them!" scolded a light female voice, and Hermione glanced towards Phoebe who was staring at the Gargoyles, of course they could talk why did she suspect anything less in a school of magic? "Hello dears, I'm Lydia, and this is Triskull. What do we owe this pleasure?"

Phoebe smiled warmly "We're just waiting for someone," she answered promptly.

"A Professor?" Triskull enquired. Phoebe nodded. "Who is it?"

"Triskull!" Lydia scolded again "You will have to excuse him dear, he can get a little grumpy at times."

Triskull rolled his head around with a low grinding noise and glared at his companion "I'm a stone gargoyle! Of course I am grumpy!" he hissed.

Phoebe giggled into her hand, while Hermione continued to look slightly frightened of the gargoyles. Lydia seemed nice enough but Triskull didn't seem to like them all that much.

"What are you giggling at!" Triskull demanded.

"Nothing, sir" Phoebe answered.

Triskull seemed taken aback by the politeness in her voice. It had been a few centuries since someone had spoken so politely to him. He huffed and turned his head away from her.

"Wow, you shut him up," Lydia praised "That is a first, usually students, especially first years, are afraid of us."

Phoebe smiled.

The door to the staff room opened at that specific moment and Snape stepped out, he spotted the two first year Gryffindor's and sneered "What are you two doing here?"

"Um..." Hermione hesitated

Snape's eyes narrowed.

"Hermione wishes to speak with Professor Flitwick," Phoebe jumped in "and I was looking for my Godmother."

"Professor Blackheart is in her office!" Snape answered snappishly, before disappearing back into the staff room. When he re-appeared Professor Flitwick was with him.

"Thank you, Severus" Flitwick squeaked before turning to Phoebe and Hermione "Now, what can I do for you both?"

Snape walked away.

Phoebe touched Hermione's shoulder "I'm going to find Serefina," she said hoping Hermione will by her lie. The Bookworm nodded and Phoebe took off after Snape.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After managing to get away from Professor Flitwick, Hermione returned to the common room to find Harry and Ron sitting in front of the fire with James, the latter was looking irritated as he attempted to coax information out of the former two.

"What did Phoebe mean by the Philosopher's Stone!" James demanded "What are you four up too!"

Neither Harry nor Ron answered.

James sighed in aggravation and looked up as the portrait opened and Hermione entered alone "Where's Phoebe?" he asked.

"She's not back yet?" Hermione asked.

"No. Where is she?"

"Well, Snape did exactly what your friend Sarah said he would do," Hermione answered "He came out of the Staff room and saw me and Phoebe. He asked what we were doing and Phoebe said that I was looking for Professor Flitwick while she was looking for Professor Blackheart, Snape then went and got Professor Flitwick, and I've only just gotten away. Phoebe made up some excuse to leave and I think she is still tailing Snape."

Harry nodded "At least Phoebe is still on his tail," he sighed; maybe they still had a chance to rescue the Stone before Snape could steal it.

"But what are you going to do?" Hermione asked "She can't tail him forever; he's going to see her sooner or later."

"We're going to have to get the stone before Snape does;" Harry answered "That's why I'm going through the trapdoor tonight. I'm going to try and get the Stone first."

"You're mad!" said James

"You can't!" said Hermione "After what McGonagall and Snape have said? You'll be expelled!"

"SO WHAT?" Harry shouted "Don't you understand? If Snape gets hold of the Stone, Voldemort's coming back! Haven't you heard what it was like when he was trying to take over? There won't be any Hogwarts to get expelled from! He'll flatten it, or turn it into a school for the Dark Arts! Losing points doesn't matter anymore, can't you see? D'you think he'll leave you and your families alone if Gryffindor won the House Cup? If I get caught before I can get to the Stone, well, I'll have to go back to the Dursley's and wait for Voldemort to find me there. It's only dying to bit later than I would have done, because I'm never going over to the Dark Side! I'm going through that trapdoor tonight and nothing you three say is going to stop me! Voldemort killed my parents, remember?"

He glared at them.

"You're right, Harry," responded Hermione in a small voice.

"I'll use the Invisibility Cloak," said Harry "It's just lucky I got it back."

James' eyes widened "Invisibility Cloak?" he repeated

"But will it cover all three of us?" asked Ron.

"All - all three of us?"

"Oh, come off it, you don't think we'd let you go alone?"

"Of course not," said Hermione "How do you think you'd get to the Stone without us? I'd better go and look through my books, there might be something useful..."

"But if we get caught, you two will be expelled, too."

"Not if I can help it," said Hermione grimly "Flitwick told me in secret that I got a hundred and twelve per cent on his exam. They're not throwing me out after that."

James rolled his eyes "You're as bad as Phoebe!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

So while Harry, Hermione and Ron planned their expedition through the trapdoor for later that evening Phoebe was still on Snape's tail. She had followed him nearly all over the castle, nearly gotten caught once or twice but managed to hide herself pretty well before he could spot her, it was now Dinner time and she knew that she was following him back towards the Great Hall.

_Thank goodness_ Phoebe thought all this Snape trailing was making her hungry.

Hurrying around the corner after the Potions Master, Phoebe froze as a spell collided with her stomach and knocked her off balance, while a familiar voice attacked her senses.

"Foolish girl. Walking around the castle alone."

Phoebe felt her blood boil as her eyes turned a fiery red "No, you're the foolish one." she sneered picking herself up.

"We are wasting time," sneered another voice, his time colder.

Shivers run down Phoebe spine.

"Do it!"

"_**Imperio!**_" the shadowy figure at the end of the hall flourished his wand.

Nothing.

Phoebe smirked as she looked down at her body as the Unforgiveable didn't even leave a mark.

"Want to try that again!" she challenged.

A cold chuckle echoed around the hallway "Strong and Cheeky."

"And stubborn!" answered the first voice "What should I do?"

"I really hate to have to do this to something so innocent, so beautiful, and so valuable..." the cold voice replied "but you leave me no choice. _**Crucio!**_"

Phoebe's eyes widened as the curse hit her and her excruciating pain wrapped around her. She screamed bloody murder in attempts to rid the feeling from her body, but no matter what she did the pain kept coming. Hard and fast.

Soon her vision clouded and through the haze Phoebe could see the figure step closer towards her, seconds before her world went black Phoebe was able to see who had attacked her.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by **_xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated on **_Tuesday, October 04, 2011_ **at** _2:28am_


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** _Hello everyone. So I have decided that yes, this will be the final chapter to first year. This chapter also leads easily into second year; so next chapter will be the first chapter of Second year._

**A/N:** _Big shout out to those who had supported me to this point, and they are as follows:_ **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Wild-in-Spirit, BeckyBoo12221, KingdomHeartsNerd, Red Neo Ranger, XxX-Fire-Fairy-Witch-XxX, DJScales, AvengedSevenfoldLover, Artemis1922, Grapejuice101, PromptDreamer-PAscience, AngelJJK, Razmend, Vivi Fontaine** _and _**ElleJTriX. **_ Wow that is a lot of names. You guys are AWESOME! Love you all._

**In responses:**_ ...and here we go =)_

_First goes too __**10th Squad 3rd Seat**__:__Yes. Phoebe was attacked again she is not having a good first year. But everything will become clearer __**hopefully**__ in this chapter. And yes, she knows who is after the Stone._

_Second goes too __**Fan of Fics**__: I did try and stick to the book as much as possible, but there is a few original plot twists that I like to include (as you already know) Quirrell wasn't mentioned much in the books, and when he was it was usually only Harry around to witness him and since Phoebe isn't much a part of the Golden Trio as Charlie and Riley was (granted the Golden Trio doesn't exist in MWS we have the Hogwarts Five instead) so we didn't get to see Quirrell as much because Phoebe was mostly with Ashlyn, James and Sarah instead of Harry. But we got a fair share of what she witnessed of him. Mysterious attacker is not so mysterious after all._

_And last but not least __**KingdomHeartsNerd**__: Yes, Phoebe has been attacked twice within two chapters. But at least I don't torture her nearly __**EVERY**__ chapter like you have written. In the infamous words of Charlie Hunter (although she is not a part of this story) "Big Mean Bully!"_

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><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p><strong>Last time:<strong>

_Soon her vision clouded and through the haze Phoebe could see the figure step closer towards her, seconds before her world went black Phoebe was able to see who had attacked her -_

* * *

><p>It had been Quirrell.<p>

Quirrell, the cowardly, stuttering Defence Against the Dark Arts professor had been the one who taunted her in the middle of a deserted hallway and attacked her with two Unforgiveable curses.

The Imperious curse hadn't worked as well as Quirrell had hoped, and that was more to do with the fact that despite being an Elemental, Phoebe wasn't _only_ trained in her water abilities, she had been trained -by skillful Aurors- to fight off the Unforgiveables, some may have viewed it as child abuse, and while her grandparents had agreed that it was, Phoebe was never more thankful for resistance and the useful ability of fighting off an incredibly dark spell.

_Phoebe heard the voices again, the first one she recognized as Professor Quirrell, except he wasn't stuttering. Why wasn't he stuttering?_

_"We know you are awake," Quirrell sneered appearing in line of vision "Do not pretend that you are not!"_

_Phoebe swallowed as she carefully lifted her head to look at him "You!" she murmured_

_"Me," he said. His face wasn't twitching at all. "I wondered whether you were going to wake up in time."_

_"In time for what?"_

_Quirrell smiled a dark, twisted, sinister smile as he took a step back from Phoebe._

_Phoebe felt her heartbeat increase rapidly. She couldn't breathe or move a muscle. Petrified, she watched as Quirrell reached up and began to unwrap his turban. What was going on? The turban fell away and Phoebe felt instantly sick to her stomach as he turned on the spot._

_Where there should have been the back of Quirrell's head, there was a second face, the most terrible face Phoebe had ever seen. It was chalk white with glaring red eyes and slits for nostrils, like a snake._

_"Phoebe...Blackheart..." it whispered._

_Phoebe swallowed "Voldemort."_

_"See what I have become?" the face rasped "Mere shadow and vapor - I have form only when I can share another's body...but there have always been those willing to let me in their hearts and minds...Unicorn blood has strengthened me, these past weeks..."_

_"It was you..." Phoebe whispered "You who Harry saw in the forest. You killed the Unicorn."_

_"Yes." the face said "But there is something that can sustain me enough to get my own body, and you are going to help me get it."_

_Phoebe whimpered "I can't..." she cried. "I don't know -"_

_"I did not say you would be the one to retrieve it!" Voldemort sneered "Although I am sure you would be able too. No, for you see, there is another, someone who cares highly and deeply for you..."_

_Phoebe frowned...who was Voldemort talking about? Serefina, perhaps?_

_"He will come. Oh, yes, he will come...soon."_

_He? Phoebe asked herself, who cared about her strongly and deeply enough to come rescue her from a chamber that not even __**she**__ knew where it was located?_

_"And when he does, I will kill him and take the Stone for my own," Voldemort continued but he was talking more to himself now than he was Phoebe "And then...my dear...you're going to come with me."_

_"I will not go anywhere with you!" Phoebe snapped but instantly regretted it she felt the serrated edges of several thousand knives cutting into her skin all over her body. Ripping through her robes and slicing through the flesh. This pain was worse than the Cruciatus curse, but the pain soon subsided and Voldemort's voice was the last thing Phoebe heard as she was left in a state of submission and the darkness overcame her senses..._

**~*Phoebe*~**

Just like his friends had said the week leading up to the exam results passed quicker than he had expected, and for James things were anything but good. He wasn't sure if he had passed or failed one or if not every exam he had sat, and he was staring to become increasingly worried about the fact that he had not seen Phoebe for the last three days.

"Where could she be?" he asked Seamus, Dean and Neville as they walked together down the Great Hall for the goodbye feast.

Seamus shrugged "Maybe you've just been worried about your results that you've missed her," he suggested "I mean she does hang around with Harry and them more often these days"

James nodded, he knew that, but he also knew _why_ Phoebe hung around with the Golden Trio more often these days. She wasn't a part of their group per say, but she did help in their investigations. Like the Philosopher's Stone for example. "No. Hermione hasn't seen her either," he answered with a shake of his head.

But he didn't have a chance to worry any further when he entered the Great Hall to find it decorated in Slytherin colours of green and silver to celebrate Slytherin's winning of the House Cup. James quickly scanned the Slytherin table and found his cousin sitting mid-way down the table alongside Adrian Pucey and Marcus Flint, a bright smile was on her face at the win of her house.

Ashlyn smirked at James as he passed, but the Gryffindor ignored her as he took his seat at the Gryffindor table.

"Hey James," Katie Bell called down from her seat "have you see Phoebe?"

"No," James shook his head "It's not like her to disappear like this, and I thought for sure that she would be here for the end of term feast"

Katie nodded "Yeah. Well, maybe she's just late"

James nodded in response. He hoped that was the case.

When Harry arrived the whole Hall fell silent and then everybody started talking loudly at once. Harry slipped into a seat between Ron and Hermione at the Gryffindor table as other students from the other houses stood to try and get a better look at him.

Fortunately, Dumbledore's appearance several moments later diminished all talk in the hall, as everyone waited for the feast to begin.

"Another year gone!" Dumbledore said in a slight cheerful demeanor "And I must trouble you all with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were...you have the entire summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts. Now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding and the points stand thus: in fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points, in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two points, Ravenclaw with four hundred and twenty-six and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two."

A storm of cheering and stamping broke out from the Slytherin table.

"Yes. Well done Slytherin. Well done Slytherin." Dumbledore praised "However, recent events must be taken into account."

The room went very still. The Slytherin's' smiles faded a little.

"Ahem," said Dumbledore "I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes. First - to Mr. Ronald Weasley..."

Ron went purple in the face; he looked like a radish with bad sunburn.

"...for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years. I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Gryffindor cheers nearly raised the bewitched ceiling; as the stars overhead seemed to quiver. Percy could be heard telling the other Prefects 'My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall's giant chess set!"

At last there was silence again.

"Second - to Miss Hermione Granger...for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points!"

Hermione buried her face in her arms; and it was strongly suspected that she had burst into tears. Gryffindor's up and down the table were beside themselves - they were hundred points up.

"Third - to Mr. Harry Potter..." said Dumbledore. The room went deadly quiet "...for pure nerve and outstanding courage. I award Gryffindor house sixty points."

The din was deafening. Those who could add up while yelling themselves hoarse knew that Gryffindor now had four hundred and seventy-two points - exactly the same as Slytherin's. They had drawn the drawn for the House Cup - if only Dumbledore had given Harry just one more point.

"It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up our enemies," said Dumbledore, smiling "but just as much to stand up our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom."

Someone standing outside the Great Hall might well have thought some sort of explosion had taken place, so loud was the noise that erupted from the Gryffindor table. Harry, Ron, Hermione and James stood to yell and cheers as Neville, white with shock, disappeared under a pile of people hugging him. He had never won so much as a point for Gryffindor before and in one night he had won them ten.

"And on that final note," Dumbledore spoke once more, killing the silence one final time "there are all kinds of courage. Courage to stand up for friends, family and oneself, I want each of you to take two minutes of your time to reflect on those sitting here in this hall and tell me what it is you see."

The students exchanged confused looks at Dumbledore's request but did as he instructed glancing around the hall randomly to see if they had missed anyone other than their friends when they entered. Confusion turned to anxiety as James and Ashlyn's gazes connected from across the hall.

Phoebe was missing.

Dumbledore spotted them "Mr. Black, Miss Black, something you would like to share?"

All heads turned in the direction of the Gryffindor and Slytherin table. Ashlyn swallowed and turned towards the Headmaster "Phoebe's missing."

"Yes." Dumbledore nodded "Miss Blackheart is not present to join the celebrations of her house, and I apologize for dampening the atmosphere within this very hall, but I believe you all deserve to know why Miss Blackheart is not here."

The Gryffindor's exchanged uneasy looks at the headmaster's words. Where was Phoebe? What was wrong with her? Why wasn't she here with them? All these questions run up and down the table as they waited for the Headmaster to tell them what had happened to their housemate. Oliver Wood was looking utterly terrified as he awaited the news, as Katie Bell was staring at the headmaster fearfully, and James felt sick to his stomach at the thought of what could have happened to his best friend.

The last time he had seen her was three days ago after the final exams, but she had been tailing Snape after that and had gone missing later that night. No one had seen her since.

"Miss Phoebe Blackheart was attacked by Professor Quirrell prior to the end of her exams three days ago," Dumbledore explained, a shocked silence fell over the Great Hall "she is currently resided in the Hospital Wing and Madam Pomfrey tells me she is in a very critical condition -"

Ashlyn felt her stomach drop as tears welled up in her eyes, her chest constricted and it felt like she couldn't breathe. Critical condition was never a good term. Critical meant that Phoebe was borderline between coming back and not coming back at all.

"Tomorrow she will be moved to a Hospital facility in Portugal where she will continue to recover," Dumbledore continued "so I ask this: While you celebrate your end of term, spare a thought of Miss Blackheart as she battles against the curses and Dark Magic she has been submitted to these past three days..."

And with that he fell silent and the feast begun, although it did not hold that cheerful atmosphere it was supposed to have held. Gryffindor's were supposed to have been ecstatic that they had won the House Cup, they were supposed to be cheering and celebrating their win against Slytherin, they were supposed to be smiling and laughing as they dug into the delicious food of the Hogwarts kitchen; instead they sat at their table, eating in silence as their thoughts strayed to their friend and housemate who lay in the Hospital wing fighting for her life.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: That is Phoebe's first year over and done with. Year 2 will be out as soon as I find some time to start planning and writing.**

**Chapter Written by **_xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated on **_Wednesday, October 05, 2011 _**at **_2:39am_


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N:** _Hi. Yes, it is me...back...again...Lol._

**A/N:** _Thanks to everyone who reviewed the final chapter of Phoebe - Year 1. I'm pretty sure you're all aware that Phoebe makes it out alive. If she didn't then I wouldn't be bothering with a Year 2. And what would have been the point of writing a Year 1 if my main character was going to die at the end of it? Huh? Of course._

**A/N:** _Some new twists this year. Hopefully Phoebe won't get hurt as much this year as she did in First year...also some new friends will be made (not necessarily going to be Gryffindor's) keep reading to see what I mean. I also hope you're all ready for some more Phoebe/Draco sibling rivalry. I know you've missed it. =)_

**A/N:** _Beginning of this chapter takes place at the very end of Year 1. It was too short to include in the last story, so I will use it at the beginning of this. Enjoy._

**A/N:** _This chapter goes out too everyone who followed me during first year. I listed you last chapter so I won't do it again, but I would like add the following people to the list. And they are: _**Murder-Winter-Cullen**_. Thank you for taking the time to review, it is very much appreciated._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p>Ashlyn knew that she couldn't hang around the infirmary; she knew that Madam Pomfrey, Professor Snape, several Healers from St Mungo's and Healers from Portugal had been called into work on stabilizing Phoebe so the snake decided to return to the Slytherin common room and finish the little packing she had left before she headed home later that day.<p>

"Ash?" Adrian called as his 'sister' appeared in the common room.

The first year paused and turned in his direction, her eyes were red from where she had been rubbing her eyes to stop the tears, and her jaw tightened, a clear signal to show that she was trying her hardest not to cry.

Taking a seat beside the boy she had always known as her brother, Ashlyn choked "She can't die...sh-she's...she's Phoebe."

Tears overflowed down the Slytherin's face as she buried it into her robes which she had grabbed with her hands. Adrian placed a comforting hand on her shoulder as she cried, Ashlyn was usually always a tough girl and he knew that it took a lot to make her cry.

"She can't die..." Ashlyn kept muttering over and over "Phoebe, she just...she just seems so strong...I know I've only known her a year but...this just seems unrealistic..."

"She's not going to die," Adrian comforted his companion "You said so yourself, Blackheart is strong. She'll pull through this."

Ashlyn hiccupped and turned to face her friend "I hope you're right."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Katie dried her tears on her robes as she sat inside a carriage alongside Oliver Wood, James Black, Roxanna Fae Lilienthal, Alicia Spinnet and Angelina Johnson. She was still crying over the news of Phoebe that they had received the previous night.

"Phoebe's tough..." Roxanna was saying "She'll pull through..."

James nodded "Yeah. I mean if Harry can survive a curse that is supposed to kill you instantly, and no one within the History of Magic has ever survived it before then there has got to be a chance that Phoebe will survive, right?"

"It really depends on what spells she was subjected too," Angelina answered, his voice tense. "Professor Blackheart mentioned the Cruciatus Curse and several unknown Dark curses."

"But there is hope, right?" James pressed not wanting to hear any thoughts on the fact that his best friend may not have been joining him next year at Hogwarts. He wasn't sure if it would really be considered Hogwarts if she wasn't there.

Oliver on the other hand was beside himself and so consumed with his thoughts that he wasn't paying much attention to his friends around him. He still couldn't believe what had happened to the eleven year old witch that had captured his heart and mind from the moment he had met her, Phoebe truly was someone special and he would have been the first to admit that, but the possible thought that she could die from these injuries was so mind numbing that his heart ached at the mere mention of 'Phoebe' and 'death' in the same sentence.

The carriage came to a stop outside the station and the Gryffindor's climbed out. Oliver helped James and the girls load their trunks onto the train and find an empty compartment, while James went off in search of Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah. It was strange to him that Phoebe would not be present for the ride back to London, but then it dawned on him that she didn't live in London anyway so taking the train to London only to Apparated or Floo to Portugal would have been pointless.

Once he had located his friends James flopped down into the empty seat beside Ashlyn and looked around at the girls, all looked like they had only just finished crying. "How you holding up?" he asked although he knew it was a stupid question.

Amelia muffled her sobs into her hands as Sarah placed a comforting arm around her shoulders.

Ashlyn bit her lower lip, shook her head and turned to look out of the window as the rest of the students boarded the train "Adrian managed to get me to calm down," she answered "But I can't help it...it doesn't seem real...Phoebe is so strong...I don't understand why someone would want to attack her, she doesn't pose a threat to anyone, she is a lovely girl, she doesn't have any enemies at school -"

"Except Flint." James answered.

"Marcus is a bully, not a murderer!" Ashlyn cut across him careful not to say much mostly because no one knew that Marcus had attacked Phoebe a few months prior to her attack and disappearance. "Whoever did this to Phoebe was skilled in the Dark Arts; it's too much damage for a mere 6th year to inflict on someone."

James sighed "Then who?" he questioned.

Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia shook their heads - that was one question they just _couldn't_ answer.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With a heavy sigh Elena Blackheart turned to her granddaughter's healer, she was standing on the opposite side of the class of Portugal's finest hospital for Elementals. Beyond the glass stood Serefina and Jacob, both were stood either side of Phoebe's hospital bed, neither were speaking as they stared painfully down at the Gryffindor.

"_What is her condition_?" Elena asked.

The Healer, Catrin Holloway, sighed _"She is in a coma. It is quite common for our kind to slip into a coma after being subjected to the curses she had to endure."_

"_What is being done to ensure that Phoebe will pull out of this?"_ Elena asked.

I am not going to lie to you, Elena," Catrin responded "I have seen adult Elemental's get hit with severe curses and they have not pulled through. If Phoebe does not wake up by the end of the week, then I fear she will not make it through the summer."

Elena's gaze hardened - why had she not foreseen this? If she had foreseen her granddaughter getting hurt then she could have warned her and then they would not have been in this predicament. "Thank you, Catrin." she nodded before entering the room in which held her family.

Jacob looked up the moment his wife entered; Elena shook her head sadly and turned her gaze to the comatose 11-year-old in the bed beneath them. They both knew that Phoebe was a strong girl, both they and Serefina had raised her as one; there was an open window that she would pull through. Catrin had given her to the end of the week to pull through, but despite their beliefs that Phoebe was a strong girl they knew that they had to prepare themselves for the worst.

Serefina sighed and looked down at Phoebe, she was breathing on her own, but that was natural for someone who had slipped into a coma. But as nerve-wracking as it was she knew that there was nothing more she could do for her Goddaughter, all she could do now was feed Phoebe nutrient potions alongside healing draughts and wait for her to wake up...either that or die.

_She's not going to die_ Serefina swore mentally to herself, as she pulled her chair closer to the Gryffindor's bed, gripped the child's hand and stroked the back of it with her thumb.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Elena Blackheart stood with her daughter in the slightly damp train station as they awaited the arrival of the Hogwarts Express, Serefina had decided to inform Phoebe's friends of the predicament in person rather than send several letters of the same information.

As the train slid to a halt in front of the platform, both elementals waited for the students to file off, the irrelevant ones flooded the platforms in search of their magical parents while Serefina pin-pointed her Goddaughter's friends over the heads of the other students. Once she was sure they were all within hearing distance she approached them.

"Professor Blackheart," Katie greeted spotting her professor first.

All talking ceased as everyone turned expectantly to their Hogwarts professor, although they eyed Elena with great interest and confusion.

"I'd like you all to meet my mother," Serefina answered the curious glances "The matriarch of my family..."

Elena bowed her head politely in the students' directions "Ola."

"How is Phoebe, professor?" Amelia asked.

"She has been relocated to a Hospital facility in Portugal," Serefina answered "She has been given the topmost care, but we fear that if she does not wake from her coma by the end of this week, then she will not make it through the summer -"

Ashlyn cried in despair. Sarah and Amelia wrapped their arms around one another and sobbed. James stood strong, but his eyes betrayed his emotions, while the rest of the students were frozen with the new piece of information.

"- the curses she was subjected to have damaged her magical core too much, in ways that make any Healer question Phoebe's ability to perform magic if she is to survive."

"She can't die!" Ashlyn cried "She just can't, Hogwarts will never be the same without Phoebe!"

Serefina placed her hand comfortingly on the Slytherin's shoulder "We will keep you updated with Phoebe's progress, Miss Black, don't you worry about that. For now, I must ask you not to panic too much about her condition. I know it is difficult to not panic about a friend who is in a coma but worrying yourself sick is not going to help Phoebe." she cast a look around at the others "Now, I have kept you long enough, I will let you return to your parents."

The group started to disperse as Serefina turned back to her mother and they disapparated on the spot.

**~*Phoebe*~**

One week went by.

Two weeks passed.

Three.

A month.

It had been a whole month since Phoebe had been admitted into the infirmary at the Elemental Academy, and true to her word Catrin Holloway -headmistress of the school and head Healer- had given Phoebe the top most priority when it came to healing.

But Serefina was becoming beyond frustrated. It had been a month since she had spoken with Phoebe, a whole month since she had seen her smile, laugh, anything. Elena and Jacob were doing everything possible; every imaginable ounce of research was going into trying to find a way to help bring Phoebe back from wherever it was she had gone.

They just hoped Phoebe hadn't gone too far that she was having trouble getting back.

Lucius stopped at the opening of Phoebe's hospital room and looked in. Serefina was standing beside the bed re-arranging some flowers and cards that were settled on the bedside table, along with some stuffed animals that had been sent to cheer Phoebe up when she woke.

The newest editions were arranged on Phoebe's bed, Lucius paused to search each creature, and he could see a horse, leopard, eagle, cat and a stuffed bear. With a heavy heart Lucius knocked on the doorframe and Serefina looked around.

Serefina felt her breath catch in her chest "Lucius..." she breathed, catching herself quickly "What - What are you doing here?"

"I heard..." Lucius said motioning to the young Gryffindor.

"I didn't believe you cared. Where are Narcissa and Draco?"

Lucius did not answer at first "At home. They do not need to see this."

"You mean they do not know about this!" Serefina hissed "Unlike your son, Lucius, Phoebe tells me everything. She has told me that young Draco does not know who she is, that to him she is just another Gryffindor. It would be a shame for Phoebe to die without Draco knowing the truth"

"It is safer this way."

"She is dying, Lucius!" Serefina snapped "and you are telling me that her family, her rightful family, does not even get to see her before that happens!"

"She is not going to die!" Lucius responded, coolly and calmly "I am very aware that I have made mistakes in my past, Serefina, but I have seen how much you care for my daughter -"

Serefina cut across him "_Do not_ call her that!" she snapped "Phoebe is _not_ your daughter!"

"She is my Flesh and Blood! Not even you can change that!"

"It is not about who birthed her, Lucius, but that who raised her. Phoebe is a Blackheart. As far as the laws of England and Portugal know Phoebe Malfoy does not exist." Serefina responded coolly "All the Healers of St. Mungo's know is that twins were born on June 5th 1980 to Narcissa Malfoy but only a baby boy was registered. The girl was simply adopted and registered under a different name."

Lucius stared at his childhood friend.

"Narcissa did not even have the chance to name her daughter," Serefina continued "as far as the world is concerned Phoebe is my child, and you will treat her as such!"

"Of course..." Lucius nodded, he could not disagree with Serefina, she had, after all raised his daughter, she was more of a parent that he and Narcissa was - and that was his fault. He was solely to blame for that.

They were disrupted from their minor argument by a soft knock at the door. Jacob Blackheart stood there.

"Papa," Serefina smiled.

_"Anything?"_ Jacob asked in his native tongue.

"_No change," _Serefina answered, looking over at her goddaughter "_but there is still hope."_

Having grown up with Serefina as teenagers, Lucius knew how to speak Portuguese and therefore could understand as father and daughter conversed.

"_Have faith, Serefina,_" Jacob nodded, as he watched his granddaughter's chest rise and fall as she slept in her deep coma.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Elena stood at the water basin in the kitchen of Blackheart Manor, both Serefina and Jacob were at the hospital with Phoebe and although she was unaware that they were even there no one saw fit to leave her in fear that she would wake up when they were gone.

A knock at the back door jarred the matriarch from her thoughts.

Rose reached the door first and opened it to reveal one of the stable boys standing on the opposite side "_Yes, Jackson_?" the young maid asked politely.

"_Miss, the others and I were just wondering if you knew where Phoebe was_," Jackson blurted out "_She has not been home in over a month, and if she has been it's not like her to not come see us. The horses can also sense that something is wrong, Serefina has not been present for long during the day, and Mr. Blackheart also disappears at random parts of the day_."

Rose turned to look at Elena who was drying her hands on a dish towel "_I will take this one, Rose; you just go back to your chores."_

_"Yes, ma'am"_ Rose curtseyed and disappeared from the kitchen

Elena turned back to Jackson "_Round up the rest of the stable boys, there is something you must know."_

Jackson nodded and returned out to the stable, once he had returned there were several other teenagers around his age with him. They all looked nervous and expectant at exactly the same time.

_"You must understand that we did not tell you this because we did not want to worry you."_ Elena said in a soft voice as she surveyed those who worked for her, she did not want them to fear Phoebe's life but they were friends of her granddaughters and therefore had a right to know "_Phoebe was taken into hospital at the end of last month. There was an accident at Hogwarts and she lies in a coma at the Elemental Academy infirmary."_

A few boys -older boys- paled "_But she is going to be okay, isn't she?"_

"_We are not sure. We fear that she has slipped too far into her coma and there is a slight chance that she does not have the strength to pull herself back."_ Elena explained solemnly "_All we can do now is hope."_

Jackson shook his head _"Phoebe is a strong witch Mrs. Blackheart, I remember her from when we were toddlers, she would do some crazy things and always come out looking fine. I for one believe that she will wake up."_

The other boys nodded in agreement. They too believed that Phoebe would wake up soon.

_"I have faith that my granddaughter is strong too, Jackson, but the first week was critical. It has now been a month, I fear it is too late and we may have already lost her."_

Jackson touched Elena's arm "_Have faith in Phoebe's abilities to heal. Water can do many things for the body. Phoebe is not only a witch...but she is a strong elemental too, Ma'am."_

Elena smiled and nodded in admiration at his words "_Thank you, Jackson, you may return to your work now."_

There was a collective of '_Yes, ma'am's'_ and the stable boys retreated to their designated jobs. Their minds all on Phoebe wishing, hoping and praying that she would wake up soon.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated: Thursday, October 06, 2011 at 3:03am**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N:** _OMG! Over 80 reviews already. I LOVE it. Means i'm doing something right. Hehe, I am all giddy now. Lol. Okay, i'm calm._

**A/N:** _Thank you the awesome people that have reviewed so far for the beginning of second year:_** Fan of Fics, Murder-Winter-Cullen, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Angel JJK, Vivi Fontaine** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd**_ you guys are AMAZINGLY AWESOME and I love you!_

**In Response: **_First to __**Fan of Fics:**__ Yes, the subject is horribly depressing, but it will get better. As for Lucius, I __**HAD**__ to include him in that chapter, not just for Phoebe's sake but also Serefina's; but yes, he hasn't shut her completely out of his life just his families. No, Dumbledore didn't tell the students that it was Quirrell who had attacked Phoebe, he thought that her being attacked would hurt them enough, so to tell them that one of their Professors had done this damage to her would have caused mass panic (despite what he had done to Harry)_

_Second too __**Murder-Winter-Cullen:**__ Aww thank you. Made my day with your comment. Yeah, Phoebe/Oliver is so cute. More to come from them =)_

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Again, I am very __**VERY**__ sorry that I made you cry. That was not my intention for anyone, but I guess '__**The Dark Lord's Downfall**__' is a lot darker and depressing that MWS was/is._

_**Angel JJK:**__ It would seem Phoebe has captured everyone's hearts. But she is a real sweet girl, isn't she?_

_**Vivi Fontaine**__: Aw you made me smile with your catch up reviews. They were awesome. Yes, it was a good thing she didn't tell Oliver that it was Marcus who attacked her, Oliver would have gone nuts. I thought it would have been the best place for a Cliffhanger. Yes, it was Voldemort. And Phe? I like that nickname, it's awesome. :)_

_A more uprising chapter this time..._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong> _The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p><em>"That's it, just open your eyes, just a little more..." coaxed a sweet female voice from a distance. Phoebe didn't recognize the voice and this made it even more confusing for her when she did manage to open her eyes and find a set of four people standing over her.<em>

_The first was a small podgy woman with a round, kind face, sparkling green eyes and brown hair which was separated with a parting down the middle. She was knelt directly beside Phoebe and was holding her hand comfortingly and lovingly as the young Gryffindor woke and took in her surroundings._

_The second person was a man. He looked like an ancient monkey-like man with a long thin white beard that, in Phoebe's eyes, could have rivaled Dumbledore's to a point._

_The third person within the room was a very beautiful, yet austere-looking and slightly intimidating woman. She was tall, had long black hair and dark eyes._

_The last person was also male, and he had mane-like red hair, green eyes and a powerful build._

_Despite never meeting them before in her life - until now - Phoebe easily recognized the four people standing before her. They were the Helga Hufflepuff, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Godric Gryffindor - The Hogwarts Four._

_"Well, hello there..." Helga Hufflepuff beamed, relief plastered across her face._

_Phoebe managed to smile weakly in response "Where am I?"_

_"You are in the Elemental dimension," answered Salazar Slytherin._

_Phoebe swiveled her head around to meet his gaze and winced at the movement._

_"Do not move so much," scolded Rowena Ravenclaw "They were rather nasty curses you were subjected too and even the strongest of us Elementals have sometimes not survived."_

_"Am I going to die?" Phoebe croaked her voice quiet and scratching from the lack of use._

_Godric Gryffindor shook his head "No. You have managed to awaken in this dimension, which means you have the strength you need to draw yourself back to the real world. You should wake up there in a few hours."_

_Phoebe sighed in relief, even as she felt her eye lids begin to droop again "I'm so tired..."_

_Helga Hufflepuff ran her fingers through the girl's dark locks "Rest. Get some sleep. You will need your energy."_

_"Okay..." Phoebe was able to whisper before sleep overpowered her once more._

_The Hogwarts Four continued to stand watch as their new charge slept peacefully amongst them._

_Several hours later Phoebe awoke once more and with the help of Helga Hufflepuff was able to sit up, after which the Hogwarts Four took it upon themselves to explain exactly what had happened and what was going to happen even after Phoebe had woken in the real world._

_"You're going to feel weak in the upcoming year," Rowena explained "Your elemental core has been shattered into four different pieces, which is why the four of us are here with you now. Normally Salazar would have appeared to you alone but given the circumstances..."_

_"I understand." Phoebe nodded sipping at the water that Godric Gryffindor had presented her with. She knew that this coming year she would probably have to depend on the support and strength of her friends to help her with the return to power._

_She could feel her magical core strengthen every time she woke in this dimension, but her elemental core -according to Rowena- was going to take more time to heal. "You are now a four core elemental," Rowena had said "This means you have control over all four elements. Your main element will remain the same and it will be stronger than the other three you possess, but you will still be able to use Fire, Earth and Air. Your Water powers will grow stronger at the same speed as your physical strength, but it will probably take some time for you to come into full control over the other three elements that now reside within you."_

_Phoebe nodded._

_"You need to become reacquainted with the element you were born with," Rowena went on "Salazar can help you there -"_

_The young Gryffindor lifted her gaze to the monkey-like man and nodded in understanding._

_Salazar surveyed her through dark eyes "Your water powers will need to manifest back to its natural stage of growth, the same it was when you were attacked. It will not return to that natural stage if you do not use your powers. Once it has reached the stage another element will be opened up to you. We do not have control over which element will be available for you to gain access too, but when it does you will meet with the respective founder of that element. Understand?"_

_Again, Phoebe nodded. This was slightly too much information to take in but she knew that she would understand it a little better when she was left alone to process it. So far all she did understand was that in the upcoming years she was going to be taught and mentored by the famous Hogwarts founders._

_"When will I wake up in the real world?" Phoebe asked._

_Helga Hufflepuff, run her fingers once again through Phoebe's hair, "Not long. Though whenever you do fall asleep you will be returned to this dimension so that we can keep an eye on you, do you object to that?"_

_"No." Phoebe shook her head as she snuggled back under the covers of the bed._

_"Good. Sweet dreams, little one" Helga smiled reassuringly and watched as Phoebe dropped off back to sleep "We will see one another very soon."_

**~*Phoebe*~**

Jackson and Blake stood patiently either side of Phoebe's bed. Elena had suggested that since they were a lot closer to Phoebe than the rest of the stable boys that they be allowed to visit her while she was still hospitalized; they were also granted the permission of seeing her alone while the adults spoke with Phoebe's healer in the corridor.

"_She looks so peaceful_," Jackson commented.

"_Yes_." Blake replied "_I hope she wakes up soon_."

"_Catrin seems to believe that because she has not yet woken, that she could already be gone."_

_"She is breathing by herself;"_ Blake argued "_She is not dead. Phoebe can't die. Not yet. Not without saying goodbye."_

Jackson heard the crack in his friend's voice as he proclaimed that Phoebe could not die. "_Are you okay?_" he asked curiously.

Blake nodded and lowered his gaze to Phoebe's sleeping form in hopes that Jackson would not see his tears. Ever since finding out about Phoebe, he hoped and prayed that she would not die, but life was never fair and he had undoubtedly prepared himself for the worst.

Movement caught Blake's eye, and at first he thought that his sight was playing tricks on him, however when it happened again he knew that he was not dreaming or seeing things. Phoebe's fingers and jerked upwards slightly "_Jack...go get the Healer!"_

_"What? Why?"_

_"She moved!"_ Blake exclaimed "_Go. Get Serefina. Get Elena. Jacob. Just get everyone!"_

Jack nodded and darted for the door, leaving Blake alone with Phoebe. Taking her hand the older boy squeezed it and brushed a strand of hair from Phoebe's face "_Phoebe...can you hear me?"_

Several moments after Jackson had left, he returned with Serefina, Elena and Jacob Blackheart and Catrin Holloway following behind. Serefina took to Phoebe's side instantly replacing Blake who joined Jackson at the bottom the bed.

They watched as Catrin waved her wand over Phoebe before turning to Serefina "_Talk to her. If she hears your voice it may prompt her to wake up_."

With trembling hands, Serefina grasped her goddaughters and said "_Phoebe? It's me sweetie, Serefina. Time to wake up."_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"_It's me sweetie. Time to wake up."_

_"Mum?"_ Phoebe croaked, as she slowly opened her eyes, winced at the brightness of the room and shut them again.

"_Phoebe? Try again, sweetheart."_

This time when Phoebe opened her eyes she found herself staring at the palm of someone's hand "_You can remove your hand now_," she croaked. There were light chuckles from around the room, and the hand started to move away from her eyes, allowing them to adjust to the brightness. When the hand was completely gone, Phoebe found herself staring up into the worried face of Serefina, her family and a woman she didn't recognize.

"_Welcome back, Little Star"_ Elena greeted from the bottom of the bed. Phoebe glanced down and smiled weakly at her family -Jackson and Blake included- before turning her gaze to the unfamiliar woman who was also in the room.

Catrin caught her questionable stare and smiled "_My name is Catrin Holloway. I have been your healer since you were relocated here back in July. I will admit that I did not think you would make it this far, I thought for sure that after the first week your condition would worsen, you're a very strong girl Miss Blackheart."_

_"July?"_

_"Yes. It is now the end of August,"_

Phoebe's eyes widened "_I have been here all summer? My friends -"_

_"Have been notified of everything that has happened to you"_ Serefina reassured her "_James and Ashlyn have been to visit you as have Sarah and Amelia. They are quite concerned about your health and send their wishes of you to wake up soon. While you rest I will owl them to let them know you are awake."_

Phoebe nodded in thank you. The thought of her friends knowing that she was alive and well calmed her slightly. She turned her attention back to Catrin _"Where am I?"_ she asked.

"_You are in the infirmary at the Elemental Academy."_

"_Oh."_ the young Gryffindor murmured feeling tiredness seep back into her mind, she wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and go back to sleep, all this was starting to overpower her and she wasn't ready to entertain big parties like the one around her bed.

Catrin noticed the tiredness in her patient's voice "_Get some rest Miss Blackheart. We will continue to monitor your progress while you sleep. I expect you to feel tired and weak for the remainder of the summer."_

_"But I will be able to leave soon, yes?"_

_"We are hoping. For now just rest. I will return in an hour or two just to explain the potions you will need to take in order to fully recover."_

Phoebe nodded again, her head and eyes feeling heavier than ever before. She heard the light tapping of Catrin's shoes on the tiled floor as she left the room, leaving Phoebe alone with her family once more.

Leaning forward, Serefina pressed a kiss to her goddaughter's forehead "_Get some sleep, Phoebe, we will be here when you wake up."_

"_M'Kay_," Phoebe murmured slipping further into the darkness once more.

As she slept Serefina watched her, a small smile crossing her features as she reflected back to the moment Phoebe had woken, as she remembered that Phoebe had called her Mum.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When Phoebe came around next it was a whole day later. Serefina was sitting beside her bed. She looked up when Phoebe stirred and was holding her hand when she fully came around. _"Hey sweetheart. How are you feeling?"_

_"Tired."_ Phoebe murmured "_But better."_

Serefina smiled and kissed the back of her hand "_I am glad. I'm not sure if you are up for company yet, but there is someone here to see you."_

Phoebe's eyes lit up at the prospect of having a new visitor "_Who?_" she asked.

The door to the room opened and Phoebe flicked her gaze to see who was entering, a grin adorned her features as Oliver Wood stepped into the room.

Oliver smiled as he rushed to Phoebe's side and hugged her. "Oh, Phoebe, it's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

"Oliver. I feel fine but not completely up to par yet. I still take frequent naps, and I'm still confined to this bed! But I am hoping that I will be able to walk and stay awake by the time school starts. Jackson and Blake have been helping me with my homework and they don't even go to Hogwarts!"

Since Serefina had left the room to give the friends some privacy, Oliver pulled up her chair, grasped Phoebe's hand and stayed with her for most of the afternoon. Sometimes during his time there Phoebe had to sleep but he was always there when she woke up.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally, after several months of being stuck in a Hospital bed, Phoebe was discharged from the hospital with a fair warning from her Healer too take it easy in the upcoming weeks that would lead her back to a Hogwarts student.

_"You must take one of these every day for the next few months,"_ Catrin Holloway had warned the morning Phoebe had been discharged, she had been explaining about the potions Phoebe had to take in order to fully recover outside the Hospital "_They will help strengthen your magical core while you are away from the Hospital."_

_"School starts in a few weeks. Will I be able to go school shopping?"_

Catrin looked thoughtful "_I do not see why not. But you must be careful; your magical core is still weak. You will need to be careful of your emotions for this year also, your magic is starting to re-energize itself and while it will seem a little erratic for the next couple of months you are going to feel a drain in energy if you use it too much."_

_"But I'm going to be okay?"_

_"Yes. You will need to rest. But I have faith that you are going to be just fine, you are a real lucky child, Phoebe, it is a miracle that you have made it this far"_

Phoebe smiled as she remembered the Hogwarts four that were helping her magical core strengthen every time she closed her eyes. She nodded. _"Yeah, I really am."_ she smiled.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was finally a week before Phoebe was due to return to Hogwarts, but before she could do that she needed the necessary essentials: Books and Equipment, and also a new wand.

"_Phoebe!_" Jackson yelled as he burst through the door of his best friend's bedroom. He found the young elemental curled up in a ball beneath her blankets fast asleep, a smirk crossed his face as he crept closer, pulled back the covers and leaned in close to her ear.

_"Don't do anything you will regret later,"_ Phoebe warned.

Jackson jumped a foot in the air and stumbled backwards at his friend's voice, he had been sure that she had been asleep when he had entered. "_Damn it, Phoebe!"_

Phoebe chuckled as she straightened out, rolled over onto her stomach and stared at her best friend through one eye "_Why are you waking me at this time of day?"_

_"Your Hogwarts letter came,"_ Jackson brandished a rather thick envelope and held it out to the Elemental.

Sitting up carefully Phoebe opened the letter, took out its contents and read through them carefully. There was a personal letter from Dumbledore congratulating her on waking from her coma and the regular letter and school supplies she would need for the year ahead.

Patting the bed beside her, Phoebe welcomed Jackson to sit beside her while she read through her letter.

For a few minutes there was silence as Phoebe read her letter, and then her book list.

Second-year students will require:

_The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 _by Miranda Goshawk

_Break with a Banshee_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Gadding with Ghouls_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Holidays with Hags_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Travels with Trolls_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Voyages with Vampires_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Wanderings with Werewolves_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

_Year with the Yeti_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

Jackson -who had been reading over Phoebe's shoulder- frowned "_Why are most of the books written by Lockhart_?"

"_Don't know," _Phoebe answered "_The new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher must be a fan - bet it's a witch."_

"_Well you'll be right at home then, have lots in common with her_"

Phoebe glared at him "_Don't go there..."_

Jackson held his hands up in defence before handing over another envelope "_There was also this,"_

_"It's from Ashlyn!"_ Phoebe grinned ripping open the envelope and reading its contents:

_Dear Phoebe,_

_ I hope everything, it is good to hear that you are awake and I can't wait to see you back at Hogwarts, but I am hoping we can see each other before that. Adrian and I are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow to collect our books and other essentials for the next school year, if you have received your letter (which I am sure you have) I was wondering if you wanted to meet us there, I have messaged James, Sarah and Amelia to see if they wanted to meet up but I have not received word from them, yet._

_ If you can meet up then right back as soon as possible and we can make arrangements to meet either in the Leaky Cauldron or Flourish and Blotts._

_Hope to see you soon._

_Love from Ashlyn._

Glancing across at Jackson, Phoebe smiled causing the boy to groan "_Get on." _he complained rolling off the bed and allowing her to climb up onto his back. Once Phoebe was secure on his back Jackson carried her downstairs and into the parlor where the rest of her family was sitting down to breakfast.

"_Can we go to Diagon Alley tomorrow?"_ were the first words out of her mouth when she and Jackson entered.

Elena, Jacob and Serefina chuckled at the sight as Jackson carefully plopped his friend down onto a stool at the kitchen table.

_"Ashlyn wrote to me. She and Adrian are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow and Ash wants to know if I can meet her there."_

_"I do not see why not."_ Serefina agreed.

Phoebe beamed and grabbed a piece of toast from the centre of the table as Jackson returned to the garden to finish his chores.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Phoebe!" shouted a familiar voice as the Blackheart family, Jackson and Blake entered Flourish and Blotts the next morning. Phoebe was walking between the two boys her arms looped through theirs for support.

At the sound of her name the young Elemental looked up and smiled as she spotted Ashlyn pushing her way through the crowd to get at her, behind the Slytherin -also in a rush- was James.

Reaching Phoebe first Ashlyn threw her arms around the Gryffindor and hugged her tightly; squeezing so hard Phoebe started to lose air.

"You're suffocating her!" James exclaimed prying Ashlyn off of his housemate. Once Phoebe was free he happily threw his arms around her and kissed both her cheeks "Welcome back!" he grinned.

Phoebe smiled "Thanks."

"Don't you ever scare us like that again!" Ashlyn scolded.

Phoebe held up her hands in defence "I promise I won't. I don't plan on dying anytime soon."

Ashlyn and James nodded before both hugged Phoebe one more time. Parting for the second time James turned curiously to Jackson and Blake "Who are you?"

"James!" Ashlyn scolded.

Phoebe giggled "It's okay Ash; these are my best friends, James. This is Jackson Stream and Blake Brooks. We grew up together in Portugal."

"So they are Muggles?"

"No, Wizards," Phoebe answered "They don't go to Hogwarts, they actually attend Durmstrang in Russia."

Ashlyn nodded "Very nice."

"So where are your families?" Phoebe asked looking around.

"Mum has taken Henry and Melissa to Madam Malkin's;" James answered "she is then coming back here for the appearance of Gilderoy Lockhart. She loves him."

Ashlyn smirked "Who can blame her?" she asked "He's drop dead gorgeous!"

"Not you too!" James complained "Pheebs, back me up here, Lockhart: Gorgeous or gross?"

Jackson grinned and nudged Phoebe "You're on your own," he told James "Phoebe is just as smitten with Lockhart as she is" he nodded in Ashlyn's direction.

James groaned "Oh, you have got to be kidding me!"

Exchanging looks Ashlyn and Phoebe smiled "So, where is your family, Ash?" the Gryffindor asked.

"Adrian has gone off to meet his friends," Ashlyn answered "and Mr. and Mrs. Pucey are around here somewhere, I sort of just ditched them when I saw you enter the store."

"Oh, won't they get mad?"

"Probably." Ashlyn nodded "But granted they have seen how upset I have been all summer I don't think they will care. As long as I didn't ditch them for a Muggleborn, I think I will be safe."

Phoebe nodded "It's a good thing Hermione isn't here then isn't it?"

"And Amelia."

"Yeah." Phoebe agreed.

"So when is Lockhart supposed to be turning up?" Blake asked looking slightly bored.

Turning to face the board in front of the door, Jackson wandered over to read the front:

_**GILDEROY LOCKHART**_

_**will be signing copies of his autobiography**_

_**MAGICAL ME**_

_**today 12:30 - 4:30pm**_

"And it's 11:30 right now;" Blake replied checking his watch "Shall we get out of here for an hour? All this enclosed spacing cannot be good for you Phoebe; it could be overwhelming being in crowds, especially since you have only just been discharged from the hospital."

"Okay," Phoebe agreed "I best just go tell Serefina where I am going."

Jackson stopped her "Stay. I will go find them."

Phoebe sighed "And i'm not a dog!" she called after him, irritated by the fact that he had told her to 'stay'.

Once Jackson had returned he and Blake helped Phoebe out of the store, Ashlyn and James following.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe, Jackson, Blake, James and Ashlyn strolled off along the winding, cobbled street.

At the Ice cream store Blake bought four ice-creams for himself and his companions which they slurped happily as they wandered around and inspected the shops of the alley. More than once Jackson or Blake had to carry Phoebe on their backs as she started to become tired from all the walking.

They met Harry, Ron and Hermione outside of 'Quality Quidditch Supplies' as Phoebe was once again subjected to hugs from both Hermione and Harry, and a simple nod and 'welcome back' from Ron -not that she was expecting much from the red head-

After a brief chat with the Golden Trio, Phoebe waved goodbye as Hermione dragged the boys off to buy new parchment and Ink.

Outside Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop, they met Fred, George and Lee Jordan -who reacted exactly the same as everyone else when they saw Phoebe-.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked once she had been hugged by all three of them.

"Stocking up on our supplies of Dr Filibuster's Fabulous Wet-Star, No-Heat Fireworks" George answered "We need new supplies for school."

Phoebe nodded "Well have fun. See you in Flourish and Blotts later, yeah?"

"Of course." Fred grinned "See ya Pheebs. Be careful now. Anyone give you any trouble you let us know."

"I will" Phoebe smiled, waved and left with her friends.

An hour later, the group of four headed back towards the bookstore. They were by no means the only ones making their way back. As they approached it, a large crowd of people were jostling one another in attempts to get inside.

Blake immediately grabbed Phoebe and scooped her up bridal style as he carried her into the store; Ashlyn, James and Jackson forming a path as they pushed through the crowds of witches and wizards. "Shall we go upstairs?" Blake suggested noticing that there were more people in the store than he had thought "It is far too crowded down here."

Jackson nodded and headed for the stairs. Blake followed behind with Phoebe.

"We'll catch up," Ashlyn promised "Just have to let our families know that we are here."

Blake nodded and followed Jackson up the stairs. He was still carrying Phoebe.

When they reached the first floor of the bookstore Phoebe noticed that they were not alone up there as much as they thought. She sighed when she noticed that the first floor was in fact crawling with Slytherin's, Marcus Flint amongst them.

The Slytherin's looked up as the foreigners approached and Marcus eyed Phoebe and the two boys curiously from the corner of his eye, the way Phoebe rested her head comfortingly on one of the boy's shoulder, the way the boy held his arms around her as if protecting her from outside forces. It was obvious that they were close…but close what? Friends or something more?

If so, how much had Phoebe told this guy about her first year at Hogwarts? Had she told him what he had done? If she had then he needed to be eliminated, taken out of the picture before anyone else found out what he had done to the precious Gryffindor princess – at least that is what he believed her to be. The Gryffindor's were awful protective of her so why not give her the title?

"_Are you sure about this, Phe_?" Marcus heard the boy speak in a foreign tongue, he didn't recognize the language but it was obvious Phoebe did because when she responded it was the same language.

"_Yes. I will sit here –"_she carefully climbed up onto the banister "_- just make sure I don't fall._"

Jackson nodded and wrapped his arms around Phoebe's waist as Blake leant beside her.

Marcus eyed them with a slight jealousy, but why he was jealous he couldn't say. It wasn't that he liked Phoebe – because he didn't, he just put it down to the fact that he wanted something that he couldn't have.

Emerging from the throng of Slytherin's who were watching the crowd down below as Gilderoy Lockhart slid into view. "It _can't_ be Harry Potter?" Lockhart shouted as he jumped to his feet.

The crowd parted, whispering excitedly. Lockhart dived forward, seized Harry's arm and pulled him to the front. The crowd burst into applause.

"Big smile, Harry," said Lockhart, through his own gleaming teeth "Together, you and I are worth the front page."

When he did finally let go of Harry's hand, the Seeker sidled back over to the Weasley's, but Lockhart threw an arm around his shoulders and clamped him tightly to his side.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly, waving for quiet "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time! When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts this morning, he only wanted to buy my autobiography - which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge -" the crowd applauded again "- he had no _idea_," Lockhart continued "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me_. He and his school fellows will, in fact, be getting the real, magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that, this September, I will be taking up the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

The crowd cheered and clapped as Phoebe looked giddy at the idea of having Lockhart at Hogwarts.

Blake and Jackson rolled their eyes "Better there than at Durmstrang." they both commented.

Marcus approached the group of three on the end of the line he had to eliminate all parties that could identify him as the person who had attacked Phoebe during the school year last term.

Feeling a tap on his shoulder, Blake turned only to stumble backwards into the banister and almost knock Phoebe into the crowd below –and he would have, had it not been for Jackson's hold on her- as a fist collided with his lower jaw.

"What the hell, mate?" Blake asked turning to Marcus as he got steadily back to his feet and clicked his jaw back into place. Phoebe and Jackson knew that it took a lot to break Blake's jaw and obviously the punch hadn't been strong enough to do serious damage.

Marcus glared harder than ever at the boy "Put her down, you Portuguese prick! She's mine!"

A hushed silence fell over the entire store as Jackson put himself in front of Phoebe, and Blake glanced back at her as she stared at Marcus with wide eyes. Everything clicked into place. "You bastard!" he whispered snidely turning his attention back to Marcus "It was you! You attacked her two months before she was kidnapped and tortured."

And before Marcus could respond Blake's fist collided with his jaw sending him stumbling backwards towards the stairs.

"Blake!" Phoebe screamed as her friend lunged for the Slytherin once more. He didn't bother using magic -if this was a duel he would have- but since Marcus had attacked one of his best friends things were personal and Blake sought to use his fists to deal with the problem at hand.

There was a heavy thud as Blake knocked Marcus into a bookcase on the first floor sending heavy books scattering all over the floor and down the stairs. There were numerous yells of "Blake!" from Phoebe and Jackson and "Flint!" from the Slytherin cohorts that Marcus was with.

But Blake and Marcus continued fighting, knocking more books off the shelves in the process.

"Gentlemen please - please!" cried the assistant as he tried to quell the fighting between the two teenagers.

And then, louder than all, "Break it up, now -"

Jacob Blackheart had stepped out of the crowd and was glaring furiously at the two boys on the first floor. When they paid no attention to his order he spoke directly to Blake instead -

"_Blake Joseph Brooks! Enough of this foolishness step away from him_!"

"_He hurt Phoebe_!" Blake responded. Jacob paused and turned in his granddaughter's direction, she was watching the fight from behind Jackson.

"_Is this true, Phoebe_?" Jacob asked.

Phoebe hung her head and avoided all forms of contact with her grandfather "_Yes, Papa_" she nodded.

"_Nevertheless, release him Blake. We are leaving!_"

Blake extracted himself from Marcus and took a step back from the Slytherin; he was supporting cut lip and a black eye. Despite being younger that Marcus', Blake was stronger and had less damages. However, he had really taken a number on Marcus; the Slytherin was supporting a bloody nose, a fat lip and what appeared to be a broken jaw.

"_Jackson_," Serefina called "_Bring Phoebe down here and take her outside please_."

Jackson nodded, scooped up Phoebe and hurried downstairs with her. He left the store as Serefina and Elena followed.

"_Blake_" Jacob called remaining in the same position he was when he had called for order between the two boys "_Come. We are leaving."_

_"Coming, Mr Blackheart"_ Blake nodded as he started for the stairs. He paused, however, when Jacob had turned his back and left the store. Blake turned back to Marcus. "Touch her again, and no one will be able to save you."

And with that, he too, left the store.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Finally I finished it.**

**Happy to announce that this chapter is the longest so far in the series, being 14 pages long and 6,432 words. That's a record so far. =)**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, October 08, 2011 at 2:48am**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N:** _The school year begins. Just another short extract of information regarding Phoebe's new powers._

**A/N:** _Thank you to the following:_ **Fan of Fics, Angel JJK, KingdomHeartsNerd, Vivi Fontaine** _and_ **10th Squad 3rd Seat**

**A/N: **_In response to __**Fan of Fics:**__ Yeah, Voldemort does seem to be his own downfall doesn't he. It seemed only fitting that Marcus is dealt with accordingly and since Phoebe cannot use her magic to the best of her abilities at the moment it only seemed fair that Blake get to take the revenge they all wanted - it also goes to prove that Phoebe's friends are that much protective of her. As for Ron he is glad that she is back, he just can't go around jumping for joy like everyone else because of the hatred that was between them during first year. But things do start to warm up between them =). I have never done a story where my character as a crush on Lockhart so I thought it would be something to change it up with, everyone does a story where their female character doesn't crush on him (I did the same with Charlie and Riley) and I hate repeating storylines, so yes, Phoebe is crushing on Lockhart. Yes. Lucius did plant the diary, you are right it was the perfect time for him to do so._

_**Angel JJK**__: I figured since there are four elements and four founders, and the elements fit with the founders then they should be the ones to teach Phoebe._

**Vivi Fontaine:**_ I was seconds away from uploading this new chapter when I noticed you had reviewed. Lol. But in all honesty I **LOVED** the nickname and just had to use it. So yes, your nickname is officially official within 'The Dark Lord's Downfall'. But only Jackson and Blake call her that. =)_

_For those of you who can't see the connection:_

_Helga Hufflepuff = Earth_

_Salazar Slytherin = Water_

_Rowena Ravenclaw = Air_

_Godric Gryffindor = Fire._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter: <strong>_The Dark Lords Downfall_

**Summary: **_For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

* * *

><p>"<em>But I go back to school today!"<em> Phoebe exclaimed as she sat on the back of one of her horses, she had been out on land for most of the morning doing what she loved. Horse-back riding. She had received another stallion for her birthday -which had been in June- and she had ceremonially named him Diego and she had decided that she was going to go out and spend some time with him.

She had returned the ranch over an hour ago and was now helping Blake, Jackson and the other stable boys to wash, brush and clean down the horses. The conversations had turned to school; Jackson and Blake were returning next week, while the other boys were all older than seventeen had had left school months ago.

The only problem Phoebe was having with going back to school was since her awakening her wand was no longer working for her, well, it wasn't that it wasn't working per say but it didn't feel right anymore.

"_I cannot go back to Hogwarts without a wand!"_

Blake, who had been in the middle of washing down one of the stallions, turned around to face his friend "_Phoebe! Calm down!"_ he ordered her "_You'll worry yourself sick_."

"_But what am I going to do, Blake? I need a wand for school!"_

Jackson -who was working close by- stopped what he was doing and approached Phoebe "_Don't worry Pheebs. Everything is being sorted as we speak. Your Grandfather has made an appointment for you to see Dem__étrio this morning._"

Phoebe seemed to relax at these words, her breathing evened out and she nodded "_Okay. I'm sorry I panicked, it's just, I know that because I am an elemental that I can do wandless magic but if I do that at Hogwarts -especially now at the age of 12- people will start questioning me and i'm afraid they will work out my secret._"

Blake finished his work on the stallion and allowed his friend -Demetrius- to take the horse back to the freshly cleaned stable. "_We will never let that happen_." he promised.

The young Gryffindor stared at him for a moment or two, smiled and nodded "_Thank you_." she murmured as she hugged both of them.

Jackson and Blake chuckled and hugged her back "_You are most welcome._"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that morning Phoebe found herself standing alongside her grandfather in a small wand shop in the heart of Portugal's Wizarding community. The community was situated just outside of the Golden Triangle -and just like Diagon Alley- couldn't be accessed by non-magical folk.

The shop was always open and it was on very rare occasions when the shop was closed for more than a few hours.

A shop assistant stood behind the front desk and looked up when the bell above the door run alerting him to customers. He was not that much older than Phoebe and stared directly at her as she approached the front desk with her grandfather.

The first thing Phoebe noticed was that the shopkeeper was rather attractive with short brown hair and hazel eyes. Phoebe blushed when she realized he was watching her and looked away from his intense gaze for a moment.

Jacob nodded in greeting at the young man "_We have an appointment to see __Dem__étrio in five minutes_."

The shop assistant turned his gaze away from Phoebe and onto the older man "_Name?_"

"_Blackheart._"

Phoebe couldn't help but frown at the shop assistant, how could he not know who her grandfather was? She knew that the Blackheart family were well known throughout the Portuguese Wizarding community, so how was it that this young man didn't recognize them?

"_One moment please."_ the assistant replied, as he checked the book in front of him and then disappeared into the back room. When he returned an older gentleman was with him.

The older man broke out into a smile the moment he saw them "_Jacob. It is good to see you, how have you been? How are Elena and Serefina?"_

"_Elena and Serefina are just fine, __Dem__étrio_" Jacob nodded "_We had a bit of a scare at the beginning of the summer but all is well now_."

"_I heard._" Demétrio nodded setting his gaze on Phoebe "_Welcome back to the land of living Miss Phoebe; the last time I saw you, you were nothing more than a bundle of blankets, how time has flown."_

Jacob nodded "_Yes. It has._"

"_Is this your first wand, Miss Phoebe?_"

Phoebe shook her head and removed her previous wand from the inside her robes "_No, sir. My first wand is an Ollivanders make; I bought it last year in Diagon Alley._"

Demétrio took the wand and examined it "_Ah, 10", Hawthorn wood and a dragon heartstring core_."

Phoebe nodded.

"_So what seems to be the problem?_" Demétrio asked "_I do not sense anything wrong with this wand._"

Phoebe looked up at her Grandfather.

Jacob nodded and prompted her to explain what was happening whenever she tried to use her wand.

"_It still works,_" Phoebe replied "_but, it's not the same...it's like it doesn't quite understand me._"

Demétrio beamed "_The wand chooses the wizard, Miss Phoebe._"

Phoebe frowned, that was what Mr Ollivander had told her the moment she had bought her first wand a year ago. "_What does that mean?_" she inquired.

"_It is a part of the wandlore_." Demétrio explained "_Wandlore is a specific class of magic that refers to the history and magical properties of wands. It is a complex and mysterious branch of magic. The idea that a wand chooses the wizard is a part of wandlore, as is the idea that wands can switch allegiance_."

"_Is that what has happened with my wand?_" Phoebe asked "_Has it switched allegiances?_"

"_Was this wand disarmed from you in a duel?_"

Phoebe shook her head.

"_And you are still alive so it is safe to say you have not been killed for the wand,_" Demétrio added "_So to say that your wand has changed allegiances would be a no, but your wand has as still no connection to you._"

"_I'm confused..._"

Demétrio smiled "_This wand no longer belongs to you, it did up until you were attacked, and then it was rendered useless. Is it not true that you are now a fore core elemental, my dear child?"_

Phoebe nodded.

"_That is why your wand no longer works,_" Demétrio explained. _"This wand -" _he held up Phoebe's old wand_ "- was not linked in any way to your elemental abilities, but linked only to your Magical core. This evening we will be looking for a wand that will link itself to both your cores, understand?_"

"_I think so..._" Phoebe nodded uncertainly. She was a little confused, but knew that she would understand as soon as she got home, either that or her grandfather would sit down and explain it to her in more detail.

Demétrio nodded once more and then proceeded to take down Phoebe's measurements. Once he was sure he had the information he needed, he sent his assistant -Felipe- into the back of the store to retrieve some wand boxes.

"_Now these wands are special wands because they have four cores,"_ Demétrio continued, "_Very few witches and wizards in history have been able to wield one of these wands - Now, try this..."_

He handed Phoebe a 10¾ inches, Cherry wood with the core of a Dragon heartstring and a Phoenix feather. "_Dragon and Phoenix, two polar opposites, but work in perfect harmony with one another_."

With a nod, Phoebe flourished the wand but it was snatched straight back before anything could happen.

"_Try this - 11 inches, Rowan wood, hair from a Unicorn and Thestral."_

Again - it was stolen back before Phoebe could even wave it. Demétrio picked up a third wand.

"_12 inches, Yew wood, Phoenix feather and Thestral hair."_

The wand didn't even stir as Phoebe touched it. Demétrio sighed and took the wand back, and picked up the fifth - he paused, eyed Phoebe curiously and then looked back at the wand "_Try this one. It is a very powerful wand...but if it the that you seek then you will grow into its magic - 11 inches, Blackthorn wood, cores of a Unicorn, Dragon, Thestral and a Phoenix._"

Phoebe reached out for the wand and the moment her fingers wrapped around the wooden handle a magical tingle swept up her arm and throughout her entire body, as a powerful gust of wind swept her hair back.

"_Ah! Perfect!"_ Demétrio cried "_Perfect! Miss Phoebe, well done! Now, I must warn you, this is a very special and powerful wand. In the hands of the wrong person it can do great damage. Now, before you leave, I am obligated to explain the properties of your wand. Do you object?"_

"_No. But it must be quick; she leaves for Hogwarts within the hour."_ Jacob interrupted.

Demétrio nodded and turned his attention back to Phoebe "_Your wand consists of four powerful creatures; The Dragon scale, the hair of a Unicorn, Thestral tail hair and Phoenix feather. However - two of those cores come from creatures that can also produce fire and fly. Therefore it is safe to say that your wand will be the best conductor of Fire and Air. Do you understand?"_

"_A little_." Phoebe nodded.

"_You will understand fully in time_," Demétrio smiled patting her head "_Do not fret. That is nine galleons please._"

Jacob paid for the wand and took Phoebe by the upper arm he Apparated them back to Blackheart Manor, where Serefina was waiting patiently in the parlour for their return.

Hugging her grandparents, Blake and Jackson goodbye, Phoebe was swept away by side-along apparition once more.

It was 11:05am - She had missed the Hogwarts Express.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After making it to Kings Cross Ashlyn and Adrian quickly boarded the train and located the Slytherin compartment with ease -seeing as it was at the very back of the train- but while Adrian took his usual seat near the window, Ashlyn lingered in the doorway.

"Well sit down, Black!" Warrington snapped.

Ashlyn glared at him "I'm not staying!" she retorted "I'll see you at school." she added to Adrian before leaving down the corridor in search of James, Amelia and Sarah.

She found them sitting in a compartment mid-way down the corridor; they smiled and looked up as she entered "Is Phoebe here?" Ashlyn asked as she entered.

"Hello to you too," Amelia laughed "No, we haven't seen her."

It was then Ashlyn noticed the two smallest additions to the compartment "Uh - hello?"

"Hi," the two youngest waved energetically.

"Ash this is Henry and Melissa," James answered "My siblings."

Ashlyn smiled and nodded, it had been a while since she had seen her father's side of the family and that included James and his siblings. Hell she didn't even know what her aunt looked like anymore let alone her younger cousins.

"Henry, Mel, this is Ashlyn" James introduced "She's your cousin."

Henry nodded "I remember you from pictures that mum has."

"Yeah. Mum has tons of pictures of you, some from even when you're a baby. And there are some of you and James when you were toddlers..." Melissa giggled.

James groaned and buried his head in his hands, as Sarah, Ashlyn and Amelia giggled at the eleven year olds. Hogwarts was going to be fun this year.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Until this evening Phoebe had never realized how long it actually took to get to Hogwarts on the train. 7 hours and 25 minutes that is how long it took. She had arrived here at exactly 11:05am and it was now turning 8:30pm. The Sorting feast was about to begin which meant that the rest of the castle had to have arrived by now.

Carefully descending the Grand Staircase, Phoebe stepped into the Entrance Hall just as the Oak doors opened and the returning students filed in. "Welcome back!" Phoebe giggled, spreading her arms wide and greeting the rest of her school mates. Some were startled -to say the least- to find her standing there; while others hugged her happy that she had survived what had happened at the end of last year

"Phoebe!" Katie exclaimed as she stepped into Entrance Hall to find the second year standing there, she rushed forward and caught the younger Gryffindor in a hug.

Phoebe laughed "Katie! How've you been?"

"Worrying myself sick over you!"

"Oh, sweetie, you shouldn't do that!"

"Neither of us knew if you would wake up!"

Phoebe smiled "Katie, this is me; it's going to take a lot more than a few dark curses to keep me down!"

"So how come you aren't with Black and all them?" Oliver asked appearing behind Katie and hugging Phoebe tightly.

"Long story short," Phoebe answered "I missed the train this morning and so was brought straight here."

Alicia Spinnet looked curious "How long have you been here?"

"Seven hours and twenty-five minutes."

"Ouch," Angelina "What does one do in that length of time?"

Phoebe shrugged "I've helped my Aunt set her lesson plan for this year; I've also helped with the Unicorns and Thestrals in the forest -"

"Whoa, wait a minute," Oliver cut in "Thestrals? You can see them?"

"Yeah."

"How? They can only be viewed by people who have seen death."

Phoebe smiled sadly "You remember Blake from when I was in hospital?"

Oliver nodded.

"Well, his mother used to work for my family when he was a toddler; it was when we first became friends. Anyway, his mother had taken us into town one afternoon -me, Blake and Jackson- and on our way home there was an accident. Blake's mother didn't make it. We watched her die."

The Gryffindor's looked saddened by the piece of news "How old were you?"

"I was 5," Phoebe answered "Jackson was 6 and Blake was 8"

Katie squeezed Phoebe's shoulder and pulled her in for another hug "We're sorry."

"It's okay. It was a long time ago..." Phoebe smiled as she pulled back "Blake knows that everything happens for a reason and although he was only eight at the time, he knows he can't go back and change what has happened. He's accepted it and allowed himself the time to move on."

"Well, he has you and Jackson to help him" Oliver smiled

Phoebe nodded "Yeah. And Rose acts just like his mother anyway."

"Who's Rose?" Oliver asked

"His older sister, she too works at Blackheart manor. She's amazing. Makes delicious cookies." Phoebe grinned.

Katie smiled "Speaking of cookies, shall we go to the feast?"

Phoebe nodded and followed her friends into the Great Hall; she waved to Ashlyn who sat at the Slytherin table before locating James amongst the Gryffindor second years. Hurrying towards him the two took their seats just as McGonagall and the first years arrived.

Throughout the Sorting, Phoebe couldn't help but notice that Harry and Ron were missing.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What do you mean they weren't on the train?" Phoebe frowned as she, Hermione and James made their way back to the Gryffindor common room after dinner. Percy had gone on ahead with the first years and since she knew the password Phoebe had remained behind to hang out with Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah for a moment or two in the Entrance Hall.

Since they were no longer first years they were allowed to hang around outside of their common room's half an hour longer than they were used too.

Hermione shrugged "That is exactly what I mean. According to Mrs Weasley they didn't come through the barrier onto the platform like the rest of us - wait, why weren't you on the train?"

"I missed the train," Phoebe answered "I had gone Horse-back riding this morning with Blake and Jackson, and when we got back we washed down the horses -I have a lot of horses- cleaned out the stables and then I went to wash up and finish packing, by the time I had finished it was already 11:00am."

"So you came straight to Hogwarts?" James asked.

Phoebe nodded.

"I didn't think that was possible," Hermione replied "I thought Dumbledore had rules of students being within the castle before the Sorting feast."

"No, if Serefina didn't work here then I think Dumbledore would have come get me, or probably send McGonagall." Phoebe answered,

The bookworm nodded. "So, how are you feeling?"

"Tired." Phoebe answered honestly "Like I said in Diagon Alley, I still take frequent naps so I will be happy to settle down in bed tonight."

"Agreed." Hermione and James nodded.

Phoebe grinned and turned the corner onto the Seventh floor and started the long walk towards the Fat Lady.

"So do you believe that rumour about Ron and Harry flying a car to Hogwarts?" James asked.

"It sounds like something they would do," Phoebe pointed out.

Hermione let out a half-moan "Oh, I hope not. If that is the case then it's good to say that they have been expelled!"

"I highly doubt that," Phoebe shook her head.

"Phoebe they were caught crashing a flying car into the Whomping Willow!" James protested "I think it is safe to say that they have been expelled."

Phoebe shook her head "If that were the case then I wouldn't be looking at them right now."

"What are you -" Hermione cut off as Phoebe pointed towards the Fat Lady where Harry and Ron were standing looking at them in relief. "There you are! Where have you been? The most ridiculous rumour - someone said you'd been expelled for crashing a flying car."

"Well, we haven't been expelled." Harry assured them.

James' jaw hit the floor "You're not telling us you did fly here?" he asked.

"We did." Ron nodded.

"Wicked." James grinned.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and hit him across the back of the head "Don't encourage them!" she scolded.

"But it's cool!" James protested.

Phoebe shook her head "It's not cool! They could have died! They could have been seen! Muggles are not accustom to seeing a flying car!"

"Skip the lecture," Ron interrupted impatiently "and tell us the new password."

"It's 'Wattlebird'," said Phoebe impatiently "but that's not the point -"

Her words were cut short, however, as the portrait of the Fat Lady swung open and there was a sudden storm of clapping. It looked as though the whole Gryffindor house was still awake, packed into the circular common room, standing on the lop-sided tables and squashy armchairs, waiting for them to arrive. Arms reached through portrait hole to pull Harry and Ron inside, leaving Hermione, Phoebe and James to scramble through after them.

"Brilliant!" yelled Lee Jordan "Inspired! What an entrance! Flying a car right into the Whomping Willow, people will be talking about that one for years!"

"Good on you," said a fifth-year as he thumped Harry on the back.

Fred and George pushed their way through the crowd "Why couldn't you've called us back, eh?" they asked

Phoebe shook her head at the enthusiasm her house as they encouraged the behaviour of Ron and Harry. Did any of them seem to stop and think of what damage the two could have done? Not only to the Whomping Willow but also to themselves? Did they even care that Harry and Ron could have died while on their way here?

And it seemed the only other people who seemed to share her disapproval was Percy and Hermione, both of whom were frowning on the display within the common room.

"Got to get upstairs - bit tired!" Ron suddenly shouted over everyone else and both he and Harry started pushing their way towards the door on the other side of the room, which led to the spiral staircase and the dormitories.

"Night," Harry called back to Hermione and Phoebe.

Shaking her head in disapproval Hermione started towards the staircase leading to the girls' dormitories. Phoebe followed her instantly.

"Who wants to bet Ron will receive a message from his parents tomorrow?" Hermione asked once both girls were in the comfort of their silent dorm room.

"I wouldn't put it past a Howler." Phoebe answered as she started to get undressed and ready for bed "Merlin knows they deserve it."

Hermione nodded and climbed under her covers "Yeah. Well at least after that they may have a certain regard for the rules."

"Nah," Phoebe answered "This is Harry and Ron we are talking about, they have a certain disregard for the rules. Last year is proof of that."

The bookworm giggled - that was true.

Hearing footsteps outside the dormitory door, Phoebe knew that was the rest of the tower heading up too bed. Sooner or later Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil would make their appearance in the room and Phoebe hoped that she and Hermione were asleep by the time that happened.

"Well, i'm exhausted," Phoebe stretched and then flopped backwards onto her pillow "Goodnight 'Mione."

"Night Pheebs," Hermione smiled curling up into a ball and hugging her pillow close to her chest "Sweet dreams."

Phoebe nodded into her pillow and replied with a small smile "Sweet dreams."

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Written by** _xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated** _Monday, 10 October 2011_** at **_1:50am_


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N:** _Awesome thanks to _**Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Angel JJK, Vivi Fontaine** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd**_. I apologize for the late update but this week has just been hell. Grandfather was rushed into hospital Monday, and everything has pretty much gone downhill from there. Hopefully it will become a brighter week next week._

**Responses: **_**Fan of Fics**_**: **_Like I said before I hate reoccurring storylines. Charlie and Riley hated Lockhart - and I have never written (or read) a story where the main character was a Lockhart fan girl, so I decide to give it a try. I hope you enjoy._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Yeah. You spelt it wrong. Lol. But that's okay, I understood it quite well._

_And that is all..._

_Phoebe Fan girl coming right up. I hope you like it._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong> _The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p>"Post is due any minute - I think Gran's sending on a few things I forgot." Neville explained as he sat across from James and Phoebe at the Gryffindor table the next morning, Phoebe couldn't help but smile fondly at the round-faced and accident-prone boy. Neville was a huge softy at heart and aside from being accident-prone he had a memory like a goldfish.<p>

And sure enough, there was a rushing sound overheard and a hundred or so owls streamed in, circling the Hall and dropping letters and packages into the chattering crowd. Phoebe ducked as both Oliver and James -who were sitting either side of her- received gifts from home and squeaked in surprise as something large and grey fell into her jug, spraying them all with milk and feathers.

"What the feathers..." Katie squealed holding her hands up to cover herself from the spray of milk

There was a pause before -

"_Errol!"_ said Ron, pulling the bedraggled owl out by the feet. Errol slumped, unconscious, onto the table, his legs in the air and a damp red envelope in his beak.

"Oh no -" Ron gasped.

"It's all right, he's still alive," said Hermione, prodding Errol with the tip of her finger.

"It's not that - it's _that_."

Ron was pointing at the red envelope. Naturally it looked like an ordinary letter in red wrappings, but to those Purebloods, Halfbloods (who had been raised around Magic) and those -like Hermione- who had read all about the Wizarding world before coming to Hogwarts looked as though the letter was about to explode.

"What's the matter?" asked Harry.

"She's - she's sent me a Howler," said Ron faintly

"You'd better open it, Ron," said Neville, in a timid whisper "It'll be worse if you don't. My Gran sent me one once, and I ignored it and -" he gulped, "it was horrible."

Look petrified, Harry turned to Phoebe who was staring at Ron with a rather smug expression. She really did love to torment him.

"What's a Howler?" Harry asked

But no one answered him and seconds later he got his answer. Ron's fingers had only just brushed the side of the envelope when a roar of sound filled the huge Hall, shaking dust from the ceiling.

"..._STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLE YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT HAD GONE..."_

The voice of Ron's mother echoed loudly making the plates and spoons rattle on the tables. People throughout the Hall were swiveling around to see who had received the Howler and Ron sank so low in his seat that only his crimson forehead could be seen.

"_...LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME. WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BELIEVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COUL HAVE BOTH DIED..."_

Phoebe had been wondering when Harry's name was going to be mentioned, it obviously wouldn't have been fair if Ron had to take all the blame for something that both he and Harry had done together.

"_...ABSOULTELY DISGUSTED, YOUR FATHER IS NOW FACING AN ENQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME!"_

A ringing silence fell. The red envelope, which had dropped from Ron's hand, burst into flames and curled into ashes. Harry and Ron were left stunned, and were looking as though a tidal wave had just passed over them. Phoebe giggled behind her hand and a few other people followed her lead and laughed, gradually, a babble of talk broke out again.

But no one had time to dwell on the letter as Professor McGonagall was moving along the Gryffindor table, handing out timetables. Phoebe smiled and took her's, and saw that she had double Herbology with the Hufflepuff's first.

"Tryouts. 7:00pm tonight." Oliver smiled as Phoebe prepared herself for class

"Cool. I'll be there." Phoebe nodded.

Katie smiled as she watched the young Gryffindor swing her legs over the seat and stand, throwing her backpack up onto her shoulders "Got your overalls?" she asked.

"Yes," Phoebe nodded "In my backpack."

"Good. See you later."

Phoebe rolled her eyes "Bye mum." she teased.

Katie scowled "Go. Now." and she pointed towards the door.

Phoebe giggled, saluted and hurried out of the hall with Hermione, Harry, Ron and James.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and James left the castle together, crossed the vegetable patch and made for the greenhouses, where the magical plants were kept.

As they neared the greenhouses they saw the rest of the class standing outside, waiting for Professor Sprout. The four Gryffindor's had only just joined them when she came striding into view across the lawn, accompanied by Gilderoy Lockhart.

Professor Sprout was a squat little witch who wore a patched hat over her flyaway hair; there was usually a large amount of earth on her clothes, she was the head of Hufflepuff house. Gilderoy Lockhart, however, was immaculate in sweeping robes of turquoise, his golden hair shining under a perfectly positioned turquoise hate with gold trimming.

"Oh, hello there!" Lockhart called, beaming around at the assembled students "Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor the Whomping Willow! But I don't want you running away with the idea that I'm better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of those exotic plants on my travels..."

"Greenhouse Three today, chaps!" said Professor Sprout, who was looking distinctly disgruntled, not at all her usual cheerful self.

Phoebe and James -who had found Amelia and Sarah- exchanged looks of interest. They had only ever worked in Greenhouse One before - Greenhouse Three housed far more interesting and dangerous plants. Professor Sprout took a large key from her belt and unlocked the door, as it swung open a whiff of damp earth and fertilizer, mingled with the heavy perfume of some giant, umbrella-sized flowers dangling from the ceiling reached their senses.

"Harry -" Lockhart's voice caught the Gryffindor's off guard as they filed into the Greenhouse behind the Hufflepuff's. "I've wanted a word - you don't mind if he's a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?"

And judging by the look on Professor Sprout's face, she did mind, but before she could respond Lockhart had already closed the door leaving the Gryffindor's and Hufflepuff's inside the Greenhouse awaiting the start of their lesson.

When Harry finally turned up for class Professor Sprout was just explaining what they would be doing that lesson. She was standing behind a trestle bench in the centre of the greenhouse. About twenty pairs of different-coloured earmuffs were lying on the bench.

"We'll be re-potting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?"

Phoebe and Hermione's hands were the first into the air.

Professor Sprout called on Hermione for the answer. "Mandrake or Mandragora is a powerful restorative," the bookworm dictated, sounding as usual as though she had swallowed a textbook "It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed, to their original state."

"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," said Professor Sprout "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"

Again Phoebe and Hermione's hands hit the air.

This time Professor Sprout called on Phoebe. "The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it." she said promptly.

"Precisely. Another ten points to Gryffindor." said Professor Sprout "Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young."

She pointed to a row of deep trays as she spoke and everyone shuffled forward for a better look. A hundred or so tufty little plants, purplish green in colour, were growing there in rows.

"Everyone take a pair of earmuffs," said Professor Sprout.

There was a scramble as everyone tried to seize a pair that wasn't pink and fluffy.

"When I tell you to put them on, make sure your ears are _completely_ covered," said Professor Sprout "When it is safe to remove them, I will give you the thumbs-up. Right - earmuffs on."

The second Phoebe had snapped her earmuffs over her ears all sound disappeared. "I've gone deaf." she mouth to Sarah -who stood across from her- the Hufflepuff giggled into her hand and nodded.

Meanwhile Professor Sprout was rolling up the sleeves of her robes, and had grasped one of the tufty plants firmly, and pulled hard. The moment the plant was free from its earthly home a shriek cry -that no one could hear- echoed around the Greenhouse, as a small, muddy and extremely ugly baby popped out of the earth. The leaves were growing right out of his head. He had pale green, mottled skin, and was clearly bawling at the top of his lungs.

Professor Sprout took a large plant pot from under the table and plunged the Mandrake into it; burying it in the dark, damp compost until one the tufted leaves were visible. She then dusted off her hands, gave them the thumbs up and sound returned to everyone's senses.

"As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill you yet." Professor Sprout explained calmly "However, they _will_ knock you out for several hours, and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up. Four to a tray - there is a large supply of pots here - compost in the sacks over there - and be careful of the Venomous Tentacula, its teething."

She gave a sharp slap to a spiky, dark red plant a she spoke, making it draw in the long feelers that had been inching sneakily over her shoulder.

Joining Amelia and Sarah on the other side of the table, Phoebe and James set to work on the task at hand. The four friends put on their earmuffs, made sure they were secure and proceeded to complete the lesson in one piece. But Professor Sprout had made the re-potting look easy and simple, but it was anything but.

The Mandrakes didn't like coming out of the earth, but didn't seem to want to go back into it either. They squirmed, kicked, flailed their sharp little fists and gnashed their teeth. Phoebe and James spent a good five minutes trying to force one Mandrake into a pot and held it in place while Sarah and Amelia emptied half a bag of compost on top of it to keep it secure.

By the end of the lesson, the Gryffindor's and Hufflepuff's were all sweaty, aching and covered in earth. They traipsed back to the castle for a quick wash and then off to their next lesson. For the Hufflepuff's it was Charms and for the Gryffindor's it was Transfigurations.

_~*Phoebe*~_

Finally lunch arrived and as the rest of the Gryffindor's filed out of the classroom.

"Stupid...useless...thing..." Ron grunted whacking his wand furiously on the desk.

"It's not going to work if you keep hitting it like that. Give it here!" Phoebe snatched the wand from his owner and inspected it closely as Harry turned to his best friend.

"Why don't you write home for a new one?"

"Oh yeah, and get another Howler back," said Ron, taking the wand from Phoebe and stuffing it into his robes pocket "_It's your own fault your wand got snapped -"_

They went down to lunch, where Ron's mood was not improved a Hermione continued to badger on about the handful of perfect coat buttons she had produced in Transfigurations.

"What've we got this afternoon?" Harry asked, hastily changing the subject.

"Defence Against the Dark Arts." Phoebe and Hermione answered promptly.

James snatched Phoebe's timetable from her hands "Why, have you outlined all Lockhart's lessons with little hearts?" he demanded.

Phoebe glared and took her timetable back, fighting back a blush that overtook her cheeks. James chuckled and sat down at the Gryffindor table with Seamus and Dean, while Phoebe joined Oliver, Katie and their friends a few seats away.

"So, Phoebe, Oliver tells me that you are trying out for the team tonight." Roxanna spoke up looking up from her lunch "Which position?"

"Chaser." Phoebe answered

"Really? You have more of a Seeker's build" Roxanna pointed out

"Well, you already have a Seeker," Phoebe responded "and I can use my build to my advantage as a Chaser. Like you pointed out, i'm small, which means I'll be faster. I can cut through the air easily where as a bigger player would be knocked back by the force of the high speed winds against them."

Roxanna looked impressed and so did Oliver.

It wasn't until there was a sharp flash of bright light did Phoebe look up from her conversation with the older students and turned to see a very small, mousey-haired boy standing over her. He was clutching what looked like an ordinary Muggle camera.

"All right, Phoebe? I'm - I'm Colin Creevy," he said breathlessly "I'm in Gryffindor too."

"Hi, Colin, nice to meet you," Phoebe smiled "Cool camera."

"Thanks. Is it true that you're friends with Harry Potter?" Colin asked excitedly "D'you think you could introduce me? I've read so much about him, and I just want proof that I have actually met him. I'm a Muggleborn you see. Everyone's told me all about Harry's history, about how he survived You-Know-Who when he tried to kill him and how he disappeared and everything, and how Harry got the lightning bolt scar on his forehead." he drew in a shuddering breath "It's _brilliant_ here, isn't it? I never knew all of the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got my letter from Hogwarts. My dad's a milkman, he couldn't believe it either. So I'm taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it would be really good if I had one of Harry Potter, you know, just to show I really did meet him, and he is real."

Phoebe couldn't help but smile at Colin's enthusiasm, but before she could respond a loud and scathing voice interrupted the conversation.

"Since when did you become Potters agent, Blackheart?" Draco Malfoy had sidled up behind Phoebe and caught the last remnants of Colin's side of the conversation. Phoebe groaned and turned in her seat to face the blonde behind her.

"What you doing over this side of the hall, Dragon?" Phoebe teased

Draco glared "Don't call me that!"

"Oh, why?" Phoebe smiled sweetly "I think it suits you. Little-baby dwagon..."

Draco glared harder "I'm warning you...I'll -"

"You'll what?" Phoebe challenged "Hex me? Curse me? Try it! I dare you!"

Draco growled as he plunged his hand into his robes in search of his wand, however, he failed to retrieve it in time and found himself on the receiving end of Phoebe's wand. The Gryffindor smirked "Got to learn to be quicker, Draco, a duelist must be as quick as a cheetah; you never know when you're going to be attacked."

"What's all this, what's all this?" Gilderoy Lockhart was striding towards them from the Teacher's table, his turquoise robes swirling around him. "Don't have a problem here do we?"

"No, Professor," Phoebe smiled "I was just teaching Draco the quickness of a duelist."

Lockhart nodded "I have expertise in that field. Maybe there will come a time where I can show you a thing or two." he winked at Phoebe as he walked away. Phoebe bit her lip to keep from blushing furiously.

Draco sneered "Not crushing on _that_ are you, Blackheart? I thought you had more taste than that!"

"What, did you think I'd fall for a blonde prick like you? Ha! As if! We Blackhearts do aim high, and Professor Lockhart's higher than you!" Phoebe retorted.

_~*Phoebe*~_

After Lunch the Gryffindor's hurried up to Defence -which was with Slytherin-, when the whole class was seated, Lockhart cleared his throat loudly and silence fell. He reached forward, picked up Neville's copy of _Travels with Trolls_ and held it up to show his own, winking portrait on the front.

"Me," he said, pointing at it and winking as well, "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defence League and five times winner of _Witch Weekly's _Most-Charming-Smile Award - but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by _smiling_ at her!"

He waited for them to laugh; a few people smiled weakly, while most of the female population sighed dreamily.

"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books - well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about - just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in..."

When he handed out the test papers he returned to the front of the class and said "You have thirty minutes. Start - _now_!"

Phoebe, James and Ashlyn looked down and read the first question:

_1) What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite colour?_

"How the hell are we supposed to know that?" James whispered furiously.

"Easy," Ashlyn grinned, "Lilac."

James gaped at her.

Phoebe giggled.

_2) What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?_

"To rid the world of evil," Phoebe murmured as she scratched out the answer with her Quill "and market his own range of hair care products."

Again - James couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Do you two hear yourselves?" he demanded "It's sick!"

"Oh hush up," Phoebe countered "You're getting your answers, aren't you?"

Grumbling, James went back to his work.

Half an hour later, Lockhart collected in the papers and rifled through them in front of the class.

"Tut, tut - hardly any of you remembered my favorite -" he cut off as he swept past Phoebe's test "- I stand corrected. Ten points to Miss Blackheart for remembering my favorite colour is Lilac. Where is Miss Blackheart?"

Phoebe raised her hand.

"Ah, the duelist." Lockhart grinned "Good girl."

"Thanks." Phoebe smiled.

James gagged from beside her.

"Ten points to Miss Ashlyn Black for also getting my colour right. Where is Miss Black?"

Ashlyn raised her hand. Lockhart smiled at her and Ashlyn looked like she may pass out at any moment.

He went back to the papers "...another ten points to Miss Black. Miss Blackheart and also to Miss Granger for remembering that my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions - good girls! In fact -" he flipped through the three tests "- full marks to all three."

Hermione, Ashlyn and Phoebe grinned at one another and turned back to Lockhart as he started on his lesson.

"Now - be warned! It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harms can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm." as he had been speaking, Lockhart had placed a large covered cage on the desk in front of him "I must ask you not to scream. It might provoke them!" he pulled back the cloth to reveal several Cornish Pixies.

Seamus Finnigan snorted.

"Yes?" Lockhart asked

"Well, they're not - they're not very - _dangerous_ are they?" Seamus choked.

"Don't be so sure!" said Lockhart, waggling a finger annoyingly "Devilish tricky blighters they can be!"

The pixies were electric blue and about eight inches high, with pointed faces and voices so shrill it was like listening to a lot of budgies arguing. The moment the cover had been removed, they had started jabbering and rocketing around, rattling the bars and pulling bizarre faces at the people nearest them.

"Right then," said Lockhart loudly "Let's see what you make of them!" and he opened the cage.

Pandemonium. The pixies shot in every direction like rockets. Two of them seized Neville by the ears and lifted him into the air. Several shot straight through the window, showering the back row with broken glass. The rest proceeded to wreck the ink bottles and sprayed the class with them, shredded books and papers, tore pictures from the walls, upended the waste bin, grabbed books and bags and threw them out of the window; within minutes, half the class was sheltering under desks and Neville was swinging from the candelabra in the ceiling.

"Come on now, round them up, round them up, they're only pixies..." Lockhart shouted.

He rolled up his sleeves, brandished his wand and bellowed "_Peskipiksi Pesternomi!"_

It had absolutely no effect; one of the pixes seized Lockhart's wand and threw it out of the window too. Lockhart gulped and dived under a desk, narrowly avoiding being squashed by Neville, who had fallen from the ceiling as the candelabra, gave way.

The bell rung and there was a mad dash for the door. Lockhart straightened up, caught sight of Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe, who was almost at the door and said "Well, I'll ask you four to just nip the rest of them back into their cage." he, swept past them and shut the door quickly behind him.

"Can you _believe_ him?" roared Ron, as one of the remaining pixies bit him painfully on the ear.

"He just wants to give us some hands-on experience," defended Phoebe, as Hermione immobilized two pixies at once with a clever Freezing Charm and stuffing them back into their cage.

"_Hands on?_" said Harry, who was trying to grab a pixie dancing out of reach with its tongue out "Phoebe, he didn't have a clue what he was doing."

"Rubbish!" Hermione joined in "You've read his books - look at all those amazing things he's done -"

"He _says_ he's done." Ron muttered.

Phoebe and Hermione sighed, rolled their eyes and went back to catching Pixies. Well, Hermione went back to catching Pixies; Phoebe still wasn't completely healed enough to do any proper magic without passing out from exhaustion.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 3:42am**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N:** _Yay. Everyone is amazing. Truly amazing._

**A/N:** _I forgot to say it last chapter (may have been because I was half asleep) but I would like to thank _**Kimberly.**_ for her review. It was sent via PM because she also helped me translate some Portuguese mistakes that I had made. She is truly amazing and if there are any more Portuguese translations in this story (even in later years) could you thank her for the help. 'Cause she's amazing._

**Dedications:** _Chapter belongs too:_ **10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd** _and_ **Fan of Fics.**

**Responses:** _**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Her magic is growing stronger each and every day._

_**Fan of Fics:**__ Hi, my grandfather is doing better now. He came home the same day they rushed him in the pressure is going down behind his eye, thank god. As for Phoebe playing Quidditch it shouldn't really affect her energy stability since she doesn't have to use Magic to compete. Her energy levels are high it is only when she is using magic and her powers is when she should watch herself._

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><p><strong>Harry Potter:<strong> _The Dark Lord's Downfall_

**Summary:** _For ten years she was kept a secret, now it's time for the Wizarding world to finally meet Phoebe, as she sets out to prove that not all Malfoy's support the Dark Lord._

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><p>The rest of the week passed without incident, at least on Phoebe's part it did, and soon Saturday was dawning bright and early.<p>

Phoebe groaned as she felt a pair of hands seize her shoulder and shake her roughly from her sleep "Go away." she complained pulling the comforter high over her body.

"Phoebe," Katie Bell whispered quietly as not to wake the rest of the second year Gryffindor's "Come on, Pheebs. Wake up."

"What's the matter?"

"Quidditch Practice." Katie answered.

It had been a few days since the positions of the new Gryffindor Quidditch positions had been posted and Phoebe was well surprised to see that she had been made Chaser -replacing Angelina Johnson-. It had been her dream position since she had found out that her grandfather had played Chaser for the Quidditch team: the Salem Warriors.

Cracking open one of her eyes Phoebe glanced out of the window and spotted the faint pink and gold sky laying beyond the thin mist of the morning air "It's the crack of dawn." she complained.

"Oliver wants to start early," Katie answered. "Come on, just get dressed, grab your broom and meet us downstairs."

With a heavy sigh Phoebe pushed back her blankets and rolled out of bed, she shivered as her feet hit the wooden paneled floor of her dorm, shuffled over to the bathroom door and disappeared beyond it to shower and change.

Katie nodded as she left the second year dorms confident that Phoebe would get dressed and not go back to sleep.

Once she had showered, Phoebe changed into her brand new scarlet Quidditch robes, grabbed her broomstick that her grandfather had given her for her Birthday, scribbled out a note for Hermione -and James- and went down the spiral staircase into the common room, meeting the rest of the team in the common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Any particular reason you wanted us to practice at Dawn?" Phoebe asked as she walked alongside Oliver as he led them through the enclosed courtyard towards the front lawn.

"I spent most of the summer devising a whole new Quidditch programme. We're going to train earlier, harder and longer. None of the other teams have started training yet, we're going to be the first off the mark this year..."

As the Gryffindor team stepped out onto the green, Oliver noticed that Marcus Flint and the Slytherin team were trudging towards them. "Where do you think you're going, Flint?" Oliver asked.

"Quidditch practice," Flint answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. And clearly from what they were wearing, it was the most obviously thing in the world.

"I've book the pitch for Gryffindor today," Oliver responded as the two teams stopped in front of one another.

"Ah," said Flint "but I've got a specially signed note here from Professor Snape."

He held up a roll of parchment which Oliver took, unrolled and read it out loud, as Phoebe peered over his arm at the small curved writing. _"I, Professor Severus Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch pitch, owing to the need to train their new Seeker."_

A small frown slipped onto Phoebe's face as she turned to glance at Harry, and then back at the Slytherin team "You've got a new Seeker? What happened to Higgs?"

"You're not the only team that makes replacements, Blackheart." Flint sneered.

"Yeah. But Higgs's father also can't afford to buy the entire team new broomsticks, can he?" Phoebe bit back coolly "It's pretty obvious who your new Seeker is."

The Slytherin's smirked and from behind the six large figures before them came a seventh, smaller boy, smirking all over his pale, pointed face. It was Draco Malfoy.

"You're too good for your own good, Blackheart!" the blonde drawled.

"And you're just a spoilt little _dragon_ who has nothing better to do that attempt to torment those you consider beneath you!" Phoebe hissed.

Draco smirked again and Phoebe had the overwhelming urge to wipe it from his face. But she didn't, instead she said "Nimbus 2001's? You really think they are going to help you win in next month's game?"

"Yeah," Draco nodded "Potter will never be able to out fly me on his downgraded broomstick."

Phoebe scoffed "Maybe not. But it's not about how fast you fly; it's about the skill you have to catch the Snitch. Unfortunately for you, you have neither."

The Gryffindor's sniggered as Draco's glare hardened. "What are you riding? A Comet 360?"

The Slytherin's smirked.

"Oh, sweetheart," Phoebe tutted while shaking her head "My broom's not even _sold_ in the United Kingdom yet. And it could out fly both you and Harry in under a second."

Draco stared speechless.

Phoebe grinned at the lack of a response.

"There is only one broom that I have heard of that is faster than a Nimbus 2001," Adrian Pucey commented causing Phoebe to glance in his direction "and that's the _Chocolate Swiss."_

His team frowned at him.

"The Salem Warriors have just invested in them for the next World Cup," Adrian answered, before turning back to Phoebe "The question remains: How did you manage to get one? They were designed for Professional Quidditch players."

The young Gryffindor shrugged "I guess when you're related to an ex-Professional Quidditch player you get free merchandise once in a while. My grandfather was sent a Chocolate Swiss and he gave it to me for my birthday."

If possible the Slytherin's looked impressed.

"This proves nothing..." Draco sneered obviously peeved.

Hermione -who had arrived with Ron and James- spoke "It proves everything. It _proves_ that no one on the Gryffindor team had _buy_ their way in. _They_ got their own pure talent"

Time seemed to freeze as Draco turned slowly towards Hermione the smug look on his face flickered. "No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood," he spat.

At once the atmosphere changed. Flint dived in front of Malfoy to prevent Fred and George from attacking him, Alicia screeched "_How dare you!_" at the top of her voice, Ron plunged his hand into his robes and grasped his wand and Phoebe's eyes flashed a cobalt blue as the wind picked up violently.

"You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" Ron yelled pointing his wand furiously under Flint's arm at Malfoy's face.

There was a loud bang and a jet of green light shot out of the wrong end of Ron's wand, hitting him in the stomach and sending him reeling backwards.

"Ron! Ron! Are you all right?" squealed Hermione.

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Instead he gave an almighty belch and several slugs dribbled out of his mouth onto the lawn.

While the Gryffindor's gathered around Ron, the Slytherin team were paralyzed with laughter. Flint was doubled up; hanging on to his new broomstick for support and Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist.

Ron burped up another slug as the Gryffindor's backed away from him. It seemed nobody wanted to touch him.

"Wow, can you turn him around, Harry?" Colin Creevey asked as he joined his house team, and snapped a picture.

"No Colin, get out of the way!" Harry answered helping Ron to his feet along with Hermione "Let's take him to Hagrid's; he'll know what to do."

Hermione nodded bravely, and the pair of them pulled Ron up by the arms. Supporting Ron between them both Harry and Hermione rushed out onto the grounds and towards Hagrid's hut.

Phoebe, meanwhile, stayed behind with her team and rounded on Malfoy who was still on all fours. "Hey, Malfoy!" she called. Draco looked up. "Laugh at this -" and whipping out her wand Phoebe yelled "_Reducto! Furnunculus!"_

There was a split second pause as both teams watched the two curses collide with Malfoy, knock him backwards through the air and the moment he landed the Gryffindor's howled with laughter as painful looking boils sprouted all over the blonde's face.

"Have fun, _pretty boy_." Phoebe smirked before walking off with the rest of the Gryffindor team.

Leaving the Slytherin's and Draco looking bewildered.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening Phoebe found herself sitting in the Headmaster's office. Serefina was also present and Phoebe explained that while she was finding it difficult to not use her magic, her emotions were being kept under control.

"We know it is difficult, Phoebe." Serefina had said "But it has been explained to your professors that they must grant you some leeway when it comes to practical lessons."

Phoebe nodded "I understand that, really I do, but it's not the classes I am worried about. It's outside of class."

"Magic is not permitted to be used in the corridors," McGonagall answered.

"With all due respect Professors, just because it is not permitted, doesn't mean that it doesn't happen." Phoebe replied "We are still kids, and fights are going to break out, the only problem with being in a Magical world is that fights between Witches and Wizards are usually magically based."

Serefina touched her Goddaughter's shoulder affectionately "That is where you must be the bigger person, Phoebe. Walk away from a fight if you have too, at least until you are well enough to use your magic to its fullest context."

"Serefina!" McGonagall scolded.

Phoebe giggled into her hands.

"I am sure that your friends will not allow any harm to come to you," Dumbledore spoke up, smiling fondly at the two women present "you have told them of your problem, I'm sure?"

"They know that my Magical core has been affected by Dark Magic." Phoebe answered "But they do not know about my Elemental core. I do not want them to know, because I don't want them to turn against me."

Dumbledore nodded thoughtfully "I for one do not believe that they will turn against you, but the choice is yours, my dear child."

"Is that all?"

"Just one more thing," Serefina spoke producing two vials of clear liquid. "Catrin sent these over from the Elemental Academy. She says that you must take them twice a day. Once before bed and one before breakfast."

"What are they?"

"They will help strengthen your cores." Serefina answered handing the vials over.

Phoebe took them and placed them carefully in her pocket. "Thank you." she nodded "I will take one as soon as I get back to the Common room."

"Good girl." Serefina smiled as she hugged her Goddaughter. "Goodnight Pheebs."

"Good night Miss Blackheart." Dumbledore and McGonagall wished her.

Phoebe smiled at the three of them "Goodnight Professors."

And she left the office.

On her way back to the Gryffindor Tower Phoebe passed the Astronomy Tower and paused at the slight sound coming from the top of the spiral staircase. Scolding herself on being so curious the young Gryffindor climbed the stone steps and came upon a surprising sight.

Terence Higgs was pacing angrily.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked startling the Slytherin.

Higgs jumped, cursed violently and whirled around before realizing it was Phoebe "What do you want, Gryffindor?" he asked.

"Just wondering who would be up here at this time of the night."

"Why are _you_ up here at this time of the night?" Higgs challenged.

Phoebe rolled her eyes "I told you, I was wondering who was up here."

"I heard you the first time," Higgs retorted "But you would have had to be out of your Tower to come up here, or did you get a strange 'feeling' that someone was out after hours and decided to come investigate."

"Who do you think I am - Spiderman?" Phoebe asked sarcastically.

Higgs looked confused at the reference.

"Never mind. So I saw that Lucius Malfoy bought the Slytherin Quidditch team's new broomsticks, and I'm going to take a wild guess and say you're not too happy about it."

"Broomsticks! Prudent little Ferret gets his father to buy broomsticks, and I get thrown out like yesterday's trash!" Higgs hissed his hands curling angrily into fists.

"You do realize that Malfoy doesn't care about the game, right?" Phoebe asked. Higgs looked up at her. "Malfoy only cares about having the same position as Harry so that he can torment him out on the field. He'll fail to catch the Snitch and cost Slytherin the game and then Flint will realize the mistake he made in replacing you. Don't worry about it."

She turned to leave.

"Why do you care?" Higgs stopped her.

Phoebe paused as she turned back, shrugged and said "I don't."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Soon October arrived, spreading a damp chill over the grounds and into the castle. Madam Pomfrey, the matron, was kept busy by a sudden spat of colds among the staff and students. The worst case was Sarah-May who suffered terribly with Asthma and was confined to her bed for most of the week leading up to Halloween, when the cold water hit the Hufflepuff always found it difficult to breathe in as the cold air affected the back of her throat and chest.

Raindrops the size of bullets thundered on the castle windows for days on end, the lake rose, the flowerbeds turned into muddy streams and the pumpkins in Hagrid's garden swelled to the size of garden sheds.

Oliver Woods's enthusiasm for regular training sessions, however, was now dampened, which was why Harry and Phoebe was to be found, late one stormy Saturday afternoon a few days before Halloween, returning to the Gryffindor Tower, drenched to the skin and trailing mud through the halls.

"This is unbe...livable..." Phoebe shivered her teeth chattering as her robes clung to her and water dripped from her ponytail "Wh-why does Oliver ma-make us p-p-practice in th-this?"

"I don't know," Harry answered although he too was shivering; he seemed to be able to control it better than Phoebe. "He's just driven."

"D-driven? He's obsessed!"

Harry shrugged as they rounded the corner and stopped at the sight of Needless Headless Nick staring morosely out of the window, he was muttering under his breath and the two second years could vaguely make out what he was saying. "...don't fulfill their requirements...half an inch, if that..."

"Hello Nick," Phoebe said cheerfully.

"Hello, hello," Nick said starting and looking around. He wore a dashing, plumed hat on his long curly hair, and a tunic with a ruff, which concealed the fact that his neck was almost completely severed. He was pale as smoke, and the friends could see right through him to the dark sky and torrential rain outside.

Nick smiled when he saw that it had been Phoebe who had spoken. "Ah, Phoebe, how are you feeling?" he asked, folding a transparent letter as he spoke and tucking it inside his doublet.

"I feel fine," Phoebe smiled "Madam Pomfrey has been fully briefed on what is needed of me to pull myself back. How are you?"

"I've been better."

"What do you mean? Is everything all right?"

"Ah, a matter of no importance...it's not as though I really wanted to join...thought I'd apply, but apparently I 'don't fulfill the requirements'."

Harry looked lost and confused. But Phoebe seemed to understand.

"Oh, Nick, I'm sorry to hear they turned you down again."

"But you would think, wouldn't you," Nick erupted "that getting hit forty-five times in the neck with a blunt axe would qualify you to join the Headless Hunt?"

"Of course!" Phoebe exclaimed. Harry continued to look confused.

"What do you think, young Potter?" Nick asked.

Harry turned to Phoebe.

Phoebe nodded "Just agree with him."

"Oh - yes," said Harry.

"I mean, nobody wishes more than I do that it had all been quick and clean, and my head had come off properly, I mean, it would have saved me a great deal of pain and ridicule. However..." he pulled out the letter again, shook it open and read furiously.

_"We can only accept huntsmen whose heads have parted completely with their bodies. You will appreciate that it would be impossible otherwise for members to participate in hunt activities such as Horseback Head-juggling and Head Polo. It is with the greatest regret, therefore, that I must inform you that you do not fulfill out requirements. With very best wishes, Sir Patrick Delaney-Podmore."_

Still fuming, Nearly Headless Nick stuffed the letter away.

"Half an inch of skin and sinew holding my neck on! Most people would think that's good and beheaded, but oh no, it's not enough for Sir Properly Decapitated-Podmore."

Nearly Headless Nick took several deep breaths and then said "So - where have you two come from?"

Harry opened his mouth to respond but was cut off when a high-pitched mewing from somewhere near his ankles. He looked down and found himself gazing into a pair of lamp-like yellow eyes. It was Mrs. Norris, the skeletal grey cat who was used by the caretaker, Argus Filch, as a sort of deputy in his endless battle against students.

"Uh-oh," Phoebe whispered "We better get out of here, Harry. Filch isn't going to be happy with us if we're caught dripping water and mud all over the place."

Nick nodded "She's right. He's also got a cold and some third-years accidentally plastered frog brains all over the ceiling in Dungeon five; he's been cleaning all morning."

"Right," said Harry, grabbing Phoebe's hand and backing away from the accusing stare of Mrs. Norris, but they were not quick enough. Drawn to the spot by the mysterious power that seemed to connect him with his foul cat, Argus Filch burst suddenly through a tapestry to the right, wheezing and looking wildly about for the rule breaker. There was a thick tartan scarf bound around his head, and his nose was unusually purple.

"Filth!" he shouted as he pointed at the muddy puddle that had dripped from Harry and Phoebe's Quidditch robes. "Mess and muck everywhere! I've had enough of it, I tell you! Follow me!"

Exchanging downhearted looks Harry and Phoebe said a gloomy goodbye to Nick and followed Filch back downstairs, doubling the number of muddy footprints on the floor.

No student at Hogwarts had ever been in Filch's office before; it was a place that they avoided. The room was dingy and windowless, lit by a single oil lamp dangling from the low ceiling. A faint smell of fried fish lingered about the place. Wooden filing cabinets stood around the walls and from their labels it was easy to see that they contained details on every student that Filch had ever punished. Fred and George had an entire draw to themselves. A highly polished collection of chains and manacles hung on the wall behind Filch's desk. It was common knowledge that he was always begging Dumbledore to let him suspend students by their ankles from the ceiling.

Filch grabbed a quill from a pot on his desk and began shuffling around looking for parchment.

"Dung," he muttered furiously, "great sizzling dragon bogies...frog brains...rat intestines...I've had enough of it...make an _example_...where's the form...yes..."

He retrieved a large roll of parchment from his desk drawer and stretched it out in front of him, dipping his long black quill into the ink pot.

"_Name..._Harry Potter. _Crime_..."

"It was only a bit of mud!" Phoebe exclaimed.

"It's only mud to you, but to me it's an extra hour scrubbing!" shouted Filch "Now shut up Blackheart, I will fill out your form next! _Crime_...befouling the caste..._Suggested sentence..._"

Filch squinted unpleasantly at Harry and Phoebe, who waited with bated breaths for sentencing to be passed.

But as Filch lowered his quill, there was a great BANG! On the ceiling of the office, this made the oil lamp rattle and Phoebe to yelp in surprise.

"PEEVES!" Filch roared, flinging down his quill in a transport of rage "I'll have you this time, I'll have you!"

And without a backwards glance at the two second year Gryffindor's, Filch ran flat-footed from the office, Mrs. Norris streaking alongside him.

Peeves was the school poltergeist, a grinning, airborne menace who lived to cause havoc and distress. No student liked Peeves that much, but right now Phoebe couldn't help but feel a little grateful towards him for his impeccable timing.

"Should we leave?" Phoebe asked looking longingly at the door "I want to get out of these clothes. I'm freezing and my robes are starting to get heavy."

"I think we should wait," Harry answered "We may be in more trouble if he comes back and we're not here."

"Haaarrrrrrrryyyyyyyy!" Phoebe whined.

Harry rolled his eyes and sank into a moth-eaten chair next to the desk. There was only one thing on it apart from his half-completed form: a large, glossy, purple envelope with silver lettering on the front. With a quick glance at the door to check that Filch wasn't on his way back, and a quick glance at Phoebe who was sifting through the draw labelled 'Fred and George', Harry picked up the envelope and read:

_KWIKSPELL_

_A Correspondence Course in Beginners' Magic._

"Hey, Pheebs? What's a Kwikspell?" Harry asked looking up at his friend.

Phoebe paused in her reading of the Weasley twins file and frowned "It's a course designed to help adult witches and wizards brush up on their magical skills. Why?"

"Filch has a letter from them."

Abandoning the files Phoebe hurried towards Harry and read the letter from over his shoulder.

_Feel out of step in the world of modern magic? Find yourself making excuses not to perform simple spells? Ever been taunted for you woeful wand work? _There is an answer!_ Kwikspell is an all-new, fail-safe, quick-result, easy-learn course. Hundreds of witches and wizards have benefitted from the Kwikspell method!_

_Madam Z. Nettles of Topsham writes:_

_"I had no memory of incantations and my potions were a family joke! Now after a Kwikspell course, I am the centre of attention at parties and friends beg for the recipe of my Scintillation Solution!"_

_Warlock D. J. Prod of Didsbuy says:_

_"My wife used to sneer at my feeble charms but one month into your fabulous Kwikspell course I succeeded in turning her into a yak! Thank you, Kwikspell!"_

Phoebe shook her head "It's not even that good. I know friends who have sent away from this course and it's turned out to be nothing like the advertisements. But it's a curious wonder as to why Filch has one; I always thought he was a Squib."

"A what?" Harry frowned.

"A Squib. Born to magical parents, but has no magic of their own." Phoebe answered.

Harry nodded, still a little unsure.

Shuffling outside the door alerted the two friends to the fact that Filch was coming back. Stuffing the letter back into its envelope, Harry threw it back onto the desk just as the door opened.

Filch was looking triumphant.

"That vanishing cabinet was extremely valuable!" he was saying gleefully to Mrs Norris "We'll have Peeves out this time, my sweet."

His eyes fell on Phoebe and Harry and then darted to the Kwikspell envelope which lay on the desk.

Filch's pasty face went brick red, Phoebe felt Harry tense beside her and locked her hand with his. Filch hobbled across to his desk, snatched up the envelope and threw it into a drawer.

"Have you - did you read -?" he spluttered.

"No!" Phoebe answered.

Filch's knobbly hands were twisting together.

"If I thought you'd read my private...not that it's mine...for a friend...but that as it may...however..."

Phoebe swallowed nervously; she had never seen Filch look so mad. His eyes were popping, a tic was going on in one of his pouchy cheeks and the tartan scarf didn't help.

"Very well...go...and don't breathe a word...not that...however, if you didn't read...go now, I have to write up Peeves' report...go..."

Without wasting any time, Phoebe tugged at Harry's hand and pulled him from the office, up the corridor and back upstairs. To escape from Filch's office without punishment was probably some kind of school record.

"Harry! Phoebe! Did it work?"

Nearly Headless Nick came gliding out of a classroom. Behind him, Phoebe could see the wreckage of a large black and gold cabinet which appeared to have been dropped from a great height.

"I persuaded Peeves to crash it right over Filch's office," said Nick eagerly "Thought it might distract him -"

"Was that you?" said Harry gratefully "Yeah, it worked, we didn't get detention. Thanks Nick!"

The three of them set off up the corridor together. Nearly Headless Nick, Phoebe noticed, was still holding Sir Patrick's rejection letter.

"I wish there was something I could do for you about the Headless Hunt," she said causing Nick to stop in his tracks and Harry to walk straight through him. The Elemental giggled at the uncomfortable look on Harry's face as he wheeled around to glare at her for making the ghost stop dead in front of him.

"But there _is_ something you could do for me," said Nick, excitedly "Phoebe - would I be asking too much - but no, you wouldn't want -"

"What is it?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, this Halloween will be my five hundredth death day," said Nick, drawing himself up and looking dignified. "I'm holding a party down in one of the roomier dungeons. Friends will be coming from all over the country. It would be such an _honour_ if you would attend. Mr Weasley, Miss Granger, Mr Black and you too Harry, would be most welcome, of course - but I dare say you'd rather go to the school feast?"

Phoebe chewed her lower lip "Um..." she started before cutting herself off, how could she decline Nick's offer? He had just saved them from being punished _and_ he looked like he needed some serious cheering up.

"We'd love to come." Harry smiled brightfully jumping in and saving Phoebe from answering.

"We will?" the Elemental questioned. Harry threw her a look. "Oh, yes, yes we will" she nodded enthusiastically.

Nick looked ecstatic "Do you think you could _possibly_ mention to Sir Patrick how _very_ frightening and impressive you find me?"

"Of course," said Phoebe "Who wouldn't be scared or impressed of you, Nick?"

Nearly Headless Nick beamed at her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"A Death day Party?" said Hermione keenly, when Phoebe had told her about their new plans for Halloween night. The bookworm was sitting cross-legged on her bed in the second year dorms talking with Phoebe who was showering and changing in the bathroom. "I bet there aren't many living people who can say they've been to one of those - it'll be fascinating!"

Sticking her head around the bathroom door Phoebe frowned "Did you just say _fascinating_?" she asked.

"Yes. Why?"

"I dunno," Phoebe shrugged withdrawing "It's just...why would anyone want to celebrate the day they died? Isn't that a little depressing?"

It was Hermione's turn to shrug "I dunno. But I guess a Death day to them is like a Birthday to us."

"True." Phoebe nodded as she appeared from the bathroom, waved her wand over her wet hair and smiled as it dried and straightened out perfectly. "So I guess that means we're attending the Death day party?"

"Well, you already said you would go, it would be rude to not turn up."

Phoebe shrugged "Okay," she agreed.

Hermione smiled and flopped backwards onto her bed. The dormitory was silent as Phoebe shuffled around and scrambled into bed; she propped up her pillows and snuggled under the blankets.

After wishing Hermione a goodnight the Elemental closed her curtains and rolled over onto her side as she allowed herself to sink into the darkness that surrounded her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

By the time Halloween arrived. Phoebe was cursing Harry for promising Nick that they would go to the Death day Party. The rest of the school -including James- were happily anticipating their Halloween feast; the Great Hall had been decorated with the usual live bats, Hagrid's vast pumpkins had been carved into lanterns large enough for three men to sit in and there were rumours that Dumbledore had booked a troupe of dancing skeletons for the entertainment.

"A promise is a promise," Hermione reminded them "You _said_ you'd go to the Death day Party."

So, at seven o'clock, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe walked straight past the doorway to the packed Great Hall, which was glittering invitingly with gold plates and candles, and directed their steps instead towards the dungeons.

The passageway leading to Nearly Headless Nick's party had been lined with candles too, though the effect was far from cheerful: these were long, thin, jet-black tapers, all burning bright blue, casting a dim, ghostly light even over their own living faces. The temperature dropped with every step they took.

Phoebe shivered in the same way she did when she was learning to regain control over her elemental core over the summer, and drew her robes closer to her body in hopes of warming herself up.

Noticing the shiver, Harry wrapped his arm around Phoebe's shoulders and drew her close trying to warm her using his own body as a heat source.

"Is that supposed to be music?" Ron whispered as the four of them heard what sounded like fingernails on a chalkboard. They turned a corner and saw Nearly Headless Nick standing at a doorway hung with black velvet drapes.

"My dear friends," he said mournfully "welcome, welcome...so pleased you could come..."

He swept off his pinned hat and bowed them inside.

It was an incredible sight. The dungeon was full of hundreds of pearly-white, translucent people, mostly drifting around a crowded dance floor, waltzing to the dreadful, quavering sound of thirty musical saws, played by an orchestra on a black-draped platform. A chandelier overhead blazed midnight blue with a thousand more black candles. Their breath rose in a mist before them; it was like stepping into a freezer.

Phoebe shivered again and drew herself closer to Harry.

"Shall we have a look around?" Harry suggested, drawing Phoebe in closer. He could feel her shivering beneath her school robes and it made him frown in confusion as to why she was reacting so fiercely to the sudden drop in temperature.

"Careful not to walk through anyone," said Ron nervously, and they set off around the edge of the dance floor. They passed a group of gloomy nuns, a ragged man wearing chains, and the Fat Friar, a cheerful Hufflepuff ghost, who was talking to a knight with an arrow sticking out of his forehead. The Bloody Baron was also present, he was a guant, staring Slytherin ghost covered in silver bloodstains, and was being given a wide berth by the other ghosts.

Suddenly Hermione stopped dead in her tracks "Oh no. Turn back, turn back, I don't want to talk to Moaning Myrtle -"

"Myrtle? Where?" Phoebe asked looking around.

"Who?" asked Harry, as they backtracked quickly.

"She haunts the girls' bathroom on the first floor." said Hermione.

"She haunts a bathroom?"

Phoebe nodded "Yes. It's been out of order all year because she keeps throwing tantrums and flooding the place. No one ever goes in there if they can avoid it, it's awful trying to go to the loo with her wailing at you -"

"Look, food!" said Ron.

On the other side of the dungeon was a long table, also covered in black velvet. They approached it eagerly, but next moment had stopped in their tracks, horrified. The smell was quite disgusting. Large, rotten fish were laid on handsome silver platters, cakes, burned charcoal black, were heaped on salvers; there was a great maggoty haggis, a slab of cheese covered in furry green mould and, in pride of place, an enormous grey cake in the shape of a tombstone, with tar-like icing forming the words:

_Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington died 31st October, 1492_

As the friends backed away from the table a portly ghost approached and crouched low and walked through it, his mouth held wide so that it passed through one of the stinking salmon.

"Can you taste it if you walk through it?" Harry asked.

"Almost," said the ghost sadly, and he drifted away.

"I expect they've let it rot to give it a stronger flavour," said Hermione knowledgeably, pinching her nose and leaning closer to look at the putrid haggis.

Phoebe wrinkled her nose in disgust "Oh, Hermione don't!" she whined.

"Can we move? I feel sick," said Ron.

They had barely turned around, however, when a little man swooped suddenly from under the table and came to a halt in mid-air before them.

"Hello, Peeves," said Harry cautiously.

Unlike the ghosts around them, Peeves the poltergeist was the very reverse of pale and transparent. He was wearing a bright orange party hat, a revolving bow-tie and a broad grin on his wide, wicked face.

"Nibbles?" he said sweetly, offering them a bowl of peanuts covered in fungus.

"No thanks," said Phoebe, her stomach churning.

"Heard you talking about poor Myrtle," said Peeves, his eyes dancing "_Rude_ you was about poor Myrtle." he took a deep breath and bellowed "OY! MYRTLE!"

"Oh, no, Peeves, don't tell her what we said, she'll be really upset," Hermione whispered frantically. "We didn't mean it, we don't mind mer - er, hello Myrtle."

The squat ghost of a girl had glided over. She had the glummest face anyone had ever seen, half-hidden by lank hair and thick, pearly spectacles.

"What?" she said sulkily.

"How are you, Myrtle?" said Hermione, in a falsely bright voice "It's nice to see you out of the toilet."

Myrtle sniffed.

"Miss Granger and Miss Blackheart were just talking about you -" said Peeves slyly.

"Just saying - saying - how nice you look tonight," said Hermione, glaring at Peeves.

Myrtle eyed them suspiciously.

"You're making fun of me," she said, silver tears welling rapidly in her small, see-through eyes.

"No - honestly - didn't I just say how nice Myrtle's looking?" said Hermione, nudging Harry and Ron painfully in the ribs.

"Oh, yeah..."

"She did..."

Phoebe grinned as she poked Harry in the ribs.

"Don't lie to me," Myrtle gasped, tears now flooding down her face, while Peeves chuckled happily over her shoulder "D'you think I don't know what people call me behind my back? Fat Myrtle! Ugly Myrtle! Miserable, moaning, moping Myrtle!"

"You've missed out 'spotty'," Peeves hissed in her ear.

Phoebe glared at him "Peeves!" she scolded.

But Myrtle had already burst into anguished sobs and fled from the dungeon. Peeves shot after her, pelting her with mouldy peanuts, yelling, '_Spotty! Spotty!'_

"Oh, dear," said Hermione sadly.

Nearly Headless Nick now drifted towards them through the crowd.

"Enjoying yourselves?"

"Oh, yes," they lied.

"Not a bad turnout," said Nick proudly "The Wailing Widow came all the way from Kent...It's nearly time for my speech, I'd better go and warn the orchestra..."

The orchestra, however, stopped playing at that very moment. They, and everyone else in the dungeon, fell silent, looking around in excitement, as a hunting horn sounded.

"Oh, here we go," said Nick bitterly.

Through the dungeon wall burst a dozen ghost horses, each ridden by a headless horseman. The assembly clapped wildly; Harry started to clap too, but stopped as Phoebe poked him again in the ribs and nodded in Nick's direction.

The horses galloped into the middle of the dance floor and halted, rearing and plunging; a large ghost at the front, whose bearded head was under his arm, blowing the horn, leapt down lifted his head high in the air so he could see over the crowd (everyone laughed) and strode over to Nearly Headless Nick, squashing his head back onto his neck.

"Nick!" he roared "How are you? Head still hanging in there?"

He gave a hearty guffaw and clapped Nearly Headless Nick on the shoulder.

"Welcome, Patrick, said Nick stiffly.

"Live 'uns!" said Sir Patrick, spotting Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe and giving a huge, fake jump of astonishment, so that his head fell off again (the crowd howled with laughter).

"Very amusing," said Nearly Headless Nick darkly.

"Don't mind Nick!" shouted Sir Patrick's head from the floor "Still upset we won't let him join the Hunt! But I mean to say - look at the fellow -"

"You don't know Nick well enough to tell him no!" Phoebe jumped in "He positively terrifying on the best of occasions, and so what if his head isn't _completely_ severed from his body? That is scarier than being _completely_ decapitated!"

Sir Patrick fell silent as Nick smiled thankfully in Phoebe's direction, before floating towards the stage.

"If I could have everyone's attention, it's time for my speech!" said Nearly Headless Nick as he climbed onto the podium under the icy-blue spotlight. "My late lamented, ladies and gentleman, it is my great sorrow..."

But nobody heard much more. Sir Patrick and the rest of the Headless Hunt had just started a game of Head Hockey and the crowd were turning to watch. Nearly Headless Nick tried vainly to recapture his audience, but gave up as Sir Patrick's head went sailing past him to loud cheers.

"Can we go?" Phoebe asked, she was frozen and hungry by now.

Harry nodded in agreement -and still with his arm around Phoebe- backed towards the door with Ron and Hermione, nodding and beaming at everyone who turned to look at them. A minute later they were hurrying back up the passageway full of black candles.

"Pudding might not have finished yet," said Ron hopefully, leading the way towards the steps to the Entrance Hall.

Phoebe grinned wistfully as she tugged Harry in the direction of the Great Hall. She was still clinging to him as if her life depended on it.

Harry stumbled to a halt, one arm clutching Phoebe, while the other clutched at the stone wall.

"Harry, what're you -?"

"It's the voice again - shut up a minute -"

There was a pause.

"Listen!" said Harry urgently, and Ron, Phoebe and Hermione froze, watching him.

Phoebe watched as a mixture of fear and excitement flashed across Harry's face as he stared at the dark ceiling.

"This way," he shouted, and began to run; up the stairs, into the Entrance Hall. It was no good hoping to hear anything here, the babble of talk from the Halloween feast was echoing out of the Great Hall, Harry sprinted up the marble staircase to the first floor, pulling Phoebe behind him as Ron and Hermione clattered after them from behind.

"Harry, what are we -"

"SHH!"

There was another pause and Phoebe managed to extract her hand from Harry's as his grip became tighter around her wrist.

"It's going to kill someone!" he shouted, and ignoring the bewildered looks that adorned his friend's features, he ran up the next flight of steps three at a time.

Phoebe frowned and turned to the two behind her "What does he hear?" she questioned.

Hermione and Ron shrugged before the three of them followed after their friend.

"Harry -"

"Slow down!"

"Not so fast!"

Harry hurtled around the corner at the end of the second floor, Phoebe blasted around it next as Hermione and Ron panting behind them. But Harry didn't stop until they had turned a corner onto the last, deserted passage.

"Harry, _what_ was that all about?" said Phoebe colliding with the back of the Seeker who had stopped short. "We couldn't hear anything..."

But Hermione gave a sudden gasp, pointing down the corridor.

"_Look!_"

Something was shining on the wall ahead. Slowly, Phoebe approached, squinting through the darkness. Foot-high words had been daubed on the wall between two windows, shimmering in the light cast by the flaming torches.

_**THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED.**_

_**ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.**_

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated ****Sunday, October 16, 2011 at 4:15am**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N:**_Now we are getting somewhere. The main part of this story is about to start. Do you have any idea how difficult I had last chapter while writing Phoebe to not hear the voice? This story is difficult...but I like it. =D_

**Dedications:** _Chapter goes out too:_**Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd **_and _**Vivi Fontaine.** _Amazing feedback. Love it._

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><p>"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the Heir beware." Phoebe read "It's written in blood."<p>

"What's that thing - hanging underneath?" asked Ron, a slight quiver in his voice.

Phoebe peered closer, almost slipping on the puddle of water that had appeared mysteriously on the ground beneath her feet. Harry and Hermione grabbed onto her upper arms as they inched closer towards the message, eyes fixed on the dark shadow beneath it. All four of them realized what it was at once, and leapt backwards with a splash.

Mrs. Norris, the caretaker's cat, was hanging by her tail from the torch bracket. She was stiff as a board, her eyes wide and staring.

For a few seconds, they didn't move. Then Ron said, "Let's get out of here."

"Shouldn't we try and help -" Harry began awkwardly.

"Trust me," said Ron. "We don't want to be found here."

But it was too late. A rumble, as though of distant thunder, told them that the feast had ended. From either end of the corridor where they stood came the sound of hundreds of feet climbing the stairs, and the loud, happy talk of well-fed people; next moment, students were crashing into the passage from both ends.

The clatter, the bustle, the noise died suddenly as the people in front spotted the hanging cat. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe stood alone, in the middle of the corridor, as silence fell among the mass of students, pressing forward to see the grisly sight.

Then someone shouted through the silence.

"Enemies of the heir, beware! You'll be next Mudbloods!"

It was Draco Malfoy. He had pushed to the front of the crowd, his cold eyes alive, his usually bloodless face flushed, as he grinned at the sight of the hanging, immobile cat.

"What's going on here? What's going on?"

Attracted no doubt by Malfoy's shout, Argus Filch came shouldering his way through the crowd. Then he saw Mrs. Norris and fell back, clutching his face in horror.

"My cat! My cat! What's happened to Mrs. Norris?" he shrieked. And his popping eyes fell on Harry.

"_You_!" he screeched "_You!_ You've murdered my cat! You've killed her! I'll kill you! I'll -"

There was a clatter of a window opening at the end of the hallway, a powerful burst of wind and next second Filch had been thrown off of Harry.

"Argus!"

Dumbledore had arrived on the scene, at the same time that Filch was knocked backwards into the Slytherin students. Behind the headmaster came a number of other teachers. In seconds, Dumbledore had swept past Harry, Phoebe, Hermione and Ron and detached Mrs. Norris from the torch bracket.

"Come with me, Argus," he said to Filch "You too, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger and Miss Blackheart."

Lockhart stepped forward eagerly.

"My office is nearest, Headmaster - just upstairs - please feel free -"

"Thank you, Gilderoy," said Dumbledore.

The silent crowd parted to let them pass. Lockhart, looking excited and important, hurried after Dumbledore, Filch, -still a little dazed and confused- was second in line behind Dumbledore, followed by Professor McGonagall, Snape and Serefina.

As they entered Lockhart's darkened office there was a flurry of movement across the walls; several of the Lockhart's in the pictures were dodging out of sight, their hair in rollers. The real Lockhart lit the candles on his desk and stood back. Dumbledore laid Mrs. Norris on the polished surface and began to examine her. Harry, Phoebe, Ron and Hermione exchanged tense looks and sank into chairs outside the pool of candlelight, watching.

The tip of Dumbledore's long, crooked nose was barely an inch from Mrs. Norris's fur. He was looking at her closely through his half-moon glasses, his long fingers gently prodding and poking. Professor McGonagall was bent almost as close, her eyes narrowed. Snape loomed behind them, half in shadow, wearing a most peculiar expression; it was as though he was trying hard not to smile. Serefina was stood behind the chair in which Phoebe had sank in, her arms wrapped around her legs and her face buried within them. And Lockhart was hovering around the desk, making suggestions.

"It was definitely a curse that killed her - probably the Transmogrifian Torture. I've seen it used many times, so unlucky I wasn't there; I know the very counter-curse that would have saved her..."

Lockhart's comments were punctured by Filch's dry, racking sobs. He was slumped in a chair by the desk, unable to look at Mrs. Norris, his face in his hands.

Dumbledore was now muttering strange words under his breath and tapping Mrs. Norris with his wand, but nothing happened; she continued to look as though she had been recently stuffed.

"...I, remember something very similar happening in Ouagadougou," said Lockhart, "a series of attacks, the full stories in my autobiography. I was able to provide the townsfolk with various amulets which cleared the matter up at once..."

The photographs of Lockhart on the walls were all nodding in agreement as he talked. One of them had even forgotten to remove his hairnet.

At last Dumbledore straightened up.

"She's not dead, Argus," he said softly.

Lockhart stopped abruptly in the middle of counting the number of murders he had prevented.

"Not dead?" croaked Filch, looking through his fingers at Mrs. Norris. "But why's she all - all stiff and frozen?"

"She has been Petrified," said Dumbledore ("Ah! I thought so!" said Lockhart). "But how, I cannot say..."

"Ask _him_!" shrieked Filch, turning his blotched and tear-stained face to Harry.

"No second-year could have done this," said Serefina firmly, "It would take Dark Magic of the most advanced -"

"He did it, he did it!" Filch spat, his pouchy face purpling. "You saw what he wrote on the wall! And she -" he pointed at Phoebe "- she used Magic - used Magic against me - knocked me back -"

Phoebe's head snapped up "No, I didn't!" she defended "I didn't even have my wand. I don't know what happened to cause that wind to knock you back, you must have angered the Gods."

"Rubbish!" Filch sneered "They found - in my office - they know I'm a - I'm a - they know I'm a Squib! They saw my Kwikspell letter!"

"If I might speak, Headmaster," said Snape from the shadows, and a sense of foreboding swept throughout the room, anything Snape said was not going to do any good.

"Potter and his friends may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time," he said, a slight sneer curling his mouth as though he doubted it, "but we do have a set of suspicious circumstances here. Why were they in the upstairs corridor at all? Why weren't they at the Halloween feast?"

"We promised Nearly Headless Nick we would attend his Death day Party," Phoebe answered "It would have been rude for us to promise him and then not turn up."

Snape snapped his attention to the elemental "Then why not join the feast afterwards?" said Snape, his black eyes glittering in the candlelight "Why go up that corridor?"

Ron and Hermione looked at Harry.

"Because - because -" Harry stammered.

"I had a reaction to the drop in temperature down in the dungeons," Phoebe interrupted quickly "I wanted to go to bed, and after the events of last year, I know not to walk around Hogwarts by myself at night. Harry, Ron and Hermione were only walking me back, they were going to come straight back down then."

Snape glared icily at her "I think, Headmaster, that Miss Blackheart is simply covering for Mr. Potter. I believe that they are not being entirely truthful about their reason for not attending the feast. It might be a good idea if they were deprived of certain privileges until they are ready to tell us the whole story. I personally feel they should be taken off the Gryffindor Quidditch team until they are ready to be honest."

"You're just afraid that Slytherin will lose to us despite having Nimbus 2001s." Phoebe snapped "So what if they are faster? Slytherin still doesn't have the skill to win against Gryffindor, and you know it! You just want to save your house from a humiliating defeat!"

"Phoebe!" Serefina scolded

"Really, Severus," said Professor McGonagall sharply "I see no reason to stop them from playing Quidditch. This cat wasn't hit over the head with a broomstick. There is no evidence at all that Potter has done anything wrong."

But Dumbledore was giving Harry and Phoebe a searching look.

"Innocent until proven guilty, Severus," he said firmly.

Snape looked furious, but at who, no one was sure. Filch also looked furious.

"My cat has been Petrified!" he shrieked, his eyes popping "I want to see some punishment!"

"We will be able to cure her, Argus," said Dumbledore patiently. "Madam Sprout recently managed to procure some Mandrakes. As soon as they have reached full size, I will have a potion made which will revive Mrs. Norris."

"I'll make it," Lockhart butted in. "I must have done it a hundred times. I could whip up a Mandrakes Restorative Draught in my sleep -"

"Excuse me," said Snape icily, "but I believe I am the Potions master at this school."

There was an awkward pause.

"You may go," Dumbledore said to Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione.

They went, as quickly as they could without actually running. When they were a floor up from Lockhart's office, they turned into an empty classroom and closed the door quietly behind them. Phoebe dropped down into an empty chair and buried her head in her arms as they curled on the desk.

"D'you think I should have told them about that voice I heard?" Harry asked.

"No," said Ron, without hesitation. "Hearing voices no one else can hear isn't a good sign, even in the Wizarding world."

Harry paused. "You do believe me, don't you?"

"Course I do," said Ron quickly "But - you must admit it's weird..."

"I know it's weird," said Harry. "The whole thing's weird. What was that writing on the wall about? _The Chamber of Secrets has been opened_ what's that supposed to mean?"

"You know, it rings a sort of bell," said Ron slowly "I think someone told me a story about a secret chamber at Hogwarts once...might've been Bill..."

Phoebe raised her head from the desk "The Chamber of Secrets is a legend. It is believed that Salazar Slytherin created a secret chamber somewhere within the castle long before he left the school thousands of years ago. It's just never been found."

"How do you know that?" Harry asked.

"Hogwarts: A History." Phoebe answered "Books are good for something other than being used as pillows."

Harry and Ron looked sheepish.

A clock chimed somewhere.

"Midnight," said Harry "We'd better get to bed before Snape comes along and tries to frame us for something else."

His friends nodded and filed out of the classroom.

"I can't believe he wanted to get us suspended from the Quidditch team!" Phoebe complained as she closed the classroom door behind her.

Harry grinned and wrapped his arm around her shoulders "I can't believe you blew up at him like that."

"It was pretty cool," Ron agreed.

Phoebe smiled at the red head.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Over the next few days, the school could talk of little but the attack on Mrs. Norris. Filch kept it fresh in everyone's minds by pacing the spot where she had been attacked, as though he thought the attacker might come back. When Filch wasn't guarding the scene of the crime, he was stalking red-eyed through the corridors, lunging out at unsuspecting students and trying to put them in detention for things like 'breathing loudly' and 'looking happy'.

Ginny Weasley seemed very disturbed by Mrs. Norris's fate. According to Ron, she was a great cat-lover.

"But you hadn't really got to know Mrs. Norris;" Ron told her "Honestly, we're much better off without her." Ginny's lip trembled. "Stuff like this doesn't often happen at Hogwarts." Ron assured her. "They'll catch the nutter who did it and have him out of here in no time. I just hope he's got time to Petrify Filch before he's expelled -"

"Ron!" Phoebe scolded as she wrapped an arm around Ginny's shoulders as the first year blanched.

"I'm only joking -" Ron said hastily.

The attack had also had an effect on Hermione. It was quite usual for Hermione to spend a lot of time reading, but she was now doing almost nothing else.

James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia were beside themselves when it came to the attack and could often be found with Phoebe in a remote part of the Courtyard trying to get the full story from the Elemental.

"What were you doing on the corridor?"

"What did Dumbledore say after you left?"

"Did you get punished?"

"What was your punishment?"

Phoebe held her hands up in defence "Okay. Calm down!" she cried. "God, you'll suffocate me!"

The other three stepped backwards, but still looked expectant. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"What happened?"

"Nothing!"

Ashlyn sighed "Phoebe, we know something happened. You didn't turn up for the feast. You nor the Golden Trio, and then you magically appeared at the scene of the crime. It's starting to look suspicious."

"Don't you think I realize that?" Phoebe asked "Look, I don't know what happened to Mrs. Norris. I don't know how she ended up in the position. Dumbledore said she had been Petrified -"

"Petrified?" Amelia asked "By what?"

Phoebe shrugged "He didn't say."

"Well that's helpful," Sarah muttered "Carry on."

The young Gryffindor sighed once more and set about telling her friends exactly what had happened in Lockhart's office from beginning to end. When she had finished they stared at her silently. James was the first to break the silence.

"He wanted to suspend you from playing Quidditch?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes."

"That git!"

"James!" Ashlyn exclaimed.

"What? He wanted to suspend two of our best players!" James argued "He obviously has ulterior motives or he wouldn't have suggested it."

Ashlyn glared. "Professor Snape only wants what is best for his house."

"Yeah, by making sure that they win next week's game!"

"Enough!" Phoebe interrupted, cutting off any retort Ashlyn may have had. "It's not Professor Snape we should be worrying about. Something or someone is going around Petrifying people and animals; we need to keep an eye out for whatever this thing is. We need to keep an eye on each other. Do you think we can do that _without_ ripping each other's heads off?"

Ashlyn and James glared at one another. "Fine." they caved.

Phoebe nodded. "Good."

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Concentrate," Salazar slithered as the wave of water Phoebe had been creating died and disappeared into a small puddle. He looked over his protégé and noted that she looked a little distracted. "Is everything all right, Phoebe?"_

_Phoebe frowned and turned to face her mentor "I'm sorry. I'm just a little distracted by certain events that have happened in my dimension."_

_"Like?"_

_"My friends and I stumbled upon a gruesome sight on Halloween." Phoebe answered "Our Caretakers cat had been Petrified and a message was left on the wall."_

_Slytherin tensed slightly "A message?"_

_Phoebe nodded, quickly detecting the change in her mentor's tone._

_"What did the message say?" he asked._

_Phoebe paused before saying "The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware. Do you know what it could mean?"_

_Salazar surveyed her closely, looked around him as if nervous that the others were listening in, before placing a hand on her shoulder and leading her away from the practice fields "Come. There is something you must know."_

_Phoebe followed her mentor through the glossy halls back to his chambers. Once safely inside the young elemental sank into a plush armchair and looked up at Salazar as he sat opposite her. "What do you know about the Chamber, Phoebe?"_

_"Not much." Phoebe shrugged "I know that it is believed you created a hidden Chamber in the castle before you left all those years ago, but the school has been searched many times, and no chamber has been found."_

_"That is partly the story." Slytherin nodded "But the truth is, I did, create a chamber within the castle. I named it the Chamber of Secret."_

_Phoebe listened intently as her mentor spoke._

_"The Chamber of Secrets, as it is known, was created by myself over a thousand years ago when Hogwarts was first founded and built. Before I left I sealed it."_

_"Why?"_

_"To hide away the horror that was growing inside," Slytherin answered "It could only be re-opened when my one true heir returned to the school. It would seem that day has come."_

_Phoebe frowned "But - why did your creature attack Mrs. Norris?"_

_"It is not Mrs. Norris you need to worry about, Phoebe. Tell me, do you have any Muggleborn friends?"_

_Phoebe nodded._

_Salazar sighed and took her hand "It is them you need to worry about, young one. The reason I left the school was because I disagreed with the others one which children should be allowed to enter Hogwarts, I believed that all magic should be kept within Magical families and that no Muggleborns should be permitted to Hogwarts. Of course, I was overruled. The creature inside the Chamber is specifically created to purge the school of Muggleborns."_

_Phoebe gasped._

_"Yes. I am not ashamed of my actions," Slytherin told her "But I cannot do anything to stop what I have put into place. But you can."_

_"How?"_

_Salazar patted her head "Use your wit and your cunning, Phoebe; the answers will come to you."_

_"What creature lies within the Chamber?"_

_Salazar shook his head "I cannot tell you. But I can guide you. If you use the book '__**Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them**__' it will point you in the right direction."_

_Phoebe nodded and her eyes drooped._

_"I believe our time is over for tonight. You must rest. You are going to need it if my assumptions are true."_

_"Yes, Professor."_

_Salazar smiled lightly "And remember, Phoebe, everything happens for a reason, and you cannot always control the outcome of things. You must leave nature run its course. Control your emotions and watch your magical levels. I will see you tomorrow."_

_"Goodnight Professor," Phoebe mumbled sleepily, as she curled up on the chair and her eyes closed._

_Salazar watched for a moment before she disappeared. He then sank into his arm chair and sighed - this was going to be difficult. Finally his events were coming into play and he was starting to become emotionally involved with a student who cared deeply for the Mudbloods of Hogwarts._

_What was he going to do?_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony," Ron said after Phoebe had found him, Harry and Hermione and told them about the Chamber. When they had asked her where she gotten this information she easily lied and told them that Serefina had given it. "But I never knew he started all this pureblood stuff. I wouldn't be in his house if you paid me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I'd have gotten back on the train straight back home..."

Phoebe shook her head "The House of Slytherin really isn't that bad," she defended "Decent witches and wizards have come from there. But just because Voldemort happened to be in that house and a few of his followers, everyone automatically assumes that the house itself is evil. Ashlyn is in Slytherin."

"And she's the daughter of Regulus Black," Ron butted in "Known Death Eater."

"He didn't go all the way!"

"He bore the Dark Mark!"

Phoebe glared, she and Ron had been getting on brilliantly since the beginning of term and now he had to go and open his mouth and cause problems again. She sighed "Whatever. I don't believe that it is the house that makes Slytherin's evil. I _will_ admit that there are some Slytherin's that are cruel and heartless, but not all Death Eaters were in Slytherin. Somewhere from Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and even Gryffindor. We are all just as bad as each other."

Ron huffed before saying "So, d'you really think there is a Chamber of Secrets?"

"I don't know," Hermione answered "Dumbledore couldn't cure Mrs. Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be - well - human."

"Maybe there are some answers at the scene," Harry piped up "You know? Some we missed the other night. Should we go back there and look?"

Ron immediately agreed, but Phoebe and Hermione exchanged nervous glances. Going back there run the risk of getting caught, and if they were caught there a second time then there was a good chance that they could have been expelled for it.

"Isn't Filch supposed to be keeping guard?" Hermione asked "What if he is still there?"

"Then we'll turn around and come straight back." Harry promised. "Phoebe?"

The Elemental looked torn "I - I don't know, Harry. I think it would do us good to stay as far away from the second floor corridor as possible."

"_Phoebe,"_ Harry whined.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Fine! But only if you promise not to do that again!"

"Deal." Harry nodded getting to his feet and pulling the elemental up beside him. He turned to Ron and Hermione "Come on then!" he said leading the way from the common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hurrying around the corner the four Gryffindor's yelped as they crashed into three others coming in the opposite direction. The seven of them hit the floor simultaneously.

"Ow!" Phoebe groaned looking up and glaring playfully at Sarah who lay directly across from her. "Puffer!"

"Freebie!"

"Don't call me that!" Phoebe bit back as she picked herself up "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Amelia asked extracting herself from Sarah and Hermione. Sadly she had been at the bottom of the pile.

"You can't answer my question with the same question," Phoebe pouted.

Amelia smirked "Answer the question, Freebie!"

"Huffalump!" Phoebe exclaimed "Not you too!"

Amelia scowled at the name. Phoebe grinned in satisfaction.

Ashlyn shook her head "We'll tell you what we are doing, if you tell us what you are doing. Deal?"

Harry and Ron exchanged strangled looks.

"Deal." Phoebe agreed.

"You first!" Ashlyn and Phoebe said together as they pointed at one another. Both girls laughed.

The Golden trio shook their heads; they didn't have time for this.

"No seriously, what are you doing here?" Phoebe asked her friends.

"Looking for clues," Sarah answered "We want to know what happened to Mrs. Norris. You?"

"Same. We found out some information about the attacks. It's all linked back to the Legend of the Chamber of Secrets."

Ashlyn paused "Elladora used to tell me that story. It's the one where Salazar Slytherin built a hidden Chamber within the castle, and sealed a monster within it before he left the school all those years ago. You think it's real?"

Phoebe shrugged "That is why we are here, to see if there are any clues. Did you find anything?"

"No," Amelia answered "We heard footsteps and thought it was Filch returning, so we tried to get out of here as fast as we could and crashed into you in the process."

"Great execution plan." Phoebe awarded them.

Ashlyn shoved her friend "Shut up!"

"So, shall we keep looking?" Sarah suggested motioning to the scene behind her. It was just the same as it had been that night, except that there was no stiff cat hanging from the torch bracket, and an empty chair stood against the wall bearing the message 'The Chamber has been opened.'

"That's where Filch has been keeping guard," Ron muttered.

The seven looked at each other. The corridor was deserted.

"Let's get to it then." Harry said, dropping to his knees and crawling along as he searched for clues.

Ashlyn looked aghast at the idea of getting down on her hands and knees.

"Scorch marks," Harry announced "Here - and here -"

"Come and look at this!" Hermione said "This is funny..."

Phoebe looked around and crossed the hallway to the windows near the message on the wall. Hermione was pointing at the topmost pane, where around twenty spiders were scuttling, apparently fighting to get through a small crack in the glass. A long, silvery thread was dangling like a rope, as though they had all climbed it in their hurry to get outside.

"Have you ever seen spiders act like that?" said Hermione wonderingly.

"No," Phoebe answered "Have you, Ash? Ash?"

She looked over her shoulder. Ashlyn was standing well back, and seemed to fighting the impulse to run.

"What's with you?" said Phoebe.

"I don't like spiders," said Ashlyn tensely.

"We never knew that," Amelia said, looking at her friend in surprise "You've used spiders in potions loads of times..."

"And you live in the dungeons," Sarah pointed out. "Spiders thrive down there."

Ashlyn glared "Why do you think i'm always surrounded by Adrian and his friends?" she snapped.

Sarah held her hands up in defence. "O...kay..."

Phoebe shook her head "What about you Ron?" she asked "Have you seen Spiders act like that."

Ron shook his head, his expression the same as Ashlyn's.

"Not you too," Hermione frowned "You're afraid of them too? You two are perfect together!"

Ron glared "You'd be afraid of spiders too if your brother changed your favorite teddy bear into a massive hairy eight-legged mutant!"

Hermione giggled.

"It's not funny! I was three! One minute my teddy was normal and the next it was moving and had too many legs!" Ron exclaimed.

Hermione was obviously trying not to laugh. Feeling they had better get off the subject, Sarah said "What happened to all the water that was up here that night? Someone's mopped it all up."

"It was about here," said Amelia, walking a few paces past Filch's chair and pointing "Level with this door."

Ron -who had followed her- reached forward for the handle and pulled back as if he had been burned.

"What's the matter?" said Harry.

"Can't go in there," said Ron, gruffly, "that's a girl's toilet."

"Oh, Ron, there won't be anyone in there," said Phoebe "That's Moaning Myrtle's place. Come on, let's have a look."

And ignoring the 'Out of Order' sign, she opened the door.

It was the gloomiest, most depressing bathroom that had ever existed. Under a large, cracked and spotted mirror were a row if chipped, stone sinks. The floor was damp and reflected in the dull light given off by the stubs of a few candles, burning low in their holders; the wooden doors of the cubicles were flaking and scratched and one of them was dangling off its hinges.

Hermione put her fingers to her lips and set off towards the end cubicle. Phoebe, Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah followed her. When the five girls reached it Hermione said "Hello, Myrtle, how are you?"

Harry and Ron popped up behind the girls. Moaning Myrtle was floating on the cistern of the toilet, picking a spot on her chin.

"This is _girls_' bathroom," she said, eyeing Ron and harry suspiciously "_They're_ not girls."

"No," Hermione agreed "we just wanted to show them how - er - nice it is in here"

"Ask her if she saw anything," Harry whispered in Phoebe's ear, causing her to shiver as his breath tickled the back of her neck.

"What are you whispering?" said Myrtle, staring at him.

"Nothing," said Harry quickly "We wanted to ask you -"

"I wish people would stop talking behind my back!" said Myrtle, in a voice choked with tears "I _do_ have feelings, you know, even if I _am_ dead."

"Myrtle, no one wants to upset you," said Phoebe "Harry only -"

"No one wants to upset me! That's a good one!" howled Myrtle. "My life was nothing but misery at this place and now people come along ruining my death!"

Phoebe shook her head "We only wanted to ask you if you'd seen anything funny lately," she said quickly "because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween."

"Did you see anyone near hear that night?" asked Harry.

"I wasn't paying attention," said Myrtle dramatically "Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to _kill_ myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I'm - that I'm -"

"Already dead," said Ron helpfully.

Sarah, Amelia and Ashlyn turned to glare at the red head.

Myrtle gave a tragic sob, rose up into the air turned over and dived head first into the toilet, splashing water all over them and vanishing from sight, from the direction of her muffled sobs, and she had come to rest somewhere in the U-bend.

"Way to go, Ron!" Phoebe accused "Upset the only possible witness that we may have."

"What?" Ron shrugged.

"Honestly, that was almost cheerful for Myrtle...come on, let's go." said Hermione, leading the way to the door.

Harry had barely closed the door to Myrtle's gurgling sobs when a loud voice made all seven of them jump.

"RON!"

Percy Weasley had stopped dead at the head of the stairs, prefect badge agleam, and an expression of complete shock on his face. "That's a girls' bathroom!" he gasped "What were you -?"

"Just having a look around," Ron shrugged "Clues, you know..."

Ashlyn and Phoebe slapped their palms to their foreheads.

Percy swelled to the point where it looked like he may have burst. "Get - away - from - here -" he said, striding towards them and starting to chivvy them along, flapping his arms "Don't you _care_ what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone's at dinner..."

"Why shouldn't we be here?" said Ron hotly, stopping short and glaring at Percy "Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!"

"That's what I told Ginny," said Percy fiercely, "but she still seems to think you're going to get expelled; I've never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out. You might think of _her_, all the first years are thoroughly over-excited by this business -"

_"You_ don't care about Ginny," said Ron, whose ears were reddening now "_You're_ just worried I'm going to mess up your chances of being Head Boy."

"Five points from Gryffindor!" Percy said tersely, fingering his prefect badge. "And I hope it teaches you a lesson! No more _detective work_ or I'll write to Mum!"

And he strode off, the back of his neck as red as Ron's ears.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After bidding goodnight to Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah, Phoebe and the Golden Trio made their way quietly back up to the Gryffindor tower. The rest of the Gryffindor's had returned from Dinner, James was sitting in a quiet corner with Dean, Seamus and Neville; and this left Phoebe with Harry, Ron and Hermione who had chosen to sit as far away from Percy as possible. Ron being still in a very bad temper.

Throughout their homework session Phoebe couldn't help but glance around the common room, her gaze landing on Ginny who was sat alone in the corner opposite her. The youngest Weasley was scribbling furiously into a small black book and didn't seem to realize that she was being watched.

"Excuse me," said Phoebe, getting up and leaving the table she sat at with her friends. She crossed the common room and took a seat opposite the first year. "Hey."

Ginny paused in her writings and looked up "Hi," she smiled.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." Ginny nodded a little unsure.

Phoebe eyed her curiously "Listen, Ginny, I know you're upset about what happened to Mrs. Norris and you're afraid that Ron is going to get expelled - Percy told me - but you don't have to worry about Ron, he's not going anywhere." she smiled.

Ginny closed the small black book and looked up at Phoebe "Fred and George are my brothers; after a while you learn to become protective of your personal items."

"Understandable," Phoebe nodded "So, how's school treating you? Made any friends yet?"

"A few."

"Like?"

"Melissa Black and Luna Lovegood."

Phoebe paused "Lovegood, where have I heard that name before - oh, wait a minute, is she that Ravenclaw that everyone calls Loony?"

Ginny nodded "She's really sweet when you get to know her."

"I'm sure she is." Phoebe smiled "Well, I'll let you get back to your writing. Take care Ginny, and remember nothing is going to happy to Ron. I'll keep him safe."

"Thanks Phoebe."

Phoebe slid out from behind the table and turned to Ginny as she walked away "And my friends call me Pheebs," she winked before rejoining Harry, Ron and Hermione on the other side of the common room.

Ginny watched the second year for a moment long, smiled and then returned to her writings.

"...Who'd want all Squibs and Muggleborns out of Hogwarts?" asked Hermione as Phoebe re-joined her and the two boys.

"Let's think," Ron said in mock puzzlement. "Who do we know who thinks Muggleborns are scum?"

Phoebe lowered her gaze instantly. She knew that Ron was thinking of Draco, and while the little _ferret_ didn't have a clue has to who her real identity was and she knew that he had been raised to believe that all Muggleborns were beneath him, she couldn't help but feel that this was an attack against the family she never knew.

"Of course I am!" said Ron. And Phoebe knew that she had missed something while she had been caught up in her thoughts, she shook her head and brought her back to the conversation at hand. "You heard him: _'You'll be next, Mudbloods!'_ Come on, you've only got to look at his foul rat face to know it's him -"

"Malfoy, the heir of Slytherin?" said Hermione skeptically.

"Look at his family," interrupted Harry, "The whole lot of them has been in Slytherin, he's always boasting about it. They could easily be Slytherin's descendants. His father's definitely evil enough."

Phoebe blinked and refused to make eye contact as she listened to the bombarding's of her friends against her father, brother and mother. It was times like this that she wished that she could be honest with them, make them see that not _all_ Malfoy's were in Slytherin, that they were close, personal friends with a Malfoy, and she was sitting right beside them in the Gryffindor tower. But, alas, she knew that if she were to blow her secret now then she would lose not only their friendship, but also their trust.

"What do you think, Pheebs?" asked Hermione.

Upon hearing her nickname Phoebe shook her head and looked up "Huh? What?"

"Are you okay?" asked Harry concernedly.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Phoebe nodded reassuringly "What did you say, Hermione?"

Hermione frowned "I asked what you thought about the plan."

"Sorry, I didn't hear the plan."

"We use Polyjuice Potion to spy on Malfoy. He's probably boasting about this attack in the Slytherin common room right now, if only we could hear him."

Phoebe nodded in half-agreement.

"This Polyjuice stuff sounds a bit dodgy to me," said Ron, frowning "What if we stuck looking like Slytherin's forever?"

"It wears off after a while," said Hermione, waving her hand impatiently, "but getting hold of the recipe will be very difficult. Snape said it was in a book called _Mose Potente Potions_ and it's bound to be in the Restricted Section of the library."

Ron slumped down in his chair "Great." he complained, there was only one way to get a book from the Restricted Section: you needed a signed note of permission from a teacher. "Hard to see why we'd want the book, really, if we weren't going to try and make one of the potions."

"I think," said Hermione "that if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance -"

"Or we could just say we wanted to try it for a little extra credit." Phoebe jumped in

"Oh, come on, no teacher's going to fall for that," said Ron. "They'd have to be really thick..."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Tuesday, October 18, 2011 at 1:25am**


	23. Chapter 23

**Dedications:**_Chapter dedicated too:_**10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, GeekyxChild, Vivi Fontaine**_ and_**KingdomHeartsNerd.**_ Awesome feedback._

**Special dedication:** _A very special shout out to _**10th Squad 3rd Seat** _for being the 100th reviewer of this story. Yes. That is right! ONE HUNDREDTH REVIEWER. =)_

**A/N:** _I am well excited that this chapter has gotten over one hundred reviews and it's only the beginning of the second year adventure. You guys are amazingly amazing. Especially those who had added me to their Story Alerts, Favorite Stories, Author's Alerts and Favorite Author. You are all amazingly brilliant and I love each and every one of you._

_Here is another update. I am updating Phoebe just about every night because then I can spend time on the weekend updating the longer chapters of my other stories. Also, this is a late update because I had some more bad news yesterday, my grandfather was once again rushed into Hospital (they sent him home though) and when he __**DID**__ come home, him and my grandmother, I got caught up in watching Dynamo: Magician Impossible. Dudes, that guy is LEGEND!_

_Anyway, on with the story..._

* * *

><p>Phoebe giggled as Harry was hauled from his seat and pulled to the front of the room by Lockhart, it had been a month since the disastrous episode with the Pixies and since then Professor Lockhart had not brought a single live creature to class. Instead, he read some passages from his books and even went as far as re-enacting some of the scenes; today's re-enactment was of an incident where Lockhart had saved a small town from a werewolf terrorizing their streets every full moon.<p>

"Nice loud howl, Harry - exactly - and then, if you'll believe it, I pounced - like this - _slammed_ him to the floor - thus - with one hand, I managed to hold him down - with my other, I put my wand to his throat - I then screwed up my remaining strength and performed the immensely complex Homorphus Charm - he let out a piteous moan - go on, Harry - higher than - good - the fur vanished - the fangs shrank - and he turned back into a man. Simple, yet effective - and another village will remember me forever as the hero who delivered them from the monthly terror of werewolf attacks."

The bell rang and Lockhart got too his feet.

"Homework: compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf! Signed copies of _Magical Me_ to the author of the best one!"

The class began to leave. Phoebe wished Hermione, Harry and Ron luck as she left with Ashlyn and James, she had agreed to meet the Golden Trio later in the library as not to arouse suspicion from her other friends. It had been a while since she had spent any time with them having been so caught up in the investigation of Mrs. Norris, and despite Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia doing their own detective work and research Phoebe felt that she was neglecting her friends to hang out with the Golden Trio.

"So, lunch?" said James.

Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks "Actually, I have to make a quick stop at the Slytherin dungeons," said Ashlyn "and then I'm meeting Amelia before Herbology. See you later."

"What about you, Pheebs?"

"Make it a quick one." Phoebe nodded "I have to meet Sarah and Hermione in the library."

"What for?" inquired James.

"Homework."

James groaned "I guess it's another day with Seamus and Dean then, you know, I'm starting to get the impression that you don't want me around anymore, you are spending an awful lot of time with the Golden Trio doing homework."

"Oh, don't be silly James," Phoebe smiled "You know I would never ditch you. I'd tell you if I didn't want to be around you anymore."

"Gee, thanks. Way to boost moral support."

Phoebe laughed and the two friends hurried across the Entrance Hall, slid into the Great Hall and took up seats at the Gryffindor table.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"This is the most complicated potion I've ever seen," said Hermione, as she scanned the recipe. "Lacewing flies, lee -"

The Bookworm cut off as the door handle to Myrtle's bathroom rattled from the outside. The Golden Trio jumped instantly to their feet and turned expectantly in the direction of the door, they hadn't locked it, but it seemed someone was trying to get inside.

The door opened and in a flash three wands were pointed at the person who had stepped inside.

"Don't hurt me!" Phoebe squealed holding her hands up in defence.

"Phoebe," Harry sighed lowering his wand first. Ron and Hermione followed. "Where were you? You were supposed to meet us in the library."

"I know, and I'm sorry," Phoebe apologized "I couldn't shake Colin, he cornered me after Lunch wanted to know where you were. I've just given him the run around."

Harry groaned and run a hand through his messy hair, making it even messier.

Phoebe giggled and patted it down. "Static."

With a roll of his eyes Harry turned back to Hermione who continued reading from the passage in front of her. "Lacewing flies, leeches, fluxweed and knotgrass. Well, they're easy enough, they're in the student store-cupboard, and we can help ourselves. Ooooh, look, powdered horn of a Bicorn - don't know where we're going to get that...Shredded skin of a Boomslang - that'll be tricky, too - and of course a bit of whomever we want to change into."

"Excuse me?" said Ron sharply "What d'you mean, a bit of whoever we're changing into? I'm drinking _nothing_ with Crabbe's toenails in it..."

"You will if you want answers," said Phoebe.

Hermione continued as if she hadn't heard them.

"We don't have to worry about that yet, though, because you add those bits last..."

Ron turned, speechless, to Harry, who had another worry.

"D'you realize how much we're going to have to steal, Hermione? Shredded skin of Boomslang, that's definitely not in the student's store-cupboard. What're we going to do, break into Snape's private stores? I don't know if this is a good idea..."

Hermione shut the book with a snap.

"Well, if you three are going to chicken out, fine," she said. There were bright pink patches on her cheeks and her eyes were brighter than usual. "I don't want to break rules, you know. _I_ think threatening Muggleborns is far worse than brewing up a difficult potion. But if you don't want to find out if it's Malfoy, I'll go straight back to Madam Pince and hand the book back in..."

"I never thought I'd see the day when you'd be persuading us to break rules," said Ron. "All right, we'll do it. But not toenails, okay?"

"How long will it take to make, anyway?" Phoebe asked, as Hermione, looking happier, opened the book again.

"Well, as the fluxweed has got to be picked at the full moon and the lacewings have got to be stewed for twenty-one days...I'd say it'd be ready in about a month, if we can get all the ingredients."

"A month?" said Ron. "Malfoy could have attacked half the Muggleborns in the school by then!" But Hermione's eyes narrowed dangerously again, and he added swiftly, "But's the best plan we've got, so full steam ahead, I say."

However, while Hermione was checking the coat was clear for them to leave the bathroom, Ron muttered to Harry and Phoebe, "It'll be a lot less hassle if one of you could just knock Malfoy off his broom tomorrow."

"I wonder if I could bribe Fred and George to hit him with a Bludger." Phoebe smirked. And skipped out of the room.

Harry and Ron exchanged looks and followed after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next morning Phoebe woke earlier than intended.

Today was the first Quidditch game of the season - her _first_ Quidditch game of the season, and to say the nerves were non-existent this morning would have been a complete and utter lie. The reason she was awake so early was because of the knots in her stomach and the mere thought of facing Slytherin later that day.

The fact that the Slytherin team had fast broomsticks wasn't something that bothered her, she knew that her _Chocolate Swiss_ would be able to keep up with the _Nimbus 2001s_ without a problem but the rest of her team was having considerable doubts that they were going to lose today's game.

_"We'll be fine." _Phoebe remembered assuring Harry last night before departing their ways to bed. "_Alicia, Katie and I make a great team when it comes to the Quaffle. Fred and George will protect us from the Bludgers. Oliver will protect the goalposts, and you just focus on the Snitch. Remember; it's not about who has the fastest broomsticks, it's about who has the skill to catch the Snitch."_

But despite her pep talk Phoebe knew that Harry had gone to bed with a head full of worry and a heavy heart to boot.

Finally realizing that she was _not_ going to go back to sleep, Phoebe rolled out of bed, padded across the dormitory and slipped into the bathroom; where she showered and dressed quickly, before making her way silently down to the Great Hall for an early breakfast. Here she found the rest of the Gryffindor team huddled at the long, empty table, all looking uptight and not speaking much.

Phoebe slid in between Katie and Oliver and helped herself to eggs, bacon and toast. She was pouring herself a considerable amount of Pumpkin juice when Harry joined them.

At eleven o'clock the Gryffindor's made their way down to the pitch, where they came upon Professor Serefina Blackheart and -much to Phoebe's delight and surprise- Elena and Jacob Blackheart.

"_Mama! Papa!"_ Phoebe exclaimed throwing herself at her grandparents and hugging them. Elena chuckled as she hugged the twelve year old back and Jacob pressed a kiss to her forehead. "_When did you get here? Why are you here?"_

_"You didn't think we would miss your first game now, did you?"_ Elena asked with a beautiful smile.

Jacob shook his head "_Do not be silly, Phoebe, we know how important this game is to you. We wanted to show our support by being here for you."_

_"Thank you, Papa."_ Phoebe smiled as she spotted the Slytherin team approaching from across the lawn.

Jacob smiled affectionately "_Just remember what I always say, Phoebe. It's not about whether you win or lose..."_

_"...it's how you play the game."_ Phoebe answered "_I remember grandpa"_

Oliver appeared behind the family of four "Phoebe..." he cleared his throat "...I want to talk to the team before we head out onto the pitch."

"Okay. I'm coming." said Phoebe, hugging her grandparents and Godmother once more, before setting off with Oliver back towards the Gryffindor changing rooms.

Elena smiled sweetly as she watched her granddaughter disappear with the older boy. "_He is smitten..._" she chuckled. _"Have you not noticed, Serefina? He holds the same look in his eyes around Phoebe that Lucius had around you._"

Serefina lowered her gaze from her mother's and looked out onto the stadium. Speaking of Lucius...he was sitting in the teacher's stands alongside Severus Snape and Dumbledore. "_Shall we go take our seats? The match is about to begin."_

Jacob and Elena nodded and followed their daughter across towards the teacher's stands; they ascended the staircase and took their seats at the back of the crowd. Serefina caught Lucius' eye as he glanced back to see who had arrived, before returning his attention to the pitch as both teams filed out with their broomsticks over their shoulders.

Today's match was going to be interesting...very interesting indeed.

As they walked out onto the pitch, a roar of noise greeted them; mainly cheers, because Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were anxious to see Slytherin beaten, but the Slytherin's in the crowd made their boos and hisses heard too. Madam Hooch, the Quidditch teacher, asked Flint and Wood to shake hands, which they did, giving each other threatening stares and gripping rather harder than was necessary.

"Oliver," called Phoebe as she bounced forwards and tugged her Captain away from the opposing teams Captain.

"On my whistle," said Madam Hooch, "three...two...one..."

With a roar from the crowd to speed them upwards, the fourteen players rose towards the leaden sky. Harry shot past Phoebe and hovered higher than the rest of the two teams.

"All right there, Scarhead?" yelled Malfoy, swerving in front of Phoebe and following Harry.

The elemental lent slightly to the left and managed to dodge around Malfoy as he continued to taunt Harry above her. But as soon as Madam Hooch and released the Bludgers and Snitch into the air, she picked up the Quaffle, tossed it into the air and the game begun.

Pressing herself firmly against her broomstick, Phoebe intercepted the Quaffle with ease, snagging it directly from Flint's grip and blasting off through the air towards the Slytherin goalposts. She glanced carefully over her shoulder to find Flint and Pucey on her tail.

Katie and Alicia appeared out of nowhere and attempted to divert the Slytherin chasers off of their youngest Chaser. But Flint was resistant and determined to stop Phoebe before she reached his Keeper.

Feeling something slam into the side of her, Phoebe dropped the Quaffle. Adrian Pucey swerved underneath her and flew off back up the pitch. Phoebe glared at Flint, he had managed to give Alicia the slip and collide with her seconds before she could score.

The Slytherin crowd beneath them cheered, indicating to the fact that Pucey had just scored.

"Rats!" Phoebe cursed, before swooping back into the game and following Katie -who was in possession- towards Miles Bletchley.

Alicia spotted the moving mass heading towards her best friend "Katie!" she shouted in early warning.

Katie too had spotted the opposing player and dropped the Quaffle before he had a chance to collide with her, grabbing the Quaffle, Phoebe swerved around Flint -who seemed to be tailing her- and shot off through the rain.

With her eyes focused on the goalposts, Phoebe became level with the Slytherin goalposts, raised the Quaffle and threw it through the centre ring.

The Slytherin crowd groaned while the Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws cheered.

Phoebe high fived Katie and Alicia as they re-grouped, smirking at Flint who was glaring.

But the Gryffindor's victory was soon short lived as Slytherin was soon up sixty - ten.

Madam Hooch's whistle rang out and Phoebe, Katie and Alicia dived for the ground.

"What's going on?" said Wood, as the Gryffindor team huddled together, while the Slytherin's in the crowd jeered. "We're being flattened. Fred, George, where were you when that Bludger stopped Alicia from scoring?"

"We were twenty feet above her, stopping the other Bludger from murdering Harry!" said George angrily. "Someone's fixed it - it won't leave Harry alone, it hasn't gone for anyone else all game. The Slytherin's must have done something to it."

"But the Bludgers have been locked in Madam Hooch's office since our last practice, and there was nothing wrong with them then..." said Wood, anxiously.

Madam Hooch was walking towards them. Over her shoulder Phoebe spotted the Slytherin team jeering and pointing in Harry's direction. "Can't we take Harry out of the game?" she asked.

"We'll have to forfeit," Wood answered.

"Not if we switch players," Phoebe replied. "I'll take over as Seeker and bring Angelina or Roxanna to cover my spot. That way Harry stays alive, and we can still play."

Oliver looked considerate but Harry interrupted. "No, with you two -" he pointed at Fred and George "- flying around me all the time the only way I'm going to catch the Snitch is if it flies up my sleeve," he said. "Go back to the rest of the team and let me deal with the rogue one."

"Don't be thick," said Fred. "It'll take your head off."

Phoebe looked between Harry and the Weasley twins before turning quickly to Oliver. "Oliver, this is mad! You can't let Harry deal with that thing on his own. Ask for an inquiry -"

"We'll have to forfeit the match!" said Harry "And we're not losing to Slytherin just because of a mad Bludger!"

"I'd rather forfeit that watch you end up in the hospital wing because of some sick prank!" Phoebe argued

Harry rounded on Oliver "Come on, Oliver; tell them to leave me alone!"

"This is all your fault," said George angrily to Wood "'Get the Snitch or die trying' - what a stupid thing to tell him!"

Madam Hooch had joined them.

"Ready to resume play?" she asked Wood.

Oliver looked at the determined look on Harry's face.

"All right," he said. "Fred, George, you heard Harry - leave him alone and let him deal with the Bludger on his own"

Phoebe shook her head, glared hard at both Oliver and Harry, before taking to the skies without another proper word to either of them. Both boys sighed as they too returned to the skies as Madam Hooch's whistle blew resuming the rest of the game.

So while Harry avoided the rogue Bludger and tried to locate the Snitch to end the game, Phoebe returned to her position of stealing the Quaffle and scoring as many points as she could - so even if Harry _didn't_ catch the Snitch, they could have won on points alone.

Phoebe pressed herself against the sleek handle of her _Chocolate Swiss_ and sped directly passed Adrian Pucey who had become level with the Gryffindor goalposts, threw the Quaffle into the air and punched it towards the top right hoop.

Alicia managed to save it in time by kicking it up and over the hoop before passing it back to Katie who dodged around Flint and Pucey, re-grouped with Phoebe and tore it back up the field towards the Slytherin poles.

Making it mid-way across the pitch Phoebe glanced sideways just in time to see Flint hit the Quaffle out of Katie's arms. The second-year growled and swerved in front of Flint causing him to collide forcefully with her - losing the Quaffle in the process. Unfortunately, Pucey had flown beneath his team captain at that point and rescued the Quaffle from the Gryffindor team.

Shaking her head to clear it of the daze after the collision, Phoebe flew off after Pucey as Harry abandoned his post of searching for the Snitch to give chase.

"Find the Snitch!" Phoebe shouted as she shot past her friend and after Pucey who had managed to score again. _Damn it! Come on Phoebe!_

The Slytherin's in the crowd all cheered for their team, while the Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws showed their true support to the scarlet clad players out on the field. Over the microphone Phoebe could hear Lee Jordan's voice dictating the score as he added another ten points to Slytherin's score. This left Gryffindor 90 - 30.

In celebration of the soon-to-be victory, the Slytherin players lined up in their usual V-formation and flew around the stadium; and on the returning lap Phoebe had to duck in order to avoid the near-hit to the head that one of the Slytherin Beaters aimed in her direction.

The second year glared as the Slytherin's broke out of formation and the game resumed.

_They want to play rough?_ Thought Phoebe _I'll give them rough!_

There was a flash of bright white lights and seconds later thunder crashed overhead, the clouds swirled together and grey and black swirled together to create the darkest of clouds Hogwarts had ever seen. There was another flash of lightning and heavy rain started to fall.

_Let them see through this!_

And with a smug grin Phoebe twisted to the right to avoid an on-coming Bludger and tore off up the field -swerving around Bludgers and other players- stole the Quaffle from Pucey and returned in the direction of Bletchley.

In the stands Serefina and her parents exchanged looks at the sudden appearance of the storm.

Phoebe.

It wasn't difficult for any of the Blackhearts to realize where the storm had come from - or better yet - who had created the storm in the first place.

Ducking under a Bludger attack Phoebe swerved over Malfoy and Harry as she chased the third Slytherin Chaser for the Quaffle. She ducked under another Bludger just as Oliver appeared into view a few feet away from where she was hovering.

"Watch yourself, Phoebe." said Oliver.

Phoebe's eyes widened as the Bludger returned. "Oliver, look out!" she yelled.

As if in slow motion Phoebe watched as the Bludger snapped Oliver's broom in two and he fell to the ground, the Bludger then coursed towards her causing her to swerve to avoid it, and returned to pestering Harry on the other side of the pitch.

With Oliver out of the game, Slytherin's points were increasing rapidly.

Phoebe screamed as Harry and Malfoy crossed her path once more causing her to lose the Quaffle, the Bludger followed after the two seekers almost knocking her from her broomstick. Managing to maintain her grip and pull further into the air, Phoebe turned her attention back onto the game as the Slytherin's continued to score.

After the little miss-hap with the Bludger it seemed the two Seekers had disappeared. Minutes passed and soon they reappeared from beneath the stands. Malfoy was knocked off his broom and lay on the field winded. The Slytherin crowd groaned as their chances of catching the Snitch where thrown out of the window.

Following the groans of the Slytherin's, Phoebe raised her hand to her head and groaned as her vision clouded - the thunder storm had stopped completely by now - but the young elemental wasn't concerned with what had happened to her perfect storm, but more concerned with the dizziness that had swept over her from the extended use of her elemental magic.

_"Phoebe..."_ called a familiar voice.

Phoebe shook her head in hopes of ignoring the distant calling of her name - it sounded like it was coming from a faraway distant land - almost like another dimension.

"_...you must learn to control your emotions..."_ called another familiar voice. This time softer than the last.

_"...You cannot forget that these magical miss-haps will cost you precious energy."_ stated another voice. This time it sounded wiser than the rest.

As the first wave of dizziness passed, Phoebe turned her gaze downwards as she felt a ripple of magic from somewhere on the pitch. Her gaze landed on Hermione, Ron and James who were running out onto the pitch with the rest of the Gryffindor's, each of them heading in the same direction - Harry.

Harry James Potter was lying on the sand just beneath the goalposts, his arm was lying limplessly across his stomach and there was glittering fireworks around him.

Dipping her broom forward, Phoebe flew down, hovered above the ground and slid from her broom as she made her way towards her friends and the group around them. The next person to arrive was Lockhart.

"Are you alright?" said Hermione.

"My arm. I think it's broken."

"Don't worry, Harry, I'll fix that arm of yours straight away!" said Lockhart.

"Oh no, not you," Harry moaned.

"Silly boy doesn't know what he is saying," said Lockhart loudly, to the anxious crowd of Gryffindor's pressing around on them. He lifted Harry's arm carefully, pulled back the sleeve and pointed his wand at the clearly broken arm.

"Why can't I just go to the hospital wing?" said Harry through clenched teeth.

"He really should, Professor." said James.

Lockhart shook his head "Stand back" he said, rolling up his jade-green sleeves.

"No - don't -" Harry said weakly, but Lockhart heeded no feeble warnings and muttered a spell. Harry's arm glowed before the light disappeared and Lockhart lifted the arm up and it flopped around useless.

"Ew!" everyone around them groaned.

"Ah," said Lockhart. "Yes. Well, that can sometimes happen. But the point is, you can no longer feel any pain, and it is quite clear that the bones are not broken."

"Broken?" Hagrid growled "There are no bones left!"

"Much more flexible though," said Lockhart as he let Harry's arm flop back into its original position.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Are you out of your mind? You could have risked exposure! You could have seriously injured yourself! Damn it Phoebe, if I knew you was going to be this reckless I would have taken you off the team myself!"_ yelled Serefina in her native tongue. Phoebe had almost fainted on the way up to the hospital wing and was now lying in one of the beds in the Hospital wing as Harry lay opposite her and Draco Malfoy lay a few beds away - winded.

Phoebe glared at her godmother "_The Slytherin's needed taking down a peg or two. I did the only thing that I could think of at the time!"_

_"You could have easily been seen!"_

_"No, I wouldn't have. The teams were more focused on doing their jobs and the crowds were more anxious as to see what would happen next. No one had the time to worry about what I was doing."_

Elena touched her granddaughter's shoulder "_That is beside the point, Phoebe; you are supposed to be resting. We are not sure where your elemental levels are at this moment, and given you have nearly fainted from your usage I think it is safe to say that you are once again at critical level."_

Phoebe sighed that just meant she had ruined her chance of healing quickly. She had used most of her energy to punish the Slytherin's down on the field, and for what? Nothing, well, if you counted winning the match against Slytherin as 'nothing' then yes - Absolutely nothing.

**~**Phoebe~**

"How can you still stick up for Lockhart now?" Ron cried as he sat on the bottom of Harry's bed. He was staring at Hermione and Phoebe who were openly defending their DADA professor for removing he bones from Harry's arm. "If Harry had wanted de-boning he would have asked."

"Anyone can make a mistake," said Hermione "And it doesn't hurt any more, does it, Harry?"

"No," said Harry "but it doesn't do anything else, either"

Phoebe waved him off "You'll be fine in the morning. Your bones will come back and you'll have full control of it again."

"There Lockhart is off the hook," grinned Hermione "It's not like he did it on purpose!"

Ron huffed and turned to Harry in disbelief "Can you believe them?"

Harry shrugged as Hermione and Phoebe gossiped across the room about the game, and the thunder storm that had come out of nowhere.

"Did you see Malfoy's face?" interrupted Ron. "He looked ready to kill when you caught the Snitch."

"I want to know how he fixed that Bludger," said Hermione darkly.

"We can add it to the ever growing list of questions we'll ask him when we've taken Polyjuice Potion," said Harry, sinking back into his pillows. "I hope it's better than this stuff."

Phoebe glanced over the top of her potion vial "Be thankful you don't have to take these twice a day." she said, downing the dark blue liquid in one go. She grimaced at the foul taste and returned the vial to her bedside table.

The door of the hospital wing burst open at that moment. The rest of the Gryffindor team had arrived to see their two players. Katie and Oliver headed directly towards Phoebe, the Gryffindor keeper taking up a spot on the bed beside the chaser who smiled and curled up beside him.

"That was an awesome first game, Pheebs." Katie praised "Unbelievable flying."

"Thanks." Phoebe smiled

Also the team had brought cakes, sweets and bottles of pumpkin juice; they gathered around the two beds and were just getting started on what promised to be a good party when Madam Pomfrey came storming over, shouting, "These two need rest, he's got thirty-three bones to regrow! And she has energy levels to re-store! Out! OUT!"

The team groaned as they filed from the room, leaving Phoebe and Harry alone. Well...not _completely_ alone. They still had one another for comfort and company, but not even that lasted long as Phoebe's potions finally kicked in, and the young elemental was on her way to the elemental dimension to face the wrath of four very angry Hogwarts founders.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Thursday, October 20, 2011 at 1:34am**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: **_Chapter goes out to the following people who make it a joy to write these chapters: _**KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics** _and_ **10th Squad 3rd Seat.** _It is a joy to write knowing you are waiting for an update. Thank-you._

**In responses:** _**Fan of Fics:**__ Thanks for asking about my grandfather. Yes, he is just plodding along now like everyone else. Truthfully? I am at a crossroad with the Phoebe pairing. At the beginning of the story I had a rock solid idea of who she was going to end up with and now I am starting to question it because she is so compatible with several people. Grrr._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Yup. Do not piss off the elemental. Especially when she is in her element. Lol. Oh and the storm didn't last long because Elena Blackheart used her powers to manipulate it and cause it to disappear after the game had come to an end._

**PLOT CHANGES.**

_Just as the title above states I have had a new idea for this story, quite inconvenient at this given moment in time...but...here is it. In the beginning I planned that Phoebe would __**not**__ be born an elemental, at least until now. It would work better with the plot if she had been born an elemental because it gives me a whole new control over possible ideas that I could use for future chapters. So Phoebe __**was**__ born an elemental and __**SENT**__ to live with Serefina in hopes of the Blackheart family training her. The rest of the story stays the same, Draco doesn't know the truth behind Phoebe's identity but her parents do._

_Thanks for taking the time to read this. Hopefully it doesn't give too much away but I believed you had a right to know so that you don't get confused later on down the line._

_Feel free to continue reading..._

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><p>When Phoebe woke on Sunday morning she found the dormitory blazing with winter sunlight and a surprise visitor sitting at the side of her bed.<p>

Terence Higgs was sat hunched over in the chair, his arms were folded on the bed and his head was nestled between his hands, his eyes were closed and he looked peaceful. Phoebe couldn't help the small smile that slid onto her face.

Movement across the room caught her attention as Harry started to stir, the Gryffindor seeker up quickly and turned towards the opposite side of the dormitory where a bed had been hidden from view by the high curtains.

"What's wrong?" said Phoebe quietly, as not to disturb the sleeping Slytherin beside her. Although she knew that eventually she would have to wake him.

"Colin was attacked." Harry answered "They brought him in last night."

Phoebe froze. Another attack? This time on a human. As if on automatic the elemental's mind flashed back to what Salazar Slytherin had told her about her Muggleborn friends becoming the targets of these attacks and her heart dropped into her stomach as she realized that he had been completely honest with her.

"What's _he_ doing here?"

Harry's voice cut through Phoebe's thoughts as he pointed at Terence from across the room.

"What does it look like?" Phoebe asked. "He came to visit me, although I am not completely sure as to why."

"Maybe they sent him in to spy on us," Harry suggested.

Phoebe glared "I doubt that, Harry. Terence was just as upset about Malfoy being on the Slytherin team as much as we were."

"How do you know?"

"Because this is the second face-to-face meeting I have had with him." Phoebe answered honestly.

Harry gaped at his friend. "But he - he's -"

"A Slytherin?"

Harry nodded.

Phoebe shrugged "So is Ashlyn. They're not all that bad Harry, you've just got to look past the prejudice nature of a stereotypical Slytherin, and you will see that they all do not conform to that statement." her gaze lowered to Terence "I believe that there are just as many good Slytherin's as there are Gryffindor's, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuff's. Most Snakes are just misled. We can't judge them on the conformity of others."

Harry fell silent as Madam Pomfrey bustled over carrying two breakfast trays and a Potion for Phoebe.

"Egg on toast and a potion." said Phoebe sarcastically "Goes down a treat."

Harry smirked as Madam Pomfrey set about to fuss over Harry as he clumsily spoon-fed himself porridge with his left hand. "All in order," the matron nodded. "When you are finished eating, you may leave"

"What about me?" Phoebe asked hopefully

"I wish to check your vital signs," Madam Pomfrey answered "You may have to stay a while."

Looking disgruntled Phoebe went back to her breakfast as Harry finished his breakfast, closed the curtains around his bed and quickly dressed. He told Phoebe he would see her later and quickly left to find Hermione and Ron.

After breakfast Phoebe decided it was time to arouse the Slytherin beside her and therefore shook his shoulder and called his name to arouse him from his slumber.

"Terence!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

By the time Phoebe was discharged from the Hospital wing, the news about Colin being attacked and had spread through the entire castle like wildfire, and by Monday morning many students had admitted to hearing rumors that the hyperactive Gryffindor had in fact been killed by whoever had attacked him. The air was suddenly thick with rumor and suspicion. The first years were now moving around the castle in tight-knit groups, as though scared they would be attacked if they ventured forth alone.

Melissa Black, who sat next to Colin in Charms, was distraught, but Phoebe felt that James and Henry were going about the wrong way of trying to cheer her up. James had even contorted to asking Fred and George to cover themselves in fur and boils, and jump out at the first year from behind statues in hopes of cheering her up.

It was only until Melissa told Phoebe that she was having nightmares was it that the stupid attempts to cheer the first year up stopped all together.

"We were only trying to help!" James protested as Phoebe confronted him on his idiotic scheme.

"She's your sister! Show some compassion and be a good older brother by just telling her that everything is going to be okay. Don't try and scare her half to death!" Phoebe had argued, before leading Melissa from her brother, who was left to pout by the fireplace.

Meanwhile, hidden from the teachers, a roaring trade in talismans, amulets and other protective devices was sweeping the school. Neville Longbottom bought a large, evil-smelling green onion, a pointed purple crystal and a rotting newt-tail before the other Gryffindor boys pointed out that he was in no danger; he was a pureblood, and therefore unlikely to be attacked.

"They went for Filch first," Neville said, his round face fearful, "and everyone knows I'm almost Squib."

**~*Phoebe*~**

In the second week of December Professor McGonagall came around as usual, collecting names of those who would be staying at school for Christmas. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe signed her list, while James, Henry and Melissa agreed to go home for the holidays. Ashlyn was also going home with Adrian. Terence was staying and so was Draco Malfoy - this struck the Golden Trio as suspicious. They had all agreed that the holidays would be the perfect time to interrogate Malfoy and try and worm a confession out of him.

Unfortunately, the Polyjuice Potion was only half-finished. They still needed the bicorn horn and the Boomslang skin, and the only place they were going to get them was from Snape's private stores.

"I would rather face Slytherin's monster," Harry said one afternoon in the Girls' bathroom "than have Snape catch us stealing."

Ron nodded in agreement.

"What we need," said Phoebe briskly, as Thursday afternoon's double Potions lesson loomed nearer "is a diversion. Then one of us can sneak into Snape's office and take what we need."

Harry and Ron looked at her nervously.

"I think it should be either myself or Hermione that does the stealing," Phoebe continued. "You two will be expelled if you get into any more trouble, and we've got clean records. So all you need to do is cause enough mayhem to keep Snape busy for five minutes or so."

Harry smiled feebly.

"But which one of you is going to steal?"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks.

"I will." Hermione announced after much deliberation.

Potions took place in one of the large dungeons. Thursday afternoon's lesson proceeded in the usual way. Twenty cauldrons stood steaming between the wooden desks, on which stood brass scales and jars of ingredients. Snape prowled through the fumes, making waspish remarks about the Gryffindor's' work while the Slytherin's sniggered appreciatively. Draco Malfoy, who was Snape's favorite student, kept flicking puffer-fish eyes at Ron and Harry, who knew that if they retaliated they would get detention faster than you could say 'unfair'.

From her cauldron behind Harry and Ron, Phoebe watched as Snape strode towards Neville, and Harry ducked down under his cauldron, pulled out of Fred's Filibuster fireworks from his pocket and gave it a quick prod with his wand. The firework began to fizz and sputter. With only seconds to spare, Harry straightened up, took aim, and lobbed it into the air; it landed right on target in Goyle's cauldron.

Goyle's potion exploded, showering the whole class. People shrieked as splashes of the Swelling Solution hit them. Malfoy got a faceful and his nose began to swell like a balloon. Goyle blundered around, his hands over his eyes, which had expanded to the size of dinner plates, and while Snape was trying to restore order and find out what had happened, Hermione slipped out the door.

"SILENCE!" Snape roared. "Anyone who has been splashed, come here for a Deflating Draft. When I find out who did this..."

Malfoy hurried forward, his head drooping with the weight of a nose like a small melon.

As half the class lumbered up to Snape's desk, some weighed down with their arms like clubs, others unable to talk through gigantic puffed-up lips, Hermione slide back into the dungeon, and the front of her robes bulging.

When everyone had taken a swing of antidote and the various swellings had subsided, Snape swept over to Goyle's cauldron and scooped out the twisted black remains of the firework. There was a sudden hush.

"If I ever find out who threw this," Snape whispered. "I shall _make sure_ that person is expelled."

Phoebe watched as Snape's black eyes latched onto Harry instantly, but the bell rang loudly dismissing them. Packing up her things Phoebe pulled Harry quickly from the room. Hermione and Ron followed after them.

"He knew it was me," said Harry, his hand firmly locked in Phoebe as she continued to pull him out of the dungeons and up to the Entrance Hall. "I could tell..."

"He's got no evidence," Phoebe assured him. "Don't dwell on it too much. He didn't see you. No one saw you. No one can pinpoint it was you. So don't worry."

Hermione and Ron joined them and the four hurried off to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom to add the new ingredients.

"It'll be ready in a fortnight," Hermione said happily as she began to stir feverishly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A week later, Phoebe was walking across the Entrance Hall when Terence stepped out in her path.

"I know..." he said looking curiously at Phoebe. "What I _don't_ know is how many people know what I know."

Phoebe frowned and glanced around "It depends on what you know!" she replied.

"Who you are. _What_ you are."

The elemental felt her blood freeze. Was it possible that he knew _who_ she was and _what_ she was? If so - _How_ had he found out?

Grabbing his hand Phoebe pulled him up the Marble staircase - ignoring the stares they received from other students - and hurried into an empty classroom on the first floor corridor. Slamming the door behind them the Gryffindor paused to collect her thoughts and then turned to the Slytherin. "What do you know?" she asked.

"That you're an elemental." Terence answered "It was difficult at first, you know how to cover your tracks, but that day at the Quidditch match everything sort of fell into place."

"What do you mean?"

Terence smirked "That storm didn't just 'appear' it was created."

"Doesn't mean I created it!"

"It was created _after_ the Slytherin beater took a hit at you," Terence pressed. "You may have thought that no one was watching, or that you were too far away from the stands for anyone to realize what was happening, but I had promised myself that I would keep an eye on you during that match. Also, I did some reading, and I cross-referenced coma symptoms with magical cores and dark magic. Your magical core was injured last year, wasn't it?"

Phoebe nodded. It was common knowledge that her magical core had been injured; but that still didn't explain how he knew about her - Elemental wise.

"I don't -" Phoebe started.

"In the same book that told me about Magic cores and dark magic," Terence continued "was a reference to elemental magic and dark magic. The symptoms were exactly the same as what we had been told about you. When Dumbledore said that you were in critical condition most of us instantly guessed that meant you could have died."

Phoebe listened intently as he continued.

"But you pulled through so no one thought much of it, after that." Terence paused "Until yesterday. You fainted after the Quidditch match and was admitted to the Hospital. The Gryffindor team wasn't allowed to visit you because you had to re-store your energy levels...and then the following morning Madam Pomfrey wanted to check your vital signs before she could discharge you -"

Phoebe looked aghast "You heard that?"

"I may have looked like I was asleep, Phoebe, but I'm a Snake, and I know how to fool people."

"Tell me about it!" Phoebe replied, suddenly angry with him. "You played me! All this time I thought you were another friend, but I guess I lost out on that one! My friends were right, once a Snake - Always a Snake!"

She turned to leave. Her hand grasped the door handle when Terence's hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her back into the room. "I didn't do this to hurt you, and no one else knows but me."

Phoebe turned to face him. Was he being sincere? Or would he throw her under the bus when the time came?

"Your secret is safe with me." Terence promised, spotting this distrust in her stormy grey eyes.

Phoebe held his gaze completely surprised that she had been caught out and that there was another person at Hogwarts (aside from Serefina, McGonagall and Dumbledore) that knew about her. In all honesty she didn't know what to say feel or do in this particular situation. This was all new to her and she didn't have a clue how to proceed with the revelation.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After Terence finding out about her secret, he and Phoebe spent most of their evenings together up in the Astronomy Tower. Terence wanted to know everything about being an elemental and what exactly had happened at the end of last year; and Phoebe was more than happy to answer his questions.

"Did you hear about the Dueling Club?" Terence asked one night, as he and Phoebe sat near the gaping hole in the wall that proved to be the window. The Gryffindor was sat curled up beside him, her head resting comfortably on his shoulder as she stared at the stars in the velvety sky, and smiled every so often when a shooting star passed by the earth.

"Mhmm," Phoebe nodded. "Isn't the first meeting tomorrow?"

Terence nodded. "You thinking of going?"

"I might skip it. I can't do practical magic, and I really don't want to explain why."

"Fair point. But you don't have to take part in the dueling if you don't want too." Terence added "You never know dueling could come in handy one of these days."

Phoebe snorted "Only if the Slytherin monster can duel."

Terence smirked. He had learned that Phoebe was being trained by the four founders and was mighty surprised when she had told him that Salazar Slytherin was her main mentor, and that he had told her the legend of the Chamber of Secrets - even confirmed it to be true.

"We don't even know what the Monster is," the Slytherin pointed out "Don't assume you know everything."

"I'm not assuming anything, i'm just saying, I don't think it's a humanistic monster that can duel." Phoebe answered "If it was Salazar wouldn't have told me to look in this book."

She removed 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them' from her backpack.

"Find anything yet?"

"Nope. Only today got the book." Phoebe answered "I had to order it from Flourish and Blotts because I couldn't find it in the library."

Terence nodded. "So..."

"So..." Phoebe mimicked.

Terence chuckled "Are you going to the dueling club?"

Phoebe sighed "If I agree to go, will you stop nagging me?" she questioned.

"Maybe." the Slytherin teased.

"Stupid Slytherin." Phoebe mumbled as her eyes started to droop and she nestled herself closer to her companion.

With a wave of his wand Terence conjured a blanket in which he proceeded to wrap around his younger companion, before easily wrapping his arm around her in hopes of keeping her close. Tonight hadn't been the first night they had fallen asleep on top of the Astronomy tower together, so this was practically a customary thing by now.

"Goodnight..." Terence whispered. "...Gryffindor."

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**This is just a filler. Just something to break up the story and draw out the suspense. What did you think?**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Friday, October 21, 2011 at 2:15am**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N:**_ You know? It's a wonder I haven't run out of ideas tonight. This is the __**third**__ story I have updated since I got home from University._

**Dedications:**_ Following chapter goes out too:_**KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi, 10th Squad 3rd Seat **_and_ **Angel JJK.** _Thanks for the lovely feedback._

_I'm too tired to do _**in responses** I will get back to you when I can.

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><p><strong>Name:<strong> _Acromantula._

**Ministry of Magic Classification:** _Known wizard killer/impossible to domesticate._

"Mhmm," Phoebe murmured as she swept her black hair over her shoulder, her stormy grey eyes scanning the page in front of her. It was 7:45pm and she was sat in the school library researching possible creatures that could pass as Slytherin's monster; the library was deserted except for her and Madam Pince the librarian, who was working quietly at her desk in the front of the library.

_Acromantula, a monstrous eight-eyed spider capable of human speech. It originated in Borneo, where it's inhabits a dense jungle. Its distinctive features include the thick black hair that covers its body; its leg span, which may reach up to fifteen feet; its pincers, which produced a distinctive clicking sound when the Acromantula is excited or angry; and a poisonous secretion. The Acromantula is carnivorous and prefers large prey. It spins dome-shaped webs on the ground. The female is larger than the male and may lay up to one hundred eggs at a time. Soft and white, these are as large as beach balls. The young hatch in six or eight weeks. Acromantula eggs are defined as Class A Non-Tradable Goods by the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, meaning that severe penalties are attached to their importation or sale._

_This beast is believed to be wizard-bred, possible intended to guard wizard dwellings or treasure, as is often the case with magical created monsters. Despite its near-human intelligence, the Acromantula is untrainable and highly dangerous to wizard and Muggle alive._

This looked promising. A monstrous spider that was highly dangerous to both wizards and Muggles? Was it possible that this was the creature inside the Chamber of Secrets? But even if it was it raised an awful lot more questions than it did answers. Like; how was the creature getting around? Clearly a monstrous eight-eyed spider with a leg span of fifteen feet would be seen scuttling around the place.

However, as Phoebe sat mulling over the ideas of the creature within the Chamber being an Acromantula and how it was getting about the school before, during and after the attacks, she failed to notice Terence approach her from behind.

"What are you doing in here?" said Terence.

Phoebe jumped completely out of her seat; her hand flew to her throat as her heart hammered in her chest. Terence chuckled. "Oh, don't do that!" the Elemental scolded. "Scared me half to death!"

"I'll ask again '_What are you doing in here?_'" the Slytherin repeated.

"Research." Phoebe answered "I have a possible lead on Slytherin's monster. I think it might be an Acromantula, they are highly dangerous to both Wizards and Muggles alike, the only thing that I don't understand is how it's getting around, I mean, these creatures can grow up to 30ft high, there is no possible way that someone didn't see this thing."

Terence sighed and closed the book "Phoebe, i'm glad you found some relevant information, but did you forget that there was the dueling club tonight?"

"No." Phoebe shook her head. "I just thought this was more important."

"We had a deal, Phoebe."

The Gryffindor blinked and looked up "I have to know what we are up against. My friends are in danger, I can't think of anything else."

"One night." said Terence. "Just one night away from the library, won't kill you, even Granger is down there."

He held out his hand for her to take.

Phoebe stared at him for a long moment, before sighing and taking his hand. "Fine. Just one night."

**~*Phoebe*~**

When she entered the Great Hall the first thing Phoebe noticed was that the long dining tables had vanished and a golden stage had appeared along one wall, lit by thousands of candles floating overhead. The celling was velvety black once more and the entire school seemed to be packed beneath it, all carrying their wands and looking excited.

Being the last to arrive Terence and Phoebe hung back near the doorway and watched as Lockhart and Snape stood facing one another on the platform for all to see.

"...Now I don't want any of you youngsters to worry," Lockhart was saying. "You'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!"

The two Professors bowed at one another; at least, Lockhart did, with much twirling of his hands, whereas Snape jerked his head irritably. Then they raised their wands like swords in front of them.

"As you see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position," Lockhart told the silent crowd. "On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course."

"One - two - three -"

Both of them swung their wands up and over their shoulders.

Snape cried: "_Experlliarmus!"_ There was a dazzling flash of scarlet light and Lockhart was blasted off his feet; he flew backwards off the stage, smashed into the wall and slid down it to sprawl on the floor.

Malfoy and some of the other Slytherin's cheered. Phoebe gave a startled gasp and started forwards, but Terence held her back. "Do you think he's all right?" she squealed through her fingers.

"Who cares?" said Terence.

Lockhart was getting unsteadily to his feet. His hat had fallen off and his wavy hair was standing on end. "Well, there you have it!" he said, tottering back onto the platform. "That was a Disarming Charm - as you see, I've lost my wand - ah, thank you, Miss Black. Yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind me saying so, it was pretty obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy. However, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..."

Snape was looking murderous. Possibly Lockhart had noticed because he said "Enough demonstrating! I'm going to come amongst you now and put you into pairs. Professor Snape, if you'd like to help me..."

They moved through the crowd, matching up partners. Lockhart teamed James with Ashlyn, Terence with Oliver, Katie with Roxanna -

"And Miss Blackheart," Lockhart smiled.

"Uh, no Professor," Phoebe interrupted quickly "I'm not here to take part, i'm only here to observe."

Lockhart patted her shoulder "Nonsense Miss Blackheart; now let's see...ah, yes, how about you Mr. Flint."

Phoebe felt her heart plummet as Marcus Flint turned in direction. He grinned. "Of course, Professor." he said as he approached.

"There. See, everything will fine." Lockhart continued, oblivious to the hatred that Phoebe was radiating towards him at this given moment in time. He hurried off to finish pairing up the rest of the students and left Marcus alone with Phoebe.

"Hello, poppet." Marcus smirked.

Phoebe looked around in hopes of spotting someone who could help her, she caught Oliver's gaze and silently pleaded with him to help her. He didn't look any happier with the pairings than she did.

"Face your partners," called Lockhart, back on the platform. "And bow!"

Marcus bowed but Phoebe didn't move. "So untrusting..."

"Can you blame me?" Phoebe spat "You attacked me!"

"And your friend attacked me. I thought we would be past that by now."

Phoebe glared. "Obviously not. I will never trust you!"

"But you will trust Higgs? Interesting."

"He's not like you," Phoebe retorted. "He's different. He's -"

"Weak. Disposable. Easily manipulated. And I have easy access to him."

Phoebe tensed "Leave him alone!"

"You're going to have to make me, Princess." Marcus taunted, licking his lips. "Make me a deal and I'll leave your little _boyfriend_ alone."

"Wands at the ready!" shouted Lockhart "When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponent - only to disarm - we don't want any accidents here. One...two...three..."

Phoebe turned her head to the side as Flint's spell grazed her cheek; her eyes flashed as she rounded on the older Slytherin, flourished her wand and blasted him with an unknown Charm. The spell collided with him and the Quidditch captain was thrown several feet across the room and collided with the brick wall.

The elemental stood frozen as he stirred slightly, she hadn't expected the spell to be that strong -granted it had been unknown- but she then figured that the extra burst of power came from her elemental core not her magical, there was no way she had that much strength without relying on a secondary source of magic.

"So much for laying low," Phoebe muttered to herself, as Flint started to get unsteadily back to her feet.

He fired off another spell at her, one that changed Phoebe's hair to luminous pink.

"_Rictumsempra!"_ yelled Phoebe, brandishing her wand.

"_Tarantallegra!"_ Flint retorted, flourishing his own wand.

The two spells collided and shot off into the crowd, hitting Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter, who were dueling near-by. Phoebe's spell had hit Draco who was now a crumpled mess on the floor, clutching his stomach and laughing; while Flint's spell had hit Harry whose legs were jerking around out of his control in a kind of quickstep.

"Stop! Stop!" screamed Lockhart.

"_Finite Incantatem!"_ Snape shouted, taking charge of the situation. Harry's legs stopped dancing and Malfoy stopped laughing.

Everyone turned in Marcus and Phoebe's direction.

"I said disarm only!" said Lockhart, bearing down on the two of them.

"He started it!" yelled Phoebe. Everyone gasped. "I told you that I wasn't here to take part! I don't know why I bothered to turn up in the first place; it was all just a big mistake!"

Serefina -who had been there since the beginning- swept across the Great Hall towards her Goddaughter. The older Blackheart wrapped her arms around Phoebe and lead her away from the pompous fool of a Defence professor. "Come Phoebe, you must calm down." and she led her towards the back of the Hall, while Lockhart and Snape suggested a demonstration on blocking unfriendly spells.

"Excellent idea, Professor Snape," agreed Lockhart. "Let's have a volunteer pair - Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you?"

"A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," said Snape, gliding over. "Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells. We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up the hospital wing in a matchbox! How about Malfoy and Potter?"

"Excellent idea!" said Lockhart, gesturing Harry and Malfoy into the middle of the Hall as the crowd backed away to give them room. "Now, Harry, when Draco points his wand at you, you do _this_."

He flourished in a complicated fashion before dropping it.

"Whoops. My wands a little over-excited."

Snape smirked and moved closer to Malfoy, bent down and whispered something in his ear. Malfoy smirked, too. Harry glanced around nervously and spotted Phoebe staring at him with wide-eyes from the back of the Hall. He remembered what Flint had tried to do to her and his blood boiled at the mere thought; he may not have been able to get at Flint, but he could take down one Slytherin, by taking down Malfoy.

"Three - two - one - go!" shouted Lockhart.

Malfoy raised his wand quickly and bellowed "_Serpensortia!"_

The end of his wand exploded. Phoebe watched, aghast, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the floor between them and raised itself, ready to strike.

There were screams as the crowd backed away quickly.

Phoebe shot to her feet, but Serefina held her back.

"Don't move, Potter," said Snape lazily, clearly enjoying the sight of Harry standing motionless, eye-to-eye with the angry serpent. "I'll get rid of it for you!"

_"Serefina. He gave Draco that spell."_ Phoebe whispered in her native tongue. "_There is no way Draco thought of that alone. You have to get rid of it. Before someone gets hurt!"_

Serefina considered her goddaughter for a split second before nodding and turning towards the snake, only to find that it wasn't there. Lockhart had only thrown it ten feet into the air. With a thump the snake landed and turned angrily in Amelia's direction.

"Puffer -" Phoebe breathed as she darted forwards through the crowd towards her friend. The elemental brushed past Terence and Oliver, but the latter caught her quickly around the middle and held her back as a hiss from Harry's direction caused both of them to freeze.

From the corner of her eye, Phoebe watched as Harry stepped closer to her Hufflepuff friend and the snake. The Snake turned its head in Harry's direction before slumping to the ground like a thick, black garden hose.

Fear flickered across Amelia's face as seconds later she burst into tears.

"Puffer!" Ashlyn exclaimed, throwing herself across the hall and wrapping her arms around her friend. Phoebe broke away from Oliver and threw herself at the Hufflepuff and Slytherin, followed my Sarah and James.

The crowd, meanwhile, was torn between the public display of affection between the five friends and Harry who was looking utterly confused what had just happened. He had expected Amelia to look grateful, not scared fearful.

"What do you think you're playing at?" shouted another Hufflepuff, by the name of Ernie McMillian.

Stepping forward into the crowd, Serefina waved her wand and the Snake disappeared. "Dismissed. Students are to return to their house dormitories _immediately_. No students other than prefects and the Head boy and Girl are to be wandering the corridors after this hour. Understand?"

"Yes, Professor Blackheart." the students chimed.

"Good. Now go!"

The rest of the student body filed out of the Great Hall, leaving Ashlyn, Phoebe, James and Sarah behind. Amelia was still a weeping mess but seemed to be taking comfort in her friends' embraces.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at 4:08am**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N:** _Chapter goes out to the following:_ **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.** _Am bringing you this chapter while watching the finale to Strike Back: Project Dawn._

**In responses:** _**Fan of Fics:**__ Yup. Phoebe is going to make the mistake of coming to the wrong conclusion._

_**Vivi Fontaine:**__ Yes. Wood loves Phe...but does Phe love Wood?_

_**KingdomHeartsNerd:**__ Phoebe wasn't an absolute bitch. Her emotions are going haywire as Christmas draws closer, and it's only about to get worse._

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><p>"You're a Parselmouth. Why didn't you tell us?" said Ron, after he had pushed Harry into an armchair. The Dueling club had just been dismissed and while Phoebe had remained behind with her friends to make sure Amelia was all right, Ron and Hermione had dragged Harry up to the Gryffindor Tower to question him on what had just happened down in the Great Hall.<p>

"I'm a what?" said Harry.

"A Parselmouth!" said Ron. "You can talk to snakes!"

"I know," said Harry. "I mean, that's only the second time I've ever done it. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once - long story - but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning too. That was before I knew I was a wizard..."

"A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?" repeated Ron faintly.

"So?" said Harry. "I bet loads of people here can do it."

"No, they can't," said Hermione. "It's not a very common gift. Harry, this is bad."

"What's bad?" said Harry, starting to feel quite angry. "What's wrong with everyone? Listen, if I hadn't told that snake not to attack Amelia -"

"Oh, that's what you said to it?" said Ron.

"What d'you mean? You were there...you heard me."

"We heard you talking in Parseltongue," said Ron. "Snake language. You could have been saying anything. No wonder Amelia started crying, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something. It was creepy, you know."

Harry gaped at them. "I spoke a different language? But - I didn't realize - how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?"

Ron shook his head.

"Do you want to tell me what is wrong with telling a dirty great snake biting Amelia's head off?" said Harry. "What does it matter how I did it as long as Amelia doesn't have to join the Headless Hunt?"

"It matters," said Phoebe, speaking at last. "Because being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That's why the symbol of Slytherin house is a Serpent."

Harry's mouth fell open.

"Exactly," said Ron. "Now everyone is going to think you are his great-great-great-great-grandson or something..."

"But i'm not," said Harry. "I can't be."

"You'll find that hard to prove," said Hermione. "He lived over a thousand years ago; for all we know, you could be."

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Salazar Slytherin glanced up from his desk as the doors to his chamber slammed open and much to his surprise Phoebe hurried inside._

_"Phoebe..." he started._

_"Harry!" Phoebe gasped. "He's - he's a -"_

_Sweeping around his desk, Salazar placed his arm around his protégé and led her towards one of the leather chairs in front of his desk. It was the same one that she fallen asleep in a few months ago. "Now Phoebe, you must calm down. I can feel your stress levels rising; you are not doing yourself any favors by stressing out."_

_The younger Gryffindor took a shuddering breath and glanced up at her mentor. "Harry Potter," said Phoebe in a quiet voice. "He's a Parselmouth. He's like you."_

_"Phoebe, tell me everything."_

_Running her hands over her face, Phoebe looked around the room and then back to her mentor. "People are being Petrified at Hogwarts. Our caretaker's cat was first, and then a Muggleborn first year by the name of Colin Creevey..." she paused, "and then earlier this evening during a dueling class, Harry stopped a python from attacking my friend Amelia by speaking to it in Parseltongue."_

_There was a pregnant pause._

_"Salazar," whispered Phoebe. "Does this mean - is Harry Potter your heir?"_

_Salazar Slytherin remained silent, as if pondering the thought of a Potter being his descendant._

_Phoebe waited a few moments before the silence became too much for her to handle, "Salazar, you __**have**__ to tell me __**everything**__ about the Chamber of Secrets."_

_"I cannot give you all the answers," answered Slytherin. "You must use your brain. But of what I can tell you is, my Heir is within Hogwarts and he is the only person that can control my creature; if you are able to find and stop him, you will, in time be able to stop Aquanetta."_

_Phoebe looked at him strangely "Aquanetta? You're telling me that the creature inside the chamber is FEMALE!"_

_"Yes. Females are a much more vicious species," said Salazar. "I needed a creature that would be untamable, uncontrollable, and females give just that."_

_"Well, thanks," Phoebe nodded. "You just made my job a whole lot harder."_

_There was another pause, before Phoebe said "You do understand that when the time comes we will have to kill Aqua."_

_Salazar sighed "Yes. I knew death would befall my creature someday, she is, after all a thousand years old."_

_"Before I go," said Phoebe. "Can you confirm that my theory is correct? The creature inside the Chamber...is it or is it not an Acromantula."_

_Slytherin considered her for a moment before a sly grin slid onto his face. "It is not." he answered. "Why would I, Salazar Slytherin, who's symbol is a serpent, use a mere spider?"_

_Phoebe sighed as the world faded to black._

**~*Phoebe*~**

The castle was darker than it usually was in daytime, because of the thick, swirling grey snow at every window. Normally she would have been in Herbology with the Hufflepuff's at this given moment, but due to the blizzard that had happened over night class had been cancelled.

Shivering, Phoebe wandered through the hallways, passing classrooms where lessons were taking place, catching snatches of what was happening within. Professor McGonagall was shouting at someone who, by the sound of it, had turned his friend into a badger. Resisting the urge to take a look, Phoebe walked on by, pondering over the meeting she had had with Salazar Slytherin last night.

Although she had stressed enough about the Chamber and what resided within it, Salazar had been very tight lipped about the answers he had given her. He hadn't exactly answered all her questions with answers that would point in her the right direction, and he also hadn't been completely truthful with her -she knew that much-. But, he _had_ given her an idea. The creature.

_"Why would I, Salazar Slytherin, whose symbol is a serpent, use a mere spider?"_ that is what he had said. And he was right. Why would someone, whose symbol was a snake, someone who was _famous_ for talking to snakes, use a spider to purge the school of Muggleborns?

"It's not an Acromantula," said Phoebe, as she turned into the library to find it relatively empty save for a few older Ravenclaws and a small cluster of Hufflepuff's who were sat at the back of the library. "But it is something to do with Slytherin. A Parselmouth. Harry is a Parselmouth and so maybe related to Slytherin, who is also a Parselmouth..."

The elemental trailed off as a few other pieces of information clicked into place.

Harry and Salazar were Parselmouth's.

Colin and Mrs. Norris hadn't been _killed_, they had been_ Petrified._

"Oh My, God..." breathed Phoebe, as she darted towards one of the empty desks in the back of the library. She passed the Hufflepuff's and dropped her things onto the desk; she ripped open her backpack and pulled out the book **Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them**, skimmed through the pages quickly and found the page she had been looking for.

The title of the page was labeled: _**The Basilisk.**_

Phoebe felt her heart hammering within her rib cage as she read the passage in front of her carefully, several different words jumped out at her as she pieced several pieces of the puzzle together within her own mind.

_The first recorded Basilisk was bread by Herpo the Foul, a Greek Dark Wizard and __**Parselmouth**__, who discovered after much experimentation that a chicken egg hatched beneath a toad, would produce a gigantic serpent possessed of extraordinarily dangerous powers. _

_The Basilisk is a brilliant green __**serpent**__. It has exceptionally venomous fangs but its most dangerous means of attack is the gaze of its large yellow eyes. Anyone looking directly into these will suffer instant __**death.**_

_If the food source is sufficient (the basilisk will eat all mammals and birds and most reptiles), the serpent may attain a very great age. Herpo the Foul's Basilisk is believed to have lived for close nine hundred years._

_The creation of Basilisks has been made illegal since __**medieval**__ times, although the practice is easily concealed by simply removing the chicken egg from beneath the toad when the Department of the Regulations and Control of Magical Creatures comes to call. However, since Basilisks are __**uncontrollable**__ except by Parselmouth's, they are as dangerous to most dark wizards as to anybody else._

Phoebe felt her mouth form a perfect 'O' as she reached the end of the passage.

She had worked it out. The creature in the Chamber of Secrets it wasn't an Acromantula, no, it was much worse, much more dangerous. It was a Basilisk.

"I have to tell Harry..." said Phoebe, as she gathered up her things and quickly left the library once more. Madam Pince shook her head as the young Gryffindor sprinted as fast as her legs would carry her through the open doors, around the corner, up a flight of steps and turned along another corridor, one of which was particularly dark; the torches had been extinguished by a strong, icy draught which was blowing through a loose window pane, but Phoebe paid no attention to this as she hurried onwards.

She was halfway down the passage way when she tripped headlong over something lying on the floor, but instead of hitting the ground she tumbled into somebody else coming in the opposite direction.

Both Phoebe and the other student hit the ground with similar grunts of pain.

"Pheebs?" said Harry, squinting in the darkness.

"Harry!" said Phoebe, jumping to her feet and pulling him up. "I was just on my way back to the Gryffindor tower to find you! I need to tell you something!"

"I'm looking for Amelia," said Harry "I wanted to apologize -"

He cut off.

Phoebe frowned. "Harry? Harry, what is it?"

"Pheebs..." said Harry, taking his friend by the shoulder and turning her to face what she had tripped over in the beginning.

Amelia Winchester was laying on the floor, rigid and cold, a look of shock frozen on her face, her eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.

Phoebe felt her stomach dissolve. "Puffer..." she breathed, tears springing to her eyes.

But that wasn't all. Next to Amelia was another figure, the strangest sight anybody had ever seen. It was Nearly Headless Nick, no longer pearly-white and transparent, but black and smoky, floating immobile and horizontal, six inches off the floor. His head was half off and his face wore and expression of shock identical to Amelia's.

Phoebe backed up into Harry, her breathing fast and shallow, her heart hammering rapidly against her ribs. She felt Harry turn her away, wrap his arms around her, and allow her to bury her face into his shoulder.

"We should go..." said Harry, as Phoebe continued to sob into his shoulder.

"No," said Phoebe. "We should go get help. I won't leave them here. You go get help; if you are caught anywhere near here then it will look more suspicious."

Harry watched as Phoebe slipped from his arms and took a hesitant step towards her Hufflepuff friend, he hesitated. "Phoebe..."

"Go, Harry," said Phoebe, over her shoulder. "Before the bell rings or someone turns up and catches us."

But before Harry could move a muscle, a door to the right opened with a bang, Peeves the poltergeist came shooting out.

"Why, it's potty wee Potter!" cackled Peeves, knocking Harry's glasses askew as he bounced past. "What's Potter up to? Why's Potter lurking -"

Peeves stopped, halfway through a mid-air somersault. Upside-down, he spotted Phoebe, Amelia and Nick. He flipped the right way up, filled his lungs, and before either second year could stop him, screamed, "ATTACK! ATTACK! ANOTHER ATTACK! NO MORTAL OR GHOST IS SAFE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! ATTAAAACK!"

Crash - crash - crash: door after door flew open along the corridor and people flooded out. For several long moments, there was a scene of such confusion that Amelia and Phoebe were danger of being trampled and people kept standing in Nearly Headless Nick. Harry found himself pinned against the wall as teachers shouted for silence.

Phoebe felt a hand clutch her shoulder, as another wrapped around her waist; she struggled as she was pulled effortlessly to her feet and only relaxed when the soft voice of Terence whispered for her to resist.

Professor McGonagall came running followed with her own class, one of whom still had black and white striped hair. She used her wand to set off a loud bang, which restored silence, and ordered everyone back to their lessons.

"Don't go..." said Phoebe, as she clutched Terence's robes tightly as he tried to return to his Charms lesson with the Ravenclaws. But as students started to file back into their classes Ernie Macmillan arrived, panting, on the scene.

_"Caught in the act!"_ Ernie yelled, his face stark white, pointing his finger dramatically at Harry.

"That will do, Macmillan!" said Professor McGonagall sharply.

Peeves was bobbing overhead, now grinning wickedly, surveying the scene; Peeves always loved chaos. As the teachers bent over Amelia and Nearly Headless Nick, examining them, Peeves broke into song:

_"Oh Potter, you rotter, oh what have you done?_

_You're killing off students; you think its good fun..."_

"That's enough Peeves!" barked Professor McGonagall, and Peeves zoomed away backwards; with his tongue out at Harry.

Terence watched as Amelia was carried up to the hospital wing by Professor Flitwick and Professor Sinistra -both of whom had dismissed their classes-, but nobody seemed to know what to do for Nearly Headless Nick. In the end, Professor McGonagall conjured a large fan out of thin air, which she gave to Ernie with instructions to waft Nearly Headless Nick up the stairs. This Ernie did, fanning Nick along like a silent, black hovercraft. This left, Harry, Terence, Phoebe and Professor McGonagall alone together.

"Mr. Higgs," said Professor McGonagall. "Would you escort Miss Blackheart up to the Hospital wing, explain to Madam Pomfrey that she has had a bit of a shock and needs a Calming Draught. Once she has calmed down take her to Professor Blackheart's office on the fourth floor."

"Yes, Professor," said Terence, his arm still around Phoebe. "Come on, Phe..."

Phoebe swallowed and allowed him to lead her away, she caught Harry's eye she passed and offered him a weak smile.

Harry returned the smile, although it didn't reach his eyes like it normally did when Phoebe smiled at him. Instead he felt like his heart had turned to lead and his stomach had dropped through the floor.

Amelia had been attacked, Phoebe was heartbroken -he didn't even want to think what the rest of her friends were going to be like- and what was worse? McGonagall was taking him to see Dumbledore.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Can't say much...except - expect lots of tension to come at the end of this year, as I have an alternative ending planned. ;)**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Monday, October 24, 2011 at 3:08am**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N:** _Newest chapter going out to the following people:_ **Vivi Fontaine, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd** _and_ **Fan of Fics.**_ Loved hearing from you._

**In responses: **_**Vivi Fontaine:**__ Yup. I really like your Nickname. But just like before only certain people get away with calling her it, she has just extended it to Terence. I know very sad that Amelia has been Petrified, and No! Phoebe will not be next on the list. Phoebe is a Pureblood, and it is only Muggleborns that are being attacked._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Phoebe has had loads of help from Salazar Slytherin, so she cannot take all the praise for working out what is hidden within the Chamber._

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><p>After the double attack on Amelia and Nearly Headless Nick more and more students started to panic. Curiously, it was Nearly Headless Nick's fate that seemed to worry people most. What could possibly do that to a ghost, people asked each other; what terrible power could harm someone that was already dead? There was almost a stampede to book seats on the Hogwarts Express so that students could go home for Christmas.<p>

"At this rate, we'll be the only ones left," Terence told Phoebe.

"Not forgetting the Golden Trio, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle." Phoebe had replied. "Which I guess is a good thing, considering our plan will never work without them."

Terence knew all about the plan that Phoebe and the Golden Trio had concocted and was planning on initiating over the Christmas holiday. At first he had been skeptical but in time warmed up to the idea that Malfoy may have had links in with people who knew about the Chamber, and maybe - just maybe - he did know more than he was letting on about it.

"What a jolly holiday," joked Terence.

Phoebe giggled into her scarf as they entered the Entrance Hall to find Fred and George marching Harry down the Marble staircase.

"Make way for the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard coming through..." laughed Fred. He and George seemed to be the only people within the castle who found all this amusing, and often went out of their way to march Harry through the corridors shouting obscene things about him and the Chamber.

Percy, on the other hand, was deeply disapproving of this behavior.

"It is _not_ a laughing matter," he said coldly.

"Oh, get out of the way, Percy," said Fred. "Harry's in a hurry."

"Yeah, he's nipping off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged servant," said George, chortling.

Phoebe snorted as she reached her Gryffindor friends. "Can I come for tea, Harry?" she asked, jumping onto his back. Although she was upset about Amelia being Petrified she didn't believe for one second that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin - and it wasn't because Salazar had confirmed the suspicions that the rest of the school had as false. Harry was too nice to attack anyone.

Harry didn't seem to mind; it made him feel better that people seemed to find that him being the Heir of Slytherin funny to say the least. But the antics of the Weasley twins seemed to be aggravating Draco Malfoy, who looked increasingly sour each time he saw them.

"It's because he's _bursting_ to say it's really him," said Ron knowingly. "You know how he hates anyone beating him at anything, and you're getting all the credit for his dirty work."

"Not for long," said Hermione in a satisfied tone. "The Polyjuice Potion's nearly ready. We'll be getting the truth out of him any day now."

**~*Phoebe*~**

At last the term ended, and a silence deep as the snow on the grounds descended on the castle. Phoebe found it rather peaceful, rather than gloomy and enjoyed the fact that she, Harry, Hermione and the Weasley's had the run of Gryffindor Tower, which meant they could play Exploding Snap loudly without bothering anyone, and practice dueling in private. Occasionally Phoebe would sneak Terence into the Tower -much to the disapprovement of Percy-.

"He's a Slytherin!" protested Percy.

"So?" questioned Phoebe. "Clearwater is a Ravenclaw! I didn't see you have a problem sneaking her in here the other night."

Percy's ears turned a bright red. "How do you -"

"Know?" asked Phoebe. "I know quite a lot. Nothing happens in this Tower that I don't know about. So tell me, how long have you and Clearwater been dating? Do your parents know? Do your brother's know? How about Ginny, i'm sure she would be delighted to know that you're dating. She'll finally have someone other than me and Hermione to talk to you lot about."

Percy swallowed "I'll let this slide, just for tonight."

"How about until term starts back up again?" bargained Phoebe. "He can stay up here with us until the rest of the school returns. There is plenty of room in the boy's dorms. You've got full run of your dormitory, he could stay in there, or maybe I could bully Harry and Ron into letting him stay in their dorm."

Percy finally caved, leaving Phoebe feeling smug about the whole situation.

Fred, George and Ginny had chosen to stay at school rather than visit Bill in Egypt with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and according to Percy, he was only staying because it was his duty to as a Prefect to support the teachers during this troubled time.

"Troubled time?" whispered Terence, Christmas Eve night, he was sat in front of the fireplace with Phoebe curled up beside him. "The castle is empty. All that is left is a few Purebloods and Granger, and she's hardly going to get attacked with everyone around."

Phoebe shrugged as she drank the last of her Hot Chocolate.

Christmas morning dawned, cold and white. Phoebe and Hermione were the only ones left in their dormitory. Phoebe was up first, and following her Christmas tradition decided that she would wake Hermione by jumping on the bed and screaming, unfortunately when she had pulled back the curtains on Hermione's bed she found it deserted.

"Mhmm, I wonder where she went?" wondered Phoebe, before shrugging, slipping on her slippers and dressing gown and hurried from the room to wake the rest of her friends. Fred and George were already awake, Percy had awoken hours before everyone else and wasn't even in his dorm room -just like Hermione-, and Harry, Ron and Terence were still asleep when Phoebe made it to their dorm.

With an evil smirk, Phoebe tip-toed into Harry and Ron's dorm, she had already decided how she was going to wake them.

"MERRY CHRISTMAS!" she yelled, jumping onto the bed in which Terence occupied.

Harry sat up groggily, reaching for his glasses, Ron pulled the covers over his head and turned away, while Terence shot up and caught Phoebe's legs causing her to fall on top of him.

"Ter..." giggled Phoebe, as she pushed herself up so that she was straddling his legs.

"Phoebe - you're not supposed to be in here," said Ron.

"Merry Christmas to you, too," said Phoebe, throwing him his present. "Any of you seen Hermione?"

The boys shook their heads. "Isn't she with you?" said Harry.

"No, she wasn't there when I woke up, and I planned to jump on her this morning too." pouted Phoebe.

Terence chuckled "Isn't jumping on me enough?" he asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, I didn't even know if you were going to be up here for Christmas. I can't very well jump on you if you are down in the Slytherin dorms now, can I?"

"But did you have to wake us up so obnoxiously?" grumbled Ron.

"Yes. It's tradition in my family, that whoever is the first to awake must wake everyone else in the house - or in our case, the Tower - in the most unusual of ways." explained Phoebe.

The door opened and Hermione walked in. "Oh, good, you're awake." she smiled.

"Yeah. Where've you been?" said Phoebe. "I woke up and you weren't there! You ruined my traditional Christmas wake up calls."

"Sorry." Hermione apologized. "But I have been adding more lacewing flies to the Potion. It's ready."

Harry looked more awake than ever now.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," said Hermione, shifting Scabbers the rat so that she could sit down on the end of Ron's four poster bed. "If we're going to do it, I say it should be tonight."

At that moment Hedwig swooped into the room, carrying a very small package in her beak.

"Hello," said Harry happily, as she landed on his bed. "Are you speaking to me again?"

She nibbled his ear in an affectionate sort of way, which was a far better present than the one which turned out to be from the Dursley's. They had sent Harry a toothpick and a note telling him to find out whether he'd be able to stay at Hogwarts for the summer holidays too.

"You're welcome to stay with me," said Phoebe. "Portugal is beautiful in the summer, but then again, it's beautiful in spring, autumn and Winter too."

Harry smiled. "Thanks, Pheebs."

The elemental winked at him before diving headlong into her presents and started to open them.

It wasn't until she had reached the end of her pile did she realize that Serefina's gift wasn't there.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Great Hall looked magnificent. Not only were there a dozen frost-covered Christmas trees and thick streamers of holly and mistletoe criss-crossing the ceiling, but enchanted snow was falling warm and dry from the ceiling. Dumbledore led them in a few of his favorite carols, Hagrid booming more and more loudly with every goblet of eggnog he consumed. Percy, who hadn't noticed that Fred had bewitched his prefect badge so that it now read 'Pinhead', kept asking them all what they were sniggering at. No one even seemed to care about Draco Malfoy making loud snide remarks about the Weasley jumpers that Mrs. Weasley had sent her sons, Harry, Hermione and Phoebe for Christmas. With every bit of luck, Malfoy would be getting his come-uppance in a few hours' time.

Phoebe had barely finished her Christmas pudding when Hermione ushered her from the Hall along with Harry and Ron to finalize their plans for the evening.

"We still need a bit of the people you're changing into," said Hermione matter-of-factly, as though she was sending them on a simple errand to the supermarket for washing-powder. "And obviously, it'll be best if you can get something of Crabbe and Goyle's; they're Malfoy's best friends, he'll tell them anything. And we also need to make sure that the real Crabbe and Goyle can't burst in on us while we're interrogating him."

"We've got it all worked out," said Phoebe, ignoring Harry and Ron's stupefied faces. "Hermione's filled these -" the bookworm held up two plump chocolate cakes. "- with a simple Sleeping Draught. All you have to do is make sure that Crabbe and Goyle find them. You know how greedy they are, they're bound to eat them. Once they're asleep lock them in the broomstick cupboard and pull out a few of their hairs."

Harry and Ron looked incredulously at each other.

"Hermione, I don't think -"

"That could go seriously wrong -"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the two boys, which reminded them faintly of Professor McGonagall. "You do _want_ to investigate Malfoy, don't you?"

"Oh, all right, all right," said Harry. "But what about you two? Whose hairs are you ripping out?"

"I've already got mine," said Hermione. "Millicent Bulstrode. Slytherin. Terence managed to acquire this for me. She's gone home for Christmas - so I'll just have to tell Malfoy that I've decided to come back - _what_?"

Harry and Ron were staring at her in bewilderment. "You called him 'Terence'" said Ron.

"It's his name, isn't it?" said Hermione.

"Yeah, but he's a Slytherin, he's the enemy."

Phoebe huffed and folded her arms in annoyance. "He happens to be my friend."

"I think he may have something a little bit more than friendship on his mind," muttered Ron.

"What exactly are you implying, Weasley?" snapped Phoebe.

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off by the familiar shout of "Phoebe!" echoed from the top of the Marble staircase. Professor Serefina Blackheart descended the staircase and approached the two Gryffindor's.

"Do we have some sort of problem here?" said Serefina.

"No, Professor," said Harry.

Serefina nodded and turned to Phoebe. "There is a surprise waiting for you in my office."

"A surprise?" said Phoebe, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "What kind of surprise?"

"Well, if I told you that then it wouldn't be a surprise now, would it?"

Phoebe giggled and tore off up the marble staircase as Terence left the Great Hall behind them. "Where's she going?" he asked Hermione.

"Belated Christmas present from Professor Blackheart," said Hermione. "Now i'm off to check on the Polyjuice Potion, make sure that Crabbe and Goyle find these -" she handed Harry the cakes. "- and I'll see you later in the bathroom."

When Hermione has bustled off and Terence had taken off up to the fourth floor to catch up with Phoebe, Ron turned to Harry with a doom-laden expression. "Do you have the feeling that this plan is going to fall apart?"

"But then again," shrugged Harry. "When have any of our plans actually ever worked?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Reaching her godmother's office, Phoebe pushed open the wooden door and grinned at the sight on the other side. Standing near the fireplace, looking anxious was none other than Blake Brooks and Jackson Stream.

Phoebe squealed and bounded across the office and into the embrace of her two childhood friends. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"We thought we'd surprise you for Christmas," said Jackson, as Phoebe pulled away. "When we got back from Durmstrang we half expected you be to there waiting for us, and then Serefina told us that you had decided to stay here at Hogwarts."

"At first we thought Christmas was going to be spent without you," continued Blake. "And then Serefina suggested that we come spend Christmas here at Hogwarts. She wrote to your Headmaster, and he agreed to allow us to stay, at least until the holidays are over."

Phoebe's face ignited with delight and threw her arms around her friends once more. The door squeaked open behind the trio and they looked up to see Terence standing in the threshold.

Blake's gaze sought the badge on the third male's robes and his eyes hardened into a glare, as his arm tightened around Phoebe's waist. "What do you want, Snake?" he spat.

"Blake..." started Phoebe, but before she could stop him, Blake had swept across the room and slammed Terence against the wall. Terence winced, as Phoebe stepped forward but Jackson held her back.

"_Stay back, Phe,"_ warned Jackson. "_Blake will sort him out and he'll leave you alone."_

_"No! You don't understand!"_ protested Phoebe, breaking away from Jackson and grabbing Blake's fist before he could hit Terence. "_He's my friend! He's not like them, Blake! He's not like Flint!"_

Blake dropped his hand and stepped backwards as he watched Phoebe turned to the Slytherin he had pinned against the wall. _"What are you talking about, Phe? He's a snake! They are sly and cunning, he could be using you."_

_"He's not!"_ argued Phoebe. "_He knows, Blake. He knows about me. About my family. He knows everything."_

_"You told him?"_ questioned Jackson curiously.

Phoebe shook her head and turned to look at Terence from over her shoulder "_He figured it out. He promised that he wouldn't tell a soul, and he hasn't -"_

_"Yet!"_ interrupted Blake and Jackson at the same time.

Phoebe shot them identical looks. "_Please don't make me regret you being here. Terence is my friend and I trust him, if you can't trust him then at least trust me."_

Exchanging looks Blake and Jackson sighed. "_Fine."_ they each caved. "_But only for now."_

**~*Phoebe*~**

Soon night had fallen the plan to interrogate Malfoy was put into action.

Phoebe pushed open the door the girl's bathroom on the second floor and was momentarily blinded by the thick black smoke issuing from the cubicle in which Hermione was stirring the cauldron. "Hermione?" called the Elemental, as she stepped further into the bathroom.

"In here," shouted Hermione in response, and she stuck her hand out of the cubicle door to show her friend where she was.

Making her way forward, Phoebe came upon the very cubicle that Hermione was in and wrinkled her nose at the sight of the thick, dark sludge that bubbled sluggishly.

"Gross. Are you seriously going to drink that?" asked Phoebe.

Hermione nodded "I'm sure I've done everything right," she said, nervously re-reading the splotched page of _Moste Potente Potions._ "It looks like the book says it should...Once we've drunk it, we'll have exactly an hour before we change back into ourselves."

"Now, I am kind of glad that i'm not participating in this interrogation." whispered Phoebe. "That does not look very appeasing."

Terence nodded in agreement as the door to the bathroom opened once more and Harry and Ron stumbled inside. "There you are," gasped Harry, spotting Phoebe. "Blake and Jackson are looking for you."

"Yeah, they think I'm in the library," said Phoebe. "I'll finish up here and then go and find them."

"Did you get them?" Hermione asked breathlessly.

Harry showed them Goyle's hair.

"Good. We managed to sneak spare robes out of the laundry," said Phoebe, holding up a small sack. "You'll need bigger sizes once you're Crabbe and Goyle."

The five of them stared at the Cauldron. "Now what?" Ron whispered.

"We separate it into three glasses and add the hairs," answered Hermione, and she ladled large dollops of the Potion into each of the glasses. Then, her hand trembling, she shook Millicent Bulstrode's hair out of its bottle into the first glass.

The Potion hissed loudly like a boiling kettle and frothed madly. A second later, it had turned a sick sort of yellow.

"Urgh - essence of Millicent Bulstrode," said Ron, eyeing it with loathing. "Bet it tastes disgusting."

"Add yours, then," prompted Phoebe.

Harry dropped Goyle's hair into the middle glass and Ron put Crabbe's hair into the last one. Both glasses hissed and frothed. Goyle's turned the khaki colour of a bogey; Crabbe's a dark, murky brown. The Golden Trio reached for the tumblers.

"Hang on," said Phoebe. "You'd better not all drink them in there: once you turn into Crabbe and Goyle you won't fit. And Bulstrode's no pixie."

"Good thinking," said Ron, stepping out of the cubicle. "We'll take separate cubicles."

Harry and Hermione nodded in agreement and each separate, disappearing into separate cubicles leaving Phoebe and Terence to wait patiently for them to transform.

"Ready?" Harry called.

"Ready," came Ron and Hermione's voices.

"One...two...three..."

The bathroom fell silent, save for Myrtle gurgling morosely in the end toilet.

Anxiety soon set in as Phoebe knocked on the door that Harry had disappeared behind. "Harry?" she questioned. "You okay?"

"Yeah." came her reply.

"Ron?" said Phoebe, knocking on Ron's door. It opened and Ron stepped out - only he wasn't Ron.

Harry's cubicle opened and Goyle stepped out

"Whoa!" Phoebe squeaked. "It worked!"

"Bloody hell!" said Ron.

"You still sound like yourselves," said Terence, he then pointed at Ron. "You need to sound more like Crabbe."

"Uh...Bloody Hell!" Ron repeated, this time deeper.

"Excellent." Harry grinned.

"But where's Hermione?" asked Phoebe.

Ron turned and banged on Hermione's door. "C'mon, we need to go..."

A high-pitched voice answered him "I - I don't think i'm going to come after all. You go on without me."

"Hermione, we know Millicent Bulstrode's ugly, no one's going to know it's you."

"No - really - I don't think I'll come. You two hurry up, you're wasting time."

Harry exchanged a confused look with Phoebe. "Look, you two get out of here, I'll try and coax her out of the stall. Ter, could you show them to the Slytherin common room?"

"Sure," Terence agreed, and he led the way from the Girls bathroom. Harry and Ron following.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Don't wave your arms so much," Harry muttered to Ron, as they followed Terence across the Entrance Hall and towards the opening to the dungeons.

"Eh?"

"Crabbe holds them sort of stiff..."

"How's this?"

"Yeah, that's better."

The three of them descended into the dungeons. The labyrinthine passages were deserted. They walked deeper and deeper under the school, constantly checking their watches to see how much time they had left. After quarter of an hour, Terence finally came to a stop outside a portrait of a snake-like man.

"Higgs," rasped the Portrait. "Heard you were going home?"

"Change of plans, headmaster," said Terence. "Decided to stay instead."

The portrait nodded. "Then where have you been for the past couple of nights?" he enquired.

Terence opened his mouth to respond, before pausing and closing it again, what could he say? He couldn't very well say that he had been in Gryffindor Tower with Phoebe, Slytherin/Gryffindor friendships were forbidden. "I got back this morning..." he stated.

The portrait eyed him curiously, clicked his tongue before saying "Password?"

"_Pureblood._"

Terence marched through as the portrait swung open and Harry and Ron followed him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Back in the bathroom Phoebe was still trying to coax Hermione out of the stall. "Honey, come out."

"No. This wasn't supposed to happen!" cried the Bookwork.

"Could you at least unlock the door?" asked Phoebe. "I can't help you if I don't know what has happened."

Moaning Myrtle glided suddenly through the cubicle door. Phoebe had never seen her looks happy.

"Oooooh, wait till you see," she said. "It's _awful_!"

The lock slid back and Hermione emerged, sobbing, her robes pulled up over her head.

"Hermione?" said Phoebe uncertainly. "An hour is almost up, you should have transformed back by now."

Hermione let her robes fall and Phoebe backed up into the sink.

Her face was covered in black fur. Her eyes had gone yellow and there were long pointed ears poking through her hair.

"It was c-cat hair!" she howled. "M-Millicent Bulstrode m-must have a cat! And the P-Potion isn't supposed to be used for animal transformations!"

"Uh-oh," said Phoebe.

"You'll be teased something _dreadful_," said Myrtle happily.

Phoebe glared at the ghost, swallowed and turned back to her friend "its okay, Hermione," she said quickly. "I'll take you up to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey never asks too many questions..."

The door to the bathroom slammed open, and hurried footsteps resonated around the room. "Phoebe? Hermione! We've got loads to - Whoa!" Harry cut off as he skidded to a halt behind the two girls, his eyes wide at the sight of Hermione.

Ron collided with Harry "What? What hap -" he too cut off at the sight of the bookworm.

"It was cat's hair," said Phoebe, turning to the three boys. "Ter, you must have pulled cat's hair off Bulstrode's robes. The potions not made for Animal transformations, she's stuck!"

Hermione looked sorrowful at her friends. "Look at my face," she complained.

"Your face?" Ron grinned. "Wait until everyone finds out you've got a _tail!_"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Tuesday, October 25, 2011 at 2:51am**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: **_Following chapter belong to:_** Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, 10th Squad 3rd Seat **_**and**_** KingdomHeartsNerd. **

**In responses: **_Firstly to__** Fan of Fics: **__Sadly I only just realized that it is like watching the Hogwarts Five, except the bathroom scene wasn't really in MWS because Charlie was feeling lost and empty without Riley and therefore we were already in the Slytherin common room so therefore I guess I can get away with this little crossover storyline. Hopefully it won't happen again. Also from this moment on there will only be one or two more bits where Terence is involved with the case. =)_

_**Vivi Fontaine: **__In my own personal opinion last chapter was one my favourites to write. As for Ron's remark (you did spell foreshadowing right) I do a lot of foreshadowing on many pairings. Doesn't necessarily mean that is the pairing I will go with, but you will get your answers at the end of year 2. Not long now._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat: **__Yup. Phoebe has a lot of boys who want to protect her. I agree. I like Terence too. He was so under used in the main series - but then again, most Slytherin characters were._

_**KingdomHeartsNerd: **__Blake and Jackson I can understand you hating, because of what they did to Terence (i'm sure many hate them for that) but why do you hate Ron?_

_As I told __**Vivi Fontaine**__ not long now until the end of second year. About 6 more chapters. Also this next chapter is the beginning of the twists. I hope you bear with me because things are about to get complicated._

_Enjoy..._

* * *

><p>Hermione remained in the hospital wing for several weeks. There was a flurry of rumours about her disappearance when the rest of the school arrived back from their Christmas holidays, because of course everyone thought she had been attacked. So many students filed past the hospital wing trying to catch a glimpse of her that Madam Pomfrey took out the curtains again and placed them around Hermione's bed, to spare her the shame of being seen with a furry face.<p>

"What you doing up here?" snapped Phoebe, as she arrived one evening. The new school term had started and Hermione had requested that Phoebe collect her homework for her so that she could complete it whilst stuck in the Hospital bed. The person whom Phoebe had snapped at had been a small group of first year Ravenclaw who were peering through the gap in the slightly open door of the Hospital wing, the kids gave a start and scampered off in the direction of their tower.

Shaking her head at the first years, Phoebe pushed open the doors -making sure to close them behind her- and hurried towards the bed with the curtains around it. Ron and Harry were already there and were teasing Hermione about a Get Well card she had received from Lockhart.

"You sleep with this under your _pillow?"_ said Ron, looking revolted.

Pulling back the curtain Phoebe made her presence known by saying "Don't be jealous, Ronald." she teased, rounding the bed and stopping at Hermione's pillows. "Here. Transfiguration. Potions. Defence and Herbology."

"Thanks," said Hermione, taking the homework and placing it neatly onto her bedside table. "I can start it tomorrow."

Ron stared at the homework pile. "You're doing homework?" he cried. "If I had sprouted whiskers, I'd take a break from work."

"You take a break whether you've sprouted whiskers or not," said Phoebe. "Hermione likes to be up-to-date with her assignments."

Hermione nodded. She looked a lot better than she had a few nights ago, the hair on her face had started to disappear, and her eyes were slowly starting to return to brown. "I don't suppose you've got any new leads?" she whispered.

"Nothing." said Harry gloomily.

"I was so _sure_ it was Malfoy," said Ron, for about the hundredth time.

Phoebe perched herself onto the edge of Hermione's bed and studied the red head. "That is what you get for assuming something without the full evidence to back up your claims." she nodded.

"Oh, shut up," said Ron. "You thought it was him too."

"Actually, I thought he may have had information on the culprit," Phoebe defended. "I didn't say I thought he was the Heir of Slytherin at all."

Ron huffed when he realized she was right.

Soon visiting hours were over, and Madam Pomfrey was ushering Harry, Ron and Phoebe from the hospital wing under the claims that Hermione needed another dose of medicine and plenty of rest, and so bidding their 'goodnights' the three friends hurried back along the corridor towards the Gryffindor Tower.

"You haven't started yet?" said Phoebe, as she walked between Ron and Harry. They were discussing the last lot of Potions homework that Snape had given them.

"And you have?" challenged Ron.

"I've finished mine," the elemental answered. "Terence helped me."

Ron gaped at her. "Great. You're getting outside help, and Hermione is stuck in the hospital wing, what are Harry and I supposed to do?"

"Oh, I don't know," Phoebe shrugged. "How about using your brains and opening your books? All the answers are in there, you just need to look for them."

"Can't you just tell us?" Harry asked.

Phoebe shook her head "No. Because then you will never learn."

Both boys huffed in annoyance, before all three of them froze in the tracks at the angry outburst from the floor above them.

"That's Filch," Harry muttered, as they hurried up the stairs and paused, out of sight, listening hard.

"You don't think someone else's been attacked?" said Ron tensely.

The three of them stood still, their heads inclined towards Filch's voice, which sounded quite hysterical.

"..._even worse for me! Mopping all night, like I haven't got enough to do! No, this is the final straw; I'm going to Dumbledore..."_

His footsteps receded and they heard a distant door slam.

Poking her head around the corner, Phoebe checked the coast was clear. Filch had clearly been manning his usual lookout post; they were once again on the spot where Mrs Norris had been attacked. It was difficult to see what had gotten Filch so riled up. A great flood of water stretched over half the corridor, and it looked as though it was still seeping from under Myrtle's bathroom door, and now that Filch had stopped shouting they could distinctively hear Myrtle's wails from the inside.

"_Now_ what's up with her?" said Ron.

Harry shrugged.

"Let's go and see," said Phoebe, and holding her robes over her ankles, she waded through the great gush of water to the door; she pushed open the wooden slate and entered. Harry and Ron following behind her.

Moaning Myrtle was crying, if possible, louder and harder than ever before. She seemed to be hiding down her usual toilet. It was dark in the bathroom, because the candles had been extinguished in the great rush of water that had left both walls and floor soaking wet.

"What's up, Myrtle?" said Harry, as Phoebe and Ron hurried to turn off the water spurts.

"Who's that?" glugged Myrtle miserably. "Come to throw something else at me?"

Over her shoulder, Phoebe heard Harry approach the stall in which Myrtle occupied. Glancing sideways at Ron, the young elemental placed her hand around the nozzle cap and -carefully- willed the water to stop at the source; seconds later the taps all over the bathroom shut off, leaving Ron looking confused on what had happened.

"Did you do something?" said Ron, looking curiously at Phoebe.

"No," Phoebe answered. "Maybe they run out of water."

Ron frowned and looked back at the basin, as Phoebe waded across the bathroom towards Harry.

"...I was just sitting in the U-bend thinking about death, and it fell through the top of my head," Myrtle was saying as Phoebe appeared at Harry's shoulder, the ghost glared at the elemental. "It's over there. Got washed out."

Turning in the direction that Myrtle was pointing, the three young Gryffindor's spotted a small, thin book. It had a shabby black cover and was as wet as everything else in the bathroom. Harry stepped forward to pick it up, but Ron suddenly flung out an arm to hold him back.

"What?" said Harry.

"Are you mad?" said Ron. "It could be dangerous."

"_Dangerous?_" said Harry, laughing. "Come off it, how could it be dangerous?"

"You'd be surprised." said Ron. "Back me up here, Phoebe."

But the elemental didn't answer. Instead, she stepped around Ron and approached the book, scooped it (ignoring Ron's protests) and started flipping through it. "It's empty," she murmured.

"What is it?" said Harry, noticing the confusion settling on his friends face.

Phoebe shook her head. "Nothing, it's just -" she flipped the book over in her hands.

"Just what?" pressed Harry and Ron.

"I've seen this book before," Phoebe answered.

Harry and Ron exchanged looks. "Where?"

"Ginny."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hermione left the hospital wing, de-whiskered, tail-less and fur-free, at the beginning of February. On her first evening back in the Gryffindor Tower, Harry showed her the diary and told her the story of how they had found it, while Phoebe explained that she had seen Ginny writing in a diary that looked exactly the same as the one they had found a few months before Christmas.

"Ooooh, it might have hidden powers," said Hermione enthusiastically, taking the diary and looking at it closely.

"If it has, it's hiding them very well," said Ron. "Maybe it's shy. I don't know why you don't chuck it, Harry."

"I'd like to know why Ginny _did_ try to chuck it," said Phoebe.

Ron bristled angrily, ever since the discovery of the diary he had been dead set against the idea of Ginny being involved with it. But Phoebe was sure that this had been the exact diary that she had seen the youngest Weasley writing in a few months before Christmas. "Ginny isn't -"

"Save it, Ron!" Phoebe snapped. "I know you don't want to believe that I saw Ginny using the diary, but I know what I saw. You can either believe me, or sit there and disregard everything I say. Point is, i'm not painting Ginny in a bad light I'm just stating a fact!"

Hermione gave a startled gasp "There is a name on here," she said, pointing at the golden writing at the base of the back cover. "Tom Marvolo Riddle."

"Tom Marvolo Riddle?" repeated Ron, taking the diary. "I know that name...where do I know that name? Of course, he received a reward for services to the school fifty years ago."

"How on earth do you know that?" said Harry in amazement.

"Because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention," said Ron resentfully. "That was the one I burped slugs all over. If you'd wiped slime off a name for an hour, you'd remember it, too."

Hermione turned the diary over in her hands. "I wonder what he received an award for?" she questioned curiously.

"Could've been anything," said Ron. "Maybe he got thirty OWLs or saved a teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he killed Myrtle that would've done everyone a favour..."

But Phoebe could tell from Hermione's face that they were thinking the same thing. The Chamber of Secrets had been open fifty years ago, and the diary was at least fifty years old. What if Riddle's services to the school had little less to do with Myrtle and actually had something to do with the capture of the Slytherin Heir? The only flaw to their theory was that there was nothing actually _written_ in the diary.

"_Aparecium!"_ said Hermione, tapping the diary with her wand.

Nothing happened.

"Try this," said Phoebe, digging around in her backpack and removing a bright red eraser. "It's a Revealer; Jackson got it for me for Christmas."

She passed the Revealer to Hermione who rubbed it hard over 'January the first'. Nothing happened.

"I'm telling you, there's nothing to find in there," said Ron. "Riddle just got a diary for Christmas and couldn't be bothered filling it in"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The sun had now begun to shine weakly on Hogwarts again.

Inside the castle, the mood had grown more hopeful. There had been no more attacks since those on Amelia and Nearly Headless Nick, and Madam Pomfrey was pleased to report that the Mandrakes were becoming moody and secretive, meaning that they were fast leaving childhood.

"They moment their acne clears up, they'll be ready for re-potting," Phoebe heard her telling Filch kindly one afternoon. She had been admitted to the hospital wing due to pains throughout her body, and she was waiting on a potion and an explanation as to why the pain was starting up now. Terence -being her only friend who knew- was beside her waiting just as patiently. "And after that, it won't be long until we're cutting them up and stewing them. You'll have Mrs Norris back in no time."

Terence and Phoebe exchanged looks, everything had been silent this term, it was already well into February and there had not been one single attack on Muggleborns.

"Maybe the Heir of Slytherin has lost his nerve," Terence suggested. "Everyone is on high alert now; maybe it's getting too risky to open the Chamber."

But Phoebe wasn't convinced. "No, I think this is just the calm before the storm." she said. "He's waiting, I don't know what for and I don't know why, but I have the feeling that he is not finished yet."

Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff, however, was still convinced that Harry was the guilty one that he had 'given himself away' at the Duelling Club. Peeves wasn't helping the situation either; he kept popping up in crowded corridors singing "Oh Potter you rotter...", now with a dance routine to match.

Gilderoy Lockhart seemed to think that _he_ had been the one to stop all the attacks. Phoebe overheard him telling Serefina and Professor McGonagall when Phoebe had arrived for her afternoon training lesson with her Godmother.

"I don't think there'll be any more trouble, ladies," he said, tapping his nose knowingly and winking. "I think the Chamber has been locked for good this time. The culprit must have known it was only a matter of time before I caught him. Rather sensible to stop now, before I came down hard on him."

Serefina bit her lip to keep from grinning as she muttered "_Phoebe and her friends could catch the Heir of Slytherin before this fool,"_ to McGonagall in her native tongue. Surprisingly enough - McGonagall understood.

"You know what this school needs know is a morale-booster. Wash away the memories of last term! I won't say any more just now, but I think I know just the thing." Lockhart continued, oblivious to Serefina and McGonagall's side conversation.

Phoebe ducked into an alcove just outside Serefina's office as Lockhart left, closed the door behind him, and strode off down the hallway whistling to himself. She was starting to lose the crush she had on him, and he was starting to become very obnoxious; she really didn't like that in a man. Lockhart seemed to care more about self-image that anything else.

Shaking herself, Phoebe turned back to her godmother's door, knocked twice and then entered.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Lockhart's idea of a morale-booster became very clear at breakfast time on February the fourteenth. Phoebe hadn't had much sleep because of a late-running Quidditch practice the night before, and was hurrying down to breakfast with Harry later than usual.

"I swear we're going to lose this next match," said Phoebe. "On the sole purpose that none of us are going to have the energy to fly, let alone do our jobs."

Harry nodded in agreement as they entered the Great Hall.

Phoebe grabbed his arm as she crashed to a halt on the threshold, turned to glance over her shoulder and then looked back at the brightly decorated room in front of her. "Have we got the right room?" she asked loudly.

The walls were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers. Worse still, heart-shaped confetti was falling from the pale blue ceiling.

"Yes, Miss Blackheart you have the correct room." Lockhart beamed pricelessly at her. "Happy Valentine's Day."

Phoebe cringed and quickly made her way over to the Gryffindor table along with Harry, both located their respective group of friends and sat down.

"Before we begin," Lockhart continued. "I would like to thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all - and it doesn't end here!"

Lockhart clapped his hands and through the doors to the Entrance Hall marched a dozen surly-looking dwarfs. Not just any dwarfs, however, Lockhart had them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.

"My friendly, card-carrying cupids!" beamed Lockhart. "They will be roving around the school today delivering your Valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old dog!"

Professor Flitwick buried his face in his hands. Snape was looking as though the first person to ask him for a Love Potion would be force fed potions.

"Please, Phoebe, tell me you weren't one of the forty-six," said James, as they left the Great Hall for their first lesson.

Phoebe glared at the only male in her group of five close friends. "Do I look like a girl that celebrates Valentine's Day to you?" she demanded.

"No, but aren't you like one of his fan girls?"

"Slowly going off him," Phoebe answered. "And I certainly wasn't crushing on him that bad. Bad enough to want to embarrass myself into the next century with sending him a stupid little love-heart card."

James smirked and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Now there's the Phoebe we all know and love."

"Hermione sent him a love-heart card!" said Sarah, catching up with the two Gryffindor's. "I know Phoebe didn't because she already told me she didn't celebrate the stupid holiday, although you can't consider it a holiday, would you consider it a holiday? I wouldn't! It's only for one day, and it's corny..."

James and Phoebe eyed the Hufflepuff curiously.

"How much sugar did you have for breakfast?" James asked.

"I dunno," Sarah shrugged. "I got to go. Charms. See ya later." she spun around and took off after her house-mates.

All day long, the dwarfs kept barging into their classes to deliver Valentines, to the annoyance of the teachers, and late that afternoon, as the Gryffindor's were walking upstairs for Charms, one of them caught up with Harry.

"Oy, you! 'Arry Potter!" shouted a particularly grim-looking dwarf, elbowing people out of the way to get to Harry.

Grabbing Harry's hand, Phoebe tried to pull him through the crowded corridors, yelling and first years to get out of the way. They scampered off fairly quickly, possibly scared of the older students that had formed a sort of protective group around of Harry and were pushing him through the hallways.

"I got a musical message to deliver to 'Arry Potter in person." the dwarf shouted, still in pursuit of them.

"We don't care!" James shouted back. "We don't want any stupid love-heart card. We're not interested. Please, go annoy some other poor soul."

The dwarf, however, cut them off by grabbing onto James's leg as he tried to escape with his friends. As James went down he latched onto Ron, who grabbed Harry, who in turn was holding Phoebe's hand. The four of them hit the ground a pile of limbs and bags.

"Stay still!" grunted the dwarf, seizing Harry's legs as Phoebe managed to get back to her feet, pulling the Seeker with her. Unfortunately, as Harry went down for the second time, he took Phoebe with him and pinned her between himself and the floor.

Phoebe's cheeks turned a tinge of pink as she realized the compromising position they had landed in, and what made it worse was the fact that Harry couldn't get off of her because the dwarf was now sitting on his ankles.

"What's going on here?" came the cold, drawling voice of Draco Malfoy.

"What's all the commotion?" said another familiar voice, as Percy Weasley arrived.

_Oh, this is just perfect!_ Phoebe complained mentally, as she tried to push Harry off of her but failed miserably. He was simply too heavy. And to use her powers meant risking exposure; all in all - she was stuck.

"Right," the Dwarf said, "here is your singing Valentine."

"James, shut him up, please!" begged Phoebe.

But it was too late; the dwarf had started to sing.

_"His eyes are as green as fresh pickled toad,_

_His hair is as dark as a blackboard._

_I wish he was mine, he's really divine,_

_The hero who conquered the Dark Lord"_

From her position Phoebe could tell by the look on Harry's face that he wanted more than anything to just disappear then and there, and she couldn't really blame him. The entire corridor had burst into laughter the second after the dwarf had finished singing, and while she probably would have joined in if she had been standing around with them, she was rather annoyed by the whole situation because of the uncomfortable position she had been forced to listen to it in.

"This is why I despise this holiday!" growled Phoebe, as Harry finally got off of her and James helped her back to her feet. "Lockhart is officially off of my crush list!"

James grinned. "Took you long enough, Pheebs. So what list is he on now?"

"The assassination list!" the elemental hissed, turning toe and hurrying off to class with Hermione. James, Harry and Ron followed after them.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Thursday, 27 October 2011 at 2:55am**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: **_Where have all my faithful readers gone? Please come back._

**A/N:** _Chapter dedicated too: _**Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, 10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat** _and new anonymous reviewer _**Cat**. _Thanks for the awesome feedback._

**A/N: **_Sorry for the late update. For the past few days I have spent a few hours sorting out my Fanfiction profile page. I have now linked my stories up with their respective titles for my stories, and by George my Muggleborn Witches series takes up most of the space. In the end (after I have finished before MWS and Phoebe) I plan to post music videos that remind me of my characters on there. So don't forget to keep checking back there for updates._

**In responses: ****Fan of Fics:**_ I agree that last chapter was another example as to why Phoebe and Harry should end up together; there is an example in here for Terence/Phoebe too. Can you see it? I was also getting bored of writing the whole 'Phoebe-having-a-crush-on-Lockhart' thing so I only saw it fitting that she realize that he was an idiot before I went completely insane. Again, for the Phoebe seeing Ginny writing in the diary, that is explained in this chapter, but thanks for the reminder because I nearly forgot what I was going to write. Lol._

**Cat**: _I'm glad you're enjoying the story as much as everyone else._

_Anyway, onto the new chapter…I worked my ass off on this. I hope you enjoy it._

* * *

><p>"It was Hagrid, Pheebs. Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets fifty years ago."<p>

Phoebe stared wide-eyed at Harry, was he serious? Had she heard right? He had willingly wrote in the diary and was telling her than an invisible person was actually writing back to him, and the same invisible person had helped him witness a scene from fifty years ago that pictured Hagrid as the very person who had set a monster loose on innocent Muggleborns within Hogwarts.

"No way, Harry," Phoebe denied. "There is no way that it is Hagrid. Okay, yeah, maybe he has an unfortunate liking for large and monstrous creatures; but there is no way that he would protect a creature that is attacking people, and there is no way that Hagrid would set the creature on people in the first place."

Harry opened his mouth to argue, but Phoebe cut him off.

"Besides you said that the creature this 'Tom Riddle' took aim at was a huge spider, yes?" Harry nodded. "Then that means it could be only one creature. And Acromantula. I've done some reading, and there is no way that the creature inside the Chamber is a giant spider."

"How can you be so sure?" said Harry.

"Key factors," said Phoebe. "The creature inside the Chamber is attacking its victims by Petrifying them, an Acromantula is pretty scary looking but it can't petrify its prey, and anyway, if a spider had attacked these people there would be puncture marks on their bodies from the pincers." She shook her head. "It's a good theory, Harry, but it's the wrong one. Hagrid is not the guy we are looking for, and his spider his not the creature."

Harry deflated as Phoebe blew their only lead out of the water – literally.

"Then who is it, Pheebs?" said Harry,

"I don't know," answered Phoebe. "I'm still trying to work that one out. But as soon as I find something, you'll be the first to know."

Harry nodded and watched as Phoebe wandered away from him, up the marble staircase and across the second floor landing to the Grand staircase. It often amazed him how sweet Phoebe could be when presented with evidence that a friend could have been a cold-blooded murder, and as much as he didn't want to think this about Hagrid there was just too much evidence stacked against the half-giant at the moment, and while Harry wanted to take Phoebe's word for truth, he knew that he needed to hear the truth from Hagrid himself.

And so, with Phoebe out of sight, Harry hurried off to find Ron and Hermione, to organise a plan to go and see Hagrid and find out the truth from him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Terence was surprised when Phoebe had told him about the diary.

"And you're sure that it is the same diary you saw Weaslette writing in?" said Terence, as he sat opposite Phoebe on top of the Astronomy tower.

Phoebe nodded as she looked up at him. "Yeah, she wouldn't let me see what she was writing, said that with brothers like Fred and George you protect your personal belongings –which I believe her – but when Harry, Ron and I found the diary it was empty, there was not a single entry in the entire thing."

The Slytherin looked considerate "Invisible ink?"

"That's what Hermione thought," Phoebe agreed. "But there was no magical imprint on it and I even suggested using the Revealer that Jackson got me for Christmas…" she shook her head.

They were silent for a while.

Before Terence said "Potter suspects Hagrid?"

Phoebe remained silent contemplating the conversation between herself and Harry earlier that afternoon. She had always known that Hagrid had been expelled, and that the attacks had stopped after he had been kicked out. Otherwise, Riddle wouldn't have gotten his reward.

But she didn't believe that Hagrid had killed anyone, and despite what Harry said or thought, there was no possible way that Hagrid was a killer. She had proof that the creature inside the Chamber was not an Acromantula but really a Basilisk, she just needed someone to confide in, someone she was certain would keep the secret to themselves until the right time, someone who would know when that right time was, because at the moment Phoebe was at a total loss on when that perfect moment was.

"Phoebe," said Terence, his voice breaking through her thoughts. "You okay? You were far away then."

The Gryffindor sighed and blinked. "Sorry, I was thinking."

"About?"

"The Creature within the Chamber."

"Ah."

Phoebe sighed. "Ter, do you think I'm making the right choices here? By keeping this information away from the Golden Trio? I mean, they do have a right to know."

"I don't believe you are making any wrong decisions," said Terence. "You'll tell them in your own time, Pheebs. I also know that you like to be accurate and consistent with the information you gather before your provide anyone with any details –" Phoebe smiled "- just finished your research and then when you are certain you have all the relevant information, then tell them what you know."

The elemental nodded and silence fell between them once again.

It had now been nearly four months since Amelia and Nearly Headless Nick had been Petrified, and nearly everybody seemed to think that the attacker, whoever it was, had retired for good, and Professor Sprout was happy to report to Phoebe, James, Ashlyn and Sarah one afternoon that the moment the mandrakes tried to move into each other's pots she'd know they were fully matured.

"Then we'll be able to revive those poor people in the hospital wing."

Phoebe and her friends had returned to the castle that day with their spirits high, one day soon Amelia would be back with them and she would have all the answer's they needed to their unanswered questions.

The most important question of all was – Who exactly was the Heir of Slytherin?

**~*Phoebe*~**

However, the second-years were soon given something new to think about during their Easter holidays. The time had come to choose their subjects for the third year, a matter that Phoebe and Hermione, at least, took very seriously.

"This will affect my entire future," said Phoebe to Terence later that evening on top of the Astronomy tower. In her lap were numerous pamphlets of the new subjects. "Oh, they have a dance studio; I didn't know Hogwarts had a dance studio?"

Terence nodded "Yeah, it's on the 6th floor. Professor Riccardo is very picky about the students she teachers, which is why only a select few students get accepted into her studio."

"And you know this…" said Phoebe.

"Alice Martin," said Terence. "She is a Slytherin girl in my year. She took the class, managed to get in, she then went on to tell everyone how difficult it was for her to even get in through the door. Apparently you've got to apply for the place, show up and perform a routine for Professor Riccardo, who will consider your performance to her standard and then she will let you know over the summer if you have been accepted or not."

Phoebe looked interested, and turned her attention back to the pamphlet.

"I didn't know you danced," enquired Terence.

"There are a lot of things you don't know about me," Phoebe smirked teasingly, her gaze looking him over slowly, as she bit her lower lip innocently.

Terence felt his heart skip a beat.

Phoebe's gaze snapped back to his as she got to her feet, the pamphlets falling to the floor as she stepped closer towards the Slytherin.

Terence resisted the urge to swallow as he stood there feeling naked and exposed under her gaze.

"I better get to bed," whispered Phoebe. "Goodnight."

And she pulled away, leaving him cold, confused and exposed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Gryffindor's next Quidditch match would be against Hufflepuff.

Wood was insisting on team practices every night after dinner, so that Phoebe barely had anytime but Quidditch and homework.

However, although she was missing her secret meetings up on the Astronomy tower with Terence, and her usual research sessions in the library on more information about the Chamber, Phoebe couldn't help but realize that the Quidditch practices were getting better, or at least drier; and the evening before Saturday's match, Phoebe returned to Gryffindor Tower to return her broomstick to find Harry, Ron and Hermione near the fireplace.

She joined them as they called her over.

"Whoever did it was looking for something," said Ron.

"And they found it," said Harry. "Tom Riddle diary is gone."

Phoebe and Hermione looked aghast at the news.

"But – only a Gryffindor could have stolen it – nobody else knows our password…"

Ron looked suspiciously at Phoebe. "There is one other person,"

"No!" said Phoebe instantly knowing who Ron was edging towards. "There is no way Terence would steal Tom Riddle's diary, besides, when was the last time he was up here? Christmas time, we didn't even have the diary during that time, and Terence doesn't know our password, he can only get in if I sneak him in."

But Ron didn't look convinced.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening Phoebe walked alongside her godmother, down the grassy slope of the front lawn and towards Hagrid's hut. "What are we doing down here?" she asked.

"After everything you have told me," said Serefina. "I fear that the Minister – Cornelius Fudge, will be arriving tonight to arrest Hagrid. I want you to tell him everything you know…"

"But I don't know everything!"

Serefina turned to her goddaughter. "Just tell him what it is you know so far," she smiled. "He cannot prosecute Hagrid for something he has not done, and without your evidence and testimony Hagrid will be arrested tonight. Do you want that?"

"No…" said Phoebe, shaking her head.

"Just be you Phoebe," said Serefina. "Just get your point across, as calmly as possible, and after that all we can do is hope for the best."

Phoebe swallowed. "What if he doesn't believe me?"

"Then he is a fool."

The young elemental giggled as she started off once more towards Hagrid's hut. Both godmother and daughter reached the front door within seconds of one another.

Seconds after they had knocked, Hagrid flung the door open. They found themselves face to face, with him aiming a crossbow at them, Fang the boarhound barking loudly behind him.

"Oh," he said, lowering the weapon and staring at them.

"What's that for?" said Phoebe, pointing at the crossbow as she stepped inside after her Godmother.

"Nothin'…nothin'," Hagrid muttered. "I've bin expectin'…doesn' matter…Sit down…I'll make tea…"

He hardly seemed to know what he was doing. He nearly extinguished the fire, spilling water from the kettle on it, and then smashed the teapot with a nervous jerk of his massive hand.

"Are you OK, Hagrid?" said Phoebe, as she spotted than he kept glancing nervously at the windows. He poured them large mugs of boiling water (he had forgotten to add tea bags) and was just putting a slab of fruitcake on a plate, when there was a loud knock on the door.

Hagrid dropped the fruitcake, as Phoebe jumped to her feet in surprise, a yelp escaping her lips. Serefina got steadily to her feet and pulled her Goddaughter behind her as Hagrid moved to open the door.

"Good evening, Hagrid."

It was Dumbledore. He entered, looking deadly serious, and was followed by a second, very odd-looking man.

The stranger was a short, portly man with rumpled grey hair and an anxious expression. He was wearing a strange mixture of clothes; a pin-striped suit, a scarlet tie, a long black cloak and pointed purple boots. Under his arm he carried a lime-green bowler.

Phoebe tugged at Serefina's hand and frowned at the older man.

"Ah," Dumbledore smiled, spotting Phoebe. "Cornelius, may I introduce you to Professor Serefina Blackheart and her daughter Phoebe. Phoebe, Serefina, this is Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic here in the United Kingdom."

Cornelius looked confused on the way Dumbledore had addressed him, but before he could say anything Dumbledore answered him with a quick. "Professor Blackheart and Phoebe are our exchange Professor and student; they come to us from Portugal."

"Oh," Fudge nodded. "Pleasure to meet you both,"

Serefina nodded as Phoebe waved politely. She wasn't sure if she liked the Cornelius Fudge character yet.

Hagrid, however, had gone all sweaty. He dropped into one of his chairs and looked from Dumbledore to Cornelius Fudge to Serefina and Phoebe.

"Bad business, Hagrid," said Fudge, in rather clipped tones. "Very bad business. Had to come. Four attacks. Four attacks on Muggleborns. Things have gone far enough the Ministry has got to act."

"I never," said Hagrid, looking imploringly at Dumbledore. "You know me, I never, Professor Dumbledore, sir…"

"I want it understood, Cornelius, that Hagrid has my full confidence," said Dumbledore, frowning at Fudge.

"Look, Albus," said Fudge, uncomfortably. "Hagrid's record's against him Ministry's got to do something – the school governors have been in touch."

"You've got it all wrong!" said Phoebe. "Hagrid is not the person you want; he is not the Heir of Slytherin!"

"Phoebe," Serefina warned.

But Phoebe didn't heed the warning. "Minister, I'm begging you, please listen! The creature inside the Chamber is a Basilisk; it has been dormant for the last thousand years. I don't know Hagrid's story, but the only way to open the Chamber and control the monster within is to be a Parselmouth, and I know for a fact that Hagrid is not a Parselmouth."

The professors and Minister were silent.

"It makes sense," said Serefina in agreement. "Hagrid, fifty years ago, what creature was you reprimanded for keeping?"

Hagrid looked awkward. "A spider,"

"You see," Phoebe continued pointing at the half giant. "If Hagrid's creature was the one that has been petrifying Muggleborns, ghosts and cats within the castle then you would have found puncture marks upon their bodies. There were no puncture marks. There is absolutely no evidence linking Hagrid or his 'pet' to these attacks."

The Minister stared at Phoebe curiously. "Miss Blackheart, look at it from my point of view. I'm under a lot of pressure. Got to be seen to be doing something. If it turns out that your point is correct and Hagrid is not the person behind the attacks, he'll be returned to his post here at Hogwarts and no more said. But I've got to take him. Got to. Wouldn't be doing my duty –"

Phoebe saw red. "YOU DON'T GET IT!" she screamed. "Hagrid is not the Heir of Slytherin; the creature within the Chamber is not a spider! You, Minister only care about your image at the Ministry and your job, you don't care about what happens here at Hogwarts, you only start to care when your job is called into question and parents start questioning you on the safety of their children while at school."

Cornelius gripped the rim of his bowler hat in anger at the on slaughter of accusations, but Phoebe ignored him and pressed on.

"The creature within the Chamber has been _petrifying_ its victims," the young Gryffindor raged. "It can only be controlled by a _Parselmouth_. I have read all about Basilisk and it is stated that Spiders flee before it, there was a cluster of spiders at each crime scene, and each time the little spawns were scuttling away from the scene and back out onto the grounds; in the beginning I didn't understand why this was happening…" she paused. "But now I do. Amelia, Colin nor Mrs Norris had puncture wounds on any part of their body, proving that they were not attacked by something with pincers –"

Cornelius interrupted. "I understand your concern," he told the distraught 12 year old. "But I have to be seen as doing my job."

"Then tell the public that Headmaster Dumbledore and the Professors at Hogwarts have everything under control," Phoebe replied. "You now have all the information you need to find and stop the Heir of Slytherin, you don't need to arrest Hagrid, and all students can be protected one the rest of the teachers know what it is they are on the lookout for."

Cornelius seemed to hesitate uncomfortably. Hagrid was looking nervous at the prospect of going to Azkaban for something he had not done while Dumbledore and Serefina were waiting patiently for the verdict.

"Do you believe you can catch the heir, Dumbledore?" Cornelius asked, turning to the Headmaster. "Especially since you have no idea who the heir is and where he or she is residing?"

"We know he or she is somewhere within the castle," said Serefina. "I believe with the correct information we will be able to catch him or her."

Dumbledore nodded his head in agreement as his blue gaze penetrated Phoebe's stormy grey one. "I too believe that we will catch the Heir before the year is out."

"You have until the end of the month," said Cornelius. "If you do not have evidence or any indication on who the culprit is by then, I shall return, and Hagrid, I fear will need to come with me. Do you understand?"

Phoebe glowered at the older man, it was clear that he did not believe her.

"Completely," said Dumbledore.

Cornelius bowed his head in Serefina and Phoebe's direction, shook hands with Dumbledore before placing his bowler hat back onto his head and leaving the hut.

Silence hung in the air after his departure.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Sunday, 30 October 2011 at 1:56am**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: **_Chapter dedicated too _**KingdomHeartsNerd, ElleJTrix, Fan of Fics, Razmend, Vivi Fontaine, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** _and_ **HotaruKenobi.** _Thank for making me enjoy updating for you. I really should be revising for a test I have tomorrow, but hearing from you lovely people is more fun for me =)_

**In responses: **_**Fan of Fics:**__More twists. Hermione will not be petrified and neither will Penelope Clearwater._

_**ElleJTrix:**_ _Just like many before you have noticed, yes Phoebe has a lot of boys around her. Ron has trust issues and Terence is an amazing character. I just love him. =)_

_**Vivi Fontaine:**_ _Happy Halloween. Yup. Terence is in love._

_**HotaruKenobi:**_ _You want more Oliver/Phoebe to balance the Terence/Phoebe? More of Oliver to come in third year. Promise._

* * *

><p>Summer was creeping over the grounds around the castle; sky and lake alike turned periwinkle blue and flowers large as cabbages burst into bloom.<p>

Phoebe and her friends tried to visit Amelia, but visitors were now barred from the hospital wing.

"We're taking no more chances," Madam Pomfrey told them severely through a crack in the hospital door. "No, I'm sorry, there's a chance the attacker might come back to finish these people off…"

With less than a month until the end of term things within the castle were starting to go seriously wrong.

Students –despite there being no attacks- where starting to become more and more worried as fear and panic set in amongst them, and many of them started to question why the Heir of Slytherin had suddenly gone very quiet.

Phoebe, Harry, Ron and Hermione were working overtime, in hopes of figuring out the Chamber of Secrets case before the end of term, but so far there was no more evidence to find.

Phoebe had hit a dead end with her research, completely unsure of what to look for next, she knew what creature resided within the Chamber, but the only thing she didn't know was where the Entrance to the Chamber was.

"I have less than a month to figure this whole thing out," she complained one evening, as she sat in the library pouring over numerous books that she thought could help her. "I also have end of year exams, and Oliver is scheduling Quidditch practices every other day…" she slammed the thick tomb closed and pushed it away from her.

Terence –who had been working quietly opposite her- jumped at the bang the book made as it slid from the table and hit the floor. "Calm down, Phe," he soothed, picking the book up and placing it back on the table. "You're pushing yourself too hard, you can't do everything. Quidditch is important to Wood, and therefore he is going to push you and the rest of the team to your limits, your end of year exams are also important, without them you can't return next year…"

Phoebe glared at him.

"Maybe now would be a good time to tell the Golden Trio what you know." said Terence, ignoring the glare. "You don't have to do it all."

Phoebe sighed and glanced down at the book in front of her. "Maybe you're right," she agreed.

"Of course I am," Terence smirked.

"Big head," mumbled Phoebe, as she rolled her eyes.

It was Terence's turn to glare. "Ouch. That hurt."

"Aw, I'm sorry." Phoebe teased.

"You better be…"

Phoebe smirked, as she leaned forward on the table. "What if I'm not?"

"Then I guess I'd have to make you," replied Terence, matching her actions.

The two stared at one another for a moment before Phoebe sprang from her seat and bolted towards the Potions section of the library. Terence followed her catching up to her in no time, and using his Seeker skills grabbed her around the waist.

Phoebe laughed as he carried her over his shoulder back to their table; he sat her on the surface and grinned down at her as she locked her arms around his neck, and his hands settled on her hips.

"Can't see how Flint kicked you from the team," said Phoebe, breaking the silence between them. "You caught me a lot quicker than it took Malfoy to even _locate_ the Snitch."

"I agree," said Terence getting closer to her, their foreheads touching.

Their lips were barely touching when something clicked within Phoebe. "Oh…" she breathed, her eyes becoming wide and almost distance looking.

Nervously, Terence pulled away. "What?"

Phoebe slipped her arms from around his neck and turned her glassy look towards him "I have an idea…"

"What kind of an idea?"

"Do you think the Bloody Baron would answer some questions for me?"

Terence frowned. "He might. Why?"

"Do you think he will answer them if Harry, Ron and Hermione are present?"

"Probably," said Terence. "Are you going to tell me why?"

Phoebe slid from the table and started to collect her things. "You'll see. Just come on, I need to find him before curfew is set in; and I also have to get the Golden Trio too."

Still confused –and slightly dazed- Terence packed his things away and followed Phoebe from the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe clutched Terence's arm as he led her through the winding dungeons, they were still searching for the Bloody baron: the Slytherin ghost.

"How can you be so sure that he will know where the Entrance is?" asked Ron, as he, Harry and Hermione followed the elemental.

"He's the Slytherin ghost," Phoebe answered. "Who else would know about the Heir of Slytherin?"

"Apart of Slytherin himself," said Terence, earning a nudge from Phoebe and a suspicious look from Hermione.

Harry continued to look confused. "Are you sure he is down here? He could be off dealing with Peeves."

"I just saw Peeves," said Hermione. "He's on the fourth floor doing something to annoy Filch."

The small group of five soon reached the entrance to the Slytherin common room, and the portrait of Salazar Slytherin loomed over them. "Gryffindor's!" he exclaimed, leering at Terence. "Why have you brought lions into our domain?"

"We're looking for the Bloody Baron," said Phoebe. "We want to ask him some questions about the Chamber of Secrets."

Salazar Slytherin turned his attention to her. "The Chamber of Secrets?" he questioned. "Why would young students such as you be worried about that?"

"Because it's been opened again," said Harry. "And people have been attacked."

Phoebe considered him for a moment. "You're the creator of the Chamber; therefore you must know where the entrance is hidden."

"I do know."

"Then please tell us,"

Salazar smirked snidely. "The entrance is where the death occurred fifty years ago."

The Gryffindor's groaned.

"That doesn't help!" said Ron.

Phoebe silenced him with a look, she knew of Ron's trust issues when it came to dealing with Slytherin's, but she trusted Salazar. She had too, he was her mentor.

"Do you know where we may find the Bloody Baron?" said Phoebe, politely. "I understand that we could ask any of the ghosts, but it seems more prominent to ask the Slytherin ghost."

As if on cue, the Bloody Baron floated through the stone wall to the left of the portrait. He stopped short when he spotted the group of five.

"What are lions doing down here?" he sneered.

Salazar shook his head. "Never mind that now; they have some questions for you, you will tell them what they need to know."

The Bloody baron glared at the portrait, but turned to Phoebe. "I will answer you, and only you," he told her. "Understand?"

"Completely," the elemental agreed, confused on why it was only her he would answer.

"We are searching for the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets," said Phoebe. "We know that it is somewhere in the castle, we just don't know where. We are also aware that it is hidden wherever death occurred on someone fifty years ago, do you know who the person who died was?"

Baron considered the elemental. "The girl was a Ravenclaw, she was found in a bathroom on the second floor. Myrtle Mime."

The Gryffindor's gasped in realization as Phoebe spun around to face her friends.

"No way!" breathed Hermione.

Harry stared at Phoebe in disbelief of the revelation - the last piece of the puzzle – the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me?" breathed Ron. "Not _Moaning Myrtle_?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"All those times we were in that bathroom, and she was just three toilets away," said Ron bitterly later that evening, "and we could've just asked her, and now…"

Phoebe glanced sideways at the red head. "I know that it is frustrating to know that we could have figured this out months ago, but now we have the last piece to the puzzle. All we need is a window of opportunity to get in and talk to Myrtle."

"How are we going to do that?" asked Harry. "The teachers are on alert now; it's like they know what to look for…"

Phoebe looked sheepish.

"What?" Hermione said.

"Um, they sort of know what to look for, because I kinda…um…told them," stuttered Phoebe. The Golden Trio looked confused. "A few nights ago, when Cornelius Fudge arrived at the school, he tried to arrest Hagrid for a crime he didn't commit; I know this because I was there. I told Fudge that he was looking for clues in all the wrong places and that the creature within the Chamber was not something that Hagrid could control."

"But how do you know that Hagrid can't control what is inside the chamber?" asked Hermione. "We don't even know what creature is in there."

Phoebe avoided eye contact. "You don't, but I do."

"How?"

"For weeks now I have been doing my own research," explained Phoebe. "In the library, Serefina kind of gave me an idea on what books to check out, and I just sort of went from there. The creature that Hagrid was kicked out of school for keeping fifty years ago was an Acromantula; it's a giant spider."

Ron tensed at the mental image of a giant spider. He shuddered.

Phoebe seemingly ignored him. "But the creature that has been targeting Muggleborns here at Hogwarts is not an Acromantula. Acromantula's would have left puncture marks on its victims from their pincers, this creature uses something a lot more paralysing than venom –although it does have venom in its body- the creature we are dealing with is a Basilisk."

"A Basilisk?" screeched Hermione. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," said Phoebe. "It all fits."

"What fits?" said Ron, looking confused.

Phoebe jumped to her feet. "Stay here," she ordered, before running upstairs to her dorm room, and careful not to wake Lavender and Parvati she dug through her trunk and pulled out the book **Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them** before returning to the Golden Trio in the common room. "Read that…"

Turning to the correct page in the book, Phoebe placed the leather bound book on the table for her three friends to read.

_One of the man fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk; known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it._

There was a heavy silence.

"_That's_ why I've been hearing that voice all over the place," said Harry, breaking the silence. "And nobody else has heard it. It's because I understand Parseltongue."

Phoebe nodded.

"The Basilisk kills by looking people in the eye," repeated Ron. "But no one's died, so, how?"

"Because no one did look it in the eye," answered Hermione. "At least not directly, Colin saw it through his camera…"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Because the Basilisk burned the film inside, Colin just got petrified. Amelia…Amelia must've seen the Basilisk through Nearly Headless Nick!"

"Nick got the full blast of it," agreed Harry. "But he's a ghost, he couldn't die _again_!"

Ron's jaw had dropped.

"And Mrs Norris?" he whispered eagerly.

Phoebe stared at into the flickering flames of the dying fire as she tried to picture the scene of the night of Halloween.

"The water…" said Harry, slowly, "the flood from Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. I bet you Mrs Norris only saw the reflection…"

Hermione scanned the passage in the book once more. The more she looked at it, the more everything made sense.

"_The crowing of the rooster is fatal to it!"_ she read aloud, "Didn't Hagrid complain to Dumbledore about something killing his roosters? I'm willing to bet the heir of Slytherin didn't want one anywhere near the castle once the Chamber had been opened, and so he killed them beforehand."

Phoebe pulled the book onto her lap. "_Spiders flee before it!_ At each crime scene there was a cluster of spiders, each fighting with one another to get back out onto the grounds, remember?"

Harry nodded as Hermione giggled as the image of Ashlyn and Ron pressed against the wall in fear popped to mind.

"It all fits!" cried Phoebe.

"But how's the Basilisk been getting around?" asked Ron. "A dirty great snake…Someone would've seen…"

Phoebe cut him off as she turned to Harry. "Didn't you say that you could hear the voice within the walls?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah…but I don't –"

"Oh, don't you get it?" cried Hermione. "The snake has been using the plumbing! You can hear the voice inside the walls of the castle, because it's using the pipes."

Ron suddenly jumped from his seat "The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets!" he said hoarsely, "What if it's a bathroom? What if it's in –"

"- _Moaning Myrtle's bathroom,"_ said Harry.

They sat there, excitement coursing through them, hardly able to believe it.

"This means," said Harry, "I can't be the only Parselmouth in the school. The heir of Slytherin's one, too. That's how they've been controlling the Basilisk"

"What're we going to do?" said Hermione, whose eyes were flashing. "Shall we go straight to McGonagall?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No. I think we should go straight to the top. Tell Dumbledore! He'll know what to do."

"Let's go to the staff room," said Harry, "do you think he'll be awake at this hour?"

The group of four glanced at the clock on the wall above the fire, it was nearly midnight. The idea of any of the professors being awake at this hour was improbable, and if they were caught out of the Tower after curfew then they would be in worse trouble.

"No," said Phoebe, "It's late. We should try and get some sleep. We'll talk to the Professors in the morning."

"But Phoebe –"whined Harry.

"There is nothing we can do now!" said Phoebe, "Its nearly midnight, if we are caught out of bed after hours it won't matter what we know about the Chamber, we'll be in trouble for just breaking the rules. Besides, we're not supposed to be playing detectives; we're not supposed to be getting involved!"

"But you said Dumbledore was there the night you confronted Fudge," said Hermione, "so he knows that you have gotten involved in this whole thing, and so does your godmother, so it wouldn't matter if you got caught after hours, you could just say that you were going to see Professor Blackheart and you'd get off the hook."

Phoebe shook her head. "Not at this hour," she explained, "and besides, I'm not going to the Professors without you guys, you helped me figure out the last pieces of the puzzle, it wouldn't be fair if I had to explain everything without you there to help me; tomorrow, once we've all gone to the professors, we can all take the credit for working through the evidence and figuring out the case together."

Hermione, Harry and Ron exchanged looks, before nodding and smiling in agreement. "Deal!" they agreed.

"But it's the last match of the season tomorrow," added Ron, as the four of them headed up to bed.

Phoebe tucked her book under her arm and turned to the red head. "Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff," she looked towards Harry, "Oliver won't be happy if we get the game cancelled, or if we ask for a forfeit"

"Can't he substitute you with other players?" suggested Hermione.

"He could me," agreed Phoebe. "But we don't have a reserve seeker. Harry has to play."

"Couldn't we find someone?" asked Harry.

Phoebe shrugged. "It's too late, we don't have enough time to train them; the game is tomorrow!" she paused. "Unless…"

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked expectant. "Unless…?" they pushed.

"Unless I can get Oliver to agree to let Terence play for Gryffindor,"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**HAPPY HALLOWEEN – HOPE YOU ALL HAVE HAD A SPOOKTACULAR NIGHT. =D**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 31 October 2011 at 11:01pm**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N:** _Chapter goes out to the following people: _**KingdomHeartsNerd, HotaruKenobi, Vivi Fontaine** _and_ **Fan of Fics.** _I'm glad you all enjoyed last chapter, especially the Terence/Phoebe scene in the library._

**In responses:** _**HotaruKenobi: **__Although I have already decided on who Phoebe will end up with, I will try and bring in more balanced scenes between the two. Stay tuned to find who I choose. =)_

_**Vivi Fontaine:**__ Yup. He uses your nickname. He loves it, just like he loves Phoebe. I think he is immensely sweet, and it was hard to write him in the chapter below: but I hope I did him justice. Keep reading to find out what I mean._

_**Fan of Fics:**__ Yeah, Oliver loves Phoebe, he'd do anything for her. I do agree that it was depressing without Hermione which is why I love Fanfiction so much. Headmaster Slytherin being nasty to the Lions is totally different from MWS (which I guess is a good thing) because he is a different person in this, his house is pureblooded supremacy (with the odd Halfblood thrown into the mix - more on this later). Ginny being taken into the chamber...don't hate me when you get to the end of this chapter..._

_Anyway, I won't say anymore...enjoy._

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><p>The next morning at breakfast, Professor Dumbledore made a special announcement. "I have good news," he said, and the Great Hall fell silent. "Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last. Tonight, we will be able to revive those people who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with our catching the culprit."<p>

There was an explosion of cheering, Phoebe hugged James and spun around to face the Slytherin table just as Ashlyn launched herself out of her seat and into the Gryffindor's arms, and moments later, Sarah joined them from the Hufflepuff table. In a few hours they would have the fifth member of their little group back with them.

"It won't matter that we never asked Myrtle!" said Ron, "Amelia and/or Colin will have seen who attacked them, they can tell us who the heir of Slytherin is and then they can lead us to the Chamber!"

Hermione looked positively delighted with the prospect of this year being finally over. It was out of sheer luck and protection of her friends that she had not been attacked during the school year, unfortunately, she couldn't help but feel guilty that one of Phoebe's little group of five had been away from most of the year because she had been unfortunate to be caught in the crossfire.

"I suggest we still see the Professor's though," the bookworm suggested, after all the hubbub had quietened down and students returned to their breakfast. "Phoebe, you need to talk to Oliver."

The elemental groaned. "Why have I got to talk to Oliver?" she asked. "Why can't Harry do it?"

"Because Oliver's not in love with Harry," said Hermione, "Bat your eyelids at him if you have too, but you have to get out of that game this morning!"

Phoebe glared at Hermione as Harry and Ron sniggered into their breakfast. "Bat my eyelids?" the elemental repeated.

"You know what I mean;" Hermione said sheepishly, "Oliver likes you, a lot. If you flirt with him a little you may very well get your own way."

"I hate you so much!" Phoebe groaned, tossing her head back in annoyance. Glancing down the table she spotted Oliver talking rapidly with Katie Bell, Fred and George Weasley, Alicia Spinnet and a few other Gryffindor's. "Fine! I'll go talk to the Quidditch obsessed maniac who has no life!"

Hermione grinned and watched as her friend hurried down the aisle between Slytherin and Gryffindor table, patted Oliver and the shoulder and motioned to the Entrance Hall behind her. Oliver nodded, got to his feet and followed Phoebe from the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Oliver's jaw hit the floor as he stared wide-eyed at his Chaser. "What do you mean you're not playing?" he demanded. "We've practiced too hard and too long for you to back out now, Phoebe!"

"I know," sighed Phoebe. "But I have something important to take care of."

"More important that the final game of the season?"

"No. Oliver, please, calm down, you're blowing this all out of proportion." Phoebe explained. "Harry and I can't play in the final game, but that doesn't me we have to cancel the match or forfeit."

Oliver looked at her like she was crazy. "You're suggesting we bring on reserve players?"

"Yes."

"No!"

"Why not?"

"Because we don't have time to train them," Oliver answered. "You and Harry have to play. End of story."

Phoebe shook her head. "We can't Oliver, this is important, we can't be there today. Give my position to Roxanne or Angelina."

"And what do you suppose I do about Harry? We don't have a reserve seeker."

"Um, actually, I was hoping you'd consider Terence Higgs for taking Harry's spot."

If possible Oliver's glare hardened. "A Slytherin?" he growled. "Why on earth would I consider a Slytherin to take over my seeker's position? Better yet why would _you_ suggest a Slytherin?"

"Because Terence was unfairly booted from the Slytherin team," defended Phoebe, "He's a good seeker; he was treated unfairly because Flint cares about money more than he does skill. Please, Oliver, just this once!"

Oliver stood firmly against the idea of a Slytherin playing Seeker for him; he wanted to know why Phoebe and Harry refused to play in the last game of the season, and why Phoebe wanted Higgs –of all people- to play reserve for Harry.

"Please, Ollie," begged Phoebe, her lips formed a pout as she stared up at him with wide innocent eyes.

Oliver felt his resistance start to break. He always did when she looked at him with those gorgeous stormy grey eyes.

"Fine!" he sighed "but just this once!"

"Thanks, Oliver," Phoebe grinned, standing on her tippy-toes to kiss his cheek. "You're the best!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

On her way back to the Gryffindor tower, Phoebe turned the corner and ended up walking into the terrified looking form of Ginny Weasley.

"Ginny!" Phoebe exclaimed, scrambling to her feet and pulling the youngest Weasley up with her. "What's the matter?"

Ginny didn't say anything, but glanced around with a scared look on her face that reminded Phoebe of someone who was holding forbidden information.

"Phoebe, I've got to tell you something," Ginny mumbled, carefully not looking at the older Lion.

"What is it?"

Ginny looked as though she couldn't find the right words.

"Gin…" said Phoebe, reaching out to touch the eleven-year-olds shoulder. "What is it? You can tell me."

Ginny opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

Phoebe grasped both Ginny's shoulders and turned the younger female to face her. "Ginny, look at me, is it about the Chamber of Secrets? Have you seen something? Someone acting oddly?"

Ginny nodded. "Yes."

"Where?"

"Second floor."

Phoebe frowned. "Where Mrs Norris was attacked?"

Again Ginny nodded.

"What did you see?"

Ginny swallowed and rung her hands nervously. "I-I was walking past the second floor bathroom on my way to the game," she explained, "w-wh-when I heard a noise. It sounded like a made up language, it was more of a hiss than anything else, so I went in to see what was happening and that's when I saw it…"

"Saw what?" Phoebe asked, her hands trembling slightly.

"The opening was closing," Ginny rambled. "But I could distinctively hear the hiss of a snake…"

Phoebe stared at the first year. "Could you show me?"

Ginny nodded, and grasping Phoebe's hand and led her up to the second floor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe followed Ginny down the dark corridor where the messages shone on the wall, to the door of Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, occasionally the elemental glanced over her shoulder – there was something off about this, Ginny had been teetering on the edge of breaking down and suddenly she had snapped back and was no acting like a normal child leading the way to some big adventure.

"Gin, maybe we should go get the teachers," suggested Phoebe. "There isn't much I can do if this is the entrance to the Chamber."

Ginny shook her head. "No, no, it's okay,"

Phoebe frowned. "Seriously, Ginny, what can I do?"

"I don't know," Ginny shrugged, "Come on, we're almost there, we're only going to check it out."

She smiled sweetly and Phoebe found that she was reluctant to argue against her. "Okay, but as long as we're only here to check it out. I don't think we should interfere, this is a job for the Professors."

"Of course," Ginny agreed, "Wouldn't dream of interfering."

They reached the door leading into the bathroom and Ginny sent Phoebe in first –something the second year found rather strange- shaking off the suspicious vibes she could feel, the elemental pushed open the door and stepped inside. Myrtle was floating up near the high window above the stalls; she looked around when the door opened.

"Who is it?"

"Phoebe," the elemental answered, "Myrtle, have you noticed anything strange these past few hours, anyone in here speaking in a foreign language or something?"

The ghost shook her head, "Not that I can remember…oh…there was this one person; she said something in a made up language."

"What did it sound like?" asked Phoebe.

"Like a hiss."

Phoebe nodded, "and the girl? What did she look like?"

But before Myrtle could answer a strange cold hiss cut through the air and the tap on the sink in front of Myrtle's toilet started to glow with a brilliant bright white light and began to spin. Next second, the sink began to move. The sink, in fact, sank, right out of sight, leaving a large pipe exposed, a pipe wide enough for a man to slide into.

Phoebe gasped and took a step backwards from the sink, as Myrtle let out a terrified scream and plunged down into her toilet.

Another cold hiss echoed around the bathroom and seconds later two large yellow eyes appeared in the opening leading from the pipe into the bathroom.

A head reared out of the opening and Phoebe shielded her eyes from the killer beam, "Ginny, get out of here!" the elemental yelled, "Go find Harry and Ron! Tell them what you know, they can help!"

But Ginny was merely standing behind Phoebe a dazed expression on her face.

"Ginny!" Phoebe yelled again, pushing the younger Gryffindor towards the door.

Ginny stumbled slightly, but regained her footing, she turned to Phoebe "You're the key to this whole thing," she said in a monotone voice, "He will come for you. He said he would…and he's right…"

"Gin…" Phoebe breathed, fear and panic overtaking her senses. She felt her body freeze as she stared into the empty eyes of Ron's sister. "It was you…you opened the Chamber of Secrets…"

Ginny smiled.

"Why?" asked Phoebe. "You attacked Colin…Amelia and Mrs Norris…"

Ginny nodded. "You want to know why?"

"Yeah…"

"Because he told me too."

"Who told you too?" asked Phoebe.

An evil smirk stretched over Ginny's face making her look even more possessed than she already did, "You'll find out soon enough…but don't worry, he won't hurt you…he needs you, you're his back plan, you're Plan B."

Phoebe swallowed, and before she could do anything to protect herself, Ginny's fist collided with the side of her head knocking her unconscious.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I am trying to break up the ending for a longer second year, if not then there would only be one more chapter after this. So I apologize if this seems short. Hopefully now I can break the final chapter two. We'll see.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 02 November 2011 at 2:31am**


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N:** _Chapter goes out to the following people: _**KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, 10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat, HotaruKenobi** _and_ **Vivi Fontaine.** _I am glad you're enjoying the story, all of you. I love getting up in the morning and seeing reviews from you lovely people; I also enjoy checking my emails throughout the day and seeing reviews waiting for me, makes me anticipate getting home from University so that I can write another chapter. =)_

**In responses: **_**Fan of Fics:**__ I agree, Phoebe really needs to learn to stop going off on her own, but then she can't really walk around the school with bodyguards; that's just asking for trouble. And besides her two bodyguards are in Durmstrang (Blake and Jackson). I also didn't know if Ginny seemed OOC last chapter, because like I said to a friend of mine, we're not sure what possessed people act like, but I figured they be like a shell of their real selves just all emotion and sentiments gone; I hope I played the possessed eleven year old justice. Thank you for the review._

_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**__ Thank you for both of your reviews. I will answer both of them here because you didn't make last dedication (but you should know that you are included in it, you always are). Yeah, Phoebe and Terence nearly kissed (yay!). Phoebe's ideas have the worst timing, why couldn't it have come to mind __**after**__ they had kissed, eh? Ah well, wishful thinking. =P. And as for Oliver, he is willing to do absolutely __**anything**__ for Phoebe; because he loves her._

_**Vivi Fontaine:**__ I'm glad you love the story. I only aim to please. Never fear...well...it is Phoebe, I guess you have a right to be worried she does have the tendency to get into trouble Life and Death trouble, first Quirrell and now Ginny._

_Now, read onto the next chapter..._

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><p>It didn't take a genius to feel the tension that was building in the Gryffindor changing rooms, Oliver Wood was still put off by the fact that his two star players had abandoned the last game of the season to go gallivanting around the castle, and to make it worse they wouldn't even give him a proper excuse as to <em>why<em> they wouldn't be there for the last game.

Phoebe had just said that she and Harry needed to take care of something important and that the final game just clashed with their plans. What was more important than overtaking Slytherin for the House Championship? He thought both Phoebe and Harry were on the same page as him when it came to Quidditch – obviously he was mistaken.

Also, what was adding to the tension was the fact that Phoebe had suggested a Slytherin to play reserve for Gryffindor's star Seeker. Why on earth would Phoebe, a _Gryffindor_ suggest that a _Slytherin_ get the chance to play for the opposing team; especially when both teams were competing for the House Championship. But a better question that Oliver found hard to comprehend, why did it seem so important to Phoebe for Higgs to play? And why did it seem she was on more than a friendly basis with the former Slytherin seeker?

Shaking his head, Oliver put aside all thoughts as he felt a twinge of emotion rise in his chest as he remembered back to the conversation with Phoebe earlier that morning; the way he had resisted the urge to yell at the younger Gryffindor for letting him down when he needed her the most, the way he felt whenever she mentioned Higgs name; and it wasn't for the fact that she seemed to actually be on speaking terms with Higgs, but it was the way that she referred to him by his first name instead of his last.

"What are you up to, Phoebe?" said Oliver more to himself than anyone else. He shook his head again, trying to understand Phoebe was like to trying to understand why it snowed in the winter.

The team walked onto the pitch to a tumultuous applause. Wood took off for a warm-up flight around the goalposts, Madam Hooch released the balls. The Hufflepuff's, who played in canary yellow, were standing in a huddle, having a last-minute discussion of tactics.

Terence was just mounting his broomstick when Professor McGonagall came half-marching, half-running across the pitch, carrying an enormous purple megaphone.

The Slytherin felt his heart drop like a stone.

"This match has been cancelled," Professor McGonagall called through the megaphone, addressing the packed stadium. There were boos and shouts, Oliver Wood who looked devastated, landed and ran towards Professor McGonagall without getting off his broomstick.

"But Professor!" he shouted. "We've got to play…the Cup…_Gryffindor…"_

Professor McGonagall ignored him and continued to shout through her megaphone. "All students are to make their way back to their house common rooms. All teachers are to meet with myself and the Headmaster in the staff room immediately! As quickly as you can now, please!"

Then she lowered the megaphone and beckoned Terence over to her and Oliver.

"I think it would be better if you two came with me…"

Still clutching their broomsticks and decked out in the Quidditch gear, Terence and Oliver followed McGonagall back to the castle in silence.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Serefina rung her hands nervously as she paced in front of the cabinet inside the staff room, she was becoming increasingly impatient as she awaited the return of the teachers from the match; she had been preparing herself for the final match of the season when she had received a visit from her mother Elena Blackheart who frantically told her that she had had a vision of Phoebe being in trouble, when asked where Phoebe was, Serefina had automatically said she was preparing for her final game.

Unknown to the Care of Magical Creatures professor, her Goddaughter was in fact in mortal danger down on the second floor, when her mother, Elena had relayed the vision to Serefina, the Earth elemental and immediately left her office and rushed to the second floor corridor where in fact another message had been written on the wall in blood; Serefina felt her throat close up as she read the message in her mind's eye.

_Their skeletons will lie in the Chamber forever._

"Phoebe…" whispered Serefina brokenly. "What am I going to do with you?"

Just then the staff room door banged open and the rest of the teachers flittered into the room. Some of them were looking puzzled, others downright scared. Then Professor McGonagall arrived.

"It has happened," she told the silent staff room. "Two students have been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."

Professor Flitwick let out a squeal. Professor Sprout clapped her hands over her mouth. Serefina stifled a sob and Snape gripped the back of her chair very hard and said. "How can you be so sure?"

"The heir of Slytherin," said Professor Dumbledore, "left another message. Right underneath the last one. _Their Skeletons will lie in the Chamber forever. _And we received a message from a very reliable source that one of our students was in danger, we reacted immediately"

"Who is it?" said Madam Pomfrey, who had sunk, weak-kneed into a chair. "Which students?"

"Ginny Weasley," said Professor McGonagall "and Phoebe Blackheart."

Serefina burst into tears.

Professor Sprout –who was sitting closest to Serefina- drew her into a hug and looked expectantly at the Headmaster. "What is being done, Headmaster?"

"We shall have to send the students home tomorrow," said Dumbledore. "I am afraid this is the end of Hogwarts."

The staff room door banged open and Lockhart strode in, and he was beaming.

"So sorry – dozed off – what have I missed?"

He didn't seem to notice that the other teachers were looking at him with something remarkably like hatred. Snape stepped forward, blocking Lockhart from the death glare that Serefina was sending him.

"Just the man," said Snape. "The very man. Two girls have been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last."

Lockhart blanched.

"That's right, Gilderoy," chipped in Professor Sprout. "Weren't you saying just last night that you've known all along where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"

"I – well – I –"spluttered Lockhart.

"Yes, didn't you tell me you were sure that you knew what was inside it?" squeaked Professor Flitwick.

"D-did I? I don't recall…"

"I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn't had a crack at the monster before Miss Blackheart stepped forward with relevant information," said Snape. "Didn't you say that the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given free rein from the first?"

Lockhart stared around at his stony-faced colleagues.

"I…I really never…You may have misunderstood…"

"Then it's settled," Dumbledore decided. "We'll leave it to you, Gilderoy. Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. I will personally make sure that everyone is out of your way. You'll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last."

Lockhart gazed desperately around him, but nobody came to the rescue. He didn't look remotely handsome any more. His lip was trembling, and in the absence of his usually tooth grin he looked weak-chinned and weedy.

"V-very well," he said. "I'll – I'll be in my office, getting – getting ready."

And he left the room

"Right," said Professor McGonagall, whose nostrils were flared, "that's got _him_ out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students of what has happened. Tell them the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories? Serefina, would you like to contact your parents, they should be here; and I will go contact Molly and Arthur, they should be informed."

Dumbledore rose. "Leave Arthur and Molly to me, Minerva; you inform the Gryffindor's."

"Yes, headmaster," McGonagall nodded.

The teachers rose, and left one by one.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_*Hides behind pillow and begs to not be harmed*_** Please don't hurt me. I know you're all probably hating me right now for leaving you here. But I have a real good explanation. Find it below:**

**Next few chapters are going to be really short. I hope that doesn't defuse anyone from the story, but I want to try and get everything in.**

**Next chapter may possibly be the last of year 2, it is undecided yet. But I have started writing.**

**I am updating this early because I want to get to bed. I was wrecked this morning and I don't want a repeat of it tomorrow.**

**So I wish you a goodnight.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, 03 November 2011 at 1:20am**


	33. Chapter 33

**Fan of Fics:**_ I get what you mean when you say shorter chapters give you a reason to come back. Hopefully they won't be as short as only two scenes, usually I hate chapters that are only one or two scenes long, but it is essential in order for me to get everything in. As for the 'Puffs; at the moment there is only one Puff and that is Sarah, Amelia has been Petrified and Ashlyn is in Slytherin. Harry and Ron will enter the chamber...but there will be a third person present too. You'll find out in a few moments. And no panic...Phoebe won't die =)_

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** _Oliver is not worrying too much. He is jealous. Jealous of Phoebe and Terence (thank god he doesn't know about the almost kiss and the secret meetings on the Astronomy tower) i'm loving writing Dumbledore as a part of 2nd year, it's awesome. Dumbledore and McGonagall make an awesome combo regardless._

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** _Yup. Oliver wants to know what Terence has that he doesnt...is it fair the Phoebe is spending most of her time with a Slytherin and not him? But like I said above, he doesn't know about the secret meetings; which I guess is sort of a good thing._

**HotaruKenobi:** _You're review made my day even better than it started out. Thank you. You being the only person to pick up on the jealousy signs coming from Oliver on the whole Phoebe/Terence concept (more to come on this as second year draws to a close)._

**Vivi Fontaine:** _Oliver and Terence were playing Quidditch; they will find about Phoebe when McGonagall gets back from Gryffindor tower. As for the Golden Trio...they are also coming now; along with some other familiar faces._

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><p>No afternoon had ever lasted this long, nor had Gryffindor Tower ever been so crowded, yet so quiet.<p>

"She knew something," said Ron, shattering the silence for the first time since McGonagall had come to tell them what had happened, who had been taken and that the Hogwarts Express would be arriving tomorrow to take them all home. "That's why she was taken. Ginny knew something."

Hermione buried her head in her arms and it sounded like she had burst into tears. She was sitting in the furthest armchair near the fireplace, around her sat Harry, Ron and James; but aside from the three usual Lions, Gryffindor Tower was also playing host to Phoebe's Hufflepuff and Slytherin friends: Ashlyn Black and Sarah-May Prentiss.

"We already knew that Phoebe knew about the Chamber of Secrets," continued Ron, "she was a walking time bomb; it was inevitable that someone would try and capture her. But Ginny – Ginny was a pureblood. There can't be any other reason."

Sarah looked up; her eyes were red and puffy from crying. "I don't think Blood status has anything to do with this at the moment, Weasley, or did you forget that Phoebe was also a Pureblood?"

"Please don't start fighting," begged Hermione, "It's not getting us anywhere if we start fighting amongst ourselves, and Phoebe wouldn't have wanted it."

The others fell silent.

"Do you think we should go see the Professors?" said Ashlyn, "tell them what we know?"

The Golden Trio had already explained to Ashlyn, Sarah and James what they knew about the Chamber of Secrets

"I think we should go and see Lockhart," said Ron, "Tell him what we know. He's going to try and get into the Chamber. We can tell him where we think it is, and tell him it's a Basilisk in there."

Because Harry couldn't think of anything else to do, and because he wanted to do something, he agreed.

"I'll come with you," said Hermione.

"No," said Harry, "you promised Phoebe that you wouldn't get involved in the last piece of this; there is still a chance that you could get attacked. Phoebe would kill me if she knew that I let you come."

Hermione looked angry. "My best friend is down in that Chamber and you're telling me that I can't come? That's not fair, Harry!"

"Life's not far," argued Harry, "It's not fair that Ginny was taken. It's not fair that Phoebe's not here, and it's not fair that you don't get to play a part in this; hate me all you want Hermione, but I'm just doing what Phoebe would have wanted."

The bookworm deflated. "Fine," she sighed, "but you and Ron come back safe, we've already lost enough today."

Harry nodded before following Ron from the distraught common room. The Gryffindor's all around them were so miserable that no one tried to stop them from leaving.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Terence could see the sun sinking outside the window; blood red, below the skyline. This had to be one of the worst days of his entire life. He was sat in the semi-dark office listen to Professor McGonagall rattle on about Phoebe and Ginny Weasley, but he had switched off after his professor had told him that Phoebe had been taken into the chamber; a sense of longing had erupted after that, and a feeling of guilt had settled in the pit of his stomach.

Why hadn't he been there? Why hadn't he been able to help her? And, most importantly, why had he let her go off alone? After what had happened last year he should have realized that Phoebe was a danger magnet, she was an extremely powerful young witch, and with the power over the elements it should have been common sense that someone would want her for themselves. Other than him, of course, but then again, he wanted her for himself in a different sense.

He didn't want her for her powers; he wanted her for more than that. Terence wanted Phoebe because she made him smile, her laugh was like gentle music, her smile brightened every room they were in together and he couldn't help the way she made him feel whenever she was around. Since they had become friends, he had anticipated their meetings on the Astronomy Tower, some days the hours seemed to drag making it a constant struggle for him to be away from her. As the days turned into months, and he and Phoebe became closer, Terence found that he couldn't lie to himself anymore…he couldn't deny the raging feelings he had whenever she was around him, or when someone mentioned her name.

"I love her..." Terence whispered.

"Do you think there is any chance at all that they could – that she could – still be alive?" Oliver choked.

McGonagall surveyed both sixteen year olds in front of her, but remained silent. She couldn't answer the question, she wanted to think that beyond all reasonable doubt, Phoebe would indeed survive this year just like she had the last, but not even she knew if there was even a possibility that Phoebe Blackheart could have still been alive.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Serefina looked up, as the flames within her fireplace inside her office at Hogwarts turned emerald green and Jackson Stream and Blake Brooks stumbled out. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, her hands shook and she dropped the Quill she had been using to write a letter, which was now smudged with her tears.

She didn't quite understand _why_ she was writing the letter, but she figured that Lucius and Narcissa had the right to know that Phoebe had been taken into the Chamber and there was a slim chance that she would return this time.

"_Is it true?"_ said Jackson, as he faced the heartbroken Professor behind the desk. _"Has Phoebe been taken?"_

Serefina lowered her gaze. "_Yes,_" She confirmed

Colour drained from Jackson's face, as Blake's hands shook in fear and anxiety. Ever since Phoebe had come to Hogwarts there had been one problem after another; first year she had been attacked and beaten by a fellow student, before she was attacked and subjected to dark magic evidently nearly killing her. And now it was her second year at Hogwarts and she had been captured by a creature that was working for the Heir of Slytherin.

"_What is being done?"_ said Blake.

"_Headmaster Dumbledore has given Gilderoy Lockhart free rein to do as he pleases,"_ said Serefina, "_but we all know of the fool he is. I fear that Phoebe is as good as dead if we have to rely on Lockhart"_

"_What about Potter and Weasley?"_

Serefina shook her head. _"We're not sure if they know anything…"_

"_They do,"_ said Jackson, "_I remember Phoebe saying something about them suspecting Draco Malfoy for being the heir of Slytherin. The Golden Trio were going to question him during Christmas and they managed to succeed, except Granger's potion backfired and she was transformed into a cat instead. You should also question Terence Higgs, he spends most of his time with Phoebe these days, and he may know something."_

Serefina took their words into consideration _"I will inform the headmaster. My parents are with him at the moment, along with Arthur and Molly Weasley. Why don't you head on up to Gryffindor Tower, the rest of Phoebe's housemates are there. The password is: Phoenix."_

Jackson and Blake nodded and quickly left the office; taking the all too familiar route to the Gryffindor Tower on the seventh floor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Darkness was falling as they walked down to Lockhart's office. On the fourth floor the two Gryffindor's had run into Jackson and Blake, and a brief explanation of wha was happening occurred ending with Blake accompanying the two Lions, while Jackson hurried off to tell Serefina what was happening.

There seemed to be a lot of activity going on in Lockhart's office. They could hear scraping, thumps and hurried footsteps

Harry knocked and there was a sudden silence from inside. Then the door opened and the tiniest crack and they saw one of Lockhart's eyes peering through it.

"Oh…Mr Potter…Mr Weasley…" he said, opening the door a mite wider. "I'm rather busy at the moment. If you would be quick…"

"Professor, we've got some information for you," said Harry, "We think it'll help."

"Er – well – it's terribly -" the side of Lockhart's face that they could see looked very uncomfortable. "I mean – well – all right."

He opened the door and they entered.

"Who are you?" said Lockhart, as Blake stepped through.

"Blake Brooks, I'm a friend of Phoebe Blackheart's…" he motioned to the room around him; the office had been almost stripped. Two large trunks stood open on the floor. Robes, jade green, lilac, midnight blue, had been hastily folded into one of them; books were jumbled untidily into the other. The photographs that had covered the walls were now crammed into boxes on the desk. "Going somewhere?" he asked.

"Er, well, yes," said Lockhart, ripping a life-size poster of him from the back of the door as he spoke, and started to roll it up. "Urgent call…unavoidable…got to go…"

"What about my sister?" said Ron jerkily.

"And Phoebe!" said Harry, angrily.

"Well, as to that – most unfortunate," said Lockhart, avoiding their eyes as he wrenched open a drawer and started emptying the contents into a bag. "No one regrets more than I –"

"You're the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher!" said Harry, "You can't go now! Not with all this dark stuff going on here!"

"Well, I must say…when I took the job…" Lockhart muttered, now piling socks on top of his robes, "nothing in the job description…didn't expect…"

"You mean you're running away?" said Harry, "After all that stuff you did in your books?"

"Books can be misleading," said Lockhart delicately.

"You wrote them!" Harry shouted.

"My dear boy," said Lockhart, straightening up and frowning at Harry. "Do you not use your common sense? My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think _I'd_ done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He'd look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at ll. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a hairy chin. I mean, come on –"

He cut off as a fist collided with his nose and knocked him backwards into his trunk, Blake stood over him, his hand clenched into a fist at his side. "You're a fraud. You've just been taking credit for what other witches and wizards have done, and now because you're scared, because you've been put on the spot and caught out in your own web of lies, you're willing to sacrifice the death of two innocent girls to save your own ass!" he hissed, shaking his head. "No, Lockhart, not on my watch. Phoebe is one of my best friends! You're going to save her, along with Ginny Weasley, and when we return from the Chamber, I will personally make sure that the world knows how much of a fake you really are!"

Harry and Ron stepped backwards, away from Blake has he reached forward and seized Lockhart by the front of his robes. "You're going to come with us," he said, turning to the two boys behind him. "You said Phoebe knew where the entrance was, right?"

"Yes," said Harry.

"Then let's go," said Blake, "We'll take Lockhart here for leverage, if we need it. I'm sure no one will miss him if we happen to leave him in the Chamber."

Nodding quickly, Ron got the door and Harry led the way out. Blake followed, shoving Lockhart along in front of him.

Ron slammed the door to Lockhart's office and hurried after the others.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What do you want me to do?" said Lockhart weakly, "There is nothing I can do."

Blake shoved him forward again, "You'd be surprised at what you can do when you're scared," he answered, before pushing open the door to bathroom in which Harry and Ron had stopped outside, "Go on…you first."

Lockhart swallowed sharply and stepped inside.

Moaning Myrtle was sitting on the cistern of the end toilet. "Oh, it's you," she said, when she saw Harry. "Have you come to save your friend? You're too late you know, she's already been taken into the Chamber."

"We know," said Harry, "but we're going to save her – them – both Ginny and Phoebe were taken, we're going to help them both."

"What makes you think they aren't already dead?" said Myrtle, "I died when that thing looked at me…if could happen to them."

Ron shook his head. "The creature only attacked Muggleborns, Phoebe and Ginny are Purebloods."

"A basilisk is dangerous to every status, Weasley," said Blake, "not just Muggleborns. Phoebe is a smart witch though, she would have known not to look directly into the eye of the snake and she would have told Ginny the same."

Myrtle surveyed him curiously, "Who are you?" she asked.

"Friend of Phoebe's," said Blake, "You were a Ravenclaw; you were killed by the Basilisk, yes?"

Myrtle nodded.

"Do you know where the Entrance is?"

The ghost pointed towards the sinks that she had witnessed opening earlier that afternoon, the very same one that Phoebe had been pulled down into after being knocked out cold; it had also been the same one that she had witnessed the red-headed female slide into after she had written the message on the wall outside the bathroom.

Harry and Ron hurried over to the sink, as Blake kept a constant watch on Lockhart. The man had a look of utter terror on his face.

"Salazar Slytherin," whispered Harry, tracing his finger over the engraved picture of a tiny snake on the side of one of the taps. He turned it.

"The taps never worked," said Myrtle, brightly.

"Harry," said Ron, "say something. Something in Parseltongue."

"But -" Harry started, casting a glance around at Blake and Ron, both were staring at him. The Lion sighed and turned back to the tap in front of him, he thought long and hard on the reasons that he was standing in this bathroom…Phoebe and Ginny were trapped somewhere beneath them, and if it were possible that they were still alive, then they needed help.

"_Harry…" _Phoebe's voice echoed silently throughout his mind, "_Come on Harry…it'll be okay…you'll see. Quidditch is fun…"_

Phoebe had always been there for him whenever he needed boosting back up again, he remembered back to his first game of Quidditch and she had requested her Grandfather send her Quidditch: Through the Ages for him to read in hopes of settling his nerves; and now…now Phoebe needed his help, and he was not about to stand back and let her down.

Blake watched curiously as Harry parted his lips and spoke, but instead of clear English, a cold hiss escaped the twelve year old Lion. At once the tap began to glow and the entire island of sinks started to separate until a massive pipe appeared in the floor.

"I'm going down there," said Harry, "Phoebe has always been there for me when I have needed her the most, it's time for me to repay my debt; and if there is the faintest chance that Phoebe can be saved then the same goes for Ginny."

Ron nodded. "I'm coming too."

"We're all going," interrupted Blake, as he turned to Lockhart "starting with you."

Lockhart trembled at the biting coldness in Blake's voice, "But I-I s-see no reason for me to s-s-stay…" he stammered.

"I told you Lockhart," snarled Blake, "Phoebe means more to the three of us -" he motioned to himself, Harry and Ron "- than you do."

White faced and wandless, Lockhart approached the opening. "But what good will it do…"

Harry jabbed him in the back with his wand, Lockhart slid his legs into the pipe.

"I really don't think -" he started to say.

"Get on with it!" snarled Blake, pushing the older man further into the pipe and watching as he slid out of sight. Harry followed quickly. He lowered himself slowly into the pipe, then let go. Ron followed, and Blake brought up the rear.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was like rushing down an endless, slimy, dark slide. Other pipes branched out from the main water system, but none were as large as theirs, which twisted and turned, sloping steeply downwards, and it was common sense that told them that they were deeper under the school than ever before.

Finally the pipe levelled out, and the two Lions and Blake shot out of the end with a wet thud, landing on the damp floor of a dark stone tunnel, large enough to stand in. Lockhart was getting to his feet a little way away, covered in slime and white as a ghost. Blake picked himself up, and held out his hands to help Ron and Harry back to their feet, his eyes were still on Lockhart, daring him to try anything funny.

"We must be miles under the school," said Harry.

"Under the lake, probably," said Ron.

"_Lumos_!" Blake muttered, pointing the lightened tip of his wand into the darkness ahead of them. "C'mon…that way…you go on ahead, I'll stay behind and watch him…"

Harry and Ron nodded, produced their own wands and made their way carefully down the darkened corridor, they could hear Blake order Lockhart on ahead of him and hurried footsteps told him that their Professor was more scared of Blake than he was of their current situation.

"Remember," Harry said quietly to Ron, as they walked cautiously forward, "any sign of movement, close your eyes straight away"

But the tunnel was dead as the grave, and the first unexpected sound they heard was a loud _crunch_ as Ron stepped on what turned out to be a rat's skull. Harry lowered his wand to the floor and saw that it was littered with small animal bones.

Blake, trying very hard not to imagine what Phoebe or Ginny might have looked like if they found them, motioned for the twelve years olds to carry on forwards. The rounded a dark bend in the tunnel and a terrified squeak escaped Ron's lips.

"Harry, there's something up there…" he said, grabbing his best friends shoulder.

The four of them froze, watching. Blake could see the outline of something huge and curved, lying right across the tunnel. It wasn't moving.

"Maybe it's asleep," suggested Harry, glancing back at the other three. Lockhart's hands were pressed tightly over his eyes, Ron was looking as white as a ghost and Blake was staring at the thing cutting their path. "Blake?"

The Durmstrang student moved forward "Watch him!" he told Ron, pointing at Lockhart.

Ron nodded and turned the Professor as Blake approached the creature.

He sighed in relief. "It's okay…It's not alive," he called "It's a snake's skin; the creature you are hunting has shed its skin, making it intentionally longer than even Phoebe expected."

"Blimey," said Ron weakly.

There was a sudden movement from behind them. Lockhart's legs had given way.

"Get up," said Ron sharply, pointing his wand at Lockhart.

Lockhart got to his feet – then he dived at Ron, knocking him to the ground. Blake aimed his wand before it was tugged from his hand and rolled away through the darkness as Lockhart cast a Disarming Charm, before knocking the older boy backwards with a Stunning spell.

Blake hit the cavern wall and slid down to the base – completely unconscious.

Lockhart then turned, panting and pointing his wand at Harry, a gleaming smile on his face. "The adventure ends here," he said, "I shall take a bit of this skin back to the school, tell them I was too late to save the girls, and that you two _tragically_ lost your minds at the sight of their mangled bodies –"

"What about Blake?" Harry asked.

"He should wake up in a few hours," smirked Lockhart, "I guess the tables have turned, he was ready to leave me down here, I feel no guilt in leaving him to rot down here. I'll just tell the other Professors that he threatened me, and I simply defended myself."

Harry glared. "Then be prepared to face Jackson and Professor Blackheart," he snapped.

"Serefina will be too broken up over Miss Blackheart, to miss the likes of him!" replied Lockhart, "So, say goodbye to your memories, boys."

He raised Ron's Spellotaped wand high over his head and yelled, "_Oblivate!"_

The wand exploded with the force of a small bomb. Harry flung his arms over his head and ran, slipping over the coils of the snake skin, out of the way of great chunks of tunnel ceiling which were thundering to the floor. Next moment, he was standing alone, gazing at a solid wall of broken rock.

"Ron!" he shouted, "Are you okay? Ron!"

"I'm here!" came Ron's muffled voice from behind the rock fall. "I'm okay. This git's not, though – he got blasted by the wand…"

There was a dull thud and a loud "ow!" It sounded as though Ron had just kicked Lockhart.

"What about Blake?" Harry asked.

"He's fine," Ron answered, "the rocks didn't even touch him."

Harry sighed "Thank god, I don't think Phoebe would appreciate it if Blake got squashed due to one of Lockhart's mistakes"

Ron murmured in agreement. "What now? We can't get through. It'll take ages…"

Harry looked up at the tunnel ceiling. Huge cracks had appeared in it. He had never tried to break apart anything as large as these rocks by magic, and now didn't seem a good moment to try – what if the whole tunnel caved in?

"There is only one thing we _can_ do," said Harry, "Ginny and Phoebe have already been down here for hours…if they are still alive then they don't have much time left. Wait here, wait with Lockhart and Blake. I'll go on. If I'm not back in an hour…"

There was a pregnant pause.

"I'll try and shift some of this rock," said Ron, "So you can get back through. And Harry –"

"Don't worry," interrupted Harry, "I will. See you in a bit."

And the young Lion set off alone, leaving Ron to shift the rocks aside by himself. Blake was unconscious, something had happened to Lockhart – so he wasn't going to be much of a problem to Ron – but all Harry could think about right now was getting to Ginny and Phoebe, and making it out of the Chamber with them both alive.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Alright a much longer chapter this time, but sadly year 2 will end in Chapter 34…which is next.**

**But now I really must get to sleep. I have an early start in the morning (6:00am wakeup call)**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 04 November 2011 at 12:11am**


	34. Chapter 34

**Author's Note:** _Dedication to the following:_** KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, HotaruKenobi, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** _and_ **Cat.** _Sorry that these weren't posted last chapter, I honestly forgot; but you all know how special you are to me. :)_

**In responses:**

**Fan of Fics:** _Thank you for your kind words. Yup, Terence admits his love for Phoebe; I completely agree with you his timing couldn't have come at a worse time. Everyone knew that Lockhart was a coward, and as for Blake; yeah, I wouldn't want to cross him when Phoebe is in danger. A dead Phoebe? God, can you imagine what everyone would be like._

**Vivi Fontaine: **_Please don't eat my pillow...I actually love my pillow._

**HotaruKenobi:** _Aw, i'm glad you're enjoying the story that much. It makes my day knowing that there are actually people out there anticipating my updates. Oh, yeah, Oliver's jealousy levels are about to sky rocket...as for Phoebe/Terence they are just too cute to pass over. I love them :D_

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: **_Yup Terence loves Phoebe. They are so perfectly cute together. How could he not love her, innit?_

**Cat: **_Yes. I will be going all the way to seventh year. =D_

_And now…onto one of the hardest chapters I have ever had to write so far. This chapter was literally a pain in the backside._

_Enjoy…_

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><p>Harry was standing at the end of a very long, dimly lit chamber. Towering stone pillars entwined with carved serpents rose to support a ceiling which was lost in darkness and this cast long black shadows through the odd, greenish gloom that filled the place.<p>

His heart was racing. Harry stood listening to the chill silence. Could the Basilisk be lurking in a shadowy corner, behind a pillar? And where was Ginny and Phoebe?

Harry pulled out his wand and moved between the stone serpents, half expecting one of them to reveal itself as the moving form of a giant snake; but neither one of them moved, but Harry kept a constant vigilance of his surroundings, his eyes narrowed, ready to clamp them shut at the smallest signs of movement. The hollow eye sockets of the stone snakes seemed to be following him, and he even thought he had seen one stir.

Then, as he drew level with the last pair of pillars, a statue high as the Chamber itself loomed into view, standing against the back wall. Harry had to crane his neck to see the whole statue, but his gaze lingered on the small frame of a familiar body near the base of the tall stone carving.

He recognized the body.

"Phoebe..." he breathed.

Harry rushed forward and dropped to his knees beside the female. "Phoebe, please don't be dead," he shook her shoulder in hopes of stirring her awake. "Wake up! Please wake up!"

"She won't wake," said a soft voice

Harry jumped and spun around on his knees. A tall, black-haired boy was leaning against the nearest pillar watching. He was strangely blurred around the edges; but there was no mistaking his striking familiar face.

"Tom - _Tom Riddle?"_

Riddle nodded, not taking his eyes off of Harry's face.

"What d'you mean, she won't wake?" Harry said, desperately, "She's not - she's not -?"

"She's still alive," said Riddle, "but only just."

Harry stared at him. "What about Ginny? Where is she?"

"She's safe..." said Riddle, snapping his fingers as a shadow appeared behind him. The familiar form of Ginny Weasley appeared out of the shadows, her eyes vacant and empty as she stared down at Harry and the lifeless body of Phoebe.

"Ginny..." sighed Harry, "Ginny, come here, we need to get Phoebe out of here."

Ginny didn't move.

Harry frowned at her; she was standing directly behind Riddle as if waiting for further instructions. "Ginny, didn't you hear me?"

"She heard you," answered Riddle, "she's just no longer in control over her own body or thoughts."

"Are you a ghost?"

"A memory," said Riddle quietly, "Preserved in the diary for fifty years."

Harry surveyed the little black book in Riddle's hands, it was the same one he had found many months ago, the same one that had been stolen from his dormitory, and the same one that showed Hagrid as the attacker all those years ago. Harry found himself wondering how it had wound up down here, before he clicked onto what Riddle had said moments ago about Ginny. "What do you mean, Ginny has no control over own body or thoughts?"

A smile curled the corners of Riddle's lips. "Haven't you figured it out yet, Harry Potter? Your friend Phoebe didn't take half as long as you have..."

"We don't have time for this," Harry exclaimed in aggravation, "We've got to go...we've got to save them..."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Harry," said Riddle, "for you see as little Phoebe grows weaker, I grow stronger. Her power and magic is all that I need to revive myself."

Harry stared at him in confusion, "What are you talking about?"

Riddle smiled broadly. "You don't know...of your little friend's big secret, do you?"

"How did Phoebe get like this?" asked Harry.

"I've been waiting a long time for this, Harry Potter," said Riddle. "For the chance to see you. To speak to you."

"Look," said Harry, losing patience. "I don't think you get it. We're in the _Chamber of Secrets_. One of my friends is dying, another is obviously not herself -" he pointed at Ginny "- I have to save them, so we can get these two out of here first and then we can talk!"

"We're going to talk now," said Riddle. "I have waited too long for this moment, to pass it up now. Ginny will make it out alive...i'm not so sure about young Phoebe, I guess it really comes down to how strong she really is."

Harry narrowed his eyes at the memory in front of him. "How did Phoebe get like this?" he asked slowly.

"Well, that's an interesting question," said Riddle pleasantly. "And quite a long story. I suppose the real reason Phoebe Blackheart's like this is because of the loyalty that Ginny Weasley has shown me all term. For you see, Harry Potter, young Ginny Weasley has been helping me pursue my goals all year. She spilled her heart out to me, all her secrets."

"What are you talking about?"

"The diary," said Riddle. "My diary. Little Ginny's been writing in it for months and months, telling me all her pitiful worries and woes; how her brothers tease her, how she had to come to school with second hand robes and books, how -" Riddle's eyes glinted "- how she didn't think famous, good, great Harry Potter would ever like her..."

All the time he spoke, Riddle's eyes never left Harry's face. There was an almost hungry look in them.

"She told me all about the strange happenings that occurred around Phoebe Blackheart," Riddle continued "how her brothers had told her that Phoebe survived the Torture curse and several dark magic curses that put her in a coma. It was very _boring_, having to listen to the silly little troubles of an eleven-year-old girl. But I was patient. I wrote back, I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply _loved_ me..."

Riddle laughed a high, cold laugh that didn't suit him.

"If I say it myself, Harry, I've always been able to charm the people I needed. So Ginny poured her soul to me, and her soul happened to be exactly what I wanted. I grew stronger and stronger on a diet of her deepest fears, her darkest secrets. I grew powerful, far more powerful than little Miss Weasley. Powerful enough to start feeding Miss Weasley a few of my own secrets, to start pouring a little of _my_ soul back into _her_..."

"What d'you mean?" said Harry, whose mouth had gone very dry.

"Haven't you guessed yet, Harry Potter?" said Riddle, softly. "Ginny Weasley opened the Chamber of Secrets. Ginny Weasley strangled the school roosters and daubed threatening messages on the walls. She set the serpent of Slytherin on two Mudbloods and the Squib's cat. Ginny Weasley who lured Phoebe Blackheart into the bathroom and later brought her into the Chamber -""

"No," Harry whispered

"Yes," said Riddle, calmly. "Of course, she didn't know what she was doing at first. It was very amusing; I wish you could have seen her new diary entries. Far more interesting than her last, fear and panic linked throughout them all..."

Harry's fists were clenched, the nails digging deep into his palms.

"It took a very long time for stupid little Ginny to stop trusting the diary," said Riddle. "But she finally became suspicious and tried to dispose of it. And that's where you came in, Harry. You found it, and I couldn't have been more delighted. Of all the people who could have picked it up, it was you, the very same person I was most anxious to meet..."

"And why did you want to meet me?" said Harry.

"Well, you see, Ginny told me all about you, Harry," said Riddle. "Your whole _fascinating_ history." his gaze roamed over the lightning shaped scar and his expression grew hungrier. "I knew I must find out more about you, talk to you, and meet you if I could. So I decided to show you my famous capture of that great oaf, Hagrid, to gain your trust."

"Hagrid's my friend," said Harry, his voice shaking. "And you framed him, didn't you? Phoebe was right. I thought you made a mistake, but -"

Riddle laughed his high laugh again.

"Of course, Phoebe was right! It was my word against Hagrid's, Harry. Well, you can imagine how it looked to old Armando Dippet. On the one hand, Tom Riddle, poor but brilliant, parentless but so _brave_, school Prefect, model student; on the other hand, big, blundering Hagrid, in trouble every other week, trying to raise werewolf cubs under his bed, sneaking off to the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls. But I admit, even _I_ was surprised at how well the plan worked. I thought _someone_ must realize that Hagrid couldn't possibly be the heir of Slytherin. But of course, the one to figure out my plans had yet to be born, Phoebe Blackheart was correct in her assumptions of Hagrid, if only she had been around in my time, maybe these attacks would never have happened this year for you..."

Harry cast his gaze down at Phoebe; it was through her sheer determination for the truth that had put her in danger in the first place. "Damn it, Phoebe, why couldn't you have just left well enough alone?"

Riddle laughed. "This is the reason why I decided to leave behind the diary. Headmaster Dumbledore was just a curious as young Phoebe, he kept an annoyingly close watch on me after Hagrid's expulsion. I knew it wouldn't be safe to open the Chamber while I was still at school. But I wasn't going to waste five long years I'd spent searching for it. I decided to leave behind the diary, preserving my sixteen-year-old self in its pages, so that one day, with luck, I would be able to finish Salazar Slytherin's noble work."

"Well, you haven't finished it this time," said Harry triumphantly, "No one's died this time, not even the cat. In a few hours the Mandrake Draught will be ready and everyone who was Petrified will be all right again."

"Haven't I told you," said Riddle quietly, "that killing Mudbloods doesn't matter to me anymore? For many months now my new targets have been you and Phoebe."

Harry glared. "Why us?"

"Because Phoebe has all the power I need to return, stronger, more powerful..." answered Riddle. "Imagine how angry I was when the next time my diary was opened, it was Ginny who was writing to me, not you. She saw you with the diary, you see, and panicked. What if you found out how to work it and I repeated all her secrets to you? What if, even worse, I told you who'd been strangling roosters? So the foolish little brat waited until your dormitory was deserted and stole it back. But I knew what I must do. It was clear to me that you were on the trail of the Slytherin's heir. From everything Ginny had told me about you, I knew you would go to any lengths to solve the mystery - particularly if one of your best friends was in danger. And Ginny had told me the whole school was buzzing because you could speak Parseltongue..."

Riddle smirked a he continued.

"So I made Ginny lure Phoebe into the girls bathroom and render her unconscious, I then made her write her's and Phoebe's farewell on the wall and come down here to wait. She struggled and cried and became _very_ boring. But there wasn't much life left in her, it was easy to persuade her, she managed to bring me Phoebe and the cycle began again. You see? I don't need Ginny's energies anymore, I have a much more stronger source...as I have said previously, Phoebe has everything that I need; Power, Strength, Knowledge...she is a bright young witch, and I do not need a diary to see in her mind, to know how she is feeling..."

Harry glared harder at the memory.

"Combing both the life source that I have received from Ginny and Phoebe, I was strong enough to leave the pages of my diary at last. I have been waiting for you to appear since we arrived here. I knew you'd come. I have many questions for you, Harry Potter."

"Like what?" Harry spat, fists still clenched.

"Well," said Riddle, "how is it that a baby with no extraordinary magical talent managed to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? How did _you_ escape with nothing but a scar, while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed?"

There was an odd red gleam in his hungry eyes now.

"Why do you care how I escaped?" said Harry slowly, "Voldemort was after your time."

"Voldemort," said Riddle softly, "is my past, present and future, Harry Potter..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Tom Marvolo Riddle," said Phoebe weakly, as she propped herself up onto her elbows and surveyed Salazar through heavy eyes. "He is your heir. He is...Lord Voldemort."_

_Salazar was silent as Phoebe continued to recover from the drainage process. She was still linked to her body which remained on the cold, hard, damp floor of the Chamber of Secrets; but she had awoken here in the Elemental dimension, which gave Salazar slight hope that his protégé was going to be well and strong enough to pull her back to life in the real world._

_"It was a name he had started to use while he had attended Hogwarts, to his most intimate friends only. He's a Halfblood, his mother was a witch and his father a Muggle; Tom is very angry at the fact that his father was a Muggle...he told me that he believed his mother to be the Muggle, he didn't believe that if she was magical that she could have died, I understand that many magical folk live to be over a hundred years old, but even Witches and Wizards meet their end sooner than expected. Your blood runs through his veins! He refused to have anything that related him back to the man who had abandoned him and his mother before he was born, all because he couldn't handle the fact that his wife was a witch, so he fashioned himself a new name, a name he knew that wizards everywhere would one day fear to speak, and unfortunately, he succeeded."_

_Phoebe sighed heavily, before continuing, it was only fair that Salazar knew everything that Tom Riddle had told her. She had awoken in the Chamber long after Ginny had knocked her out, she had awoken to Aquanetta circling her as Ginny sat a few feet away in the shadows of the stone statue of the man who stood before her now, sixteen year old Tom Riddle was stood alongside the youngest Weasley, and he was rather pleased to see that Phoebe was awake as he started to explain everything to her. From what had happened - to what was going to happen._

_**"You may not make it out alive," said Tom, sneering down at the Gryffindor at his feet. "But at least you served your purpose well..."**_

_"He hoped that he would one day become the greatest sorcerer in the world," Phoebe pressed on, shaking her head from side-to-side, "But he's not. Not really..."_

_Salazar inclined his head to the side. "He's not?"_

_"No," Phoebe smiled, "because Albus Dumbledore is the greatest sorcerer in the world. Tom was angry with me, you see, he wanted Hagrid expelled and along with him Dumbledore removed from the school, but I interfered, I saved Hagrid and therefore, saved Dumbledore. Hogwarts has not been without its headmaster in dangerous times; if I hadn't stepped in when I had a lot more students would have been attacked...and we had enough to deal with."_

_The young Gryffindor stifled a yawn, but Salazar spotted it. "Sleep." he instructed. "You will need your energy for when you awake in the real world."_

_"When will I wake there?"_

_"It would seem that Tom Riddle - Voldemort, as he likes to be called - has connected his dark magic with your elemental magic, in theory he is draining you of your power and magic," Slytherin explained, "but you have halted the process. You have awoken here; effectively cutting off all ties that he subsequently shares with you. He can no longer drain you of your magic, and in doing so, is putting him in a position where he can be defeated."_

_Phoebe grinned, "Tom Riddle is clearly not as smart as he thinks, and he is. Thank you, Salazar...for everything."_

_"Never fear, Phoebe, while you are still a four core elemental, I will always be here to protect you." Slytherin promised, "Now sleep. You will awaken in your world very soon."_

_The young elemental nodded, her eyes drooped and she was soon on her way back through the darkness, following a pull that seemed to be drawing her back to the reality she had left hours before._

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry slid sown the wall. He gripped the fang that was spreading poison through his body and wrenched it out of his arm. But he knew it was too late. White-hot pain was spreading slowly and steadily from the wound. Even as he dropped the fang and watched his own blood soaking his robes, his vision went foggy. The Chamber was dissolving in a whirl of dull colour.

He could hear echoing footsteps and then a dark shadow moved in front of him.

"You're dead, Harry Potter," said Riddle's voice above him. "Dead. I'm going to sit here and watch you die, Harry Potter. Take your time, I'm in no hurry."

Harry felt drowsy. Everything around him seemed to be spinning.

"So ends the famous Harry Potter," said Riddle's distant voice. "Alone in the Chamber of Secrets, forsaken by his friends, defeated at last by the Dark Lord he so unwisely challenged. You'll be back with your dear Mudblood mother soon, Harry...She brought you twelve years of borrowed time...but Lord Voldemort got you in the end, as you knew he must."

Harry lowered his head and his gaze landed on Phoebe, she was paler than normal and it scared him to even think that he had been too late. He had failed her.

_"If it has a mind of its own, Harry, then maybe its better that you don't write in it."_ Phoebe's voice echoed throughout his mind, as he recalled that distant memory of her warning him about writing in the diary. If there was someone writing back to him, then maybe he shouldn't be writing in it at all. _"It sounds dangerous. Promise me, Harry, promise me you won't write in it anymore...I fear that the diary has more of a role to play in this whole thing...why else would someone want to get rid of it, and why would someone be writing back about the Chamber...just be careful, Harry, I'd hate to see you get hurt because of this..."_

The Gryffindor seeker spied the book on the floor, Riddle had dropped it at some point and it was now lying just beside Phoebe's body open to an empty page. For a split second, both Harry and Riddle stared at it. Then, without considering, as though he was meant to do it all along, Harry seized the discarded Basilisk fang on the floor next to him and plunged it straight into the heart of the book.

There was a long, dreadful, piercing scream. Ink spurted out of the diary in torrents, streaming over Harry's hands, flooding the floor, Riddle was writhing and twisting, screaming and flashing and then...

He had gone. Harry's wand fell to the floor with a clatter and there was silence. Silence except for the steady _drip drip_ of ink still oozing from the diary. The Basilisk venom had burned a sizzling hole right through it.

Shaking all over, Harry pulled himself up. His head was spinning as though he'd just travelled miles by Floo powder.

Then came a faint moan from behind him, Ginny was starting to stir. Her knees had buckled the moment Riddle had disappeared and she had dropped to the tunnel floor, hair covering her face as she buried her head in her hands.

"Ginny..." said Harry, weakly.

The youngest Weasley turned to look at him, her eyes watered and her frame shook violently. "Harry, I'm so sorry. It was me. I wanted to tell you...I wanted to stop it. I tried to tell Phoebe, but he...Riddle made me attack her..." she spied the older female Lion behind Harry, and Ginny burst into tears once more at the lifeless look Phoebe still held. "Is she..."

"I don't know," said Harry, twisting carefully to feel for a pulse. It was faint, but there was one there.

"Harry, you're hurt." cried Ginny, spotting the wound on Harry's forearm.

"It's all right," said Harry, holding his arm tightly. "Ginny, listen to me, you have to get yourself out, follow the Chamber and you'll find Ron."

"What about you and Phoebe?"

Harry shook his head "Send someone down for Phoebe," he answered "I simply wasn't quick enough."

"I won't leave you, Harry." Ginny protested.

"You don't have a choice," said Harry, "Please. Go find Ron, and send help for Phoebe. She's still alive, but doesn't have much time. My time is over...I can feel it."

But Ginny was stubborn, and although she was being forced to leave against her will, she was determined to return with help for both Harry and Phoebe. "You have to survive this, Harry, and you will! I will go find Ron, and we will return with the Headmaster. He'll know what to do."

And she scampered off, glancing back at Harry who was staring at Phoebe as she remained unconscious beside him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It had been a mere few minutes since Ginny had left the Chamber, and Harry's world was starting to fade slowly to black.

There was a sudden gasp and Phoebe's eyes snapped open, she sat up and turned to see Harry kneeling beside her, his eyes sliding in and out of focus. "Harry..." she breathed, grabbing his hand, "what happened?"

"Pheebs," Harry smiled, weakly. "Basilisk venom...I wasn't quick enough..."

The elemental glanced around her; Aquanetta lay a few feet away, unmoving and dead. She sighed, Salazar's pet was dead, but at least he understood that she would have had to die in order for Hogwarts to have been saved. A pool of water lay to the right of the giant serpent, and Phoebe felt relief flood her body as she sluggishly pulled herself towards it.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked.

"Come here," Phoebe beckoned, as she stopped near the water's edge. "Quickly now. We do not have much time."

Slowly and weakly, Harry pulled himself across the damp Chamber floor towards his friend, who took his hand and placed it within the water. "Phoebe -"

"Harry, i'm about to show you something that no one is supposed to know about," said Phoebe, "there is only a handful of people who know about this, and one of them is about to be you. But you have to promise me that you won't breathe a word of this to anyone else, okay?"

She stared at him with a fearful expression as she awaited his promise.

Harry nodded. "I promise..."

A bright smile engulfed her features, as she placed her fingertips to his and felt the rush of cool water breeze through her; the water started to churn and slowly spread from the puddle of water, up Harry's arm towards the gaping wound on his forearm. The seeker gasped in surprise as he felt the rush of cool liquid seeping through his robes and entering the wound.

If this was what it was like to die, then Harry didn't mind. Even the pain was leaving him...

But was this dying? Instead of going black, the Chamber seemed to be coming back into focus. Harry gave his head a little shake and there was Phoebe, still holding his hand beneath the coursing water within the Chamber, her eyes flashed brilliant cobalt blue before returning to their usual stormy grey as she dropped his hand and turned to face him.

"How -" he started.

"I'm an Elemental," said Phoebe, "I can control the elements, and I just used my Water powers to save your life."

Harry considered for a long time, before a smile broke out across his face. "Thanks."

Phoebe shrugged, "What are friends for?"

Getting steadily to his feet, Harry wrapped his arm around Phoebe's waist and supported her weight against his; and together the two of them left through the exit of the Chamber.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Great Hall was filled with everyone chatting and celebrating. The threat of the Chamber of Secrets was over, and all was starting to return to normal within the castle again. Hermione had been reunited with Harry, Ron and Phoebe.

Amelia had been returned to the safety and comfort of her friends, and after almost being suffocated by Ashlyn, Sarah and James when she had arrived in the Great Hall after being re-awakened by Madam Pomfrey, she joined Sarah at the Hufflepuff table where she was welcomed back just as enthusiastically as the rest of her friends had greeted her.

"Welcome back, Amelia," said Cedric Diggory, as he approached the second year from behind.

"Thanks Cedric," said Amelia, a dull blush rising in her cheeks as he walked away. Sarah laughed into her hands before nudging her friend who glared playfully in response.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A roar of celebration erupted from the Gryffindor table as Dumbledore labeled them the House champions, and presenting them with the House Cup for the second year running. Gryffindor students all along the table were on their feet, throwing hats into the air and hugging their friends from other houses - except Slytherin.

"We won!" yelled James, excitedly bounding into sight with Amelia and Sarah in tow. "We won! Second year! House champions! We won!"

Sarah and Amelia laughed at their friend as they hugged Phoebe before being joined by Ashlyn who was looking pleasantly happy at the win, or maybe it was just the fact that Phoebe was alive and well, and not dead as everyone had proclaimed her to be. The Slytherin also hugged the Gryffindor and then pointed through the crowd at a solitary figure at the back of the hall.

Phoebe recognized the figure instantly. Terence Higgs.

With a bright smile, Phoebe pulled away from her friends and pushed her way through the celebrating Gryffindor's, ducked around Fred and George, squeezed through Katie and Oliver and threw her arms around Terence.

"Congratulations, Phoebe," said Terence, as Phoebe pulled back.

The young Lion smiled up at him, and without thinking, without planning it, without worrying about the fact that all four houses and the professors were watching - Phoebe kissed him.

After several long moments - or it might have been half an hour - or possibly several sunlit days - they broke apart. The whole Hall had gone deadly silent. Then Phoebe heard several people wolf-whistle and an outbreak of nervous giggling from behind her, casting a glance over her shoulder, the elemental searched for her friends.

Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia and Hermione were beaming; James, Harry and Ron were looking bewildered and Oliver - Oliver was looking angry, as in his hand he held a fragment of shattered glass.

And just like that - Phoebe knew that things at Hogwarts were never going to be the same again.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**This chapter was a right and dire pain in the backside. I had no clue how to start it, must have started it several different ways.**

**But, alas, I did it in the end. So, here is the end of second year. What did you think?**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, November 05, 2011 at 2:55am**


	35. Chapter 35

**Author's Note:**_ Oh, My God! I can't believe that it is the first chapter of 3rd year already. It feels like only yesterday I started this story. :/_

_I would like to thank everyone who has been there for me since the beginning chapter. You are truly amazing people (and yes, I know I say this often but I really mean it. It is really hard to describe how much to mean to me as readers). So, what do you anticipate will happen this year? Aside from Sirius Black, of course?_

_Since I don't do _**in responses**_ at the beginning of first chapters, I will just quickly answer **Fan of Fics** here: You are correct to assume that Sirius is James's father. Regulus is Ashlyn's dad and Sirius is James, Henry and Melissa._

_Right, now onto year 3..._

* * *

><p>"Phoebe!" Ashlyn cried, opening her arms wide and running across the hallway towards the Gryffindor.<p>

Phoebe grinned and dropped her dance bag, as she opened her arms and caught Ashlyn mid-run; the two girls hugged one another tightly as the door to the dance studio opened and a tall, blonde-haired woman stepped out.

"Next," the woman called, before disappearing back into the studio with her next victim – um…applicant.

Pulling out of the hug, Phoebe held her best friend at arm's length and looked her over. "Either you're getting taller or am I shrinking?" she asked.

"I don't think you're shrinking," giggled Ashlyn. "Everyone has said that I'm getting taller, and I would have to agree, my robes don't fit me anymore, Elladora had to buy me new ones a few weeks ago."

"The summer has only just begun and already you are buying new clothes," grinned Phoebe.

Ashlyn shrugged. "How long have you been here?"

"Just arrived actually," Phoebe answered. "I'm next. You?"

"I don't know. After you I think."

The Gryffindor nodded. "How about I wait for you, maybe we could go into Hogsmeade and catch up, that is if you don't have to be anywhere?"

"No, I'm free," agreed Ashlyn. "How long do you think the auditions are?"

Phoebe shook her head. "I'm not sure, but Megan Holloway from Ravenclaw was just leaving as I arrived, and according to her there was a girl in front of her who had been in there for nearly an hour."

"Did she say anything about what it was like?"

"Nope," Phoebe answered. "But I guess that would be defeating the purpose really, don't you think?"

Ashlyn shrugged. "I guess…"

The door opened for a second time, and the same woman has before stepped out. The female that she had taken in 10 minutes ago hurried off down the corridor leaving Phoebe and Ashlyn in the corridor.

"Next," the instructor called, turning back into the studio.

Phoebe turned to Ashlyn. "Wish me luck…"

"I don't think you will need it," Ashlyn smiled reassuringly. "But good luck anyway."

The Gryffindor grinned, picked up her dance bag and followed the instructor through the doors of the studio, leaving Ashlyn to wait patiently by herself outside.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Tell me why we joined choir again," said Phoebe, as she walked arm-in-arm with Ashlyn through the narrow street of Hogsmeade, her dance bag was thrown over her shoulder and hung around her waist.

Ashlyn shrugged. "Because I thought it would be fun,"

Phoebe rolled her eyes, she had never been one for singing, more into dancing than anything else; this was why when she was five years old and had told Serefina that she wanted to take dance lessons , Serefina had re-decorated one of the empty rooms at Blackheart Manor and re-created a dance studio specifically for her goddaughter's needs.

"But I can't sing!" Phoebe protested. "I'm a dancer, not a singer…"

"So am I," agreed Ashlyn. "I just thought it would be something fun, some extra-curricular activity."

"I got Quidditch for that," Phoebe pointed out.

"Well, I'm not a part of the Slytherin Quidditch team, am I," said Ashlyn, nudging the Lion. "And I don't see me becoming a part of it anytime soon."

Phoebe shook her head. "Actually, this year there is a chance that you can become a part of the team, there was only no girls allowed on the team when Flint was captain, he left at the end of last year, there is no one stopping you now – what?"

"Yeah, you don't know," said Ashlyn sheepishly.

"Know what?"

"Marcus failed his NEWTs last year," Ashlyn explained. "He's returning this year to re-do his seventh year."

Phoebe stared at her friend. "Please, tell me you are joking…"

Ashlyn shook her head.

"Well, this is just perfect!" Phoebe complained. "I was hoping to finally be rid of him."

"Why do you hate him so much?"

"He attacked me!" Phoebe exclaimed.

Ashlyn nodded. "Okay, I can see why you hate him…"

"There is also the point that he threatened Terence last year," Phoebe added. "During the duelling club; he told me that Terence was easily manipulated and that he had easy access to him because they were both Slytherin's. He wanted to know if I would strike him a deal in return for him leaving Terence alone."

"Is that when why you and he were fierce in your duelling?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, which is also the reason I exploded at Lockhart,"

Ashlyn grinned. "I can't believe I used to nurse a fierce crush on him."

"You weren't the only one," agreed Phoebe. "His stupid Valentine's Day morale boost knocked him from my list, and his little card-carrying friends; I thought Harry was going to die that day."

"From what James told me it looked like _you_ were going to die that day," Ashlyn pointed out.

Phoebe blushed at the memory. "Yeah, well, we were twelve…" she shrugged. "Now if I was seventeen and that had happened I probably would have died of embarrassment."

"I wish I could have been there," giggled Ashlyn.

"I hate you," said Phoebe, as she pushed open the door to the Three Broomsticks and stepped inside.

Ashlyn and Phoebe both quickly grabbed an empty table and sat down; ordered a small lunch from the waitress, before the conversation quickly twisted to that of their dance routines up at the castle that morning.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once lunch had finished both Ashlyn and Phoebe agreed to meet up once more over the summer, but also agreed to go school shopping once their book lists had arrived.

After their plans had been made, Phoebe stepped into the fireplace within the Three Broomsticks and disappeared in a flash of emerald green flame.

The young elemental rolled out of the fireplace and toppled over onto the rug in front of it. Blake and Jackson appeared in her line of vision as they stood over, both grinning like idiots and holding out their hands for her to take.

"Nice landing," Jackson teased as Phoebe took his offered hand and allowed him to pull her back up onto her feet.

"Shut it," said Phoebe with a smile. "You know that Floo is not my favourite way to travel."

Blake nodded. "Yeah, especially when your landings still need work."

"I often wonder how a dancer can be so ungraceful," Jackson smirked.

Phoebe scowled. "Well, I'm not the only ungraceful one out of the three of us. If I remember correctly Blake, you stumbled out of the fireplace the other evening when we visited the Richards, and you Jacks, literally fell flat on your face when you returned from Durmstrang three years ago."

Blake snorted at the memory of Jackson's face mushed against the hearthrug after a rather miserable travel from Russia to Portugal.

"I thought we agreed that we were never going to mention that!" cried Jackson.

Phoebe shrugged. "All's fair in love and war."

"'_All's fair in love and war'_" imitated Jackson in a high pitched voice, before ducking under a pillow that he been aimed at his head. "Oh, violent tonight, aren't ya?"

"I do not sound like that!" snapped Phoebe.

Jackson grinned, stuck his tongue out and sprinted from the room, as Phoebe chased after him.

Blake sighed, rolled his eyes and hurried after his friends to save Jackson from the whirlwind that was Phoebe Blackheart.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The summer for Harry, seemed to be going by very slowly. Time had passed and now it was already the middle of July.

He had received very few letters from his friends but he had already warned them about keeping the letters to a minimum as not to upset his relatives, and those of his friends that were writing to him had come during the night, which he was glad about, because his relatives where usually asleep when the owls arrived.

One letter, that he had received from fellow Gryffindor, Phoebe Blackheart lay open on his desk as he passed it to open the window for Hedwig who was waiting to come back inside, Harry knew that he only had a short amount of time with his precious owl before she was sent off again to a safe place while his uncles sister Marge visited.

"Hey Hedwig," said Harry with a smile. "You're going to have to clear off for a while."

Hedwig gave him a reproachful look.

"It's not my fault," said Harry. "I have to pretend to me normal so that I can go to Hogsmeade with my friends when we got back to Hogwarts."

The snowy white owl hooted disapprovingly, before hopping up onto her perch and eating some Owl treats that Harry had already laid out for her.

"Go to the Burrow," said Harry "or follow Athena and go to Portugal, Phoebe will look after you. I'll write Phoebe a note to tell her what is going on."

He smiled as Hedwig hooted once more and turned back to his desk, picked up Phoebe's letter and sighed sorrowfully at the small writing of his friend. She had asked him to come spend the summer with her at her manor in Portugal, and as much as he wanted to go, he knew that he would never be able too.

There was no possible way that the Dursley's would pay for him to go to Portugal for the rest of the summer, even if it did mean getting rid of him.

Ten minutes later, Athena and Hedwig (who had a note to Phoebe bound to her leg) soared out of the window and out of sight. Harry, now feeling thoroughly miserable, put the empty cage away inside his wardrobe.

But Harry had no time to brood. In next to no time, Aunt Petunia was shrieking up the stairs for Harry to come down and get ready to welcome their guest.

"Do something about your hair!" Aunt Petunia snapped as he reached the hall.

But what was the point? His air was unruly messy, it would never stay down, and since Aunt Marge loved to criticise him the messier he was, the happier she would be.

All too soon, there was a crunch of gravel outside the as Uncle Vernon's car pulled into the driveway, then the clunk of the car doors, and footsteps on the garden path.

"Get the door!" Aunt Petunia hissed at Harry.

A feeling of great gloom settled in Harry's stomach as he pulled the door open.

On the threshold stood Aunt Marge, she was very much like her brother; large beefy and purple-faced, she even had a moustache, though not as bushy as his. In one hand she held an enormous suitcase, and tucked under the other was an old and evil-tempered bulldog.

"Where's my Dudders?" roared Aunt Marge. "Where's my neffy poo?"

Dudley came waddling down the hall, his blond hair plastered flat to his head, a bow-tie just visible under his man chins.

Aunt Marge thrust the suitcase into Harry's stomach, knocking the wind out of him, seized Dudley in a tight one-armed hug and planted a large kiss on his cheek.

"Petunia!" shouted Aunt Marge, striding past Harry as if he was invisible.

Uncle Vernon now came in, smiling jovially as he shut the door.

"Tea, Marge?" he said. "And what will Ripper take?"

"Ripper can have some tea out of my saucer," said Aunt Marge, as they all trooped into the kitchen, leaving Harry alone in the hall with a suitcase.

After dragging Aunt Marge's suitcase upstairs into one of the guest rooms, Harry returned to the kitchen where Marge had been supplied with a cup of tea and some fruitcake and Ripper was lapping noisily in the corner.

"Who's looking after the other dogs, Marge?" Uncle Vernon asked.

"Oh, I've got Colonel Fubster managing them," boomed Aunt Marge. "He retired now, good to him to have something to do. But I couldn't leave poor old Ripper. He pines if he's away from me."

Ripper began to growl as Harry sat down. This directed Aunt Marge's attention to Harry for the first time.

"So!" she barked. "Still here, are you?"

"Yes," said Harry.

"Don't you say 'yes' in that ungrateful tone," Aunt Marge growled. "It's damn good of Vernon and Petunia to keep you, wouldn't have done it myself. You'd have gone straight to an orphanage if you'd been left on my doorstep."

Harry bit his lip to keep from saying something that he would regret later; instead he forced his face into a painful smile.

"Don't you smirk at me!" boomed Aunt Marge. "I can see you haven't improved since last I saw you." She took a large gulp of tea, wiped her moustache and said, "Where is it you send him again, Vernon?"

"St Brutus's," said Uncle Vernon promptly. "It's a first-rate institution for hopeless cases."

"I see," said Aunt Marge. "Do they use a cane at St Brutus's, boy?" she barked across the table.

"Er –"

Uncle Vernon nodded curtly behind his sister's back.

"Yes," said Harry.

"Excellent," said Aunt Marge. "I won't have this namby-pamby, wishy-washy nonsense about not beating people who deserve it. A good thrashing is what's needed in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred. Have _you_ been beaten often?"

"Oh, yeah," said Harry. "Loads of times."

Aunt Marge narrowed her eyes.

"I still don't like your tone, boy," she said. "If you can speak of your beatings in that casual way, they clearly aren't hitting you hard enough. Petunia, I'd write if I were you. Make it clear that you approve the use of extreme force in this boy's case."

A flicker of unnoticed fear crossed Vernon's face, as he quickly changed the subject.

"Heard the news this morning, Marge? What about that escaped prisoner, eh?"

Harry smirked at the change of subject.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, after dinner had ended, Phoebe retreated to the comfort of her bedroom and much to her surprise found Athena waiting patiently on her desk, several envelopes tied to her leg.

The eagle cooed when she set her golden gaze on Phoebe.

"Hello to you too," said Phoebe crossing the room and removing the string from around the bird. "This is for being absolutely amazing –" she fed her a dead mouse "- and this is for being so patient while I finished dinner," she gave the eagle another mouse.

Athena ate both all in one, nipped Phoebe's ear affectionately, opened her wings and soared off through the open window behind her.

Phoebe watched her for a moment before turning to the letters; they were all addressed to her, and the young Gryffindor knew that they were the replies to her proposition for her friends to spend the rest of the summer with her in Portugal.

"I will read these later," Phoebe murmured as she quickly snatched her towel from the bottom of the bed and hurried into the bathroom which was adjoined to her bedroom.

She loved having her own bathroom; it made everything so much easier.

After a lengthily shower, Phoebe opened her letters. Both Sarah and Amelia had agreed to come stay; James had declined the offer because he was in Italy with his mother and siblings visiting his mother's parents; Ashlyn had also agreed to come stay, and Terence had already agreed and was due to arrive first thing in the morning.

"Oh this should be fun," Phoebe murmured. "Me, Terence, Sarah, Amelia and Ashlyn; even in my own home I am the only Lion."

She pouted.

"What's with the long face?" said Blake, as he appeared on the threshold to Phoebe's door causing the young Elemental to jump in surprise. Blake chuckled.

Phoebe glared. "Don't you know how to knock?"

Raising his hand, Blake knocked on the door, causing Phoebe to glare harder at him.

"What do you want, Blake?"

"Just to see how your dance recital went," said Blake. "You didn't say anything when you got back, and you didn't say a word throughout dinner, is everything alright?"

Phoebe nodded, but despite her reassurance towards one of her best friends, Phoebe couldn't help the feeling that was growing in the pit of her stomach; something was terribly wrong, she could feel it.

"Phe…" said Blake as he walked further into the room. "I've been your friends since forever, I know when something is bothering you; now tell me what is wrong."

The young Gryffindor sighed and shook her head. "It's probably nothing, but I can't shake the feeling that something bad is about to happen, or has already happened, I'm not sure."

"Something bad?" Blake questioned. "Like what?"

"I don't know…"

Suddenly the door crashed open for a second time, and Jackson stumbled inside.

"Goddamn it!" cried Phoebe. "Doesn't anyone knock these days? For all you guys know I could be half naked in here!"

Blake and Jackson grimaced at the idea. "Nice, Phe, real nice!"

"You get my point," said Phoebe. "What's with the sudden need to crash into my room at midnight?"

Jackson thrust a copy of the Evening telegraph into the elemental's hands; on the front page was a blown up picture of a rather thin, crazed man with stringy black hair and a thin face.

"Am I supposed to know who this is?" Phoebe asked, holding the paper up with one hand. She was slightly confused on why Jackson was presenting her with a paper of a crazy man, what was he implying?

Wheezing and clutching a stitch in his side, Jackson pushed the paper back to her "Read what it says…" he choked.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and sighed as she opened the paper to its designated page, and read through the article quietly to herself. Her eyes widened, and by the time she had gotten to the end she was speechless.

Blake, who had read the paper over Phoebe's shoulder, stared at her in the silence. "Isn't one of your friends Black's son?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "James, I wonder if he knows?"

"Probably," said Jackson. "Do you think he would have messaged you by now if he had?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know. If your father was a crazy murderer would you message me to say that he has escaped from Prison?"

"Depends,"

"On?"

"How close we are as friends," Jackson answered.

Phoebe sighed and looked back down at the face of her friends' father, if this was the bad feeling that she had had a few moments before Jackson had burst into her room, why had the feeling no disappeared after she had read the paper? Did that mean something else was going to go wrong?

"You still have a bad feeling?" said Blake.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, but what else could possibly go wrong?"

"A lot of things could go wrong, Phe," said Blake.

"Worse than a mass murderer prowling around the streets of London?" asked Phoebe.

Blake fell silent – she had a point.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry's bad summer was about to take a turn for the worst as dinner arrived within the Dursley's household.

Aunt Petunia cooked a fancy meal and Uncle Vernon uncorked several bottles of wine. They got all the way through the soup and salmon without a single mention of Harry's faults, during the lemon meringue pie, Uncle Vernon bored them all with a long talk about his drill company, then Aunt Petunia made coffee and Uncle Vernon brought out a bottle of brandy.

"Can I tempt you, Marge?"

Aunt Marge had already had rather a lot of wine. Her large face was very red.

"Just a small one, then," she chuckled. "A bit more than that…and a bit more…that's the boy."

Dudley was eating his fourth slice of pie Aunt Petunia was sipping coffee with her little finger sticking out. Harry really wanted to disappear into his bedroom, but he met Uncle Vernon's angry little eyes and knew he would have it sit it out.

"Aah," said Aunt Marge, smacking her lips and putting the empty brandy glass back down. "Excellent nosh, Petunia, it's normally just a fry-up for me an evening, with twelve dogs to look after…" she burped and patted her stomach. "Pardon me, but I do like to see a healthy-sized boy," she went on, winking at Dudley. "Now this one –"

She jerked her head in at Harry.

"This one's got a mean, runty look about him. You get that with dogs. I had Colonel Fubster drown one last year. Ratty little thing it was. Weak. Underbred."

Harry winced as he imagined how Phoebe would have reacted to that piece of information, he knew full well that she was an animal lover, and while she mainly bred horses in Portugal, she was a huge lover of cats and dogs.

"It all comes down to blood, as I was saying the other day. Bad blood will out. Now, I'm saying nothing against your family Petunia -" she patted Aunt Petunia's hand "but your sister was a bad egg. They turn up in the best families. Then she ran off with a wastrel and here's the result right in front of us."

Harry stared at his plate, trying to block out the conversation around him.

"This Potter," said Aunt Marge loudly, "you never told me what he did."

All conversations ground to a halt as the tension in the room continued to rise; Petunia and Vernon stared at one another, and even Dudley had looked up from his food to gape at his parents.

"He – didn't work," said Uncle Vernon, glancing at Harry. "Unemployed."

"As I expected," said Aunt Marge. "A no-account, good-for-nothing, lazy scrounger who –"

"He was not," said Harry suddenly. The table went very quiet. Harry was so angry that he was shaking all over.

"MORE BRANDY!" yelled Uncle Vernon, who had gone very white. He emptied the bottle into Marge's glass. "You, boy," he snarled at Harry. "Go to bed. Go on –"

"No, Vernon," hiccoughed Aunt Marge's glass, holding up a hand, her tiny bloodshot eyes fixed on Harry. "Go on, boy, go on. Proud of your parents, are you? They go and get themselves killed in a car crash (drunk, I expect) –"

"They didn't die in a car crash!" said Harry, who found himself on his feet.

"They died in a car crash, you nasty little liar, and left you to be a burden on their decent, hardworking relatives," screamed Aunt Marge, swelling with fury. "You are an insolent, ungrateful little –"

But Aunt Marge suddenly stopped talking. For a moment, it looked like her words had failed her. She seemed to be swelling with inexpressible anger – but the swelling didn't stop. Her great red face started to expand, her tiny eyes bulged and her mouth stretched too tightly for speech. Next second, several buttons burst from her tweed jacket and pinged off the walls – she was inflating like a monstrous balloon, her stomach bursting free of her tweed waistband, each of her fingers blowing up like salami…

"MARGE!" yelled Uncle Vernon, as Aunt Marge's whole body began to rise off her chair towards the ceiling. She was entirely round, her hands and feet stuck out weirdly as she drifted up into the air, making apoplectic popping noises.

Ripper came skidding into the room, marking madly.

"NOOOOOOO!"

Uncle Vernon seized one of Marge's feet and tried to pull her down again, but was almost lifted from the floor himself. Next second, Ripper had leapt forward and sunk his teeth into Uncle Vernon's leg.

Harry tore from the dining room before anyone could stop him, heading straight for the cupboard under the stairs. The cupboard burst open. He sprinted upstairs and threw himself under the bed, wrenched up the loose floorboard and grabbed the pillowcase full of his books and birthday presents.

He wriggled out, seized Hedwig's empty cage and dashed back downstairs to his trunk, just as Uncle Vernon burst out of the dining room, his trouser leg in bloody tatters.

"COME BACK IN HERE!" he bellowed. "COME BACK AND PUT HER RIGHT!"

But a reckless rage had come over Harry; he kicked his trunk open, pulled out his wand and pointed it at Uncle Vernon.

"She deserved it," Harry said, breathing very fast. "She deserved what she got. You keep away from me."

He fumbled behind him for the catch on the door.

"I'm going," Harry said. "I've had enough."

And next moment, he was out in the dark, quiet streets, heaving his heavy trunk behind him, with Hedwig's cage under his arm.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry was several streets away when he collapsed onto a law wall in Magnolia Crescent, panting from the effort of dragging his trunk. He sat quite still, anger still surging through him, listening to the frantic thumping of his heart.

But after ten minutes alone in the dark street, a new emotion overtook him: Panic. Whichever way he looked at it, he had never been in a worse fix. He was stranded, quite alone, in the dark Muggle world, with absolutely nowhere to go. And the worst of it was he had just done serious magic, which meant that he was almost certainly expelled from Hogwarts.

Harry shivered and looked up and down Magnolia Crescent. What was going to happen to him? Would he be arrested, or would he simply be outlawed from the Wizarding world? He thought of Ron and Hermione, he thought of Phoebe and his heart sank. Harry was sure that, criminal or not, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe would want to help him now, but they were all abroad, and with Hedwig gone, he had no means of contacting them.

He didn't have any Muggle money, either. There was a little wizard gold in the moneybag at the bottom of his trunk, but the rest of the fortune his parents had left him was stored in a vault at the Gringotts Wizarding Bank in London. He'd never be able to drag his trunk all the way to London. Unless…

He looked down at his wand, which he was still clutching in his hand. If he was already expelled, a bit more magic couldn't hurt. He had the Invisibility Cloak he had inherited from his father – what if he bewitched the trunk to make it feather-light, tied it to his broomstick, covered himself in the Cloak and flew to London? Then he could get the rest of his money out of his vault and begin his life as an outcast. It was a horrible prospect, but he couldn't sit on this wall forever or he'd find himself trying to explain to Muggle police why he was out in the dead of night with a trunkful of spell books and a broomstick.

Harry opened his trunk again and pushed the contents aside, looking for the Invisibility Cloak – but before he had found it; he straightened up suddenly, looking around him once more.

A funny prickling on the back of his neck had made Harry feel he was being watched, but the street appeared to be deserted, and no lights shone from any of the large square houses.

He bent over his trunk again, but almost immediately stood up once more, his hand clenched on his wand. He had sensed rather than heard it; someone or something was standing in the narrow gap between the garage and the fence behind him. Harry squinted at the black alleyway. If only it would move, then he'd know whether it was just a stray cat or – something else.

"_Lumos,"_ Harry muttered, and a light appeared at the end of his wand, the light fell upon the opening and Harry saw, quite distinctly, the hulking outline of something very big, with wide, gleaming eyes.

Harry stepped backwards. His legs hit his trunk and he tripped. His wand flew out of his hand as he flung out his arm to break his fall, and he landed hard, in the gutter.

There was a deafening BANG, a low growl, and the sound of footsteps. Several cloaked figures crowded around Harry, blocking his view of the creature he had found.

"_He got away…"_ said a male voice in a foreign tongue. _"The boy, he is alright?_

"He'll be fine…" answered a familiar voice.

Harry blinked, snatched his wand from the ground and scrambled back to his feet; he shone the light of his wand at the three people standing in front of him.

The man he did not recognize at all, the older female was vaguely familiar, but the third person he recognized instantly. How could he not? He was used to seeing her so much at Hogwarts.

"Hello Harry," Serefina Blackheart smiled. "You remember my mother, Elena Blackheart?"

The older female nodded in politeness.

"This is my father, Jacob Blackheart," said Serefina. "We've come to take you home."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Finally! This chapter was even worse than the end of year 2; has taken me the majority of three days to bring you this…I hope it was worth it._

_I apologise for the Harry scenes. I know you have read them from the third book, but I needed them to pull the first chapter together._

_Anyway; this is the longest chapter to date – 16 pages and 5,522 words._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, 08 November 2011 at 4:06am**


	36. Chapter 36

**Author's Note: **_166 reviews later we are at Chapter 36 of the Phoebe series. I hope you are all still enjoying it._

**Dedications: **_Chapter goes out too _**10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi** _and_ **KingdomHeartsNerd.** _Glad to hear from you._

_It's late and I have to be up soon, so if you will forgive me I think I'm going to skip the in responses. If there is something you desperately wanted me to answer (or attempt to answer) then please message me via PM._

_Thanks._

_Read and Review!_

* * *

><p>Next morning when she awoke, Phoebe found that Blake and Jackson were gone and had been replaced by another body.<p>

"Good morning, _Sparkler…"_

Phoebe snorted as she rolled over to face Terence. "Just for the record your Portuguese sucks…" she teased. "And it's 'Little Star' not Sparkler."

"Well that is why you are here," Terence responded. "To enlighten and correct me when I am wrong."

He kissed her.

"When did you get in?" Phoebe asked as they broke apart.

"About ten minutes ago," said Terence. "Professor Blackheart told me where I could find you, it's difficult to find your room if you're not used to this place; Jackson had to show me in the end"

Phoebe giggled. "Yeah, this place can seem strange if you're not used to it," she agreed. "I mean it's not like Hogwarts with its moving staircases or tricked out steps, but I understand your point."

She pulled herself closer to him, buried her face in his clothes and closed her eyes.

Terence chuckled as he wrapped his arm around her waist. "Come on, Phe, time to get up, Professor Blackheart says breakfast will be ready soon."

"No," Phoebe moaned. "It's too early; I'll catch a late breakfast, time for sleep."

The older Slytherin rolled his eyes but sank back into Phoebe's pillows as he realized that he was not moving for a good few hours, seeing as Phoebe had latched onto the front of his clothes and refused to let go.

"Sweet dreams, Phe," Terence smiled removing a stray piece of hair from Phoebe's face as she slipped back into her dream world.

Later that morning Terence finally managed to get Phoebe out of bed and the two descended the stairs into the kitchen for a late breakfast.

Rose was standing in the middle of the kitchen rolling dough, a fresh batch of Blueberry and Raspberry muffins sat on a cooling tray beside her. "_Well, good morning, sunshine,_" she greeted as Phoebe entered the kitchen. "_I see you have company…"_

Phoebe smiled. "Rose this is Terence," she introduced. "Ter, this is Rose Brooks. Blake's older sister."

"Hi," said Terence with a small nod.

"_Hi_," Rose responded.

"She doesn't speak English very well," said Phoebe noticing the look on Terence's face. "She understands it perfectly, but she can't pronounce it as well as she can Portuguese. You will find that with most people that work here, but don't worry, I'll be your personal translator."

Terence grinned and kissed her forehead.

"_Would you like breakfast?" Rose asked._

"Yes, please," said Phoebe.

Rose nodded. "_Go sit down, I will bring it to you."_

Phoebe smiled, nodded her thanks, grabbed Terence's hand and led him through the kitchen and into the dining room where a long polished table and a familiar face was waiting for them. The young Gryffindor stopped short as the person sitting at the table looked up, and her blue gaze connected with his green one.

A smile split across her face, as his name slipped from her lips, before she could even say it.

"Harry!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After breakfast, Phoebe, Terence and Harry retreated out onto the grounds of Blackheart Manor where they found Jackson and Blake taking the horses out onto the pasture to graze.

"You weren't kidding when you said you had a lot of horses," said Harry, as he watched a few other boys follow Blake and Jackson.

Phoebe smiled as she reached the fence surrounding the pasture. "Would I lie to you?" she asked.

"No," said Harry. "But I didn't actually think you were serious, isn't it difficult to look after one horse let alone all these?"

"Not really," said Phoebe. "They are my babies. Some of them I have bred and raised since they were foals, others were given to me for Birthdays and Christmas, and others are sent to us because their owners simply cannot take care of them anymore."

Harry and Terence nodded.

"So basically you're like a Horse sanctuary?" said Terence.

Phoebe giggled into her hand, but nodded at her boyfriend. "Yeah, something like that." she replied.

_"Hey Phoebe,"_

"_Hi, Phoebe!"_

_"Good morning Phoebe!"_

Phoebe grinned as several other stable boys greeted her good morning, as they allowed the foals out of their stables; waving back, the young elemental watched as one of her newest foals padded its way across the pasture towards her, and bumped its snout against the fence. "Good morning, Sassy..." she smiled, reaching through the breaks in the fence to pet the young mare.

The horse let off a small noise as she was petted.

"Sassy?" Harry asked.

"Yeah," said Phoebe. "She's got to have a name, doesn't she?"

"You sound like Hagrid," teased Harry.

Phoebe gasped and slapping Harry in the leg for his comment. "I do not!" she cried.

Harry chuckled and lowered himself onto his knees beside his friend. "Did you name all these horses?" he asked.

"Most of them," Phoebe nodded. "Like I said, some of them I raised myself from birth, most of them were given to me, and so they were already named from their last owners."

Harry nodded. "What's this one's name?" he asked, motioning to an all-black foal that was approaching.

"Blackheart," Phoebe answered.

"Very original," chuckled Terence.

Phoebe glanced sideways at him. "What? I didn't name him after my family..."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, reaching through the fence to pet the foal.

"Yes. He was actually given to me,"

Terence grinned. "And he just so happened to be called Blackheart?"

"Yes!" Phoebe exclaimed softly. "I swear you two are as bad as each other..." she laughed.

Harry and Terence paused and exchanged looks behind Phoebe, as she leaned in closer to the fence to press a kiss to the nose of Sassy, and then turned to pay attention to Blackheart, as Sassy trotted away.

Soon Blackheart trotted away leaving the two Lions and Snake alone on the outside the pasture. "Aren't you allowed over the fence?" Harry asked.

"Course," said Phoebe. "But some of the horses don't react well to strangers; so I would have to leave you two here, and that would be very rude considering you are both my guests for the rest of the summer."

Terence and Harry nodded in agreement, before turning to the sound of Phoebe's name being called from across the grounds. Looking around Terence spotted a young woman, with blonde hair tied back in a neat ponytail hurrying towards them.

"Phoebe!" called Rachel. "Phoebe, Mistress Serefina would like to see you in the family room."

"Did she say what for?" Phoebe asked.

Rachel shook her head. "Only that there is someone here to see Master Potter."

Harry gulped.

Phoebe frowned. "Thank you, Rachel, we will be right in."

Rachel nodded and turned to leave the three students. Once she was gone, Phoebe and Terence turned to Harry.

"Who would come all the way to Portugal for you, Potter?" Terence asked.

Harry shook his head. "I don't know..."

"A better question would be 'what did you do, to make someone come all the way to Portugal for you.'" said Phoebe. "Wait a minute, you didn't tell us when or how you got here. I thought you said you couldn't come, because of your relatives?"

Harry looked sheepish; he had never gotten around to telling Phoebe the truth on why he was there in the first place. "I kinda...sort of...blew up my aunt."

"Define 'blew up'" said Terence, quickly.

"As in like a balloon,"

Phoebe's jaw hit the floor. "You mean you used underage magic in front of a Muggle?"

"On a Muggle," added Terence.

Harry glared at them. "I thought you'd be supportive of me," he exclaimed.

"We're just trying to wrap our heads around this," defended Phoebe. "Let's just go see who is here to see you, I mean, you can't have done anything serious or you would have had the Ministry of Magic onto your tail the moment you had used magic."

Harry sighed. "Okay. Lead the way..."

Phoebe nodded, linked her arm through his and laced her hand with Terence's as she led the way from the pasture, across the grounds and back in through the kitchen. Rose was still baking muffins, cookies and pies when they entered, she offered them a good-luck smile as they passed and then returned to her work.

Knocking once on the door to the family room, Phoebe led the way inside and almost fell over as she saw the familiar face of Cornelius Fudge sitting on the black leather sofa in the middle of the room. _Uh-oh _she thought bleakly as he looked up and his gaze settled on the three of them.

"Ah, Harry," said Fudge, getting eagerly to his feet. "I see you are safe..."

Serefina glared at the back of the man. "Was there any doubt that he wouldn't be, Minister?" she questioned.

"Of course not, of course not," said Fudge. "I just had to be sure; it was, however, very foolish of you to take him out of United Kingdom without notifying the proper authorities', Miss. Blackheart."

"And you would have preferred him on the streets? With is a murderer on the loose?" said Serefina. "I think not, Minister. I had orders to protect the boy, and if that means bringing him here for his protection then I was merely doing my job."

Fudge looked disgruntled. He was not used to be talked to in this way. "Orders, Mhmm?" he asked. "Orders you say, from whom?"

"I am not at liberty to discuss that."

Looking up at Terence and Harry, Phoebe shook her head and cleared her throat. "Not to be rude," she interrupted. "But is there any particular reason that the Minister of London is sitting in our family room? Other than to question the motives of my relatives in bringing Harry to safety?"

"Yes," said Fudge, turning back to the students. "I was wondering if I could speak with Harry alone."

Phoebe frowned and turned to her friend before looking around at her guardians. "Um...sure...I guess..." she nodded, before turning and leading Terence from the room. She offered Harry a reassuring smile as she passed.

"I'm not sure about this, Phe," said Terence, as he followed Phoebe back upstairs.

"Neither am I," said Phoebe. "But there isn't much I can do, don't worry, i'm sure Serefina won't leave Harry alone with Fudge."

Terence continued to look unsure.

"Hey," said Phoebe, wrapping her arms around his neck as she turned to face him. "Don't look so worried. Fudge has no jurisdiction here, he cannot take Harry."

"How can you be so sure?" Terence asked, wrapping his arms around her waist, as he walked Phoebe backwards into her room.

The young Gryffindor grinned. "Because Harry is no longer on UK soil," she answered, leaning up to kiss him. "Fudge can't do anything to him while he is here in the US."

Terence smirked as he returned the kiss. "Do you have _everything_ planned out in advance?" he asked

"Mhmm, maybe..." Phoebe teased, pulling away a fraction of an inch. "Or -"

She was cut off as Terence closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to hers, Phoebe grinned as she deepened the kiss.

The fire within the bedroom roared to life and Ashlyn tumbled out, taking a moment to relocate herself, Ashlyn set her gaze on the Gryffindor and Slytherin on the bed. "Oh, gross!" she cried, her face scrunched up in mock disgust.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile downstairs Fudge had allocated Harry to sit opposite him on the leather sofas in front of the fireplace; Elena and Jacob had left the room moments after Phoebe and Terence, leaving Serefina in the same place near the bay windows, she refused to leave Fudge along with Harry in her own home, Harry was her guest and therefore her responsibility while he as there at Blackheart Manor. Also, it wasn't that she didn't trust the Minister of the UK Ministry for Magic but he was on her property and therefore he had to abide by her rules.

"As you are probably aware, Harry, I am Cornelius Fudge. The Minister for Magic in the United Kingdom."

Harry nodded in understandment, before looking around as there came a knock at the door and Rose entered carrying a tray of tea and crumpets. _"Master Blackheart wishes to show his hospitality,"_ she said, catching Serefina's gaze from across the room.

"Thank you, Rose," Serefina nodded. "Dismissed."

Rose curtseyed and promptly left the room to return to her duties in the kitchen.

Fudge eyed the tray that lay on the table in front of him.

"My father wishes to extend his hospitality," Serefina explained. "We are very capable of manners, Minister."

"Of course," Fudge nodded, waving his wand and levitating the tea pot, he watched as the steaming liquid was poured into a cup, three sugars were added and a spoon stirred it. "Well, Harry, you've had us all in a right flap, I don't mind tell you. Running away from your aunt and uncle's house like that! I'd started to think...but you're safe, and that's what matters."

Serefina bristled angrily. How dare Fudge appear in her home and accuse her of not taking care of something that was incredibly valuable and important to her goddaughter. Phoebe simply loved Harry (not in the way that she loved Terence), but there was no way she would have been able to function properly if something had happened to him.

"Eat, Harry, you look dead on your feet," said Fudge, pushing the plate of crumpets towards the young male sitting opposite him.

"No, thank you," said Harry. "I've just had breakfast."

Fudge looked confused for a second before continued with what he had to say. "Now, then, you will be pleased to hear that we have dealt with the unfortunate blowing-up of Miss Marjorie Dursley. Two members of the Accidental Magic Reversal Department were dispatched to Privet Drive last night. Miss Dursley has been properly punctured and her memory has been modified. She has no recollection of the incident whatsoever, so that's that and no harm done."

Harry, who couldn't believe his ears, opened his mouth to speak, couldn't think of anything to say, and closed it again.

"Ah, you're worrying about the reaction of your aunt and uncle?" said Fudge. "Well, I won't deny that they are extremely angry, Harry, but they are prepared to take you back next summer as long as you stay at Hogwarts for the Christmas and Easter holidays."

"I _always_ stay at Hogwarts for the Christmas and Easter holidays," said Harry, "and I don't want to go back to Privet Drive, I would much rather stay here. I have only been here a few hours and already feel more at home, than I ever have done at Privet Drive!"

"Now, now, I'm sure you'll feel differently once you've calmed down," said Fudge in a worried tone. "They are your family, after all, and I'm sure you are fond of each other - er - v_ery_ deeply."

It didn't occur to Harry to put Fudge right, instead he said "What about my punishment?"

Fudge blinked.

"Punishment?"

"I broke the law," said Harry. "The Decree of the Restriction of Underage Wizardry!"

"Oh, my dear boy, we're not going to punish you for a little thing like that!" cried Fudge, "It was an accident! We don't send people to Azkaban for blowing up their aunts!"

But this didn't seem to sit well with either Harry or Serefina. The latter because she didn't trust Fudge at all, and the former because he had had past dealings with the Ministry of Magic before.

"But last year, I got an official warning just because a house-elf levitated a pudding in my uncle's house," said Harry, frowning. "The Ministry of Magic said I'd be expelled from Hogwarts if there was any more magic there!"

Fudge looked suddenly uncomfortable. "Circumstances change, Harry. We have to take into account - in the present climate - surely you don't _want_ to be expelled?"

"Of course I don't!" said Harry.

"Well, then, what's all the fuss about?" laughed Fudge, airily.

Harry continued to look lost and confused, as Serefina stared at the back of Fudge's head as he helped himself to a second crumpet. "Is there anything further to discuss Minister?" she asked, as he buttered it. "I'm sure my Goddaughter will like to know of Harry's predicament."

"There is only one thing left that I would like to discuss," said Fudge "and that is Harry's living arrangements. I think it would be best if he returned to England with me, and took up a room at the Leaky Cauldron."

"But I want to stay here!" Harry protested.

Fudge looked over the rim of his tea cup at the thirteen year old. "This is a matter of safety, Harry; I simply cannot keep an eye on you while you are here. Plus you are not a US citizen, I cannot just leave you in Portugal without permission from the proper authorities, the Portuguese Minister of Magic must agree for you to stay here; and his approval could take days to get. No, no, I think it would save a lot of paperwork and hassle if you were to just return with me."

Serefina rounded the back of the sofa on which Harry sat and touched his shoulder. "With all due respect, Minister, but Harry has written permission from Phoebe Blackheart to come and stay here for the rest of the summer," she explained. "I can request for Phoebe to be present if you wish to question her, but I do know that she has asked several more of her friends to also spend the summer, all of which I am sure will testify to Phoebe's invitation. If Harry agrees to accept the invitation, then I'm afraid that you cannot remove him from this household."

"I want to stay," said Harry quickly. "I want to stay here for the summer with Phoebe."

Serefina nodded.

Fudge huffed. "Fine, if he has been asked, and he has accepted, then I see no reason to remove him."

"Good." said Serefina. "Now, Harry, would you mind leaving, I wish to speak with the Minister privately."

Harry nodded and got to his feet, as he left the room he paused briefly outside in hopes of catching snippets of the conversation.

"Close the door please, Harry," Serefina called.

"Yes, Professor," said Harry with a heavy sigh. He grasped the door handle and snapped the door shut before hurrying upstairs to find Phoebe and tell her the good news.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once the door had closed, Serefina turned to stare at Fudge with a bloodthirsty look. She wanted information on a particular subject and by damn she was going to get the answers to the questions that she seeked.

"Well, now that all this is settled," said Fudge, pulling on his pinstriped cloak. "I'll be off, plenty to do, you know."

Serefina stepped in front of the fireplace to stop him from leaving. "I want answers, Fudge, answers that only you can give me. I want to know about the search that is underway in capturing Black."

"How do you -?" spluttered Fudge.

"I know quite a bit about what happens in the Wizarding world of England, Minister," Serefina explained. "And no, I will not tell you how I know. I know of Black's history, I also know that he murdered 12 Muggles and a wizard; but you must also know that he had a wife and three children on the night he committed these crimes."

Fudge nodded. "Mrs. Black has been informed that her husband is on the loose," he answered. "She is safely tucked away in the remotest regions of Italy; he cannot get to her and her children. They are quite safe."

"Then you must know that the eldest of Samantha's children is a close personal friend of my Goddaughter," Serefina informed him. "I wish to relocate the Black family here, where they are safe."

Fudge shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I cannot do that, you are not under obligation of the UK Ministry -"

"Screw the laws, Fudge!" snapped Serefina. "This is not about paperwork, or whatever else it is you are worried about, this is about innocent lives. Black is all over the news, even over here! Every Wizarding family in Portugal is on high alert - our Ministry takes escaped prisoners from around the world very seriously - Samantha and her children will be safely hidden here and I believe it should be their choice of where they choose to stay."

Fudge's fingers slipped on the silver fastenings of his cloak. "Well, I am afraid that you are too late, Mrs. Black and her children are already in Italy. Isolated until the end of the summer for when her children return to school."

"James, Henry and Melissa still have school shopping,"

"It has been arranged that their books will be pre-ordered and sent straight to Professor McGonagall at Hogwarts," explained Fudge. "The UK Ministry also takes escaped prisoners very seriously, Professor."

Serefina's gaze hardened. "And how exactly did Black escape Azkaban?" she questioned.

Fudge shook his head. "We are unsure. The Dementors have never yet failed in keeping their prisoners under control, but they are extremely angry with this escape, angrier than I have ever seen them."

"They are missing a food source," said Serefina. "I can understand that they are angry."

Serefina had never gotten over the fact that the UK had put Dementors in charge of a prison, although it did seem like a relatively good idea because those in Azkaban didn't deserve the air they breathed or the souls in which they inhabited; but that still did not mean that Dementors were on her favorite creatures list.

"Of course," Fudge agreed, nodding his head rapidly. "Well, if that is all, I'll say goodbye."

Serefina nodded and stepped away from the fireplace. "I will see that Harry is returned to Hogwarts safe and sound at the end of the summer. Good day, Minister."

"Good day, Miss Blackheart."

The fire roared to life and Fudge disappeared in a flicker of emerald green flame.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**There; now that seems much better. Sorry for the confusion and hassle, but I really didn't like what I had developed last night and just HAD to re-edit the final scene between Fudge and Serefina, I'll understand if you don't re-comment, but thank you for re-reading; I appreciate it.**

**If you do wish to re-comment and have already commented once before, then you can re-comment but you will just have to do it without signing into Fanfiction. Stupid I know, but readers can only comment once on each chapter if they are signed in.**

**Again, the choice is yours, I am not begging you to re-comment.**

**Chapter re-edited by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter re-edited on Saturday, 12 November 2011 at 1:00am**


	37. Chapter 37

**Author's Note - **I really didn't like how I ended last chapter, so as promised (mostly to make myself feel better) I went back and re-edited the final scene of chapter 36; the scene between Serefina and Fudge has been added too and is completely different to what I had there previously, feel free to go back and read, you don't have to re-comment if you don't want too, I just hope you will all spare two extra minutes of your time to go back and read the additional information that has been posted. Thank you.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** 10****th**** Squad 3****rd**** Seat**.

**In responses: **First to _**Fan of Fics:**_ I agree, Fudge is completely opposite of what we should have as Minister for Magic; I also took into consideration of what you said about calling Serefina by her name outside of Hogwarts, and I have changed it now, you are right to assume that it would be strange, I wouldn't do it with my own teachers from school. Um, no there was no significance to Phoebe's foal being named 'Blackheart' I thought it would be just a cute little filler between Phoebe, Harry and Terence. As for Serefina being calm about Phoebe and Terence, what did you mean? Any particular reason she should react to their relationship? Again, I wish I had taken the time to plan last chapter before I had written it, because I really did want Serefina to question Fudge on Black and his history because as you stated she is in tune with what is happening around Hogwarts and it's students - despite not going to Hogwarts as a child - I was re-reading your review and I re-edited the previous chapter and I hope you enjoy/enjoyed the changes.

Secondly to _**Vivi Fontaine:**_It's good to hear from you. As for Phoebe and Terence, I couldn't resist the little scene between them, and the reaction from Ashlyn, it was priceless. As I said above to _**Fan of Fics**_ your review also played a part in the re-write seeing as I included some information on James and his family as to how they react to Sirius's escape. Ashlyn will come later (possibly in the chapter below) but Sirius is more concentrated on getting Peter, but he will focus somewhat on his family, namely his son's, daughter, niece and godson. You'll see what I mean =)

Lastly to _**10**__**th**__** Squad 3**__**rd**__** Seat:**_ Yup. Harry has arrived. Fudge doesn't seem happy about it but, eh, what is he going to do? Serefina doesn't seem to want to let young Harry go quite easily =D. As for your favorite couple, they have kissed exactly three times, and Terence kissed her forehead once; so much for keeping the kissing to a minimum =P

* * *

><p><em><strong>BLACK STILL AT LARGE<strong>_

_Sirius Black, possibly the most infamous prisoner ever to be held in Azkaban fortress, is still eluding capture, the Ministry of Magic confirmed today._

_"We are doing all we can to recapture Black," said the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, this morning, "and we beg the magical community to remain calm."_

_Fudge has been criticized by some members of the International Federation of Warlocks for informing the Muggle Prime Minister of the crisis._

_"Well, really, I had to, don't you know," said an irritable Fudge. "Black is mad. He's a danger to anyone who crosses him, magic or Muggle. I have the Prime Minister's assurance that he will not breathe a word of Black's true identity to anyone. And let's face it - who'd believe him if he did?"_

_While Muggles have been told that Black is carrying a gun (a kind of metal wand which Muggles use to kill each other), the magical community lives in fear of a massacre like that of twelve years ago, when Black murdered thirteen people with a single curse._

James looked into the shadowed eyes of his father, the only part of his sunken face that seemed alive; the rest of his face represented that of a vampire that James had remembered seeing in one of his Defence Against the Dark Art books from school.

"James," Samantha - Sam - Black called, as she hurried through the manor looking for her eldest son. Her hair was dishellved and her breathing ragged as she reached the kitchen. "James, didn't you hear -" she cut off a she noticed the Morning newspaper in her son's hands. She sighed, a frown adorning her beautiful features. "Oh, James..."

"Why didn't you tell me?" James asked, looking up from the paper to stare accusingly at his mother. "You knew, why you didn't tell me!"

Sam sighed and approached her son. "James, I am terribly sorry for not telling you," she said.

"Obviously you're not!" James snapped. "If you were then you would have told me sooner, rather than letting me find out for myself!"

James met his mother's gaze a mixture of grief and fury crept into his features, before he bolted from his seat into the family room.

"James!" Sam called, as she followed him, but by the time she had reached the family room green flames flickered in the fireplace and James had gone.

Samantha Black sighed, touched the necklace which hung around her neck as tears pooled in her eyes, what had she done?

**~*Phoebe*~**

_'Witch burning in the Seventeenth Century was Completely Pointless Discuss!'_

Ashlyn shook her head as she looked up from the magazine she was reading, she was laying on her stomach on Phoebe's bed while the Gryffindor sat at her desk scratching away at her History of Magic summer essay. "In the last three years of knowing you," the Slytherin said, "I have never known you to leave an essay this long."

"Circumstances arose which kept me from finishing it," Phoebe answered. "Like Dance recitals, Harry turning up, Fudge arriving and trying to remove Harry from Portugal -"

"He didn't," said Ashlyn. "He does realize that Potter was _invited_, right?"

Phoebe nodded. "He does now. Harry accepted my invitation in front of him." she grinned, looking up at her best friend. "Fudge can't touch Harry now, government law."

"I would love to live in Portugal," Ashlyn grinned. "Your laws are so much cooler than ours."

"Trust me, not everything about Portugal laws are fun." Phoebe said. "Some of them are cruel and harsh as any country."

Ashlyn frowned. "What? They don't burn witches at the stake do they?"

Phoebe giggled. "No, we're not that inhumane, but the punishment clause out here can sometimes be unnatural, even to Wizarding standards. Our criminals like Murderers, Child abusers, Wife beaters and such can sometimes find themselves in a situation that would make even their blood turn ice cold. For example; a few years back, there was a witch down in the village, her husband tried to rape her daughter, and he was convicted, but instead of sentencing him to a certain amount of time in prison, they sentenced him death."

"How did he die?" Ashlyn asked, unsure of if she actually wanted to know.

"That's the harsh part," said Phoebe. "You know the Capital Punishment in Muggle London?"

Ashlyn shook her head.

"Well, it was abolished in the UK in 1965 for all crimes except treason and piracy," Phoebe explained. "Well, a Portuguese death sentence is related to that. We don't hang victims much anymore, but we do still use Beheading, Stoning and Crucifixion."

The Slytherin winced. "Savages. So, how did the wizard die?"

"Beheading," Phoebe answered. "It was quick, clean and painless. I remember doing a study on it when I homeschooled as a child."

"Professor Blackheart had you study Capital Punishment when you were a child?" Ashlyn frowned, "Isn't that a bit cruel?"

The Gryffindor shook her head. "No, most magical children in Portugal are taught the laws from a young age, our parents - or in my case guardian - try to help us understand what will happen to us if we break the law. It may sound like a cruel thing to do, especially to someone so young, innocent and naive, but it is the only way for us to understand that bad things happen to bad people."

Ashlyn nodded, in a way it did sound cruel, but it also sounded reasonable when you actually thought about it. If a child was taught the law from a young age, and they understood that bad things happened to you if you broke the law, then there was a less likely chance that the child would grow up to be a criminal. In a way it sounded logical.

Turning back to her essay, Phoebe reached for _A History of Magic,_ by Bathilda Bagshot which lay beside her on the desk; she flipped it open to the correct page and started to write.

_Non-magical people (more commonly known as Muggles) were particularly afraid of magic in medieval times, but not very good at recognizing it. On the very rare occasion that they did catch a witch or wizard, burning had no effect whatsoever, the accused would simply cast a basic Flame-Freezing Charm and then pretend to shriek in pain while enjoying a gentle tickling sensation. Wendlin the Weird enjoyed being burnt so much that she allowed herself to get caught at least forty-seven different times whilst in various disguises._

Pausing, Phoebe referenced her work, before reaching for another book that she had taken from her grandfather's library. It was labeled _Salem Witch trials 1692-1693,_ by Casimiro Fabio, she turned to the index, found the page she had found a few nights ago and quickly flipped to the designated page, dipped her quill into her ink well and started to write once more.

_Elena Wild; was another woman that was caught using magic and later sentenced to death by burning; but before officials could cast her into the flames of 'redemption' for her sins as they re-called it, Elena died, leaving behind, in the care of her family, a very magical baby. Her daughter - Melinda._

_Knowing she was going to die and she had already been found out as a witch, Elena made it possible that the Witch hunters did not find out about her baby's magical heritage and therefore pleaded with her family to keep he daughter safe, and if the time came, they would bind her magic until she was old enough to fully understand the dangers of the Muggle world._

_Elena died April 16th 1676._

_Her daughter, Melinda Wild grew into a lovely young woman, and was born October 31st, 1669. She was born in a rural village in Portugal, but later moved to Salem, Massachusetts in hopes of evading the Witch Hunters, who in her mind, had driven her mother to death._

_Several years after living in Salem, Melinda gave birth to a daughter - Elena (named after her mother), but was later burned at the stake in the Salem Witch trials of 1692. It would have been easy and simple for Melinda to escape being burned, but the Witch Hunters did not suspect her daughter of being a witch, they merely believed that young Elena had been kidnapped by the 'Witch' as Melinda was profoundly named and they did not suspect her of any magical heritage._

_So in order to protect her daughter, and keep her from death, Melinda died in 1692._

_It is believed that Melinda Wild was the beginning of the magical Blackheart witches of modern century Portugal._

Happy with her essay, Phoebe signed the bottom of the page and put it aside along with her _History of Magic_ and _Salem Witch trials 1692-1693_ books, before reaching for the thick black leather bound Potions book, she opened it to the correct page and proceeded to write her last essay of the summer; putting quill to parchment, Phoebe scratched out the title...

_The Properties of a Shrinking Potion_

...and started to write.

However, Phoebe hadn't written more than a single line, when her bedroom door crashed open causing both herself and Ashlyn to look around, to find - much to their surprise - James standing on the threshold; his usual solid demeanor broke the moment he saw both girls and tears slid rapidly down his cheeks, as his legs buckled.

"James!" both Ashlyn and Phoebe exclaimed, darting forwards to catch their friend before he could hit the floor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Why didn't she tell me?" James asked as he sat in the middle of Phoebe's bed, his hands were shaking and he had only just managed to stop crying, long enough to tell his friends exactly why he was there, when he should have been in Italy with his mother, siblings and Grandparents.

Phoebe touched his shoulder comfortingly. "We don't know, Jamie," she said using the affectionate nickname she had given him during her second year at Hogwarts. Only she, Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah could call him 'Jamie' it was their name, they held the copyright.

James felt his body shake as he repressed another sob. "Twelve years," he murmured. "They had twelve years to tell me the truth but they didn't. They lied to me. Every time I asked 'Where's Daddy?' and 'When is Daddy coming home?' and not once did they bother to tell me the truth, instead they kept it from me!"

Ashlyn touched his hand as she realized he was shaking in anger and fury, both she and Phoebe knew that the 'they' that James was referring too was his mother and godfather.

The door to Phoebe's room opened.

"Just a sec," Phoebe called out. "Give us a minute!"

Blake withdrew and closed the door behind him, Phoebe, James and Ashlyn could hear his muffled voice on the other side of the door and knew instantly that he was talking to Jackson, Harry and Terence who was more than likely wondering what had caused James to come here in a fit of hysteria.

There then came a knock on the outside of the door.

Phoebe sighed and slid from the bed, crossed the room and slipped out to face the rest of her guests.

"Is he alright?" said Terence. "I've never seen Black look so vulnerable."

"He's fine," Phoebe answered. "He's just found out the truth about his father after twelve years, it's taking a while to comprehend but he should be alright by dinner." she turned to Blake. "Are Amelia and Sarah here yet?"

Blake shook his head. "Not yet, you want me to send Athena with a note?"

"Yes, please," Phoebe nodded. "Tell them that James is here and he could use his friends."

"Okay," Blake nodded, "I'll do that now. You tell Black to get his act together, he can't stay cooped up in there forever."

Phoebe grinned. "I'll tell him, and thanks Blake."

As Blake walked away to write to Amelia and Sarah, Phoebe turned back to Jackson, Harry and Terence. "He'll be fine. Once he has relaxed further I will have him message his mother to let her know that he is safe, he doesn't have to tell her exactly where he is if he doesn't want too, but she needs to know that he is safe..." she paused, "Mrs. Black should know that her husband has escaped, the last thing we need is for her to panic over her son missing."

"But Black is in England," said Harry.

"That doesn't matter," Phoebe replied. "For all James's mother knows is James has gone to his godfather for answers, as far as I know she doesn't know about me...mostly because when I first met James I was living in England."

Terence, Jackson and Harry nodded. Jackson knew that for the months leading up to Phoebe's first year at Hogwarts she and Serefina had been living in a small cottage in England before returning permanently to Portugal.

"I'm going to head back in," said Phoebe motioning over her shoulder. "If we're not out by the time Amelia and Sarah get here send them straight up, and I'll see you guys at Dinner, okay?"

The three nodded once more.

Phoebe smiled as she reached up to kiss Terence, before returning to her bedroom where James and Ashlyn were talking about reasons why Samantha Black would keep her husband's arrest a secret from her children.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Several hours after James had turned up unexpectedly, Amelia and Sarah arrived in the middle of Phoebe's bedroom. The two Hufflepuff's immediately attacked the only male of their group and hugged him so tight that Phoebe feared they would crush him.

"Can't breathe!" James choked as the two Hufflepuff's finally let go.

"You need to start working out, Jamie," teased Sarah "If you can't handle a simple hug."

"Simple?" James asked, "You nearly crushed my ribs!"

Amelia giggled and shook her head. "Oh, poor little Jamie, can't handle a simple little hug; what will he ever do when he finds a girlfriend?"

"If he finds a girlfriend," Sarah added in, grinning from ear to ear.

James scowled. "Why again did you invite them?" he asked, turning to Phoebe.

The Elemental grinned in amusement. "Because they are your friends, and you needed cheering up."

"I was fine until they showed up!"

"Oh, well that's nice," gasped Amelia. "Next time we won't drop everything and rush over."

Ashlyn frowned. "Who says there will be a next time?"

"There is always a next time with us five," said Phoebe.

The Slytherin paused and then nodded. "True."

James rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Can we get back to the topic at hand please? I just found out that my missing father has in fact been a prisoner in Azkaban for twelve years, I want to know why!"

Amelia and Sarah exchanged looks, since both of them were Muggleborns the word 'Azkaban' was lost on them and so was the story of James's father.

"Azkaban is a prison," Ashlyn explained spotting the confused looks, "it is where wizards who violate the laws of the British Wizarding world are sent. There is only one other prison that I have heard of that caters for law-breaking wizards around the world and that is Nurmengard."

"So, where is Azkaban?" Sarah asked.

"Somewhere in the North Sea," Phoebe answered. "Generally, only very severe crimes are punished with a term in Azkaban. Many prisoners who are in there were supporters of Voldemort. For example, Quirrell would have been sentenced to life in Azkaban after what he did to me during first year at Hogwarts; he used the Cruciatus curse on me, tried to use the Imperious curse and failed to use the Killing curse because Voldemort wanted me alive."

Ashlyn nodded. "Yeah, performing any of the Unforgiveable Curses on someone is punishable by a mandatory whole life sentence. So, Quirrell would have gone away for life -"

"Good," said James. "He deserved for what he did to you."

"Yeah, but he got his death handed to him - literally," said Phoebe. "Was that punishment enough?"

Sarah shrugged. "At least now he can't hurt anyone."

"Who guards these prisons?" asked Amelia "How did the guards not notice Black escaping?"

"That's what has gotten everyone so scared," said Ashlyn. "Azkaban is guarded by creatures we call Dementors. A large presence of Dementors renders the inmates incapable of happiness and forces them to relive their worst memories, as they become gradually helpless and often severely insane, many eventually stop eating and soon die of starvation -" she paused at the weird looks of confusion she was receiving "Adrian's father visited Azkaban once, he said he will never go back there, horrible place."

Phoebe and James nodded whilst Amelia and Sarah simply looked sick to their stomachs.

"As for how Black escaped," Phoebe continued where Ashlyn had finished. "No one knows. No one has ever escaped Azkaban until now."

"Care to enlighten us on _why_ he was sent away in the first place?" Sarah asked.

Phoebe hesitated, glanced at James and then shared a look with Ashlyn. They were unsure if James knew the reason behind his father's imprisonment seeing as he didn't know where is father had been for the last twelve years.

"Okay," said Phoebe, with a heavy sigh.

The Slytherin nodded and while Sarah and Amelia settled themselves down on the bed for the back story of Sirius Black's history, James leaned back into Phoebe's pillows as his heart twisted painfully in his chest. It was like someone had taken a knife to him and was twisting it every time he breathed, but he wanted answers, and he knew - somehow - that in order to get the answers that he so badly wanted, he would have to face the past, and not only face it, but understand it completely.

"Well, one can only speculate exactly what happened that night," Phoebe begun. "But on Halloween night 1981, Black was suspected of betraying the Potters and was sent to Azkaban for murder and treason, it was a life's sentence, he has now escaped and become one of the first men ever to escape the prison."

"That is why every Wizarding family is on high alert," said Ashlyn. "Both here in Portugal and in England -"

Phoebe shook her head. "It's not just our two countries, every Wizarding family in the world, is on high alert..." she looked around at her friends. "Black is suspected to be highly dangerous, and considering that he is believed to have killed thirteen people with one curse proves that he is."

Sarah - who had been playing with her fingers - looked up at James. "What were you thinking?" she asked him. "I know he is your father and everything, but he is still a convicted murderer, and with him on the loose, you just decide to run away? Are you out of your mind?"

"He's in England!" snapped James. "I was in Italy!"

"That doesnt matter," said Amelia. "If what Phoebe says is true, and the all Wizarding families all over the world are on high alert, then you should have been more careful. Black could have intercepted the Floo network and snatched you and then where would we be?"

James lowered his gaze, his glare softened and he sighed. "What am I going do?"

"Write to your mum," said Phoebe.

"But she'll make me go home!" James whined. "I don't want to see her right now."

"I didn't say you had to go home," said Phoebe. "You don't even have to tell her where you are; just tell her you're safe, and that you will see her at the end of the summer at Kings Cross Station."

"Okay, but I can't use Athena," said James. "My mum will remember her from Christmas last year and two years ago, do you have any owls?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, but Harry is here, I will ask if you can use Hedwig." she smiled comfortingly. "Don't worry so much, James, we'll figure this out."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I simply LOVE James and Phoebe's relationship; they are the perfect Brother/sister couple.**

**This chapter (as you have probably noticed) is an original created by myself. It does not belong in the book whatsoever. This has taken me relatively all evening to bring together and I hope it is flawless, and runs smoothly. I hate chapters that you can tell have been forced together and seem really choppy and abrupt.**

**Next chapter will be the end of the summer.**

**Anyway...i'm going to stop talking now.**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, November 13, 2011 at 1:47am**


	38. Chapter 38

**Author's Note - **Sorry for the rush forward. But it is the end of the summer and the friends are heading back to school; what adventures await them this year? And how is James coping with the revelation of his father's return?

**Dedications -** Chapter goes out to the following people. **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** and**KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In responses - Fan of Fics: **I see what you mean about Serefina being calm about Phoebe and Terence; simple explanation, Serefina trusts her goddaughter not to do anything stupid, and as long as she is safe then Serefina is okay with her blossoming relationship. But it's not really Serefina you should be worried about it is Blake. Oops...i'm going to stop talking now =). As for James; I completely agree, quite a shock to find out your father has been in prison for twelve years and is a convinced mass-murderer, also the Wizarding laws of Portugal are quite severe, but I would have to agree, I would rather be beheaded than given to the Dementors.

**Vivi Fontaine:** Aw, James would love you to be his girlfriend, but sadly his pairing has already been settled. I hope you approve of it when you find out who I have decided on. You are fighting the urge to write a what? Fanfic of my Fanfic? Lol, never have I heard that before, that was definitely a first, but I am glad you are enjoying it enough to want to be a part of it. If I ever need a new character, I will give you a shout. =D

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: **Yup. They hold the copyright to the nickname 'Jamie' if anyone else tries to use it they are toast.

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** I have already explained that the chapter was not meant to be sad...but it wasn't meant to be happy either. Glad you understand.

Now - onto the main story of third year, as Phoebe, Harry and friends dig into the case of the Prisoner of Azkaban and find out exactly what happened that Halloween night eleven years ago; and to boot? Phoebe has to deal with a very jealous Oliver Wood. =/

* * *

><p>Ashlyn paused in the packing of her school trunk and turned in the direction of the packing Gryffindor. "That reminds me," she said out loud. "How come Blake seems so calm around you and Terence? I thought he would have skinned him alive by now for even touching you, I mean, remember what he did to Marcus last year?"<p>

Sarah and Amelia winced, they hadn't been present when Marcus Flint had attacked Blake Brooks in Flourish and Blotts at the end of the summer last year, but they had heard all about it when they had located James and Ashlyn on the Hogwarts Express.

"Blake's trying his best," said Phoebe. "He's not completely happy with the situation, but considering I have promised to be extra careful, and keep the kissing to a minimum -" Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia scoffed "he has promised to give Terence a chance."

"It's strange," said Sarah. "I was sure he was going to go off the handle when he found out you had a boyfriend who was four years older than you."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, so did I. I was expecting a whole protest when I came home this summer, but no, he and Jackson have been perfect angels as you have currently seen, they've even hung out with Terence - which was a big surprise, I thought for sure they would avoid him, you know try and make him feel uncomfortable. I hate when they do that, but hey, they are like my older brothers, what are you going to do?"

"Boys will be boys," agreed Ashlyn. "Adrian is the same with me; the opposite sex isn't even allowed to look at me for more than a couple of seconds before Adrian comes down hard on them."

"You'd think he's jealous or something," teased Amelia.

Ashlyn glared. "No, Adrian is my brother, nothing more and nothing less."

"You sure about that?" asked Amelia. "I could so envision both you and Adrian as a very decent pureblood couple.

"Is Terence a Pureblood?" Sarah asked, turning to Phoebe.

Phoebe frowned and dropped a pair of socks into her trunk. "How the hell should I know?" she asked.

"Well, he is your boyfriend!" Sarah pointed out. "You're telling me that you have been dating this guy for a little over 3 months and you don't even know if he is Pureblood or not?"

"We don't really talk about families," shrugged Phoebe. "He knows about my family, but he's never really mentioned his own, and I've never seen fit to ask him about it."

Sarah shook her head and turned to Amelia. "He could be adopted and Phoebe would never know."

"Well, what does it matter if he's not a Pureblood, anyway?" the Gryffindor asked. "I'd still love him whether he was a Muggleborn, although that is probably unlikely considering he was in Slytherin. But my point is: I don't care what blood status he is, I love him regardless."

The three friends fell silent and returned to packing, before Amelia's voice cut through the silence that had fallen around them. "You never said, Pheebs, how's Oliver taking all this?"

The look on Phoebe's face turned sour as she redirected her gaze to the carpet beneath her feet.

"That bad, huh?" Ashlyn asked, sucking in a breath.

"He's not talking to me," Phoebe answered, sounding almost upset. "I have sent him numerous letters since the end of term, and he has sent them all back. I invited him to stay for the summer, just like I did you guys, but when he asked me if Terence would be here and I said yes, he declined my invitation."

Sarah and Amelia exchanged looks.

"He seems to think I have lost my mind," Phoebe continued "and that I am blind for trusting a Slytherin with anything much less my feelings!"

A tear escaped the corner of Phoebe's eye and rolled silently down her cheek, hastily she wiped it way before anyone could see she was too upset. Unfortunately, Sarah, Amelia and Ashlyn saw the gesture and crowded around their little lion friend and hugged her tightly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"It is lovely to see you again, Serefina"_ said an unfamiliar voice from the family room.

Phoebe frowned and knocked once on the door, before pushing it open and stepping inside. Several people stood beyond the closed door; Blake and Jackson, who had their school trunks all packed and ready for travel near the fireplace. Obviously Rose was present to say goodbye to her younger brother, Elena and Jacob were there because it was their home, Serefina was present because she too was wishing Jackson and Blake an interesting year at Durmstrang, and so this left two more people that Phoebe did not recognize.

The younger of the two newcomers smiled and nodded at her appearance, but he did not comment or say anything else to her. Phoebe frowned, but shrugged off the feeling of familiarity vibe she was receiving from him and turned her attention to the older gentleman. Again she recognized him, but from where? She couldn't say.

_"And who is this fine young beauty?"_ the older gentleman asked, crossing the room and taking Phoebe's hand. He lifted it to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back, Phoebe eyed him curiously, she didn't like this man he was giving off evil signatures and she wanted more than anything to just dissolve back through the door behind her and act like this meeting had never occurred.

Glancing across at her godmother, Phoebe waited for a signal to introduce herself, whenever there was a strange person within the manor -especially one as creepy as this guy- the young Gryffindor always waited for a sign from her relatives so that she could tell the guest who she was. If the sign was not given then Phoebe often withdrew her presence from the room and left the adults to their business.

"_This is my Goddaughter, Igor," _said Serefina. "_She is a student of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."_

Phoebe glanced subtly between the older gentleman who had been named as Igor, and her godmother. The tongue in which Serefina was now speaking was not Portuguese, but Russian. Dropping her gaze from Serefina and onto Jackson and Blake, something clicked within Phoebe as she realized that the man before her, he was speaking Russian because he was the headmaster of Durmstrang, and the Durmstrang Institute was situated in Russia.

_**I understand very clearly now**_ she thought, smiling sweetly at the older gentleman who still had her hand in his grasp. "_It is a pleasure to meet you sir,_" she said out loud, removing her hand from his and crossing the room to where the younger of the two newcomers stood. "_Phoebe."_ she greeted, holding her hand out for him.

The younger man took her hand and kissed the back of it, just like his older companion. "_Viktor."_ he answered. "_Viktor Krum."_

As if someone had flipped a switch on inside her head, Phoebe recognized the man before her. He was Russia's number one seeker; the youngest player to ever be chosen to play for an international team, at only the age of 15 he had been chosen to play for Russia's team, and now at 16 he was still able to juggle school and a professional Quidditch career. She smiled in recognition "_It is a pleasure to meet you Viktor Krum,"_

Krum chuckled in a low rumble, as he watched Phoebe turn to Blake and Jackson, open her arms wide and fall into a long embrace with the two boys. He had watched these two grow over time at Hogwarts, and while Blake was the same age as himself, and Jackson was two years younger, this put Phoebe at the bottom of the pile at 13.

Krum watched the exchange with a slight envious feeling, he often asked Blake how his life was at home here in Portugal and every year he had to put up with Blake's constant ramblings of the lovely Phoebe Blackheart; and now he could see why, at 13 Phoebe had blossomed into a beautiful young lady and just from looking at her, he could tell that any young lad would have been lucky to have her hanging off his arm.

_"Promise me you will write,"_ said Phoebe in Portuguese. "_Every day if possible."_

Blake and Jackson chuckled.

"_You just promise you will be careful this year, Phe,"_ said Jackson, pulling out of the hug and ruffling her hair. "_Especially with Black on the loose. Keep your friends close, and keep an eye on James, but remember, don't break cover unless you really have too."_

Phoebe sighed at their protective nature. "_I promise I will be careful and I will stay safe, I won't go looking for Black, I'm not a total idiot!"_

Jackson smirked and opened his mouth to respond, but cut off as Phoebe sucker punched him in the arm. "_Ow!_" he pouted. "_I'm going to miss you kid, but I'm not going to miss your punches..."_

Phoebe grinned and turned to Blake. "_Be safe Blakey; look after Jacks; you know how he gets when he is away from home for the first few days."_

"_I'll take good care of him, Phe," _Blake nodded, playing along with the teasing nature that Phoebe had suddenly sprouted. Jackson glared between his two childhood friends. "_But Jacks is right, no detective work while Black is on the loose; we don't need you getting into anymore fatalities."_

The Gryffindor pouted. "_That is so not fair! It's like you don't know me at all!"_

_"Well, if you want to be a trouble maker,"_ said Jackson. "_Then come home and be one, at least here at the Manor we can keep an eye on you."_

_"Can I bring Terence?"_

Blake sighed and rolled his eyes. "_If you must."_

Phoebe grinned and hugged them tightly once more. "_Have a good term, and I may possibly see you at Christmas."_

"_Send us Athena the moment you decide you are coming home, and we will arrange the same."_ said Blake, kissing Phoebe's forehead. Jackson mimicked his actions before the two of them approached Krum and Karkaroff at the fireplace.

Rose stepped forward and hugged her brother. "_Be safe Blake. I will see you hopefully at Christmas."_

_"Goodbye Rose,"_ smiled Blake as he hugged her back. _"If I don't see you at Christmas, I will see you next summer. I love you."_

_"I love you too, my little prince."_

Phoebe grinned at the pet name that Rose had given Blake many years ago when he was a young baby, she often used to take the mickey out of him for it, but now she had grown accustom to nicknames and often gave them to her own friends, and on the plus side, even _she_ had a nickname - _Little Star._

**~*Phoebe*~**

Terence clutched Phoebe around the waist and pulled her onto his lap, they were sat in one of the back compartments upon the Hogwarts Express heading back to Hogwarts. Phoebe was returning for her third year - time sure did fly - and he, he was returning for his seventh and final year.

"Are you sure she said Igor Karkaroff?" said Terence, resting his chin on Phoebe's shoulder.

"Yeah," the Gryffindor nodded. "I did a bit of research on him after Blake and Jackson had left, and the things I found were not pretty. He's a scary bloke, the way he kissed my hand creeped me out enough, not to mention the vibes I was receiving."

"According to my mother, Karkaroff always was the 'gentleman' he is known to use his charms to work his way in on his next victim." said Terence.

"You make him sound like a predator during hunting season," said Ashlyn, she had been in her own little world, staring out of the window for the last ten minutes. "Elladora and Andrew used to talk about Igor Karkaroff all the time; but Andrew only had nice things to say about him. Apparently he cares about his students at Durmstrang as much as Dumbledore does us."

"Yeah, because they are mini Death Eaters in training," said Phoebe. "God, I hope Blake and Jackson are able to repel his 'charms'"

James nodded. "Yeah, the last thing we want is Blake and Jackson to become the next elite of Death Eaters."

Phoebe glanced in his direction and then down at her hands. "Yeah," she nodded. She couldn't really imagine her childhood friends dressed in all black robes, the Dark Mark burned into the flesh upon their forearms and pledging their allegiance to Lord Voldemort. She shuddered at the mere idea.

Feeling her shudder, Terence pulled her closer.

"Oh, it's Hogsmeade year, this year," said Amelia brightly. "Has everyone had their forms signed?"

Ashlyn, Sarah and James nodded, but Phoebe averted her gaze to the moving floor of the compartment.

James spotted her. "Pheebs, you do have your form signed, right?" he asked. "I mean, you can't go to the village if your form isn't signed. Did you forget?"

"I'm not going to the village," said Phoebe.

Her friends stared at her in silence. Sarah broke it. "What do you mean you're not going to the Village? You'll be the only third year left in the castle!"

"I'm not allowed to go," said Phoebe. "Serefina refuses to sign my form, something about it will be safer for me if I stayed at the castle this year, and she will let me go next year."

"But why?" asked Amelia. "It's not going to be the same without you there; you're the only person who I know will venture into the Shrieking Shack with me."

Ashlyn give her friend a pointed look. "Hey, I'll go in there! I'm not afraid."

"I know, but will Adrian let you go in there?"

"He doesnt control _everything_ I do," Ashlyn defended. "If I want to do something for myself then I don't have to run it by him, he's not my keeper."

Amelia grinned. "Are you sure about that?"

Ashlyn glared, as Terence looked between them in confusion. "Have I missed something?"

"Yeah, I'm feeling a little lost myself," agreed James.

Sarah and Phoebe shook their heads. "It's just a little tease we had going with Ashlyn this morning," the Hufflepuff explained. "We were teasing Ash about her and Adrian's relationship, she was trying to convince us that their relationship was strictly platonic; but we are convinced that there is something burning beneath the surface."

"There is not!" Ashlyn cried, dropping her head into her hands in frustration.

Terence and James exchanged looks, as Phoebe, Amelia and Sarah grinned with mischief at their little Snake.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Hogwarts Express moved steadily north and the scenery outside the window became wilder and darker while the clouds overhead thickened. People were chasing backwards and forwards past the door of the compartment.

At one o'clock the plump witch with the food trolley arrived at the compartment door; and the friends bought an assortment of sweets. Phoebe laughed loudly as she allowed Terence to feed her a strawberry that Rose had packed away specially for her.

"Aw, you two are too cute, it's sickening!" drawled a voice from the door.

Phoebe didn't even have to turn around to see who had arrived; she already knew who it was by the voice. "Shove off, Malfoy!" she spat, turning her head to face the platinum blonde. "No one asked for your opinion, and we most definitely didn't ask you to join us."

Draco leaned in close. "Aw, you're no fun, Blackheart." he sneered. "You see I only dropped into see how little Jamie was doing..." he turned in the boy's direction. "Saw the paper over the summer, Black, how does it feel to see your father's face on the front page? Are you proud to be related to a mass-murderer?"

"If I remember correctly, _Dragon_," said Phoebe slipping from Terence's lap and facing her brother. "You too are related to James's father, so why don't you get off your white horse and realize that what he has done puts shame on _everyone_ within his family. That includes yours."

The platinum blonde glared. "No one asked for your opinion, Blackheart!"

"No, but when you come into _my_ compartment and start to harass _my_ friends things turn personal!" sneered Phoebe. "Now either get out of here, or I am going deposit your asses on the track outside and you can walk back to Hogwarts!"

Draco withdrew from the compartment. "C'mon," he muttered resentfully to Crabbe and Goyle, and they disappeared.

Phoebe closed the compartment door and locked it, before sitting back down on the seat between Ashlyn and Terence. _**I cannot believe he is my twin**_ she thought miserably, trying to imagine ways that Draco would react to finding out his father's biggest and darkest secret. _**He would never accept me. I am too much of a blood traitor for his liking.**_

"Hey," said Terence leaning in closer to his girlfriend, as Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah consoled James opposite them. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," said Phoebe, forcing a smile. "I'm fine..."

"Are you sure? You look pretty down about something."

Phoebe couldn't help but smile at his observant nature, she turned to face him. "I'm fine," she promised.

"Okay. But if you need to talk..." he smiled. "I'm right here."

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "And I appreciate that but nothing is wrong, at least nothing that you need to worry yourself over."

Terence frowned in response but didn't say anything in response, instead he kissed Phoebe's forehead and pulled her close as the train rattled further north.

The rain outside the window thickened the window were now a solid, shimmering grey, which gradually darkened until lanterns flickered into life all along the corridors and over the luggage racks. The train rattled, the rain hammered, the wind roared and Phoebe found herself being more and more consumed with thoughts of her brother as the journey pressed onwards.

Suddenly the train started to slow down, snapping Phoebe out of her thoughts.

"What's happening?" Amelia asked, checking her watch "We can't be there yet"

The train was getting slower and slower. As the noise of the pistons fell away, the wind and rain sounded louder than ever against the windows.

Terence, who was nearest the door, got up and looked into the corridor, all along the carriage, heads were sticking curiously out of their compartments.

The train came to a stop with a jolt and distant thuds and bangs told them that luggage had fallen out of the racks. Sarah and Phoebe screamed in surprise as their own trunks slid from the racks overhead and landed on the compartment floor with heavy thuds, springing open and spilling clothing all over the floor.

"Is everyone okay?" Phoebe asked, as she looked around at her friends.

Then, without warning, all the lamps went out and they were plunged into total darkness.

"What's going on?" Sarah whimpered fearfully from beside James. She had pulled her legs up close to her chest after the trunks had fallen from the racks overhead and she was now hugging her legs close to her chest. James wrapped his arm around her shoulder and allowed her to lean into him; he could feel her shaking all over.

Ashlyn yelled out in pain. "Ouch! Puffer! That was my foot!"

"Ter, sit back down," Phoebe instructed, pulling the back of his robes and leading him back to the seat beside her. The door closed with a snap as Terence's hand slipped from its frame.

"D'you think we've broken down?" Amelia asked.

Phoebe shrugged in the darkness. "Dunno..."

There was a squeaking sound, and Phoebe turned to see the dim black outline of Ashlyn, wiping a patch clean on the window and peering out. "There's something moving out there," she said. "I think people are coming aboard..."

"But we are in the middle of nowhere!" protested Sarah.

The compartment door suddenly opened and someone fell over Terence's legs and landed painfully on Phoebe's lap.

"Sorry! D'you know what's going on? Ouch! Sorry -"

"Hello, Neville," said Phoebe, feeling around in the dark and pulling Neville up by his cloak.

"Phoebe? Is that you? What's happening?"

"No idea! Sit down -"

There was a loud squeak as Neville almost sat on Sarah.

"Not here, Neville!" snapped James.

"Sorry," Neville apologized. "Is there an empty seat."

Phoebe sighed. "Here take mine. I'm going to go and ask the driver what's going on." she jumped from her seat, slid past Terence and Neville -the latter claiming her seat-, the door opened for a second time and then a thud and two loud squeals of pain echoed.

"Who's that?"

"Who's _that?_"

"Hermione?"

"Phoebe?"

"What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if you knew what was going on."

"Why is everyone assuming I know what is going on?"

"Sorry,"

"It's alright. Come in and sit down."

Picking themselves up from the floor, Phoebe slid past Hermione and waited until she was inside the compartment "Ouch!" someone cried.

Phoebe groaned and stuck her hand into the pocket of her robes. "Oh for Merlin's sake!" she cried, muttering a spell under her breath and watching the tip of her wand ignite with a silvery light. Hermione was sitting on the overturned trunks in the middle of the compartment's floor; Sarah was pressed against James, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. Ashlyn and Amelia were sat side by side in the same places they had been when Phoebe had announced she was going to see what was happening, Terence was sat near the door, and Neville was near the window in the same place he had been led to by James.

"Right, nobody move until I come back, understand?" Phoebe instructed.

Her friends nodded and the Elemental turned to close the door, but her breathing caught in her throat as the temperature along the corridor dropped to below zero, whipping around to face the end of the corridor Phoebe would have screamed if her body had frozen in terror at the sight gliding towards her, a cloaked figure towered to the ceiling. Its face was completely hidden beneath its hood, a glistening, greyish, slimy-looking and scabbed hand was protruding from beneath its cloak, and it was reaching for her.

Phoebe took a step backwards, the door to her compartment sliding shut completely blocking the Dementor away from her friends.

The creature became level with Phoebe and its decaying looking hand slid grimly around her throat, and then the thing beneath the hood, whatever it was, drew a long, slow, rattling breath, as though it was trying to suck something more than air from its surroundings.

_**No!**_ Phoebe screamed mentally as an intense cold swept over her. She felt her own breath catch once more in her chest, as the cold went deeper than her skin. It was inside her chest, it was inside her heart.

_**SEREFINA!**_

And then - there was a flash of bright white. The Dementor relinquished its hold on the elemental and she stumbled backwards into the corridor wall and slid down onto the floor with a thud, her wand slipped from her cold numb fingers.

Phoebe opened her eyes. There were lanterns above her, and the floor was shaking - the Hogwarts Express was moving again and the lights had come back on. She was still sitting on the floor of the corridor, Ashlyn and Terence were kneeling next to her, and above them she could see Sarah, Amelia, James and an unfamiliar, but tired looking man watching her.

"What happened?" she asked, touching her face where a cold sweat had appeared.

Terence and Ashlyn helped her back to her feet and led her back into their compartment, sitting her carefully back in her seat.

"Are you okay?" Ashlyn asked nervously.

"Yeah," said Phoebe, looking quickly towards the door. The Dementor had gone. "Where's the Dementor?"

Terence placed his arm around her shoulders. "It's gone," he assured her. "We don't know what happened, but you seemed to freeze up, the door closed and we assumed you had gone to see the driver..."

"Then we saw the towering figure outside the door and the temperature started to drop," said Ashlyn. "It didn't take long to figure out what was out there, so we opened the door to see if are assumptions were true -"

"That was stupid," scolded Phoebe. "It could have turned on you."

Ashlyn shook her head. "It's a good thing we opened the door when we did," she said. "If we hadn't you could have been a shell by now."

"So who cast the Patronus?" Phoebe asked.

Her friends exchanged looks.

"Well, to be perfectly honest, uh, you did..." said Terence.

Phoebe stared at him. "No seriously, guys, who do I thank? They saved my life."

"We're serious, Pheebs," said James. "When we opened the door, a burst of light erupted from your chest and the Dementor took off down the corridor, after it disappeared the lights came back on and the train started moving again."

"Did the Patronus take shape?"

James shook his head. "No."

Phoebe frowned and lowered her gaze, she had cast a Patronus. A Patronus was advanced magic, it was only attempted in Defence Against the Dark Arts at NEWTs level, and she didn't sit her NEWTs until seventh year.

There was a loud snap that made them all jump. The tired looking man was breaking an enormous slab of chocolate into pieces. "Here," he said to Phoebe, handing her a particularly large piece. "Eat it. It'll help."

Phoebe took the chocolate, stared hard at the man in front of her, before eating it. She wasn't getting any weird vibes from him...if anything she was getting trustworthy vibes.

"Now, if you will excuse me, I need to have a little word with the driver," the man said, he got to his feet and disappeared out of the door.

Phoebe ate her chocolate in silence, her head resting against Terence's shoulder as he held her close. She felt weak and was shivering like mad, as if a frozen bucket of water had just been tipped over her head, soaking her through the bone.

"Who was that man?" asked Amelia.

"Professor Lupin," said James automatically, he was staring out of the window. "He is going to be our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher this year."

"How do you know him?" asked Ashlyn.

James turned to his cousin. "Because he is also my godfather."

The compartment fell silent.

Ten minutes or so later, Professor Lupin returned and smiled at the sight within the compartment before him. "We'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes," he said. "Are you all right, Phoebe?"

Phoebe didn't ask how Professor Lupin knew her name; she just assumed that James had told him when she had been fighting her way back from unconsciousness. She nodded her head slowly, and turned her gaze towards the door. "I'll be fine," she smiled. "Thank you."

Lupin smiled in return, before leaving and returning to his own compartment.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The remainder of the journey was spent in silence. At long last, the train stopped at Hogsmeade station, and there was a great scramble to get out, owls hooted, cats meowed and Neville's pet toad croaked loudly from under his hat. It was freezing on the tiny platform; rain was driving down in icy sheets.

Terence wasted no time in ushering Phoebe towards the carriages, wrapping one of his spare cloaks around her shoulders to shield her away from the downpour. Reaching one of the carriages, Phoebe stopped dead as someone stepped out in front of her, causing her to walk into their bulky form and stumble backwards into Terence.

"Aw, did the little Blackheart fall down?" sneered Marcus Flint.

Phoebe glared at him as she felt Terence's hold tighten around her shoulders. "Shove off, Flint; i'm not in the mood to fight tonight!"

"Why not poppet? Did the Dementor scare you?" Flint mocked. "Heard what happened, Blackheart, you're not as tough as you think you are, are you? Can't even handle a simple dark creature."

Terence shoved past his house-mate. "Leave her alone, Flint!"

"Playing hero now, are you, Higgs?" taunted Flint. "Did you save your little damsel from the Dementor?"

Phoebe's hand tightened around her wand, but she didn't want a fight, instead she ducked her head and concentrated her elemental magic on the downpour around her. There was a crash of thunder overhead and a spark of lightning hit the ground at Flint's feet, sending the Slytherin stumbling backwards down the hill. "Oh, bad luck," she teased, climbing into a carriage.

Terence followed her and closed the door behind them, the moment the door closed, the carriage set off all by itself, bumping and swaying in procession up the muddy dirt path towards the castle.

"He's going to find out the truth if you keep using your powers around him," said Terence, as he continued to hold Phoebe.

"Nah, he's too stupid to graduate seventh year," Phoebe responded. "He'll never figure out something as complex as having an Elemental as a school-mate. He's not as smart as you..." she tilted her head back to look at him.

Terence smiled and leaned down to kiss her.

Phoebe returned it, before resting her head comfortingly on his shoulder as the carriage trundled towards a pair of magnificent wrought-iron gates, flanked with stone columns topped with winged boards, it was only until the carriage passed through, did Phoebe freeze once more as two more towering, hooded Dementors, stood guard on either side. A wave of cold sickness threatened to engulf her again; she leant back into Terence and closed her eyes until they had passed through the gates.

At long last the carriage swayed to a halt, and Terence got out. He turned to help Phoebe when someone grabbed his shoulder and slammed him in the carriage exterior. Flint had returned.

"Oi let him go!" Phoebe snapped, jumping from the carriage and swaying slightly on the spot. "Whoa..." she groaned.

Flint ignored her and towered over his former team-mate. "It would do you well to know your place, Higgs!" he snarled.

"I know my place, Flint," responded Terence "maybe you should learn yours!"

He shoved the older Slytherin off of him and took a step towards Phoebe, but stopped as Flint spoke again.

"You're just a little Gryffindor whore, aren't ya, Blackheart?" Flint sneered. "It was Wood back in first year, then you played both Wood and Higgs last year, until you got what you wanted, I bet you're going to screw Higgs this year and then ditch him for someone else next year, wouldn't put it past you to do Potter."

Phoebe's hands balled angrily into fists, her knuckles turning sheer white with the force behind her anger.

"Leave, Flint," said Terence "before you say something you'll regret later."

"Aw, is the big hero trying to defend his little whore?"

Terence snapped and punched Flint squarely in the jaw. The older Slytherin fell back, shocked. No one had expected Terence to resort to any forms of violence, he had always been the type of student -despite being in Slytherin- to mind his business, keep his head down and carry on with his work. He never joined in with any of the taunts or silly childish pranks the rest of his house played on other students, mainly Gryffindor's.

"Is there a problem?" said a mild voice. Professor Lupin had just got out of the next carriage with James, Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah.

"No, Professor," Phoebe said, grabbing Terence's hand and pulling him in the direction of the Entrance Hall.

The door into the Great Hall stood open at the right; Phoebe and Terence followed the crowds towards it, but had barely glimpsed the enchanted ceiling, which was black and cloudy tonight, when a voice called, "Potter! Granger! Blackheart! I want to see you three!"

Phoebe turned around, surprised. Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration teacher and Head of Gryffindor house, was calling over the heads of the crowd. Phoebe caught Harry and Hermione's gaze as they stood a few feet away from her with Ron, still holding Terence's hand, Phoebe fought her way through the crowd towards her head of house.

"There is no need to look so worried - I just want a word in my office," McGonagall told them. "Move along there, Weasley, Higgs."

Ron and Terence watched as McGonagall ushered Phoebe, Harry and Hermione away from the chattering sound; they accompanied her across the Entrance Hall, up the marble staircase and along a corridor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once they were in her office, a small room with large, welcoming fire, Professor McGonagall motioned for the three of them to sit down. She settled herself behind her desk and said abruptly. "Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead to say that you and Miss Blackheart were taken ill on the train, Potter."

Phoebe perked up and turned in Harry's direction. "You too?" she questioned.

"I'm fine," said Harry. "I don't need anything -"

"Oh, it's you, is it?" said Madam Pomfrey, ignoring this and bending over to stare at Harry in the face. "I suppose you've been doing something dangerous again."

"It was a Dementor," said Phoebe.

Madam Pomfrey gave a start and turned in the Elemental's direction. "You too?" she questioned, with a huff, before fussing more over Phoebe than she had done Harry. "Setting Dementors around a school," she muttered, pushing Phoebe's hair back and feeling her forehead. "They won't be the first to collapse. Yes, she's feeling clammy. Terrible things, they are, and the effect they have on people who are already delicate!"

"I'm not delicate!" Phoebe protested. "I'm healing!"

"Of course you are," said Madam Pomfrey absent-mindedly, now taking Phoebe's pulse. To McGonagall and Harry, Phoebe's outburst was understood, but to someone like Hermione, who still didn't know the secret of her best friend, was completely lost and confused.

McGonagall looked over her students. "What do they need? Bed rest? Should they perhaps spend the night in the hospital wing?"

"No!" said Harry, jumping to his feet. "I'm _fine!_ Phoebe may need the hospital wing; she is more _delicate_ than I am."

Phoebe glared. "Do not give me a reason to kill you, Potter!" she growled.

Hermione continued to look confused.

"Well, they should at least have some chocolate," said Madam Pomfrey.

"I've already had some," Phoebe and Harry cried.

Madam Pomfrey paused and stared at the two of them. "You have, have you?"

"Professor Lupin gave it to us," said Phoebe.

"He gave it to us all," agreed Harry.

"Did he now?" said Madam Pomfrey approvingly. "So we've finally got a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies."

"Are you sure you feel all right?" said Professor McGonagall sharply.

"_Yes,"_ Harry and Phoebe stressed.

"Very well. Kindly wait outside while I have a quick word with Miss Granger about her timetable, then we can go down to the feast together."

Harry and Phoebe went back into the corridor with Madam Pomfrey, who left for the hospital wing, muttering to herself. Harry then turned to Phoebe and said "When the Dementor attacked you, did you hear screaming?"

"No," said Phoebe, shaking her head. "I screamed myself, but I didn't hear anyone else screaming. Why? What did you hear?"

"Someone screamed my name," said Harry. "What did you scream?"

Phoebe smiled weakly. "Serefina."

"Your godmother?"

The elemental nodded. "I was scared, I didn't know what was happening and I just wanted someone to help me. Serefina has always been the person who helps me when I am scared, so it was an automatic response that I yelled her name."

"Why didn't you yell it out loud?" Harry asked. "Unless you elementals can hear thoughts."

"No," Phoebe giggled. "No thoughts, although my grandmother is a seer, she has visions of bad things before they happen. She helped me out quite a bit in first year, although it didn't help when I was captured by Quirrell."

"She didn't see that happening?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, she did, she just didn't know who it was at the time, or when it was going to happen. If she had, she would have told me, and I could have avoided tailing Snape like I did."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Sorry. I made you tail Snape, so it was partly my fault."

"No it wasn't," Phoebe smiled. "It was no one's fault. Just a series of unfortunate events."

Harry chuckled before looking around as McGonagall's door opened once more and Hermione emerged looking very happy about something, she was followed by Professor McGonagall, and the four of them made their way back down the marble staircase to the Great Hall, and the Welcome Back feast.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I would like to apologize for the obscene themes in this Harry Potter series. It ****IS**** completely different to Muggleborn Witches (as you have already guessed) but more so in the fact that Marcus Flint is a real jackass in this series.**

**I will also admit that Phoebe is different to MWS because it is going to be slightly darker, and foul language will be used. If this bothers you then please message me and let me know, or let me know in a review, or anything, and I will try and not do it as much.**

**Um...anything else...I can't think of anything else...**

**Oh, wait, there is something...I know I mentioned the obscene and foul language, there may be some adult themes involved in later chapters. Again if this bothers anyone (specifically people under the age of 16. I don't know who you are,) so it is up to you to let me know, and I won't use any adult scenes if it is going to be uncomfortable or embarrassing for some people.**

**But, I will put an Author's Note at the beginning of a chapter if it has any of the above used. Promise.**

**Read and review...and I hope you enjoyed.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated ****Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 3:37am**


	39. Chapter 39

**Authors Note: **Hello everyone. I am not dead! Sorry for the lack of updates last week, but if you had seen the week I had you would understand. Two essays. One timed assignment which had to be handed in yesterday, and we didn't get it until Wednesday, and on top of that I have had three more essays to look forward to (Yippee) anyway, I also understand that most of you have had hard week, and I hope that none of you overdid yourselves in trying to get everything done on time; that is not good.

Anyway. I am going to stop talking now and get to the dedications so you can get on with the chapter.

**Dedications -** Chapter (as usual) goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd, Vivi Fontaine** and anonymous reviewer **Your-Biggest-Fan.**

**In responses: **First to _**10th Squad 3rd Seat**_**:** Herbivores? Lol, Loved that fair play.

Second too _**Your-Biggest-Fan**_ - I must thank you personally for your name and review, but I must also say that Phoebe's partner has been sorted out. Terence won over everyone and as most of my readers will tell you once the main character has been sorted with the pairing I won't change or differ from it. But thank you for taking the time to review and give your opinions, I really enjoy that.

Right here is the chapter.

* * *

><p>Phoebe paused as she entered the Great Hall the next morning for breakfast, and found most of the Slytherin table staring at her as she passed, deciding that she didn't want to know what was on their minds, the young Elemental took her seat at the Gryffindor table beside James and reached instantly for the toast and jam.<p>

"I take it you don't want to know what their problem is?" said James, jerking his head in the direction of the Slytherin's.

"That really depends on if I will like it or not," Phoebe answered. "I'm guessing since it is Slytherin and I don't get on with most of them, it is going to be something that will ultimately cause me to go off the deep end."

"Probably," James agreed. "But truth be told it all started when Malfoy made a crack about Harry fainting on the train; then Flint told them all about you –"

Pausing mid-way through her toast, Phoebe turned towards her best friend. "What did he say?" she asked.

"Just that you had a run in with a dementor on the train," answered James. "He tried to make out that you weren't as strong as you present yourself to be, said that you couldn't handle a simple dark creature, but then Terence stepped in and all hell broke loose."

"Where is Terence?" Phoebe asked.

"Snape's office," said James.

"Why?"

"Arguing with another student,"

Phoebe shook her head. "More like defending," she replied. "He did it last night too when Flint made a crack about me."

"Is this when we were getting out of the carriages?"

"Yeah," said Phoebe. "Flint had a go at me, called me the 'Gryffindor Slut' because I apparently flirted with Oliver in my first year, then flirted with Terence and ultimately played them both against one another; he said that he wouldn't be surprised if I slept with Terence this year and ditched him for Harry next year."

Harry, who sat a few feet away, looked up at the mention of his name. "Morning, Phoebe."

"Hey, Harry," said Phoebe, before turning back to James.

James, who had been staring at Phoebe throughout the entire story shook his head and snapped back to attention. "No wonder Terence punched him," he exclaimed. "I would have punched him too."

"Yeah," said Phoebe. "But now I am worried about Terence, it would seem our relationship is causing a lot of problems."

"Well people are just going to have to get used to it," said James. "Give them time, they'll come around."

The elemental smiled. "Thanks James, you're the best."

"I know," James grinned.

"Oh, boys here at Hogwarts have such huge egos!" Phoebe cried, returning to her breakfast.

Those around her looked up at her cry. "Hey!" they exclaimed.

Phoebe giggled in response.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After breakfast Phoebe and James hurried out into the Entrance Hall where they were met by Amelia, Sarah and Ashlyn, all of which were clutching their new timetables.

"Did you get one?" Ashlyn asked digging around in her bag for something, in the end she pulled out a brown envelope with her name printed on the front.

Phoebe removed an identical looking envelope with her name on the front from her own bag. "Yeah, I'm just too nervous to open it," she admitted.

"Same," said Ashlyn.

Sarah looked between them. "What are they, and how come we didn't get them?"

"They are our results for dance class," said Phoebe. "If you signed up for dance and actually turned up for the audition, you would have one of these."

"Ah, yeah, I can't dance," Sarah admitted.

Amelia nodded in agreement. "I took lessons when I was 4 and basically I got two left feet."

Phoebe and Ashlyn giggled, before turning back to one another in hopes the other would have more confidence to open the envelope first.

"Why don't you swap?" Amelia suggested. "Or better yet, give them here and we will open them."

"Yeah," said Sarah holding her hand out for Phoebe's envelope.

The Gryffindor handed over her results as Ashlyn did the same with Amelia, clutching one another's hands both Gryffindor and Slytherin waited patiently for the verdict.

Amelia opened the envelope and pulled out the contents, read through it carefully, and then turned to Sarah who was reading through Phoebe's; the two exchanged looks and papers and then turned back to their friends.

"There are a few comments on your recital," said Amelia. "Ash, they think you could improve on your step -" Ashlyn nodded "and Pheebs, they think you need to learn more basic steps rather than freestyle."

The Elemental nodded. Freestyle was the only dance that she actually participated in, mostly because Freestyle allowed her to show a side of herself that rarely got shown.

"They thought you both did really well in modern dance and ballet," continued Amelia. "Your tango needs a little work, Ash, and your waltz also needs work, Pheebs."

"Yeah, I figured that," Phoebe nodded. "I hate waltz,"

Ashlyn nodded. "Tango is not my style," she explained "and I refused to take waltz at my dance classes."

"Me too," Phoebe agreed.

"So, did they get in?" James asked as he slid up behind Sarah and Amelia to look over their shoulders. A grin slid onto his face as he looked up at his best friends. "Nice one girl's, it says here that you both did better than anyone else in the class, and they can't wait to see you Wednesday night at 6:00pm for your first lesson."

Ashlyn and Phoebe grinned as they high-fived one another; they had made it into one of the hardest classes to ever be taught at a magical school.

"Morning," said a voice in Phoebe's ear as a pair of arms slid around her waist.

The elemental smiled as she glanced over her shoulder at Terence. "Morning," she answered. "What did Snape say?"

"He just wanted to know what provoked me to punch Flint last night," said Terence. "So I told him, he said he would keep an eye on Flint, and I need to control my temper."

Phoebe snorted. "Temper? Baby, you don't have a temper."

"He had one last night," Ashlyn murmured. "Marcus looked pretty pissed when he came into the Great Hall, kept muttering about how he could make you pay."

James shook his head. "Knowing Flint's tactics he'll try and get back at you through Quidditch," he said to Phoebe. "First game of the season is against whom?"

"Gryffindor vs. Slytherin," Phoebe answered. "Oh, that reminds me, I need to know when Oliver is setting Quidditch practices."

"Why don't you ask him?" Sarah suggested pointing over Phoebe's shoulder.

The Gryffindor glanced around to see Oliver leaving the Great Hall with his usual friends, he looked up and caught her gaze, before spotting Terence, his gaze hardened and his facial expressions turned sour as he turned and walked away.

Phoebe sighed and turned back to her friends. "I'll ask Katie later," she mumbled.

Terence tightened his hold on her and pulled her closer, as the rest of her friends sighed and exchanged looks.

Third year was starting out brilliantly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe smiled as she and Ashlyn filed out of Ancient Runes with Hermione and headed off towards Transfiguration, they knew that James, Sarah, Harry and Ron were on the other side of the castle in their Divination class and three out of four of them would be joining them soon with Professor McGonagall.

"I wonder how Divination was?" said Ashlyn, leading the way down the corridor towards the Transfiguration corridor.

"Better question," said Phoebe. "How long is it going to take before Ron starts complaining about it?'"

Ashlyn giggled. "Ten minutes into Transfiguration," she waged. "What about you, Hermione?"

Hermione didn't answer.

Phoebe and Ashlyn frowned and turned in the direction of the bookworm, but stopped short when they found the corridor empty except for them.

"Where did she go?" Phoebe asked, pointing to the space beside her. "She did leave Ancient Runes with us, didn't she?"

Ashlyn nodded. "Yeah, did she take a different turning or something?"

"There is no other turning,"

The Snake frowned. "Then where is she?"

"I dunno," shrugged Phoebe. "Let's get to Transfiguration; if she is there we can ask her then."

"Okay," Ashlyn agreed and the two hurried off.

Reaching the Transfiguration classroom, Ashlyn and Phoebe crashed into Harry and Ron right outside; the four of them complained loudly about the collision and picked themselves up as a shadow loomed over them.

"What are you doing?" said Hermione.

"There you are!" Ron exclaimed.

"Where did you go?" cried Phoebe.

Both Gryffindor's paused and turned to one another, and frowned. "What are you talking about, Blackheart? Hermione was with us last lesson."

"No, she wasn't," said Phoebe. "She was with us in Ancient Runes and then disappeared when we were coming down here."

Ron shook his head and opened his mouth to argue.

"You're both wrong!" interrupted Hermione. "I've just come from Muggle Studies," and she showed them her notes to prove her point.

Ron and Phoebe backed off, as Hermione slid past them and entered the Transfiguration classroom,

"Was she really in Divination with you?" Phoebe asked Harry.

Harry nodded. "Was she really in Ancient Runes with you?" he asked.

Phoebe nodded.

"Something weird is going on," said Ashlyn. "And it is only the first day back."

Ron made an impatient noise and walked through the Transfiguration door, took a seat beside Hermione and waited for Harry to join them.

Harry offered Phoebe a small smile before joining his friends, as both Ashlyn and Phoebe hurried towards James who had saved them seats.

**~*Phoebe*~**

During lunch, Phoebe and James sat with the Golden Trio to discuss what had happened in Divination.

Ron still looked worried about the whole ordeal and kept whispering. "What about Neville's cup?"

"What about Neville's cup?" Phoebe asked.

"Trelawney said that his grandmother was quite ill," said James. "She said that Parvati should be careful around 'red-headed' men and Lavender was going to receive some bad news in the next couple of months."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic," she explained. "Real Seers are rare, and Professor Trelawney sounds more like a practioner not and actual Seer."

Harry stared at her for a while, before leaning in and whispering "What about your grandmother,"

"She is one of the rare few," Phoebe whispered back, cutting into her lunch. "Don't worry so much Harry, you're not going to die."

"Yeah," agreed James. "How many times a term do you find yourself in a life and death situation, and you always manage to come back. It would seem not even death wants you."

Phoebe giggled.

Harry smiled, feeling slightly better.

But again, Ron had to ruin the moment with his superstitions. "Harry," he said in a low voice, "you haven't seen a great black dog anywhere, have you?"

"Yeah, I have," said Harry. "I saw one the night I left the Dursleys."

Ron let his fork fall with a clatter.

"Probably a stray," said Hermione calmly.

Ron looked at Hermione as though she had gone mad.

"Hermione, if Harry's seen a Grim, that's – that's bad," he said. "My – my Uncle Bilius saw one and – and he died twenty-four hours later"

"Coincidence," said Hermione airily.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" said Ron, starting to get angry. "Grims scare the living daylights out of most wizards!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "The Grim?" she asked. "Seriously? The Omen of Death?"

Ron nodded.

"Harry has been staying with me since the beginning of July," said Phoebe. "If, as you say, saw the Grim, then how come he isn't dead?"

Hermione pointed at Phoebe. "Phoebe raises a good point, if Harry had seen the Grim that night, how come he didn't die the following day?"

Ron opened and closed his mouth several times at the two girls. "I give up!" he sighed.

James looked sympathetic. "Don't worry too much, Ron, girls tend to stick together when it comes down to things like this." He explained. "Hermione and Phoebe are just doing what comes natural."

"What? Proving you boys wrong?" Phoebe grinned. "That's not nature, James, that instinct."

James scowled. "Shut up."

Hermione giggled and went back to her book, as Phoebe smirked and went back to her lunch.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once lunch had ended Phoebe was pleased to get out of the castle. Yesterday's rain had cleared; the sky was a clear, pale grey and the grass was springy and damp underfoot as the Gryffindor's, Ravenclaw's, Hufflepuff's and Slytherin's set off for their first ever Care of Magical Creatures class, it was one of the only new elective classes that the four houses had all together.

Hagrid and Serefina were waiting for the class at the edge of the Forbidden forest, Hagrid's boarhound Fang gave a booming bark and padded across the grass towards Phoebe as she approached; the elemental smiled and patted his head as he sat at her feet.

"C'mon, now, get a move on!" Hagrid called, as the class approached. "We've got a real treat for yeh today, a great lesson!"

Serefina looked around at the whole class. "Everyone here?" she asked. "Good. Now, follow Hagrid."

"C'mon Fang," said Phoebe as she pushed her way to the front of the class to walk alongside her godmother, her friends followed her at a quick pace. They hurried around the outskirt of the Forbidden Forest and arrived five minutes later outside a kind of paddock. There was nothing in there.

"Everyone gather round the fence here!" called Hagrid. "That's it – make sure yeh can see. Now, firs' thing yeh'll want ter do is open yer books -"

"How?" said the cold, drawling voice of Draco Malfoy.

"Eh?" said Hagrid.

"How do we open the books?" Malfoy repeated. He took out his copy of _The Monster Book of Monsters_, which he had bound shut with a length of rope. Other people took theirs out, too; some, like Harry, had belted their book shut; others had crammed them inside their bags or clamped them together with bullclips.

"Hasn' – hasn' anyone bin able ter open their books?" said Hagrid, looking crestfallen.

Phoebe raised her hand. "I have. You have to stroke the spine," she explained.

Hagrid beamed at her. "Right you are, Phe – Uh, Miss Blackheart," he corrected quickly at the look Serefina was giving him, while Care of Magical Creatures was Serefina's profession at Hogwarts, she was training Hagrid as her assistant in several classes.

"_Stroke_ the spine?" Sarah asked.

"Here," said Phoebe, taking her friends copy and running her finger down the spine, and the book shivered, and then fell open and lay quiet in her hands.

Serefina smiled. "Well done, Phoebe, 10 points to Gryffindor."

The Slytherin's scowled, that wasn't fair, Professor Blackheart had just awarded her own goddaughter 10 points for answering a question that she probably supplied the answer for over the summer.

"Teacher's pet," Parkinson muttered as she brushed past Phoebe, knocking shoulders with the elemental as she passed.

Phoebe glared after the pug-faced female. "Hogwarts drop out!"

"God, this place is going to the dogs," said Malfoy loudly. "That oaf teaching classes, my father will have a fit when I tell him –"

"Shut up, Malfoy!" Harry repeated.

"Careful, Potter, there's a Dementor behind you -"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned onto the blonde. "If I remember correctly, Malfoy, you run into Fred and George's compartment last night screaming like a little girl!"

Everyone –minus the Slytherin's- chuckled.

Malfoy glared.

"Better to scream like a girl than to be a whore, Blackheart," answered Parkinson.

"You'd know all about being one of them, wouldn't you, Parkinson?" interrupted James, as he grabbed Phoebe's shoulders and turned her away.

A loud squeal caused the rest of the class turn look around. Lavender Brown was pointing towards the opposite side of the paddock where trotting towards them were a dozen of the most bizarre creatures ever known to mankind. They had the bodies, hind legs and tails of a horse, but the front legs, wings and head of what seemed to be giant eagles, with cruel, steel-coloured beaks and large, brilliantly orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly-looking.

Each of the beasts had a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain, and the ends of all these were held in the vast hands of Hagrid, who came jogging into the paddock behind the creatures.

"Gee up, there!" he roared, shaking the chains and urging the creatures towards the fence where the class stood. Everyone drew back slightly as Hagrid reached them and tethered the creatures to the fence.

Phoebe stared at the creatures with wide eyes. "Hippogriffs!" she breathed in amazement.

Serefina heard her goddaughter and smiled down at the young Gryffindor. "Yes, Phoebe, Hippogriffs!" she nodded.

"Beau'iful, aren't they?" said Hagrid.

"Don't be afraid," called Serefina. "If you want to come a bit nearer…"

No one seemed to want too. Phoebe, however, approached the fence curiously.

"Now, first thing you got to know about Hippogriffs is they're very prideful creatures," explained Serefina. "Easily offended, Hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing you ever do."

Phoebe reached the fence and climbed up onto the bottom board.

"You always wait for the Hippogriff to make the first move," Serefina continued. "It's polite, see? You walk towards him, and you bow, and you wait. If he bows back, you're allowed to touch him. If he doesn't bow, then you get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt."

Hagrid nodded. "Right – who wants ter go first?"

Most of the class backed further away in answer, even Ashlyn and James pulled Phoebe back away from the fence.

"No one?" said Hagrid, with a pleading look.

"I'll do it," said Phoebe and Harry.

There was an intake of breath from behind them and both Lavender and Parvati, who were staring at Harry, whispered "Oooh, no, Harry, remember your tea leaves!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes, and climbed over the fence. "Come on, Harry," she encouraged him from the other side of the paddock. "But if it makes Lavender and Parvati happy, I'll do this alone."

Harry shook his head, ignored the two girls behind him, and followed Phoebe over the fence.

"Brave boy," Phoebe teased, and she turned back to face Hagrid. "Which one will we be playing with today, Hagrid?"

Hagrid smiled at the young elemental. "Let's see how yeh get on with Buckbeak."

He untied one of the chains, pulled the grey Hippogriff away from his fellows and slipped off his leather collar. The class on the other side of the paddock seemed to be holding its breath. Malfoy's eyes narrowed maliciously.

"Easy, now," said Serefina quietly. "You've got to keep eye contact. Phoebe, walk Harry through the usual procedure."

Phoebe nodded. "Alright, come here, Harry," she held her hand out to her friend and pulled him to stand alongside her. "Don't blink. Buckbeak won't trust us if we blink too much…"

Harry nodded, and although his eyes had started to water, he didn't shut them.

Buckbeak turned his great, sharp head, and was staring back at the two humans within his paddock with one fierce orange eye.

"That's it," whispered Hagrid.

"Now what do we do?" Harry asked.

"Now, we bow," said Phoebe, as she curtsied politely and Harry gave a short bow.

The Hippogriff was still staring at them. It didn't move.

"Ah," said Hagrid, sounding worried. "Right – back away, now, easy does it -"

But then to everyone's enormous surprise, the Hippogriff suddenly bent his scaly front knees, and sank into what was an unmistakable bow.

"Well done!" said Hagrid, ecstatic. "Right – yeh can touch him! Pat his beak, go on!"

Phoebe grinned and hurried over to Buckbeak and started to pet the feathers on his face. "Come on, Harry," the elemental smiled, holding her hand out for him to take. "He's not going to bite you."

Harry clasped hands with Phoebe and allowed her to pull him closer towards the beast, he felt a lot braver knowing that she was there, and he didn't have to go through this alone.

The class broke into applause, all except Malfoy and his goons, all of whom were looking majorly disappointed.

Buckbeak closed his eyes and Phoebe smiled as she felt him nudge her hand after she had pulled away; he was obviously enjoying the fuss she was making of him.

"You're just beautiful, aren't you?" Phoebe whispered, rested her head against the creatures.

Buckbeak nudged her face with his beak and let out a small cry of affection.

Harry looked surprised; Hagrid hadn't mentioned the Hippogriff's being affectionate creatures, so how was Phoebe getting this reaction?

He watched the elemental closely, a smile sliding onto his lips as Buckbeak nuzzled into the crook of Phoebe's neck, breathed out sharply and blew Phoebe's hair back over her shoulder.

"What?" Phoebe asked, as she noticed Harry staring.

"Nothing," the Seeker answered. "There is just so much to you, that I don't think anyone will ever be able to understand."

Phoebe smiled.

"Right, then," said Hagrid, breaking the moment. "I reckon he migh' let yeh ride him!"

Harry turned sharply in the gatekeeper's direction. "What?"

Phoebe's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Really?" she asked.

"Yeh," Hagrid nodded. "Yeh climb up there, jus' behind the wing joint. An' mind yeh don' pull any of his feathers out, he won' like that…"

Harry put his foot on the top of Buckbeak's win and hoisted himself onto his back, and then turned to look down at Phoebe, he held out his hand and, with the help of Hagrid, pulled the elemental up behind him.

Buckbeak stood up and Phoebe wrapped her arms firmly around Harry's waist.

"Go on, then!" roared Hagrid, slapping the Hippogriff's hindquarters.

Without warning, twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side of the two Gryffindor's; and Harry just had enough time to seize the Hippogriff around the neck before they were soaring upwards.

Buckbeak flew them once around the paddock and then headed back to the ground, and with a heavy thud, Buckbeak's four ill-assorted feet hit the ground.

"Good work!" roared Hagrid, as everyone except the Slytherin's –Ashlyn excluded- cheered. "Okay, who else wants a go?"

Emboldened by Harry and Phoebe's success the rest of the class climbed cautiously into the paddock. Hagrid untied the Hippogriffs one by one, and soon people were bowing nervously all over the place. Neville ran repeatedly backwards from his, which didn't seem to want to bend its knees. Ron and Hermione practiced on a chestnut coloured one, while James and Ashlyn were petting a black-feathered Hippogriff, and Sarah and Amelia were a few feet away bowing to a brown-feathered beast.

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle had taken over Buckbeak. He had bowed to Malfoy, who was now patting his beak, looking disdainful.

"This is very easy," Malfoy drawled, loud enough for Harry and Phoebe, who were sitting on the sidelines, to hear him. "I knew it must have been if Potter could do it…I bet you're not dangerous at all, are you?" he said to the Hippogriff. "Are you, you ugly great brute?"

It happened in a flash of steely talons; Malfoy let out a high-pitched scream and next moment, Serefina was herding the students out of the paddock, while Hagrid was wrestling Buckbeak back into his leather collar as he strained to get at Malfoy, who lay curled in the grass, blood blossoming over his robes.

"Dragon!" Phoebe yelled jumping off the fence and hurrying over to the blonde and falling to her knees beside him and saw that there was a long, deep gash in his arm; blood splattered the grass.

"I'm dying!" Malfoy yelled, as the class panicked. "I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You're not dying!" she said. "Someone help me, he's got to be taken to the Hospital wing!"

Sarah ran to open the gate while Hagrid lifted Malfoy easily, before turning and running up the slope towards the castle.

Serefina turned back to the class. "Class dismissed. Phoebe, I would like a word with you," she added, as her goddaughter started out of the paddock with her friends.

"We'll see you up at the castle," said Ashlyn, as Phoebe stopped and turned to her godmother.

Phoebe nodded and waved her friends off, as she returned to help Serefina herd the Hippogriff's back to their den.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"It's not like that Serefina," said Phoebe, as she walked the grassy slope with her godmother. They had just left the Hippogriff's and were making their way back towards the castle. "Draco _is_ my twin; you can't blame me for being worried about his safety."

Serefina shook her head. "I didn't say that, Pheebs," she said. "I am merely confessing my concerns; do you wish that Draco knew who you really where? Do you want to have a relationship with your brother?"

"It would be nice," said Phoebe. "But he won't want anything to do with me."

"How do you know?"

"Because I am a Gryffindor for one," said Phoebe "and a blood traitor; I hang around with Muggleborns and I am dating a Halfblood, which does not live up to Malfoy standards, and Draco will turn away from me because of it."

Serefina shook her head. "You may have been born a Malfoy, Phoebe, but you were raised a Blackheart; this means you have your own standards. Now, answer my question, do you or do you not want a relationship with Draco? Would you like it if he knew who you really were?"

Phoebe lowered her gaze as she thought long and hard upon the question she had been asked, finally, she caught Serefina's gaze and nodded. "Yes," she answered. "Yes. I would like to a relationship with Draco, and it would be nice if he knew who I really was."

"Okay," Serefina nodded. "I will speak with Lucius, and I will see what I can do."

Phoebe smiled and entered the Entrance Hall to find her friends waiting for her just like they had said. "Thank you, Serefina."

"You're welcome," Serefina smiled. "Now I must go check on Mr. Malfoy, I will see you at Dinner."

"See you at Dinner," Phoebe waved, as Serefina climbed the Marble staircase, and she joined her friends at bottom of the Grand Staircase.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening Phoebe found herself in the library with Ashlyn, James, Sarah, Amelia and Terence, each pouring over books that would help with their first batch of homework from earlier that day; but Phoebe's mind was not on her work, instead on was fixated on Draco, Buckbeak and in the incident that had taken place earlier that morning.

"Hey," said Ashlyn, snapping her fingers in front of Phoebe's face. "Draco is going to be fine, Madam Pomfrey has healed his cut and he is being discharged tomorrow morning. Why are you so worried?"

Phoebe shook her head. "It's not Malfoy, I am worried about," Phoebe lied. "It's Hagrid. He has spent all summer practicing as Serefina's assistant and something like this goes bad in his first class."

"I agree that it was a really bad thing to happen in Hagrid's first class," nodded Amelia. "But trust Malfoy to mess things up…"

The other's nodded and Phoebe lowered her gaze onto the desk, while she agreed that it had been Draco's fault entirely, she couldn't help but feel guilty for lying to her friends about the true reason behind her worry.

Draco was her brother and siblings worried about one another constantly, even though they never showed it sometimes, but Draco was her twin, and that was a whole different ball game.

"Come on," said Sarah, checking her watch. "Let's go to Dinner."

The others agreed and packed away their things, before making their way down to the Great Hall.

"They _wouldn't_ sack him, would they?" said Hermione anxiously as James and Phoebe sat down opposite her.

"They'd better not," said Ron, who hadn't touched his steak-and-kidney pie.

Phoebe turned her attention towards the Slytherin table where a large group including Crabbe and Goyle were huddled together, deep in conversation, and it was obvious that they were cooking up their own version of how Draco got injured.

"Well, you can't say it wasn't an interesting first day back," said Ron gloomily.

James glanced sideways at Phoebe who was staring at her dinner but refusing to eat it, there was something definitely wrong with his friend, and he was going to find out exactly what it was.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I didn't realize until tonight how long the chapters within the third book really is, especially with my added scenes for Phoebe.**

**So, this chapter has pretty much taken me all evening Friday and all day Saturday to write. I hope it is worthy enough.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, November 20, 2011 at 4:48am**


	40. Chapter 40

**Author's Note: **Originally I do have 186 reviews, but it would seem something is up with Fanfiction because it is only displaying 182 on my stories page. Mhmm, I will let it go another few days and if it continues to happen I will contact the Fanfiction database and let them know there seems to be a problem on their system. Anyway...I would love to personally thank all you lovely people who have made it possible for me to get this far in a Harry Potter series, yes, I know if you look at MWS and added up all the reviews I have had from the seven stories there I get quite a few, but never had 185 reviews on one story - at least not outside of the Power Ranger segment of this site. So you are all officially my favorite audience, it really makes me smile knowing that I can write amazing stories that don't consist of Multi-coloured superheroes, although that is the place I found that my writing seemed to excel.

Anyway, I am going to stop blabbering and just address this chapter to my dedications and the in responses, and then I am going to let you carry on reading.

**Dedications:** Chapter belongs to **Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics, Your-Biggest-Fan **and **KingdomHeartsNerd**. You guys are perfectly awesome.

**In Responses: **First to _**Vivi Fontaine**_: I am trying to find a decent place for Draco to find out about Phoebe's true identity I just don't know how to go about it =/. As for Terence; I have a scene already written for when he finds out, but it won't be posted until after fourth year and the summer before fifth year, so you got a few more chapters to wait for that, but on that note, I have several other twists that we have to get through before we can get to that scene, and not all of them are happy, some of them are quite sad. As for the daily updates, I will try my best, but I can't make any promises, early mornings are not my best friends =).

Second to _**Your-Biggest-Fan**_: There is plenty of sibling rivalry between Draco and Phoebe to come, and there will be plenty more after Draco finds out the truth. =)

* * *

><p>Malfoy didn't reappear in classes until late on Thursday morning, when the Slytherin's and Gryffindor's were halfway through double Potions. He swaggered into the dungeon; his right arm covered in bandages and bound up in a sling, acting as though he was the heroic survivor of some dreadful battle.<p>

"How is it, Draco?" simpered Pansy Parkinson. "Does it hurt much?"

"Yeah," said Malfoy, putting on a brave sort of grimace. But he winked at Crabbe and Goyle after Pansy had looked away.

"Settle down now, settle down," said Professor Snape idly.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and shook her head as she turned back to the cauldron that she shared with Hermione; she knew that if either herself or any of the other Gryffindor's had walked into class late they would have instantly received detention from Snape, but Malfoy had always been able to get away with anything in Snape's classes, and it had nothing to do with the fact that Snape was Head of Slytherin house.

"Phoebe could you pass me the daisy roots, please," said Hermione her eyes on the potion that was bubbling nicely in the cauldron.

Today they were making a new potion, a Shrinking Solution.

Cutting up the roots with precise precision, Phoebe added them to the Potion and turned to Hermione who was now reading from the book beside her.

"Add the skinned Shrivelfig," Hermione read as she traced her finger across the page from the book.

Phoebe nodded and did as the book requested, and then she and Hermione started to stir the ingredients together. Meanwhile, on the table behind them, Ron and Harry were having no luck with their own potion seeing as Malfoy had joined them and was making the lesson ten times worse because he kept demanding help and Snape was ordering Harry and Ron to do the instructions twice.

"…I'm afraid he won't be a teacher for much longer," Malfoy's voice reached Phoebe's senses. "Father's not very happy about my injury, he's complained to the school governors. _And_ to the Ministry of Magic. Father's got a lot of influence, you know. And a lasting injury like this -" he gave a huge, fake sigh, "who knows if my arm will ever be the same again?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes as she turned to face the three boys behind her. "Your arm will be better by next week, Malfoy," she told him. "It was a minor injury, it's not like your arm is about to drop off."

"Stay out of this, Blackheart," hissed Malfoy.

"No," said Phoebe venomously. "You know very well how much this whole Professor thing meant to Hagrid, you just couldn't stop being a pompous little rich kid for two seconds and think of someone else's life outside of your own! Your parents must be so proud of you!"

Draco's eyes narrowed. "That great oaf does not deserve the position of 'Professor' if they are the types of creatures he is going to be bringing into class."

"The title of the class is '_Care_ of _Magical_ Creatures_'_ the whole point is to teach us there are some dangerous creatures in our world," said Phoebe. "How do you expect us to understand what creatures are like in the outside world, if we don't deal with them in school when we have the chance?"

Harry and Ron smirked.

"You actually owe Hagrid a 'Thank You'," continued Phoebe. "He saved your life on Monday, if he hadn't stepped in and pulled Buckbeak away from him when he had, your attack could have been a whole lot worse!"

A few cauldrons away, Neville was in trouble. Neville regularly went to pieces in Potions lessons; it was his worst subject and his great fear of Professor Snape made things ten times worse. His potion, which was supposed to be a bright, acid green, had turned –

"Orange, Longbottom," said Snape, ladling some up and allowing it to splash back into the cauldron, so that everyone could see "Orange. Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn't you hear me say, quite clearly, that one only rat spleen was needed? Didn't I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?"

Neville was pink and trembling. He looked as though he was on the verge of tears.

"Please, sir," said Hermione, "please, Phoebe will be alright on her own, I could help Neville put it right -"

"I don't remember asking you to show off, Miss Granger," said Snape coldly, and Hermione went as pink as Neville. "Longbottom, at the end of this lesson we will feed a few drops of this potion to your toad and see what happens. Perhaps that will encourage you to do it properly."

"You can't do that!" exclaimed James. "It could kill him!"

Snape turned coldly towards James. "Sit down, Mr. Black! I do not remember asking for your intervention!"

"No, but you just like picking on us Gryffindor's," James snapped. "Especially Neville, Hermione has offered to help him put it right, yet you dismiss her without a second thought; then you order Harry and Ron to help Malfoy, when Malfoy wouldn't need the help if he had kept his trap shut in Monday's lesson!"

Snape's lip curled nastily. "That will be 20 points from Gryffindor, Black."

James opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off as Ashlyn slapped him across the back of the head, and Phoebe threw her eraser at him from across the room.

Snape moved away, leaving Neville breathless with fear and James shaking from head to foot with anger.

"Help me!" Neville moaned to Hermione.

Phoebe sighed and turned to the bookworm, "Go help him," she motioned, "I will finish up here; we can't let anything happen to Trevor."

"When did we become Toad protectors?" Ron asked.

"Do you want to see Neville suffer?" Phoebe asked the red head.

Ron shook his head. "No,"

"Then we help," Phoebe answered, before catching Malfoy's gaze. "Unlike you Snakes, we Lions look after each other, it strengthens the pride."

"So, where does Higgs fit into the Pride?" Malfoy sneered. "Last I checked he was a snake, just like I am."

Phoebe glared at the blonde. "Terence maybe a Snake," she said. "But he has the personality of a Lion! He has loyalties -"

"To the wrong house, apparently," said Draco. "You think you can protect him, Blackheart, but you can't, not really, not from us Snakes…not from Flint!"

"Touch him," Phoebe said, her voice dropping to a whisper. "And I will make Buckbeak look like a kitten."

Draco smirked and leaned in closer to the Gryffindor. "How can you help him when you are on the seventh floor, and he is in the dungeons?"

Phoebe opened her mouth to retort but was cut off when Snape's voice echoed around the dungeons once more; she had been so caught up in arguing with Malfoy that she had cleanly forgotten about the potion she and Hermione had been concocting.

"You should have finished adding your ingredients by now. This potion needs to stew before it can be drunk; clear away while it simmers and then we'll test Longbottom's…"

Crabbe and Goyle laughed openly, watching Neville sweat as he stirred his potion feverishly. Hermione was muttering instructions to him out of the corner of her mouth, so that Snape wouldn't see.

Turning away from Draco, Phoebe packed away the unused ingredients and went to wash her hands and ladle in the stone basin in the corner. Harry, Ron and James joined her.

With the end of the lesson in sight, Snape strode over to Neville, who was cowering by his cauldron.

"Everyone gather round," said Snape, his black eyes glittering, "and watch what happens to Longbottom's toad. If he has managed to produce a Shrinking Solution, it will shrink to a tadpole. If, as I don't doubt, he has done it wrong, his toad is likely to be poisoned."

The Gryffindor's watched fearfully. The Slytherin's looked excited. Snape picked up Trevor the toad in his left hand, and dipped a small spoon into Neville's potion, which was now green. He held the spoon out to Trevor and was just about to trickle the potion down the toad's throat when the liquid literally jumped out of the spoon and landed back in the cauldron with a splash.

The class was silent.

Snape growled and stared around at the third years, hoping to pinpoint which student had his or her wand out and was causing this to happen. No one had a wand in sight. He tried again, dipping the spoon into the potion and moving it towards the Toad, again, the Potion leapt into the air and landed back in the cauldron with a splash.

Harry frowned and glanced sideways at Phoebe, she was staring at Snape, her eyes transfixed on the toad and the water based potion that Neville had created and Hermione had helped him fix; it was then that the Seeker realized what was happening, Phoebe was using her elemental control over Water to save Trevor from a possible death.

Snape was starting to get angry, as he attempted to spoon feed Trevor his fifth spoonful of Potion, but just like the previous four times the Potion leapt into the air and landed back in the cauldron with a splash. "Five points from Gryffindor," said Snape suddenly, which wiped the grins from every face.

"What?" the Lions exploded

"I suggest you all leave before I take more points!" Snape snarled.

The bell rang and the whole class filed out of the room quickly, Phoebe grabbed Ashlyn and James and hurried on ahead, leaving Harry, Ron and Hermione behind.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After lunch the Gryffindor's, Slytherin's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaw third years hurried off to Defence Against the Dark Arts for their first lesson of the year.

Professor Lupin wasn't there when they arrived; they all sat down, took out their books, quills and parchment, and were talking when he finally entered the room. Lupin smiled vaguely and placed his tatty old briefcase on the teacher's desk.

"Good afternoon," he said. "Would you please put all your books back in your bags, today's will be a practical lesson. You will only need your wands."

A few curious looks were exchanged as the class put away their books. They had never had a practical Defence Against the Dark Arts before, unless you counted the memorable class last year when their old teacher had brought a cage full of pixies to class and set them loose.

"Right then," said Professor Lupin, when everyone was ready, if you'd follow me."

Puzzled but interested, the class got to its feet and followed Professor Lupin out of the classroom. He led them along the deserted corridor and around a corner, where the first thing they saw as Peeves the poltergeist, who was floating upside-down in mid-air and stuffing the nearest keyhole with chewing gum.

Peeves didn't look up until Professor Lupin was two feet away, then he wiggled his curly-toed feet and broke into song.

"Loony, loopy Lupin," Peeves sang. "Loony, loopy Lupin, loony, loopy Lupin -"

Rude and unmanageable as he always was, Peeves usually showed some respect towards the teachers.

Phoebe felt James tense beside her and grabbed his arm as he reached for his wand just inside his robes. "Don't do anything stupid," she whispered urgently. "Professor Lupin may be your godfather, but you don't want to get into trouble, especially with Peeves."

"Yeah, besides, look at Professor Lupin's face," whispered Sarah. "He's not bothered."

Sarah was right. Everyone looked quickly at Professor Lupin, and to their surprise, he was still smiling.

"I'd take that gum out of the keyhole, if I were you Peeves," he said pleasantly. "Mr. Filch won't be able to get in to his brooms."

Filch was the Hogwarts caretaker, a bad-tempered, failed wizard who waged a constant war against the students and, indeed, Peeves. However, Peeves paid no attention to Professor Lupin's words, except to blow a loud wet raspberry.

Professor Lupin gave a small sigh and took out his wand.

"This is a useful little spell," he told the class over his shoulder. "Please watch closely."

He raised his wand to shoulder height, said _"Waddiwasi!"_ and pointed it at Peeves.

With the force of a bullet, the wad of chewing gum shot out of the keyhole and straight down Peeves's left nostril; he whirled right way up and zoomed away, cursing.

"Cool, sir!" said Dean Thomas in amazement.

"Thank you, Dean," said Professor Lupin, putting his wand away again. "Shall we proceed?"

They set off again, the class looking at shabby Professor Lupin with increased respect. He led them down a second corridor and stopped, right outside the staff-room door.

"Inside, please," said Professor Lupin, opening it and standing back.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Serefina shook her head and got up from the chair in which she was sitting in near the fireplace, her next class wasn't for another hour and she had finally gotten hold of Lucius to talk about Draco finally knowing about Phoebe; she had offered to meet Lucius somewhere more private but he had agreed to come to the school for this conversation.

"I cannot risk Draco knowing, Serefina," said Lucius. "It is better this way."

"She is his sister!" Serefina countered. "They are twins! They deserve to know the truth, Draco deserves the truth!"

Lucius shook his head. "You said that it would be dangerous for Draco to know about Phoebe," he pointed out. "It was you and your parents who argued that Phoebe would be safer away from her heritage, did you not say that it would be in Draco's best interest that he did not know that he had a twin?"

"No," said Serefina. "You made that decision after I had taken Phoebe into my custody. You made the decision that Draco did not know the truth, I have not once told Phoebe a direct lie about her family, she has known from day one that she is truly yours and Narcissa's daughter; but it wasn't until Monday's lesson when Draco was hurt did I believe see that she wants a more open relationship with her brother."

Lucius opened his mouth to argue.

"I am not asking for a lot, Lucius," Serefina added quickly. "It is not like I am suggesting we tell them about Aiden -"

Lucius turned away from his old friend. "You have not told Phoebe about him?" he questioned.

"What? No," said Serefina. "I do not even see him; the last I saw of Aiden was when he turned 11 and started Salem. Thomas is taking good care of him, he writes whenever he can but I have not had contact with Aiden in 2 years."

Lucius nodded absentmindedly and turned back to Serefina. "He will know,"

"When?" Serefina questioned. "When he is seventeen?"

Lucius turned his cool steel gaze onto his old friend. "He will know when I believe he is ready!"

"He is ready now!" Serefina argued. "He deserves to know the truth, Lucius! They have been twelve years without one another; I think you owe it to your son to finally tell him the truth!"

Lucius shook his head. "No, we must keep this quiet! It is for the better."

"Either you tell him," Serefina replied. "Or I will."

"You will not tell my son anything, Serefina!" Lucius argued.

Serefina ignored him. "It will not matter for much longer, anyway," she explained. "The older Phoebe gets, the more she looks like Narcissa, add that to the familiarity of your eyes and Draco will work out the puzzle himself, and then where will you be? Would you rather tell Draco yourself, or have him find out on his own and then question your judgments?"

Lucius was silent; his cool gaze transfixed on the female in front of him. He had been given a choice – tell his son the truth that he had kept away from him for twelve years, or have his son turn against him for a lie that he had kept silent for all these years.

But before Lucius could utter any form of response, the door to the staff room opened and a class of third year students filed into the room.

"Father?" Draco started, confusion showing evidently on his face.

"Serefina?" Phoebe stepped forward, eyeing her godmother and father curiously.

Professor Lupin came in behind the class and made to close the door, he stopped short when he saw Serefina and Lucius. "Oh, I did not realize that the room was being used,"

"It is alright, Remus," Serefina nodded. "Lucius and I were just leaving, we will continue this conversation in my office," she added in an undertone to the older gentleman in front of her.

Lucius nodded and followed her from the staff room.

Phoebe and Draco frowned as they watched them leave, once the door had closed they turned to glare at one another; each wondering why their relative was hauled up in a deserted room by themselves.

"I told you that father would get his way," Draco sneered. "He is probably telling your godmother of a stupid mistake she made in trusting that great oaf with her classes."

"I wouldn't count on it, Dragon," Phoebe snapped. "There is so much more to my godmother and your father than meets the eye, you clearly do not know everything that has ever gone on! Fortunately, I do!"

Draco glared harder. "What are you babbling about now, Blackheart, why would my father spend any time with your family?"

Phoebe smirked. "You'd be surprised, I'm sure we'll find out soon enough what this little conversation was all about, I just hope you can handle big surprises!"

All around the two third years, their classmates exchanged looks of confusion, before turning back to Professor Lupin who was calling for their attention.

"Now, then," said Professor Lupin, beckoning them towards an old wardrobe where the teachers kept their spare robes. As Professor Lupin went to stand next to it, the wardrobe gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall.

"Nothing to worry about," said Professor Lupin calmly, as a few people jumped backwards in alarm. "There's a Boggart in there."

Most people seemed to feel that this was something to worry about. Neville gave Professor Lupin a look of pure terror, and James eyed the now rattling doorknob apprehensively.

"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces," said Professor Lupin. "Wardrobes, the gap beneath the beds, the cupboards under sinks – I once met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. _This_ one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the Headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third-years some practice. So, first question we must ask ourselves, what is a Boggart?"

Hermione, Phoebe and Ashlyn put up their hands.

Lupin called on Ashlyn.

"It's a shape-shifter," she said. "It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us the most."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," said Professor Lupin. "So the Boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears."

Phoebe and Amelia exchanged looks; this did not sound fun anymore. Fears were called fears for a reason.

"This means," continued Professor Lupin, choosing to ignore Neville's small splutter of terror, "that we have a huge advantage over the Boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?"

Trying to answer a question with Hermione next to you, bobbing up and down on the balls of her feet with her hand in the air, was very off putting, but Harry still had a go despite the current situation.

"Er – because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?" he said.

"Precisely," said Professor Lupin, and Hermione put her hand down looking a little disappointed. "It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a Boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a Boggart make the mistake of trying to frighten two people at once and turned into half a slug. Not remotely frightening."

Phoebe giggled behind her hand.

"The charm that repels a Boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a Boggart is _laughter_. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing. We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please – _riddikulus!"_

"Riddikulus!" said the class together.

"Good," said Professor Lupin. "Very good, but that was the easy part. I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough, and this is where you come in, Neville."

The wardrobe shook again, though not as much as Neville who walked forward as though he was heading for the gallows.

"Right, Neville," said Professor Lupin. "First things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?"

Neville's lips moved, but no noise came out."

"Didn't catch that, Neville, sorry," said Professor Lupin cheerfully.

Neville looked around rather wildly as though begging someone to help him, and then said, in barely more than a whisper, "Professor Snape."

Nearly everyone laughed. Even Neville grinned apologetically. Professor Lupin, however, looked thoughtful.

"Professor Snape…hmmm…Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?"

"Er – yes," said Neville nervously. "But – I don't want the Boggart to turn into her, either."

"No, no, you misunderstand me," said Professor Lupin, now smiling. "I wonder could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?"

Neville looked startled, but said. "Well…always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top, and a long dress…green…normally…and sometimes a fox-fur scar."

"And a handbag?" prompted Professor Lupin.

"A big red one," said Neville.

"Right, then," said Professor Lupin. "Can you please picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind's eye?"

"Yes," said Neville uncertainly, plainly wondering what was coming next.

"When the Boggart bursts out of the wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape," said Lupin. "And you will raise your wand – thus – and cry 'Riddikulus!' – And concentrate hard on your grandmother's clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, that green dress, that big red handbag!"

There was a shout of laughter. The wardrobe wobbled more violently.

"If Neville is successful, the Boggart is likely to turn his attention to each of you in turn," said Professor Lupin. "I would like all of you to take a moment to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical…"

The room went quiet.

Phoebe swallowed as her worst fear rose to the front of her mind, and her eyes snapped open to keep herself from bursting into tears just from seeing the mental image.

Glancing around, she caught Harry's gaze and offered him a weak smile, and then turned her attention back to Professor Lupin.

"Is everyone ready?" said Professor Lupin. "Neville, we're going to back away. Let you have a clear field, all right? I'll call the next person forward…everyone back, now, so Neville can get a clear shot -"

"Good luck, Neville," Phoebe smiled as she stepped backwards leaving Neville in front of the shaking wardrobe. He looked pale and frightened, but he had pushed up his sleeves of his robes and was holding his wand ready.

"On the count of three, Neville," said Professor Lupin, who was pointing his own wand at the handle of the wardrobe. "One – two – three – _now_!"

A jet of sparks shot from the end of Professor Lupin's wand and hit the doorknob. The wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Professor Snape stepped out, his eyes flashing at Neville.

Neville backed away, his wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down on him, reaching inside his robes.

"R-r-riddikulus!" squeaked Neville.

There was a noise like a whip-crack. Snape stumbled; he was wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and swinging a huge crimson handbag from his hand.

There was a roar of laughter; the Boggart paused, confused, and Professor Lupin shouted "Parvati! Forward!"

Parvati walked forward, her face set. Snape rounded on her. There was another crack, and where he stood was a blood-stained, bandaged mummy; its sightless face was turned on Parvati and it began to walk towards her, very slowly, dragging its feet, its stiff arms rising –

"Riddikulus!" cried Parvati.

A bandage unraveled at the mummy's feet; it became entangled, fell face forwards and its head fell off.

"Seamus!" roared Professor Lupin.

_Crack!_ Where the mummy had been was a woman with floor length black hair and a skeletal, green-tinged face – a banshee. She opened her mouth wide, and an unearthly sound filled the room, a long, wailing shriek.

"Riddikulus!" shouted Seamus.

The banshee made a rasping noise and clutched her throat; her voice was gone.

_Crack!_ The banshee turned into a rat, which chased its tail in a circle, then – _crack_ – became a rattlesnake, which slithered and writhed before –_ crack – _becoming a single, bloody eyeball."

"It's confused!" shouted Lupin. "We're getting there! Sarah!"

Sarah hurried forwards.

_Crack!_ The eyeball became a severed hand, which flipped over, and began to creep along the floor like a crab.

"Riddikulus!" yelled Sarah.

There was a snap and the hand was trapped in a mousetrap.

"Excellent! Ron!"

Ron leapt forward.

_Crack!_

Ashlyn screamed and clutched Phoebe's arm in terror. A giant spider, six feet tall and covered in hair, was advancing on Ron, clicking its pincers menacingly. For a moment it looked like Ron had frozen. Then –

"Riddikulus!" bellowed Ron, and the spider's legs vanished. It rolled over and over; Amelia squealed and ran out of its way and it came to a halt at Phoebe's feet.

_Crack!_

The legless spider vanished. It turned into her godmother, lying unbreathing on the floor; Phoebe froze at the sight her eyes widened in fear as her hung limplessly in her hand.

_**No!**_ She cried. _**No! It's not real! Please…**_

"Phoebe!" James and Ashlyn yelled.

Phoebe snapped back to reality, pointed her wand at the prone figure of her godmother and shouted "Riddikulus!" the figure disappeared and was replaced with a tiny white kitten that kept chasing invisible pieces of lint.

Stepping backwards, Phoebe turned away from the cat as Harry stepped in front of it. The kitten looked up at him with emerald green eyes and – _crack_ – turned in the rotting corpse of a Dementor, the Boggart opened its arms wide, rose backwards into the air and swooped down on Harry.

The temperature dropped within the room and Phoebe spun around, just as Lupin came to a halt between the boggart and his student. "Here!" Professor Lupin shouted.

_Crack!_

The Dementor had vanished. For a second, everyone looked wildly around to see where it was. Then they saw a silvery white orb hanging in the air in front of Lupin; who said "Riddikulus!" almost lazily.

_Crack!_

"Forward, Neville, and finish him off!" said Lupin, as the Boggart landed on the floor as a cockroach. _Crack!_ Snape was back. This time Neville charged forward looking determined.

"Riddikulus!" he shouted, and they had a split second's view of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville let out a great "Ha!" of laughter, and the Boggart exploded, burst into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke, and was gone.

"Excellent!" cried Professor Lupin, as the class broke, into applause. "Excellent, Neville, well done everyone, let me see…five points to every person who tackled the Boggart – ten for Neville because he did it twice – and five each to Ashlyn and Harry."

"But I didn't do anything," said Harry.

"You and Ashlyn answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Harry," Lupin said lightly. "Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on Boggarts and summarize it for me…to be handed in on Monday. That will be all."

Talking excitedly, the class left the staff room. Phoebe, however, was feeling less than cheerful; yes she had faced her biggest fear of seeing her godmother dead, but at what price? The rest of her year-mates now knew her deepest darkest secret, and some of them were cruel enough to use it against her.

She remembered back to the beginning of her first year and when Serefina had warned her about using her elemental magic in front of the Slytherin students because they were children of Death Eaters, what if they went back and told their parents that her deepest, darkest fear was seeing her Godmother dead? What if they set out to eliminate Serefina just to get to her?

Phoebe shuddered at the possibility of seeing Serefina's dead body for real. Not a Boggart encrypted version, but a real life version? She didn't believe that she would be able to snap out of that like she had been able to snap back to reality in the staff room.

But no one else seemed to have noticed anything wrong with Phoebe and was talking excitedly about the lesson they had just come from.

"Did you see me take on that banshee?" said Seamus.

"And the hand!" said Dean, wrapping his arm around Sarah, and smiling down at her.

James glared at his fellow Gryffindor.

"And Snape in that hat!"

"And my mummy!"

"I wonder why Professor Lupin's frightened of crystal balls?" said Lavender thoughtfully.

_That_ pulled Phoebe from her thoughts and caused them to switch to the image that the Boggart had taken when Professor Lupin was in front of it, unlike the rest of her house-mates; Phoebe had the sense to know that their Professor was not afraid of Crystal balls; and unlike her house-mates Phoebe was also able to work out facts quicker than the average human.

_**Professor Lupin is not afraid of Crystal Balls, Lavender,**_ said Phoebe mentally. _**Oh no. Professor Lupin is afraid of full moons**_**.**

She paused, before adding –

_**But why?**_

Why was Professor Lupin afraid of Full Moons?

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Uh-oh, Phoebe's mind has started working again; where will it take her this time?**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, November 21, 2011 at 2:29am**


	41. Chapter 41

**Author's Note -** Hi, back for another update. Only because you guys are amazing and I don't have anything else to do other than sit here and pretend to be entertained, while staring blankly at the computer screen and waiting for something interesting to happen on Facebook. Lol...anyway, I am glad you all enjoyed last chapter, and I completely agree with each and everyone one of you Lucius should tell Draco the truth - but how? Any suggestions. I am open to all ideas, so if you have one, don't hesitate to let me know.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people:**Vivi Fontaine, Your-Biggest-Fan, Razmend, Fan of Fics **and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In responses -** All righty then...

First to _**Vivi Fontaine:**_ Your review made me giggle, and considering I read these reviews at like 6:00 in the morning, giggling always makes it feel worth getting up. Yes, Lucius is a git, we have established that; but who do you think Aiden is?

_**Razmend:**_ Unfortunately I cannot answer any of your questions; answering them would mean giving spoilers, you're just going to have to wait and see.

_**Fan of Fics:**_Yeah. I guess you're right, Phoebe and Mrs. Weasley are the same when it comes to their Boggarts; although, if I remember correctly, Mrs. Weasley's only took the form of her family being dead because it was after Voldemort had returned to power. But regardless, I see your point.

* * *

><p>In no time at all, Defence Against the Dark Arts had become most people's favorite class. Only people like Draco Malfoy and his gang of Slytherin's had anything bad to say about Professor Lupin.<p>

"Look at the state of his robes," Malfoy would say in a loud whisper as Professor Lupin passed. "He dresses like our old house-elf."

"Yeah, because everyone has the money to go out and buy themselves tailored suits," Phoebe would always argue, whenever she was in close proximity to the 'Slytherin Prince'. "Not everyone is better off like you Malfoy, it's not all about having money, you know!"

But no one else cared that Professor Lupin's robes were patched and frayed. His next few lessons were just as interesting as the first. After Boggarts, they studied Red Caps, nasty little goblin-like creatures that lurked wherever there had been bloodshed, in the dangerous of castles and the potholes of deserted battlefields, waiting to bludgeon those who had got lost. From Red Caps they moved onto Kappas, creepy water-dwellers that looked like scaly monkeys, with webbed hands itching to strangle unwitting waders in their ponds.

"I only wish the rest of my lessons were as entertaining as Defence," said Phoebe one evening in the Astronomy tower, she and Terence had managed to escape their common rooms and had met in their usual secret meeting place in the tallest tower within the castle. "Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying most of them; Dance is rather enjoyable because I am with Ashlyn during the evenings, but the two others from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff are total bitches!"

"A bitchy Hufflepuff," Terence chuckled. "That's a first."

Phoebe smiled. "Hey, even Hufflepuff's have a dark side," she pointed out. "You should see Sarah on a off day; it's like poking a dragon with a stick."

"I'll keep that in mind," Terence nodded, as he placed his arm around Phoebe as she curled up next to him. "What about Care of Magical Creatures, that still entertaining?"

Phoebe murmured in agreement. "Serefina says that Hagrid has lost his edge," she answered. "And I can't really blame him, Buckbeak and the Hippogriff's were a rather fun lesson, if only Malfoy hadn't gone and messed everything up we'd probably still be having practical lessons."

"So, you're not having practical lessons?" Terence asked. "I thought it was a practical class."

"It is, and we are having practical lessons, it's just the creatures are just not as entertaining anymore." Phoebe said. "I have talked with Serefina about helping boost Hagrid's spirits by bringing in more fun creatures, but she doesn't want to risk a repeat of what happened with Malfoy, so therefore, we are stuck with Flobberworms."

Terence laughed.

"It's not funny," Phoebe cried, although she too couldn't help but grin. "They are the most _boring_ creatures to ever exist! I only took Care of Magical Creatures this year because I knew Hagrid was training to become a Professor and I wanted to show him some moral support, otherwise I could have had Monday afternoon's off."

"How do you mean?"

Phoebe grinned as she titled her head back to look at him. "I have already taken my OWLs and NEWTs in Care of Magical Creatures," she explained. "Serefina had me learn them from a very young age, and I took them way before I came to Hogwarts."

"And let me guess, you passed with flying colours?"

"You know me, oh so well," the Elemental giggled.

Terence smiled and leaned down, pressing his lips against hers. "And to think, if it hadn't been for Malfoy and his new broomstick we wouldn't have had the chance to know each other, let alone be together."

"Then I guess we should thank Malfoy for being a pompous spoilt rich kid," Phoebe answered, pulling back to speak, before kissing him again.

Terence slipped his arms fully around her waist and pulled Phoebe up so that she was straddling his lap, her arms wound around his neck but their lips never broke the kiss that they had started. After what felt like forever, which was in fact half an hour, the two broke apart.

"When does Quidditch training start for you?" he asked, slightly breathless.

Phoebe grinned. "It's started," she answered. "Oliver has called for a meeting with the rest of the team tomorrow evening, it'll be the first time since last week that I have the chance to speak with him again hopefully this time he won't ignore me."

"I didn't think Wood could feel anything other than determination," said Terence.

"Well, he definitely can feel jealousy," Phoebe pointed out. "He's not talking to me because I choose you and not him."

"Well, you can't help who you like, Phe,"

Phoebe smiled. "I know, but I am being brutally honest when I say that there was a time that I did like him…"

"Ouch," Terence teased, clutching at his chest where his heart laid beating. "A guy really doesn't want to hear that their girlfriend likes another man,"

"I did like him…" Phoebe corrected. "'Did' past tense. What I have now is pretty damn fine!"

Terence grinned as he cupped her lower jaw and brought her lips back to his.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Thursday evening arrived faster than fast and soon Phoebe found herself hurrying down the front lawn to the Quidditch stadium with Harry for the meeting that Oliver had called.

There were seven people on the Quidditch team; three Chasers, whose job it was too score goals by putting the Quaffle through one of the fifty-foot high hoops at each end of the field; two Beaters, who were equipped with heavy bats to repel Bludgers; a Keeper, who defended the goalposts, and the Seeker, who had the hardest job of all, that of catching the Golden Snitch, a tiny, winged, walnut-sized ball, whose capture ended the game and earned the Seeker's team an extra one hundred and fifty points.

Oliver Wood, a burly seventeen year old, now in his seventh and final year at Hogwarts, was the Gryffindor Keeper. There was a quiet sort of desperation in his voice as he addressed his six fellow team members in the chilly changing rooms on the edge of the darkening Quidditch pitch.

"This is our last chance – _my_ last chance – to win the Quidditch Cup," he told them, striding up and down in front of them. "I'll be leaving at the end of the year; I'll never get another shot at it. Gryffindor haven't won in seven years now. Okay, so we've had the worst luck – injuries – then the tournament getting called off last year…"

Phoebe frowned. "I'm glad to hear that you're sympathetic towards me being kidnapped, Oliver," she pouted.

Oliver swallowed, but ignored Phoebe as he continued. "But we also know we've got the _best_ – _ruddy_ – _team _– _in_ – _the_ – _school,"_ he said, punching a fist into his other hand, the old manic glint back in his eye. "We've got three _superb_ Chasers," he pointed at Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell and Phoebe. "We've got two _unbeatable_ Beaters."

"Stop it, Oliver, you're embarrassing us," said Fred and George Weasley together, pretending to blush.

"And we've got a Seeker who has never _failed_ to win us a match!" Oliver rumbled, glaring at Harry with a kind of furious pride. "And me," he added, as an afterthought.

"We think you're very good too, Oliver," said George.

"Yeah, cracking Keeper," Phoebe agreed.

Oliver ignored her and carried on with his speech, Phoebe sighed and lowered her gaze, it had been almost a week since she had tried talking to Oliver again, and even now, in front of the entire team, he continued to give her the cold shoulder.

Katie, Alicia, Fred, George and Harry smiled sympathetically at the Chaser as Oliver continued to pace.

"The point is," Oliver went on, "the Quidditch Cup should have had our name on it these last two years. Ever since Harry joined the team, I've thought the thing was in the bag. But we haven't got it, and this year's the last chance we'll get to finally see our name on the thing…"

Oliver spoke so dejectedly that even Fred and George looked sympathetic.

"Oliver, this year's our year," said Fred.

"We'll do it, Oliver!" said Alicia.

"Definitely," said Harry.

Phoebe looked thoughtful. "Since this is your last year, we'll do it for you."

"Yeah!" the others agreed loudly.

Oliver stared at his Chaser for a moment, she was doing desperately hard to re-gain his friendship, but he just couldn't see past the fact that she had chosen a Slytherin over him! He had really laid his heart down for Phoebe, and she had thrown everything back at him at the end of last year when she had openly kissed Higgs in front of the entire school.

Full with determination, the team started training sessions, three evenings a week. The weather was getting colder and wetter, the nights were getting darker, but no amount of mud, wind or rain could tarnish the Gryffindor's vision of finally winning the huge silver Quidditch Cup.

One evening, after a particular good training session, Phoebe and Harry set off across the lawn towards the castle; it wasn't until they were half way across the courtyard did Phoebe realize that she had left her backpack down under the bench in the changing rooms, and turned around to go fetch it.

"I'll walk back down if you want," suggested Harry.

"No, it's okay," Phoebe smiled. "Besides, it's freezing out here, you head back, and I'll see you in a bit."

Harry nodded uncertainly. "Okay, be careful Pheebs."

"I will," Phoebe smiled as she hurried back across the courtyard, down the front lawn and back under the stands. She pushed open the door to the changing rooms and hurried inside.

The changing rooms were empty, and Phoebe quickly located her backpack exactly where she had left it under the bench. She snapped it up and turned to leave when the flickering of the office light caught her attention, someone else was still down here.

Crossing the room, the Elemental leaned against the doorframe and watched sadly as Oliver poured over a giant map of the Quidditch field, he was marking positions on it with a marker, and then tapping them with his wand to get them to move.

"You know, we're never going to win the cup if you don't sleep," said Phoebe, making herself known.

Oliver gave a start and looked up, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of her. "What do you want?" he asked. "I thought you'd be off by now with your precious Slytherin boyfriend."

"Oliver," Phoebe sighed.

The Quidditch captain ignored her.

Phoebe lowered her gaze, turned to leave, before pausing and turning back. "What happened to us, Oliver?" she asked. "You used to be my best friend, why are you acting like I am the enemy?"

Again…Oliver ignored her.

"Oliver Wood you acknowledge me right now!" Phoebe yelled, her voice rebounding around the changing room.

Oliver looked up at her. "What do you want?" he repeated.

"I want you to talk to me," said Phoebe, trying to hide the break in her voice.

"Well, you of all people should know," Oliver responded, getting to his feet and walking around the desk. He brushed past Phoebe, grabbed his broomstick and stopped at the door on the opposite side of the changing rooms. "I don't talk to traitors!"

And he left, leaving Phoebe alone in the dark and silence.

Tears blurred Phoebe's vision as she tried to hold them back; Oliver's words had cut her deep.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When Phoebe finally made it back to the Gryffindor common room, she found it in total chaos.

"What happened?" the elemental asked as she watched as George made a lunge for Crookshanks but missed; Scabbers streaked through twenty pairs of legs and shot beneath an old chest of drawers. Crookshanks skidded to a halt, crouched low on his bandy legs and started making furious swipes beneath the chest of drawers.

Hermione and Ron hurried over; Hermione grabbed Crookshanks around the middle and heaved him away; Ron threw himself onto his stomach and, with great difficulty pulled Scabbers out by the tail.

"Look at him!" Ron said furiously to Hermione, dangling Scabbers in front of her. "He's skin and bone! You keep that cat away from him!"

"Crookshanks doesn't understand it's wrong!" said Hermione, her voice shaking. "All cats' chase rats, Ron!"

"And Athena eats them!" James inputted, with an evil grin.

Phoebe rolled her eyes.

Ron glared at James. "There is something funny about that animal!" said Ron, who was trying to persuade a frantically wiggling Scabbers back into his pocket. "It heard me say that Scabbers was in my bag!"

"Oh, what rubbish," said Hermione, impatiently. "Crookshanks could _smell_ him, Ron, how else do you think -"

"That cat's got it in for Scabbers!" said Ron, ignoring the people around him, who were starting to giggle. "And Scabbers was here first, _and_ he's ill!"

"Probably dying," said James.

Phoebe elbowed him in the stomach.

Ron marched through the common room and out of sight up the stairs to the boy's dormitories.

"Someone want to fill me in on what happened?" Phoebe asked, "Because I am a little lost."

James turned to his friend, and only then noticed the tears stains on her face. "What happened to you?" he asked

"What do you mean?"

"Why have you been crying?" Hermione asked, as she joined James and Phoebe in front of the fireplace. "Did something happen between you and Terence?"

Phoebe shook her head and wiped her cheeks on the back of her sleeve. "No, I haven't seen Terence tonight, which I think is a good thing, because I don't think I could handle it at the moment."

"Pheebs," Harry started, touching her shoulder. "I waited for you in the Entrance Hall after you left to go get your bag, and then ten minutes later Oliver stormed past, he looked pretty pissed off, what happened?"

At the mention of Oliver's name more tears slid furiously down Phoebe's cheeks; Hermione gasped and dropped Crookshanks, and instantly wrapped her arms around her best friend. "Pheebs, what did he do?"

"He didn't do anything," Phoebe assured her. "It's what he said…"

James and Harry exchanged looks. "What did he say?"

Phoebe choked back a sob and managed to sober up long enough to tell her friends everything that happened down in the changing rooms, by the end of it, James looked furious, Harry looked aghast and Hermione looked sympathetic.

"Don't worry, Pheebs," Hermione smiled. "Hogsmeade weekend at the end of the month…"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "One problem, Mione, I can't go."

Hermione frowned. "Why not, I can understand the teachers not letting Harry go, but why not you?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Serefina says it would be better if I stayed at the castle this year," she turned to Harry. "I guess we can keep one another company."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, we'll find something to do," he smiled. "What about Higgs?"

"I've told him to go," said Phoebe. "I don't want to be the type of girlfriend that keeps him away from weekends out with his friends, just because I can't join him. There'll be other trips to the village, if need be he'll just have to come visit me next year," she smiled, and got to her feet. "Well, I think I'm going to head up to bed now. Goodnight."

She waved and disappeared upstairs.

**~*Phoebe*~**

On Halloween morning, Phoebe awoke with Hermione and went down to breakfast with the rest of her friends, despite not being able to go into the village with them.

"We'll bring you lots of sweets back from Honeydukes," said Ashlyn, as she met Phoebe at the Great Hall doors after breakfast that morning.

"I still can't believe you are not allowed to come with us," Amelia sighed. "It's not going to be the same without you,"

Phoebe smiled. "I'll be fine, you guys go have fun, bring me back lots of sweets and then you can tell me all about it at the feast later tonight."

James nodded and turned to the three girls with him. "Come on, guys."

"See you later," said Sarah, as she followed James across the Entrance Hall to where Filch was checking off names and peering suspiciously into the faces of those leaving, making sure that no one was sneaking out whom shouldn't be going.

Parkinson caught sight of Phoebe and Harry on the opposite side of the hall, and smirked. "Chosen to stay behind have you, Blackheart? Want to do Potter without Higgs around, do you?"

Phoebe glared at the pug-faced female, but didn't say anything, instead she turned to Harry. "Come on, Harry, let's go back to the common room."

"Watch out for the first years, Blackheart," Parkinson called after her. "They do have eyes and ears…and mouths!"

Phoebe ignored her as she climbed the marble staircase, pausing and turning back briefly to manipulate a small puddle of water that was on the stone step outside the door, she grinned as Parkinson stepped out and slipped down into the courtyard.

James, Sarah, Amelia, Hermione and Ron laughed at her misfortune, even Ashlyn cracked a grin.

"Come on," said Harry, grabbing Phoebe by the arm and leading her away. "What was all that about?"

"Nothing," Phoebe answered. "Just something that Flint started at the beginning of term, Parkinson is just carrying it on."

"What did he start?" Harry enquired.

Phoebe sighed and glanced sideway at her friend. "That I was going to sleep with Terence this year, and then ditch him, and possibly sleep with you next year. Basically, he's given me the title of 'Gryffindor Whore'"

"That's why Higgs was so furious the first day back?" Harry questioned.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "But don't worry about anything Harry; Flint and the other Slytherin's are just doing what they do best, annoying the hell out of everyone. The whole school knows I'm not a whore, and the whole school knows I would never use you or Terence like that."

Harry smiled. "I know,"

Phoebe smiled back and looked up as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Password?" said the Fat Lady, jerking out of a doze.

Phoebe opened her mouth to relay the password, but was cut off when someone called her name; turning around the young Gryffindor watched as Serefina grew closer.

"Phoebe," Serefina gasped. "There you are…"

"Serefina, did you run all the way up here?" Phoebe questioned, noticing the breathless tone on her godmother.

"No, but I have been looking all over for you," Serefina wheezed. "I thought you would be getting a late breakfast, given you are not in Hogsmeade. Hello, Harry,"

Harry smiled. "Good morning, Professor,"

"Do you mind if I steal Phoebe for a little while?" Serefina asked, "There are some things we need to discuss."

Harry looked a little disappointed by nodded.

Phoebe smiled and turned to her friend. "I'll come find you when I am done, alright? I shouldn't be too long."

"Okay," Harry nodded. "If I'm not up here, I'll probably be in the library or something."

"Library, got it," Phoebe said, before waving to her friend as she followed Serefina back down the hall.

Harry watched them go before turning to the Fat Lady. "Fortuna Major," he said.

The portrait swung open and he climbed through the hole into the common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Now, we must find Draco," said Serefina. "Lucius has agreed to tell him the truth, so I hope you are prepared for a relationship that has been kept hidden for twelve years; because once Draco knows the whole school will know."

Phoebe shook her head. "No it won't, Malfoy won't want the entire school finding out that he has a long lost twin, especially a twin that is in Gryffindor he will keep it a secret for as long as he can, I know, and Draco is in Hogsmeade, he just left with Parkinson, Crabbe and Goyle."

"Okay," Serefina nodded. "We must get him back for this purpose, I want you to go to my office, Lucius should be along soon, and I will go and find Draco."

Phoebe caught her godmother's arm as she started to walk down the hall towards the Entrance Hall, "You are not leaving me alone with that man!" she cried.

"Oh, Phoebe, he is not going to hurt you," said Serefina.

"That's rich!" Phoebe snapped. "Didn't you always tell me that you couldn't trust the Malfoy's? Didn't you always tell me that you didn't even _like_ the Malfoy's? I remember the first trip to Diagon Alley when I first met Draco, you nearly took the village apart because I mentioned his name, and I had to calm you down by telling you that Lucius would be his own downfall; why the sudden change in attitude towards him? Is it because you were childhood lovers?"

Serefina shook her goddaughter off. "No, Phoebe, you wanted this," she reminded the thirteen-year-old. "You wanted Draco to know the truth, now you are going to get the chance to have a relationship with your brother, no secrets –"

"No secrets? Even the one where I am an elemental?"

"Even that one," Serefina nodded. "He is going to be curious as to why you were never there growing up, we do not have time to me up a story, it would be easier if he knew the whole truth."

Phoebe shook her head. "But what if he goes and tells his friends that I am an elemental?" she questioned. "Then I'm screwed! Can't we just tell him that I was put up for adoption because I was a girl?"

"We could," Serefina nodded. "But I promised Lucius no secrets…"

Phoebe scowled. "I don't like you around him," she told her Godmother honestly. "You become a different person when he is around, you're not the same," she sighed. "Fine, if I agree to this plan to tell Draco everything, he has to promise not to tell a soul about me, elemental wise or any other and then you go back to staying away from Lucius, because I don't trust him…"

"Deal," Serefina nodded in agreement, she shook hands with Phoebe and directed her towards the end of the corridor. "Now go wait for me in my office, I will be along shortly."

Phoebe watched as her godmother walked away to find Draco, and with a heavy sigh the young elemental turned toe and hurried off to her Godmother's office, where unknowingly Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were waiting for her arrival.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Draco sighed in aggravation as he pushed open the door to Professor Blackheart's office and stepped inside, he was surprised to find Phoebe and his parents sitting inside waiting patiently for him and Professor Blackheart's arrival. "Mother, Father?" he questioned, "What is going on?"

"Draco," said Narcissa. "We are sorry to interrupt your trip to the village, but there is something you must know, it is very urgent."

Draco frowned and looked between the adults in the room. "What is it, Mother? Are you alright?"

"I am fine," Narcissa nodded, glancing across at Phoebe who was staring at the desk on which she was sitting. "But for the past twelve years we have kept something from you for the protection of another."

"What do you mean?" Draco questioned, noticing how his mother's gaze lingered mostly on Phoebe and only briefly met his. "What is going on? Professor Blackheart has interrupted my afternoon in Hogsmeade, tells me that my parents are here, and now that I am here my own mother won't even look at me, except her attention is solely based on a _Gryffindor!"_

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Watch your tone, Malfoy," she warned. "Your parents are trying to tell you something that could ultimately change – no – correction it _will_ ultimately change your life!"

"How dare you talk to me like that," Draco hissed. "Who do you think you are?"

"I'm your sister!" Phoebe exploded.

A heavy silence followed the explosion. Draco stood in silence staring at Phoebe in disbelief, his parents were looking between the two thirteen year olds waiting for the other to make the first move, and Serefina was standing behind Phoebe her hands squeezing her shoulders in reassurance.

"You're lying," Draco sneered. "I do not have a sister!"

"You do," Serefina nodded. "Phoebe is your sister, Draco, your twin sister. Twelve years ago, on June 5th 1980 your mother gave birth to twins, there was a prophecy written about your sister long before she was conceived, this was why you grew up as an only child and Phoebe was raised a Blackheart."

Draco barely heard anything that his Professor had said, he was staring at his parents in disbelief, this was not true, there was no possible way that the Gryffindor sitting before him was any relation to him; but the looks on his parents faces were confirming everything that Professor Blackheart was saying.

"A prophecy?" he choked out.

"Before we tell you anymore," Serefina spoke, "you must promise that you will not distribute this information to anyone outside of this room. Only a few handful of people know what you are about to know, and they only know because Phoebe has had to tell them in order to save or protect them,"

Draco stared curiously at the two women opposite him, if he made this promise, and the information was good and important, then how could he use it to his advantage without getting into trouble with not only his professor but also his parents? _**Sadly, it is a chance you are going to have to take**_ he reminded himself.

"I promise," Draco nodded, his eyes never leaving Phoebe's.

Serefina sighed. "My mother, Elena Blackheart, created a prophecy many years ago," she explained. "It stated that a pureblooded witch would be born to the richest and wealthiest family in England, at the time everyone within England knew that it this was your family, but none of us knew which heir, every Malfoy I have ever known has only had male heirs; which was why my mother made the conclusion that you would have a sister at the time of your birth,"

"It was a big jump," said Lucius.

"Yes, it was," Serefina nodded "and while you refused to believe my mother's vision as true, Narcissa continued to carry both Draco and Phoebe for nine months, without even realizing that she was about to give birth to a very powerful wiccan witch."

"Wiccan," Draco interrupted. "What is Wiccan?"

Phoebe looked across at her brother. "Wiccan magic, it is the way of the craft," she answered. "Wiccan witches do not need the use of a wand when casting spells, some Wiccan witches also believe that they have control over the elements, fortunately part of that is true, but not _every _Wiccan witch has control over the elements."

"There is one family of Wiccan witches that do have control over the elements," said Lucius.

"There is?" Draco asked. "Who are they?"

Phoebe glanced up at her godmother, who nodded reassuringly. "My family," the Gryffindor said, "Well, part of my family, the Blackheart side."

Draco stared at his sister. "So you're telling me that you are my long lost twin sister, you happen to be a Wiccan witch and you're also an elemental? If that is true, which element do you control?"

"At the moment," Phoebe answered, holding her hand towards the basin of water in the far side of the corner, she curled her fingers inwards towards her palm and watched as the water started to rise into the air. "I control water."

"What do you mean 'at the moment'?" Draco questioned.

Phoebe swallowed. "Back before I started Hogwarts I could only control water," she explained. "But after I was attacked by Quirrell and Voldemort in my first year, my elemental core has been shattered into four separate pieces, I now have control over all four elements, but my training in them as been slow since my awakening from my coma…I am slowly coming into my next element, but I have to finish my training with my water powers first."

Draco swallowed hard, as he tried to take in everything that was being said, this was too good to be true…and sadly he had made a promise to not say anything outside of this room. _**Who would believe you anyway?**_ The voice in his head had returned, _**who would believe that you have a long lost twin sister, who happens to be a powerful Wiccan witch and has control over the elements? You'll be the laughing stock of Hogwarts, because they won't be able to prove you're telling the truth.**_

"This is going to take some time to get used to," Draco finally said, looking over his parents and Professor, before finally holding Phoebe's gaze. "I guess this does sort of explain all those fights we got into; it wasn't us just being petty rivals because our houses…"

Phoebe smiled slightly. "No, it was sibling rivalry," she replied.

Draco chuckled.

"This still doesn't mean we're going to be close now," Phoebe pointed out. "Like you said, it's going to take some time to get used to, but we also can't just drop the 'I-hate-you-and-you-hate-me' act because then people are going to know that something is going on,"

"I agree," Draco nodded.

Narcissa smiled happily and swooped down on her children hugging them close, the last time she had had both of them in her arms at the same time was the day they were born, after that she had given Phoebe up for adoption to Serefina and the Blackhearts, and that had been the last she had seen of her baby girl.

From across the room, Serefina caught Lucius's gaze, at least Draco now knew the truth about Phoebe now; but that still didn't lift the sinking feeling of guilt that both felt. They held another secret, a bigger secret, one that could break both of them and tear their lives apart by the seams.

And that secret had a name: Aiden Dylan Chamberlain.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe laughed a Terence's arms wrapped around her waist just short of the Great Hall doors, she had just come back from Serefina's office, Draco, Lucius and Narcissa had left hours ago, leaving the two elemental's to discuss everything that had happened within the office of the course of the last few hours, it had taken a lot shorter than Phoebe had expected, and Draco had seemed to accept her being his sister a lot faster.

"_I always knew there was something about you," Draco said. "The way you acted around me, the way you called me 'Dragon' only family called me that, and the sibling rivalry? Yeah, that was just plain strange."_

_Phoebe shrugged. "I guess I hoped you'd be brighter than the average Slytherin and work out that we were related long before we had to tell you, it may have been more difficult to understand that way, but at least we wouldn't have had to go through all this fuss and trouble. But you seem to be handling it rather well, for someone who has just found out that he had a long lost twin sister out there."_

"_Well, I guess somewhere in the back of mind, I knew that there was something familiar about you," Draco responded. "I swear I could remember Dobby, mention a daughter once or twice when I was growing up but I was too young understand, I never asked my parents about it."_

"_Well, we were separated hours after we were born," said Phoebe. "Plus I'm sure even if you had been told when you were a toddler, you would have forgotten by the time we started Hogwarts."_

_Draco nodded in agreement, a little surprised at how he and Phoebe could actually have a civil conversation for this long, without fighting or arguing about something or another._

"Where have you been all afternoon?" Terence asked, pulling Phoebe against him and preventing her from reaching the Great Hall. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Sorry, I was with my godmother," Phoebe answered. "Why, it wasn't important was it?"

Terence shook his head. "No, I just came back from Hogsmeade early, figured I'd spend the rest of the afternoon with you…" he kissed her forehead.

"Aw, I'm sorry," Phoebe pouted. "How about we go get something to eat, and then I'll make it up to you?"

"The Room of Requirements," Terence responded, "or the Astronomy tower?"

Phoebe smirked. "I think the Room of Requirements would be better fitted for this," she whispered.

Terence grinned in response. "Room of Requirement's it is," he agreed.

"Good. But first I'm starved!" Phoebe giggled, wriggling from his grasp and pulling him across the rest of the Entrance Hall and into the packed Great Hall for the Halloween feast.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The food of the Halloween feast was delicious; even James, who was full to bursting with Honeydukes sweets, managed a second helping of everything.

Phoebe kept glancing over at the Slytherin table to where Draco was sitting, occasionally he would catch her gaze and glare at her; but Phoebe knew that was just put on for the Slytherin's around him, she knew, now, that he was thinking over everything they had gone through together in Serefina's office earlier that afternoon.

However, she did wonder what story he was coming up with in order to cover the reason why Serefina was pulling him out of Hogsmeade about an hour after he had arrived there earlier that morning, shaking her head, the elemental turned her gaze away and caught Terence's, he was sitting a few seats away from Ashlyn and Adrian, and was staring at her from across the hall.

Terence grinned as she held his gaze, before looking away and turning to the rest of her Gryffindor friends as the conversations about the city kept her pre-occupied, and stopped her from leaving the Hall early for the Room of Requirements, she was actually looking forward to spending at least an hour with Terence in the depths of the room, where no one could find them.

The feast finished with an entertainment provided by the Hogwarts ghosts. They popped out of walls and tables to do a spot of formation gliding; Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghost, had a great success with a re-enactment of his own botched beheading.

It had been such a good evening that Phoebe's good mood couldn't even be spoiled by Flint, who shouted from across the hall, as Phoebe got up to leave the Great Hall with Terence, "Enjoy it while it lasts Higgs, she'll be over Potter next year!"

However, on the way up to the seventh floor, Phoebe and Terence had to past the Gryffindor Tower to get to the Room of Requirements; what they didn't expect to find was a tall, crazy looking shadow arguing with the Fat Lady.

"Just let me in you wretched old woman!" the man snarled.

"You do not have the password," the woman answered. "Then I cannot permit you entry."

The man snarled angrily, before removing a shiny metallic object from his shabby looking coat. He raised it and slashed three times at the portrait causing shards of wood to splinter in two and hit the ground at the base, the Fat Lady screamed and took off through the portraits, leaving her canvas bare.

"Hey!" Phoebe yelled.

The man turned, his sunken eyes locking onto the Gryffindor and Slytherin on the corridor behind him.

Terence grabbed Phoebe around the waist and pulled her back as the man hurried down the stairs, and stepped further into the light so that they could see him more clearly.

"Oh My God…" Phoebe breathed, her eyes widened in realization. "You're Sirius Black!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Dun…Dun…DUUUUUNNNNNN.**

**Suspense and Drama - my two favorite themes when it comes to story writing. What did you think?**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, November 22, 2011 at 3:10am**


	42. Chapter 42

**Author's Note -** Hey, everyone, here is chapter 42. Also, I would also like to inform you that we are almost to the 200 mark in reviews and we have only just started third year. So proud! And I would never have gotten to the 200 mark if it hadn't been for you brilliant and wonderful readers, it isn't without your commitment and dedication to reading each Chapter as I update them that I could get this far. So thank you.

**Dedications - **Chapter goes out too: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Your-Biggest-Fan**and **Anonymous review** (who I am sure is **Vivi Fontaine** but I can't be sure. 90% sure.)

**In responses:** Since most of you asked about Aiden, I won't answer your questions yet, because that would be classed as a spoiler; he is one part of this story that I don't want to give away by answering questions so you are going to have to wait and see. Other than that, I have no in responses as of tonight.

So chapter 42 is ready for you to read. Let me know what you think.

The italicized dialogue at the beginning of this chapter isn't a quote, it is where we left off with cliffhanger last chapter – as some of you may be readers of my Power Ranger stories, you will understand what I mean, those of you who aren't well…now you do.

Goodnight.

* * *

><p><em>"You're Sirius Black."<em>

"Serefina!" Phoebe yelled as she blasted through the Great Hall doors and down the aisle between the Slytherin's and Gryffindor's, Terence stopping just inside the doors. Phoebe reached the end of the aisle and jumped the two small steps separating the Professors from the students. "He's here! I just saw him! He tried breaking into Gryffindor Tower! The Fat Lady she's gone!"

Serefina rose from her seat, rounded the Professors table and came to a stop in front of her Goddaughter.

"Who, Phoebe?" Serefina asked.

Silence had fallen within the hall, and everyone was staring at Phoebe in complete and utter surprise. What was going on? Who was here? Who had she saw? Who had tried breaking into Gryffindor Tower?

Phoebe swallowed, her breathing was heavy from the running she had just done. "Sirius Black!"

Whispers and mutterings instantly sparked around the hall as students exchanged looks at the confession. Sirius Black was somewhere in the castle, he had just tried getting into Gryffindor Tower for reasons unknown, and Phoebe had just seen him...so why hadn't he attacked her? He must have known that she would come back and tell the professors and he would be caught and sent back to Azkaban...so why hadn't he eliminated two threats that could have cost him his freedom?

"Headmaster," Serefina murmured, looking around at Dumbledore as she clutched Phoebe's shoulders.

Dumbledore stared down at Phoebe, who stood her ground, he then broke eye contact with the young Gryffindor and turned to the students in the Hall, all of which were waiting patiently for his orders. Prefects had started to rise from their tables and Percy had already started to approach the centre stage.

"All students," Dumbledore began "are to remain within this Hall. No one is to leave for any purpose. Teachers, you will accompany me to the seventh floor corridor. Mr. Filch, rally the ghosts, tell them to search every painting in the castle until they find the Fat Lady."

"Yes, Headmaster," Filch nodded and he hobbled from the Hall.

The rest of the students dispersed amongst their friends from other houses; Ashlyn, James, Sarah and Amelia clustered around one another and waited for Phoebe to join them, but the young elemental remained in front of the Professors.

"Serefina..." Dumbledore said softly touching the woman's shoulders. "I'm sure young Phoebe will be fine for a few minutes,"

"Yeah," said Phoebe with a small nod. "Go. I'll stay here with James and Ashlyn..." her mind flashed back to her Boggart and she breathed in sharply. "Just be careful."

Serefina nodded, pulled her goddaughter into a hug, and followed the other Professor's from the hall.

Looking around for her friends, Phoebe spotted them and hurried over. The Golden Trio joined them and Phoebe was left to explain exactly what had happened up on the Seventh Floor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At least half an hour after the teachers had left the Great Hall, they returned.

"The teachers and I need to conduct a thorough search of the castle," Professor Dumbledore told them as Professor Flitwick and McGonagall closed all doors into the Hall. "I'm afraid that, for your own safety, you will have to spend the night here. I want the Prefects to stand guard over the entrances to the Hall and I am leaving the Head Boy and Girl in charge. Any disturbances should be reported to me immediately," he added to Percy, who was looking immensely proud and important. "Send word with one of the ghosts."

Professor Dumbledore paused, about to leave the Hall, and said, "Oh, yes, you'll be needing..."

One casual wave of his wand and the long tables flew to the edges of the Hall and stood themselves against the walls; another wave, and the floor was covered with hundreds of squashy purple sleeping bags.

"Sleep well," said Professor Dumbledore, closing the door behind him.

"Everyone into their sleeping bags!" shouted Percy. "Come on now, no more talking, lights out in ten minutes!"

Phoebe grabbed a sleeping bag from two sleeping bags from the floor and held one out to Terence while she clutched the other close to her chest. "Looks like we're camping out," she joked.

"It's not the same without a tent," Amelia pouted, she loved camping always did it with her brothers when they were younger, always camping in the front garden of her home, or sometimes Reggie and Brian would take her up the mountainside and spend a few days there.

Sarah nodded. "I'm not really a camping person," she told her friends. "But when was the last time you heard of anyone going camping without a tent?"

"It's called roughing it," Amelia grinned. "Besides, we're not going to go far, and nothing is going to get us while we are in the Great Hall."

Phoebe eyed the surrounding Slytherin's. "I'm not so sure about that, Amelia. Sirius Black may not be able to get us with the protection the Great Hall has been given, but we are still stuck in here with older Slytherin boys!"

"Hey!" Terence protested.

"Not all Slytherin's are like you, baby," Phoebe smiled. "This is why I am sleeping between you and James tonight."

Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah exchanged looks.

"Can I add Adrian to our group for tonight?" Ashlyn asked. "That way I can sleep between him and James."

"What about us?" Sarah asked, pointing between herself and Amelia.

James looked across at her. "You can sleep between me and Phoebe, if you like," he suggested.

Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged smirks and rounded on James as Sarah blushed and turned away.

"Aw, what do you know, Ash," Phoebe grinned. "Our little Jamie is in love!"

"So is Puffer!" Ashlyn nodded, as Sarah followed Amelia across the Hall towards one of the far corners and started to set up their sleeping bags for bed.

James scowled. "Shut up!" he grunted, turning to follow the Hufflepuff's.

"Don't do anything stupid, Jamie," Phoebe called after him. "Remember, I'm sleeping between you too!"

"I hate you Phoebe,"

"Aw, love you too," Phoebe giggled.

Terence shook his head as he wrapped his arms around Phoebe's waist, as Ashlyn disappeared off towards the mass of Slytherin's to find Adrian; when she returned the four teens joined their friends in the corner and settled down for the night.

"Do you think Black is still in the castle?" Sarah whispered.

"Dumbledore obviously thinks he might be," said Amelia.

"It's very lucky that he picked tonight, you know," said Ashlyn, as she propped herself up on her elbow to talk. "The one night you aren't in the tower…"

"Probably lost track of time, being on the run," said Adrian. "Probably didn't realize it was Halloween. Otherwise he'd have come bursting in here."

Sarah shuddered.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, I don't think he would have," she said. "He seemed very surprised to see us."

"Why didn't he attack you?" Amelia asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered she was lying on her stomach on top of her sleeping bag, her chin propped up in her hands. "Like I said, he seemed just as surprised to see us as we were to see him!"

James, who was silent up until now, spoke. "Do you think there could be another reason why he tried breaking into Gryffindor tower? I mean if he is after Harry, wouldn't the logical solution be to come down here?"

"What, with all the Professors present?" Phoebe asked. "Not even a mass murderer is that stupid, there is no way that he would be able to take on all the professors at the same time; no, if I was after someone then I'd try and get into their common room and wait for them there…"

Her friends blanched and exchanged looks.

"Remind us to never get on your bad side," Terence whispered.

Phoebe frowned and looked around at her friends. "What? I don't have the killer gene, it's these two you should be afraid of," she pointed at Ashlyn and James. "They're the Blacks! They are more likely to have the murder gene than I am."

"Yeah, because you are little miss perfect, aren't you?" Adrian scoffed.

"How would you know?" Phoebe asked him, pushing herself up and flopping over onto her back. "You're only here tonight because Ashlyn is afraid to sleep on her own."

Ashlyn glared. "No, I'm not!" she protested.

Sarah and Amelia giggled into their sleeping bags.

"I hate you, right now." Ashlyn muttered to Phoebe who was grinning broadly.

Phoebe suddenly jumped up and threw her arms around Ashlyn. "Oh, I'm sorry, baby, I love you really!"

Ashlyn screamed in surprise and pushed her friend off of her. "Get off of me, you psycho!"

The group laughed at the antics of the two thirteen year olds, before Percy swooped down on them to tell them to go to sleep.

"The lights are going out now!" Percy shouted as he walked away. "I want everyone in their sleeping bags and no more talking!"

Phoebe rolled backwards onto her shoulders and slid down into her sleeping bag, she was just in the middle of turning onto her side to face Terence when the candles went out and the Great Hall plunged into darkness.

"Wait, I'm not ready!" Phoebe whispered in protest.

She heard Terence chuckle from somewhere in front of her, before an arm wrapped tightly around her and pulled her closer.

"Ter, that better be you," said Phoebe.

"Who else is it going to be?" Terence asked. "Ashlyn is behind you and Adrian is behind her, I highly doubt either one of them is going to pull you closer."

Phoebe smirked. "Oh, I know Adrian wouldn't," she whispered. "But I wouldn't trust Ashlyn; you know she is gay for me."

"I heard that!" Ashlyn whispered. "Just go to sleep Blackheart, before I decide to smother you in your sleep."

"Oh the abuse," Phoebe cried silently. "That's it, Ash; I'm not taking it anymore! I want a divorce!"

"Gladly," Ashlyn answered, rolling over onto her side to face Adrian.

Phoebe grinned through the darkness. "Oh I see,"

"Don't even think about it!" Ashlyn warned.

But her warning came too late, for Phoebe had already called to Sarah and Amelia over her shoulder.

"Hey, girls," she whispered. "Ashlyn is divorcing me for Adrian!"

Adrian spluttered in his sleep. "Excuse me?"

"Don't listen to her," Ashlyn muttered. "Just go to sleep,"

Sarah and Amelia giggled. "We so called it!"

"Called what?" Adrian asked, pushing himself up slightly and looking at Ashlyn through the darkness.

Ashlyn sighed and rolled away from him. "That's it Blackheart, you better sleep with one eye open tonight."

Phoebe giggled as she scooted closer to Terence and buried her face in his clothes; "I love you too, Ashlyn."

"Don't think scooting closer to Terence is going to save you, Phoebe," Ashlyn hissed. "If I can't smother you, I'll get rid of you another way!"

Terence smirked as he clutched Phoebe closer. "The Black gene is showing through already!"

James snorted into his pillow, before the seven of them fell silent as Percy's footsteps approached.

"Lights have gone out," the Head Boy stated. "If I hear one more word from this corner…it's gone midnight! Get to sleep."

"Yes, dad," Phoebe mumbled sleepily, as she clutched Terence's shirt and pulled herself closer to him.

Well, as close as one could get while they were in separate sleeping bags.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The school talked of nothing but Sirius Black for the next few days. The theories about how he had entered the castle became wilder and wilder; Hannah Abbott, from Hufflepuff, spent much of their Herbology class telling anyone who'd listen that Black could turn into a flowering shrub.

The Fat Lady's canvas had been taken off the wall and replaced with the portrait of a knight by the name of Sir Cadogan and his fat grey pony. Nobody seemed happy about this. Sir Cadogan spent half of his time challenging people to duels, and the rest thinking up ridiculously complicated passwords, which he changed at least twice a day.

"He's barking mad!" said James angrily to Percy. "Can't we get someone else?"

"None of the other pictures wanted the job," said Percy.

"Can you blame them?" Phoebe asked "After what happened to the Fat Lady. Sir Cadogan was the only one brave enough to take the job."

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather only seemed to worsen as the first Quidditch match drew closer Undaunted, the Gryffindor team were training harder than every under the watchful eye of Madam Hooch. Then, at their final training session before Saturday's match, Oliver Wood gave his team some unwelcome news.

"We're not playing Slytherin!" he told them, looking very angry. "Flint's just been to see me. We're playing Hufflepuff instead."

"Why?" chorused the rest of the team.

"Flint's excuse is that their Seeker's arm's still injured," said Wood. "But it's obvious why they're doing it. Don't want to play in this weather. Think it'll damage their chances…"

There had been strong winds and heavy rain all day, and as Wood spoke, they heard a distant rumble of thunder.

"There's _nothing wrong_ with Malfoy's arm!" said Phoebe furiously.

"He's faking it!" Harry agreed.

"I know that, but we can't prove it," said Wood bitterly. "And we've been practicing all those moves assuming we're playing Slytherin, and instead it's Hufflepuff, and their style's quite different. They've got a new captain and Seeker, Cedric Diggory –"

Phoebe, Alicia and Katie giggled.

"What?" said Wood, frowning at this light-hearted behavior.

"He's that tall, good-looking one, isn't he?" said Alicia

"Strong and silent," said Katie, and they started to giggle again.

"He's only silent because he's too thick to string two words together," said Fred impatiently. "I don't know why you are worried Oliver, Hufflepuff are pushovers –"

Phoebe stopped giggling. "Hey, two of my best friends happen to be in Hufflepuff!" she protested.

"I didn't mean the house in general, Pheebs," Fred corrected himself quickly. "I merely meant that the last time we played them, Harry caught the Snitch within five minutes."

"We were playing in different conditions then," Oliver shouted, his eyes bulging slightly. "Diggory's put a very strong side together! He's an excellent Seeker! I was afraid you'd take it like this! We mustn't relax! We must keep our focus! Slytherin are trying to wrong-foot-us! We _must_ win!"

"Oliver, calm down," said Fred, looking slightly alarmed. "We're taking Hufflepuff very seriously. _Seriously."_

"Oh…" Phoebe grinned. "_Siriusly!"_

**~*Phoebe*~**

The day before the match, the winds reached howling point and the rain fell harder than ever. It was so dark inside the corridors and classrooms, that extra torches and lanterns were lit. The Slytherin team was looking very smug indeed and none more so than Malfoy.

"Ah, if only my arm was feeling a bit better!" he sighed, the gale outside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom pounded against the windows.

Phoebe glared at her brother. "There is nothing wrong with your arm, Malfoy!" she hissed across the table at him. "That injury was from months ago, it should have healed by now!"

"Don't be jealous that I can get out of playing, Blackheart," Malfoy responded, turning in his seat slightly so that he could see his sister.

"I'm not jealous," said Phoebe. "But what's going to happen when everyone realizes that you have been faking this whole time? But don't worry, we'll remember to thank you when Gryffindor win the Championship this year," she grinned and returned to the book that she and Ashlyn were summarizing.

Ashlyn smirked. "You know, it's weird watching you two fight," she commented. "It's like watching siblings fight over a toy, rather than house rivals."

Draco and Phoebe tensed slightly and exchanged looks from across the table; Ashlyn frowned and looked between them. "What?" she asked. "What did I say?"

"Nothing," Phoebe answered, looking around as the door opened and Harry stumbled inside.

"Sorry I'm late, Professor Lupin, I –"

Harry cut off as he realized that it wasn't Professor Lupin who looked up at him from the teacher's desk; it was Snape.

"This lesson started ten minutes ago, Potter; so I think we'll make it ten points from Gryffindor. Sit down."

But Harry didn't move.

"Where's Professor Lupin?" he said.

"He says he's feeling too ill to teach today," said Snape with a twisted smile. "I believe I told you to sit down?"

But Harry stayed where he was.

"What's wrong with him?"

Snape's black eyes glittered.

"Nothing life-threatening," he said, looking as though he wished it was. "Five more points from Gryffindor, and if I have to ask you to sit down again, it will be fifty."

Phoebe glanced up and tugged at Harry's hand. "Just sit down," she whispered.

Harry glanced down at Phoebe, before walking slowly to his seat and sat down.

"As I was saying before Potter interrupted, Professor Lupin has not left any record of the topics you have covered so far –"

"Please, sir, we've gone Boggarts, Red Caps, Kappas and Grindylows," said Hermione quickly, "and we're just about to start –"

"Be quiet," said Snape coldly. "I did not ask for information. I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organization."

"He's the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had," said Dean Thomas boldly, and there was a murmur of agreement from the rest of the class. Snape looked more menacing than ever.

"You are easily satisfied. Lupin is hardly over-taxing you – I would expect first years to be able to deal with Red Caps and Grindylows."

Phoebe scoffed.

Snape paused and turned in her direction. "Something you wish to say, Blackheart?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "But since you asked – we would have known about Red Caps and Grindylows in our first year _if_ we actually had a Professor willing enough to teach us anything, you know, other than worrying about the Philosopher's Stone and what Voldemort would do to him if he didn't follow orders -" she paused. "And don't even get me started on Lockhart!"

The Gryffindor's snickered as Snape glared at Phoebe. "That will be 10 points from Gryffindor for your cheek, Miss Blackheart."

The smug looks on the Gryffindor's faces dropped.

Snape continued. "Today we will be discussing -" he flicked through the textbook, to the very back chapter, which he knew they hadn't covered yet.

"- werewolves," said Snape.

"But, sir," said Hermione, seemingly unable to restrain herself, "we're not supposed to do werewolves yet, we're due to start Hinkypunks -"

"Miss Granger," said Snape, in a voice of deadly calm. "I was under the impression that I was taking this lesson, not you. And I am telling you all to turn to page three hundred and ninety-four." He glanced around again. "All of you! _Now_!"

With many bitter sidelong looks and some sullen muttering the class opened their books.

"Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between the werewolf and the true wolf?" said Snape.

Everyone sat in motionless silence, everyone except Hermione and Phoebe whose hands, as they so often did, had shot straight into the air.

"Anyone?" said Snape, ignoring the two Gryffindor's. His twisted smile was back. "Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't even taught you the basic distinction between -"

"We told you," said Parvati suddenly, "we haven't got as far as werewolves yet, we're still on -"

"_Silence!"_ snarled Snape. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognize a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are…"

"Please, sir, said Hermione, whose hand was still in the air, "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf -"

"That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Granger," said Snape coolly. "Five more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know it all."

Hermione went very red, put her hand down and stared at the floor with her eyes full of tears. It was a mark of how much the class loathed Snape that they were all glaring at him, because every one of them had called Hermione a know-it-all at least once; and Ron, who told Hermione she was a know-it-all at least twice a week, said loudly. "You asked us a question, and she knows the answer! Why ask if you don't want to be told?"

"Detention, Weasley," Snape said silkily, his face very close to Ron's. "And if I ever hear you criticize the way I teach a class again, you will be very sorry indeed."

No one made a sound throughout the rest of the lessons. They sat and made notes on werewolves from the textbook, while Snape prowled up and down the rows of desks, examining the work they had been doing with Professor Lupin.

"Very poorly explained…that is incorrect, the Kappa is more commonly found in Mongolia…Professor Lupin gave this eight out of ten? I wouldn't have given it three…"

When the bell rang at last, Snape held them back.

"You will each write an essay, to be handed in to me, on the ways you recognize and kill werewolves, and I want them by Monday morning. It is time somebody took this class in hand. Weasley, stay behind, we need to arrange your detention."

Phoebe, James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia left the room with the rest of the class, who waited until they were well out of ear shot, then burst into a furious tirade about Snape.

"Snape's never been like this with any of our other Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers, even if he did want the job," said James. "Why's he got it in for Lupin? D'you think this is all because of the Boggart?"

"I don't know," said Phoebe. "But I really hope Professor Lupin gets better soon."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next morning when Phoebe entered the Great Hall for breakfast, she found Harry already sitting at the Gryffindor table munching on his toast.

"Good morning," she yawned taking a seat beside him.

Harry smiled. "Good morning, how are you feeling?"

"Tired,"

"Late night,"

"I guess you could say that," Phoebe nodded. "Terence met me after Dance class; we woke up about three hours ago in the Room of Requirements."

Harry smirked as he reached for the pitcher of orange juice. "Must have been some night," he teased.

"You have no idea," Phoebe joked, before winking at her friend.

Harry chuckled and turned back to his breakfast as Phoebe reached for the toast and jam, just as the rest of the team started to appear.

"It's going to be a tough one," said Oliver, who wasn't eating anything.

"Stop worrying, Oliver," said Roxanna soothingly, "it is just a bit of rain."

Thunder crashed outside the high windows and lightning ignited the sky a second later, Phoebe's head snapped up and then turned to the reserve Chaser. "Just a bit of rain?" she asked. "It's like the Black Lake has been sucked into the sky and Thor the god of Thunder is throwing the ultimate party up in the heavens."

Such was the popularity of Quidditch that the whole school turned out to watch the match as usual, but they ran down the lawns towards the Quidditch pitch, heads bowed against the ferocious wind, umbrellas being whipped out of their hands as they went. Just before she entered the changing rooms, someone grabbed Phoebe's arm and pulled her backwards under a giant umbrella.

"Good luck," said Draco. "Be careful…"

"Wow," Phoebe shivered, as she hugged her drenched robes closer to her small frame. "You've only known about being my older brother for a few weeks, and already you're taking the protective older brother thing to a whole new level."

Draco glared at her through the downpour. "You're my sister, Phoebe," he reminded her. "Whether I have known you for twelve years or two weeks, you're still my baby sister."

"I'm only a minute younger than you,"

"You're still my sister."

Phoebe smiled. "Thank you," she murmured. "I better go…"

Draco nodded, stepped backwards and hurried towards the Slytherin stands; Phoebe watched him go before turning around and walking towards the Gryffindor changing rooms, she got within an inch of the doors when someone grabbed her wrist again, spun her around and crushed her lips beneath theirs.

"Good luck," Terence smirked as he pulled away.

Phoebe sighed as she pulled away. "Thanks…" she smiled. "Now I really have to go or I will never be ready."

Terence nodded, kissed her once more, before allowing her to enter the Gryffindor changing rooms while he approached the stands.

The team changed into their scarlet robes and waited for Oliver's usual pre-match pep talk, but it didn't come. He tried to speak several times, made an odd gulping noise, then shook his head hopelessly and beckoned them to follow him.

"Wow," Katie whispered to Phoebe.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "Never seen Ollie so speechless…"

"He's really worried about this game," Alicia said.

Phoebe glanced back at her team-mate. "Then let's ease the burden," she said. "We'll work the Quaffle, so if Harry is unfortunate in catching the Snitch – which we all know he won't be – we can still win on points, deal?"

Katie and Alicia exchanged looks, before bumping fists with Phoebe. "Deal!" they agreed.

"Cool,"

The wind was so strong that they staggered sideways as they walked out onto the pitch. If the crowd was cheering they couldn't hear it over the fresh rolls of thunder. Rain clung to Phoebe's robes within seconds, and held her hair firmly against the back of her neck like glue on a page.

The Hufflepuff's were approaching from the opposite side of the pitch, wearing canary-yellow robes. The captains walked up to each other and shook hands; Diggory smiled at Oliver but Oliver now looked as though he had lockjaw and merely nodded.

Phoebe saw Madam Hooch's mouth form the words, "Mount your brooms," and she mounted her Chocolate Swiss.

Madam Hooch put her whistle to her lips and gave it a blast that sounded shrill and distant – they were off.

Pressing herself firmly against her broomstick, Phoebe shot into the air like a bullet. Her Chocolate Swiss seemingly cutting through the high winds with ease. The elemental smirked as she felt the wind blow directly over her, but not once attempt to blow her off course; it was times like this that she loved being an Elemental.

Within five minutes Phoebe was soaked through to the bone and frozen, but still had managed to score 40 points for Gryffindor.

Twice Phoebe came very close to being unseated by a Bludger, the rain was coming down so thick that she hadn't seen them coming.

She had lost track of time. It was getting harder and harder to hold the Quaffle, and even distinguish her team-mates from the others. _**Okay, do we seriously need this now? This game is important!**_

Pulling up on her broomstick for a few seconds, Phoebe closed her eyes and lowered her head as she focused most of her energy on the storm around her. She could feel the natural pull of her elemental magic within her core and felt the rain lighten up, the thunder grew dimmer and the lightning ceased to exist, the wind halted and she could just hear the screaming crowds in the stands beneath her.

Suddenly Madam Hooch's whistle cut through the diminishing storm and Phoebe's eyes snapped open, looking around the Chaser spotted her team-mates heading towards the ground, dipping her broom forward, Phoebe followed them.

"What's going on?" Phoebe asked, as she touched down beside Oliver.

"I called for a time out!" Oliver yelled. "Come on, under here -"

He caught her wrist and pulled her under a large umbrella where the rest of the team was huddled together, Phoebe spotted Harry between Fred and George, he was wiping the rain from his glasses using his soaked robes.

"What's the score?" Harry asked.

"We're fifty points up," said Oliver, "but unless we get the Snitch soon, we'll be playing into the night."

"I've got no chance with these on," Harry said, waving his glasses.

Phoebe held her hand out. "Give them here, quick!"

"What are you doing?" Fred asked.

"A useful spell Blake taught me," said Phoebe, digging her numb fingers into her robes and pulling out her wand, she tapped the glasses and said "_Impervius!"_

She handed the glasses back.

"Now try 'em," Phoebe smiled. "They should repel water!"

Through the still pouring rain – not as heavy has it had been – Oliver looked like he could have kissed her, it had been months since he had ever been this close to Phoebe; it was like Quidditch was the one place that he couldn't bring himself to be angry at her, at least not when they were playing. Although he would never admit this to anyone, especially the rest of the team, and Phoebe; she was _his_ star Chaser.

"The storm seems to be easing off a bit," Alicia pointed out.

"Yeah," Oliver nodded. "Okay, team, let's go do it!"

Still numb from the frozen air and water, Phoebe rose back into the air with the rest of the team. Full of determination, she urged her broom through the turbulent air, ducking beneath Diggory, who was streaking in the opposite direction.

Phoebe screamed as there was a clap of thunder, followed immediately by forked lightning which knocked her off course slightly; clinging to her broomstick for the life of her, Phoebe looked around and swallowed, this was getting dangerous, she had never been one for Thunderstorms and she wanted the match to be over so that she could return to the castle with her friends, where it was safe, and the storm couldn't get her.

_**Come on Harry, find the Snitch!**_

But something odd was happening. An eerie silence was falling across the stadium. The wind, which had returned with a vengeance, was forgetting to roar. It was as though someone had turned off the sound, as though Phoebe had gone suddenly deaf – _**What's going on?**_

Suddenly a horrible familiar wave of coldness swept over her, inside her, just as she became aware of something moving on the pitch below.

At least a hundred Dementors, their hidden faces staring up into the sky, had swarmed out onto the pitch. It was as though freezing water was rising in her chest, cutting at her insides.

And then it happened –

Something black collided with Phoebe and sent her hurling sideways off of her broomstick; there was a split second pause, a scream of her name and then – Nothing.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, November 24, 2011 at 12:25am**


	43. Chapter 43

**Author's Note - **ARGH! 205 REVIEWS! OMG! HOW EXCITED AM I! [And it has nothing to do with the fact that I just shouted that whole sentence. Lol]. Right...I am calm...where was I? Oh, yeah, can you believe it? 205 reviews! I almost fell off my seat on the train this morning when I checked my page [the ratings are still at 198 on the actual story, but it updates frequently on my actual profile] and saw that I had reached over the 200 mark. Yay, I am well giddy now. Hahaha.

Oh yeah - Please don't hurt me! *Hides behind pillow* I know you are all mad at me for what I did to Phoebe last chapter, and you will probably hate me even more when you realize that she actually fell into the middle of the swarm of Dementors...almost said Death Eaters then O.o - so...yeah, Phoebe plunged 50 feet through the air, and landed among the Dementors on the pitch. *Runs and hides.*

*From her hiding place -*

**Dedications -** Chapter goes out too: **KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics**, **Your-Biggest-Fan**, anonymous reviewer **Areallybigfan** and **Vivi Fontaine.**

I would also like to congratulate **Vivi Fontaine** on being the 200th reviewer of this story. Pure dedication.

Love you guys!

* * *

><p>"Lucky the ground was so soft…"<p>

"I thought she was dead for sure."

Harry could hear the voices whispering, but they made no sense whatsoever. He didn't have a clue where he was, or how he'd got there, or what he'd been doing before he got there.

"That was the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life."

"Scariest…the scariest thing…hooded black figures…cold…screaming…"

Harry's eyes snapped open. He was lying in the hospital wing. The Gryffindor Quidditch team, splattered from head to toe in mud, was gathered around his bed. Ron and Hermione were also there, looking like they had just climbed out of a swimming pool.

"Harry!" said Fred, who looked extremely white underneath the mud. "How're you feeling?"

It was as though Harry's memory was on fast forward. The lightning…the Grim…the Snitch…the Dementors…Phoebe –

"What happened?" he said, sitting up so suddenly they all gasped.

"You fell off," said Fred. "Must've been – what – fifty feet?"

"We thought you'd died," said Alicia, who was shaking.

Hermione made a small, squeaky noise. Her eyes were extremely bloodshot.

"But the match?" said Harry. "What happened? Are we having a replay?"

No one said anything. The horrible truth sunk into Harry like a stone.

"We didn't – _lose?"_

"Diggory got the Snitch," said George. "Just after you fell, he didn't realize what happened, he tried to call it off. Wanted a re-match, but they won fair and square…even Wood admits it."

"Where is Wood?" said Harry, suddenly realizing that he wasn't there.

"Still in the showers," said Fred. "We think he is trying to drown himself."

Harry put his face to his knees, his hands gripping his hair.

Fred grabbed his shoulder and shook it roughly. "C'mon, Harry, you've never missed the Snitch before."

"There had to be one time you didn't get it," said George. "Even Phoebe would agree –"

"Phoebe!" Harry gasped, his head snapping up as he remembered that Phoebe too had fallen from her broomstick. "Where is she? Is she alright? What happened after she fell?"

The team swallowed and exchanged looks. "Phoebe's –"

"What?" Harry pressed. "Phoebe is what?"

"Over there," Katie answered; pointing across the room to where a small curtain had been drawn around a bed, there was moving shadows behind it and soft voices. "She fell from the same altitude as you did, but a Dementor collided with her and sent her into the swarm."

Harry swallowed. "She landed in the swarm?" he choked. "But she's alive…right?"

"They are working to stabilize her," Alicia answered. "She's not breathing, her skin is as pale as a ghost, and she has fractured the base of her head in three places from the collision with the ground."

Hermione squeaked as tears glistened in her eyes. "Her head snapped back when she hit the ground," she explained. "Madam Pomfrey has given her Skelegro, now it's just a waiting game. Terence has been back and forth for the last hour, but he's not even allowed to see her!"

"Why not?" Harry asked.

"Because they don't want to raise his hopes," Hermione answered. "Madam Pomfrey says that he can sit with her once they have finished,"

"What about James?" Harry asked "and the rest of Phoebe's friends?"

Hermione shook her head. "They came up when they brought her in, but they were turned away when Madam Pomfrey set to work on stabilizing her, we haven't seen them since."

Harry nodded slowly as his gaze sought the closed curtains around Phoebe's bed, and he thought he had it worse off, for all he –and everybody else knew- Phoebe could have died today.

**~*Phoebe*~**

James hastily stuffed everything into his messenger bag, grabbed his robes and hurried down the steps of the Boys dormitories for the portrait hole; he was already running late for class and didn't want to give Professor Snape a reason to take fifty points from Gryffindor for his tardiness.

The reason why he was running late was because he had returned from the Hospital wing last night at 09:00pm, and only then realized that he had not written his essay on werewolves, so he had stayed up until gone 3:00am writing his essays before finding collapsing in front of the fireplace from exhaustion.

"Phoebe, if you don't wake up soon," James muttered to himself as he hurried through the halls to the DADA corridor. "You are going to kill me!"

Reaching the door with seconds to spare, the Gryffindor hurried inside, and found the rest of his classmates only just taking their seats.

"Ah, Mr. Black, glad you could join us," Professor Lupin smiled.

"Sorry, I'm late Professor," James apologized to his godfather. "I had a late night."

"I am sure that the worry of your friend has kept you awake all weekend," Lupin nodded. "You are excused for your lateness; just don't let it happen again."

James nodded. "Of course, Professor," he replied, before taking his seat beside Ashlyn, who scribbled out a note for him as Professor Lupin begun the lesson.

_Terence says Madam Pomfrey has news._

_What news?_ James scribbled back. _Is Phoebe alright?_

_He didn't say. He just says that we're to meet him in the hospital wing after dinner tonight._

James looked around for Amelia and Sarah. _Do they know?_

_Yes. I told them before we came in, they have Herbology last today, and they said they would meet us there._

_What do we have last?_

_Care of Magical Creatures._

Again James nodded, ripped up the note and turned to Professor Lupin who was calling for their attention.

"I am aware that most of you are worried about Phoebe Blackheart," said Lupin. "But I must ask you to try your hardest to concentrate on our lesson; I have heard many things about Miss Blackheart, and I can assure you that if she can recover from everything that she has been put through these past two and a half years, she can pull through this." He paused. "Now…what did you learn with Professor Snape?"

The class burst into complaint.

"It's not fair, he was only filling in, why should he set us homework?"

"We don't know anything about werewolves -"

"- two rolls of parchment!"

"Did you tell Professor Snape we haven't covered them yet?" Professor Lupin asked, frowning slightly.

The babble broke out again.

"Yes, but he said we were really behind -"

"- he wouldn't listen -"

"- _two_ rolls of parchment!"

Professor Lupin smiled at the look of indignation on every face. "This class needs a spokesperson," he joked.

"Usually we do have one," Harry nodded. "But she's currently unconscious in the hospital wing."

Lupin bowed his head. "Of course, now, don't worry. I'll speak to Professor Snape. You don't have to do the essay."

"Oh no," said Hermione, looking slightly disappointed. "I've already finished it,"

They had a very enjoyable lesson. Professor Lupin had brought a glass box containing a Hinkypunk, a little one-legged creature who seemed as though he was made of wisps of smoke, rather frail and harmless looking.

"Lures travelers into bogs," said Professor Lupin, as they took notes. "You notice the lantern dangling from his head? Hops ahead – people follow the light – then -"

The Hinkypunk made a horrible squelching noise against the glass.

When the bell rang, everyone gathered up their things and headed for the door. Harry amongst them, but –

"Wait a moment, Harry," Lupin called. "I'd like a word."

James looked over his shoulder as Harry doubled back, while Ron and Hermione followed the rest of the class from the classroom.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Two days had passed and there were no signs of life in the small body of the young Gryffindor lying in the hospital bed. Too much time had passed; she was taking her sweet time in coming back to them. To him.

The number of days sitting and waiting made Terence's stomach sink; he could only pray that Phoebe made it back. He didn't care much about anything else only that Phoebe returned to him alive and well.

His stomach had dropped the moment he had seen that dementor collide with her during the game on Saturday, and sent her hurling fifty feet through the air into the rest of the swarm on the pitch, his heart had stopped beating the very moment he had realized where she was heading, and the moment she had disappeared into the sea of black terror had taken hold of him.

The pain of not-knowing gnawed at his very being, painfully squeezing his heart far more than the time that she had been taken into the Chamber of Secrets the previous year. Why wasn't Phoebe coming back? What if she couldn't come back this time?

He shook his head to clear the unnecessary thoughts from his mind, and lifted his bloodshot gaze to his sleeping girlfriend, he squeezed her hand as it lay nestled between his and the bed beneath her.

Madam Pomfrey had arrived earlier that day to check on Phoebe's vital signs, she checked the back of her neck and head for any signs that Phoebe's injuries had healed. They had, but that wasn't what worried Terence, he had no doubt that Madam Pomfrey would be able to heal Phoebe physically, what unnerved him was the fact that Phoebe didn't show any signs of waking up.

"Any change?" asked the voice of Ashlyn Black, she had been back and forth for most of the weekend, wanting more information on Phoebe's condition. She too, like Terence, refused to believe that anything remotely bad had happened to Phoebe and that she was merely being stubborn about her return to consciousness.

Terence shook his head. "No," he answered. "Madam Pomfrey is keeping an eye on her vitals...but nothing yet."

"And the back of her head?" Sarah Thompson asked.

"And her neck?" Amelia Winchester added in.

James Black was the last to arrive at Phoebe's bed side, his arm around Sarah's shoulder.

"They've healed," said Terence. "All there is now is for Phoebe to wake up."

"Why isn't she waking up?" James asked.

Terence shook his head. "I don't know..."

Silence fell once more between the small group of six, as each of them watched Phoebe in the dim light of the hospital wing, each wondering why Phoebe wasn't waking up. If all her injuries had healed nicely, then why wasn't she waking up?

Footsteps broke the silence surrounding the friends, and each looked up to see Professor Blackheart and Professor Dumbledore enter the room and stop at the bed in which Phoebe lay.

Madam Pomfrey joined them moments later.

"I have been going over Phoebe's injuries and vitals and while everything seems fine, I am afraid to report that the internal damage is too extensive for even myself to heal." the Matron explained.

Terence's head snapped up. "What does that mean?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," Madam Pomfrey apologized, a sad look adorning her features. "But I am afraid she's gone."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

***From hiding place***

**Sorry that this chapter is so short…next chapter should be considerably longer, and it will be posted sometime tomorrow – that is a promise ;)**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, November 27, 2011 at 3:49am**


	44. Chapter 44

**Author's Note - **I promised a longer chapter, and I think I have managed that. Sixteen pages. I hope you enjoy it.

**Dedications - **Chapter goes out to the following [dedicated] reviewers: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Razmend, Purple Sunshine56, Vivi Fontaine, Your-Biggest-Fan, Fan of Fics** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat.** I couldn't have gotten this far without your dedication and support, truly amazing people, that is a **FACT!**

**In responses -** This response goes out to you all [mostly because I am too tired to do them individually] I am sorry for killing Phoebe.

I don't own the quote at the end.

Onto Chapter 44 -

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><p><em>"When someone's slippin' away, right before your eyes. How useless we are is a painful surprise. You wanna scream, you wanna cry. You want someone to tell you why all the hope that's in your heart is not enough. You hit your knees, you shake your fists. Oh it's the deepest wound there is, when you can't help the one you love." ~ Terri Clark.<em>

* * *

><p><em>"She's gone."<em>

Terence's body felt cold as his heart plunged into his stomach at the Matron's words, tears entered his eyes but he blinked them back, as his hands shook so much as they grasped at Phoebe's motionless body. She couldn't be gone. She just - it just - it just seemed impossible to comprehend that his girlfriend was - he couldn't even bring himself to say the word.

"Phoebe," he sobbed, pulling the lifeless body of his girlfriend into his arms and hugging her close. "Stay with me Phe. Don't go, don't leave me damn it!" he begged, holding her tighter as the rest of her friends cried and sobbed around him, but they meant nothing to him now, all that did matter was that Phoebe heard his pleas for her to survive.

"Terence."

The seventeen year old didn't look up at the voice, he barely recognized it, but he did register it. Whatever they wanted, he didn't care. He just wanted - no - needed for Phoebe to make it. He needed her alive. He needed her awake.

"Merlin Phoebe, I love you." Terence cried, kissing her forehead. "I love you so much..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Pain.

It consumed her mind. The scorching fires burned throughout her entire body, radiating from the base of her skull, right down to her toes. Her body screamed in pain every time it tried to move as the pain soared to a white hot intensity, as if painfully telling her to remain still and just let nature take its course.

She had been hurt many times in the past, but there was nothing quite like a fifty foot drop into a swarm of hungry Dementors.

The pain she felt now made every heartbeat feel like a beating drum, pounding and reverberating throughout her head.

She saw Terence's face and it took her breath away. It hit her like a ton of bricks that she would never see him again, never hear his voice, feel his touch or his kiss. Hysteria started to set in, and with tears streaming down her face, Phoebe remembered that she had made two promises that morning that she would survive the storm and return to her friends.

It was in that hysterical moment that she realized that her promises meant nothing now, and she was never going to return to those that she loved and cherished.

_**I'm sorry, Dragon...it looks like I will be breaking my promise**_

Every heartbeat continued to pound against the inside of her skull, adding to the headache that was forming into a migraine.

Her vision started to cloud over as she fought to stay conscious; and she dimly registered that she had never gotten the chance to tell Terence how she really felt. _**I love him**_..._**I love him with every fiber of my being, and I have done so since the moment I first saw him.**_

The thought fizzled out into nothing as she lost the fight completely and was consumed by a painless darkness.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It felt like she was floating.

She didn't know where she was, but she did know that wherever she was it was a painless place between dreams and reality. It was peaceful, safe and quiet, and it was also the perfect place that she wanted to be.

It was the only place where she could recall any recollection of perfect thoughts, a place where she couldn't be certain that she was waking up or laying to rest. Did she enter the light? Or return to the surrounding darkness? It was confusing, but carefree. She had no worried here, no pain, nothing...nothing to ruin the peace that had consumed her mind.

Her body was pain free and relaxed; her mind quiet as her thoughts drifted lazily in and out of commission.

Her feet were moving, but she had no clue where they were taking her, they were walking a familiar path, but she couldn't remember when she had walked it before, but she found that she didn't care. It was a good place to be, it was slow and silent. She was completely alone...yet didn't feel alone at all.

A creak echoed from somewhere, and suddenly she was running - running towards the noise.

The door stood open at the far end of the corridor on which she had been walking, but when she reached it whoever had opened it was gone. She peered inside to find nothing but darkness, and a small frown creased her painless face causing confusion to set in slowly. If she wasn't dying...and she wasn't living...then where was she?

It was then that two strong, warm arms had wrapped themselves around her, giving her the strength and feeling of protection, but it wasn't until a familiar voice whispered in her ear did she realize _exactly_ where she was.

"Hello, little one. Welcome home."

Phoebe smiled and turned to face the familiar face of Salazar Slytherin. "Thank you," she whispered. "I thought I had died."

"You did," Salazar answered. "When you first came here you weren't breathing, we had to keep you stabilized in the dark room hoping that you would wake up, and now you have. You are a strong and stubborn little witch."

"So I have been told," Phoebe nodded. "How long have I been here?"

"A month,"

Phoebe swallowed as tears clouded her vision; she had been unconscious for a whole month. "What happened?"

"We do not know," Salazar answered, motioning for her to follow him. "What do you remember?"

"Quidditch against Hufflepuff," Phoebe answered. "We were supposed to play Slytherin, but they pulled out. There was a storm and it was so cold...I tried to use my powers to calm the storm, and it seemed to work until the Dementors showed up...and that's all I can remember."

Salazar nodded. "You say you used your powers to end the storm?" he asked.

"Not end it," Phoebe answered "but stop it long enough for us to play. I managed to stop the rain and the wind was settling down, the thunder and lightning was going to be next -"

"Alright..." Salazar cut across her. "We will have time to discuss the rest of this conversation after you have rested."

"But -" Phoebe started to protest.

Salazar gave her a stern look and opened the door to a familiar chamber; Phoebe recognized it as her own. The same one that had been provided for her the first time she had come to this dimension two and a half years ago, the bed stood in the far corner and it looked extremely inviting.

"Rest," Salazar instructed her, nudging her into the room. "I will return in an hour or two with the other Founders, and we will discuss your progress as an Elemental."

"Okay," Phoebe murmured, as she approached the bed and sank down into the comforter. Her head it he pillow and she succumbed to the darkness once more, at least she knew now that while she had awoken here in the Elemental dimension, it was only a matter of time before she awoke in the real world.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next time she awoke, Phoebe found Helga Hufflepuff stroking her lovingly, a bright smile adorning her features.

"Well, hello little one," Helga smiled. "I never thought we would see you again. How are you feeling?"

"Tired," Phoebe answered honestly, she had never felt as tired as she felt now. Pushing herself into a sitting position, Phoebe's gaze sought out Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin, all of whom were watching her carefully.

Rowena was the first to break the silence. "Salazar tells us that you were able to end a storm," she said, sounding quite impressed. "Do you wish to tell us the whole story?"

"I don't remember much," Phoebe answered. "But I know that there was a storm the day of the Quidditch match, we were playing Hufflepuff, half-way through the game the storm seemed to get worse and I knew that I had to do something to calm the elements; so I used my elemental powers to restore order. I managed to stop the rain and the wind, I was about to move onto the Thunder and Lightning when Oliver called for a time out and interrupted me. When the game continued the wind and rain had died down a little making it easier for us to play - what?" she asked, spotting Rowena and Salazar exchange looks.

Rowena sat beside Phoebe and touched her hand. "You used your powers to quell a storm. The wind -" she paused. "The wind is moving air and is caused by differences in air pressure within our atmosphere. Air under high pressure moves towards areas of low pressure, and th greater the difference in pressure, the fast the air flows."

"So, the wind within the storm was just built up of high pressure," Phoebe theorized. "And I was able to lower the pressure by using the element of air..."

Rowena nodded. "Yes."

"Does that mean -?"

"Yes," Rowena nodded again. "You have come into the next stage of your element training."

"What about my water powers?" Phoebe asked, looking towards Salazar.

"You will continue to go through training," Salazar answered. "But you are slowly coming to the end of your water training; Rowena will take over once I have finished."

"Will I see you again?"

Salazar smiled and touched her face affectionately. "I will always be around," he answered.

Phoebe nodded and yawned. "I'm tired."

"Sleep," Godric instructed. "You will need your rest."

Rowena and Helga joined both Salazar and Godric on the opposite side of the chamber.

"We will start your training as soon as you have rested, Little One," Rowena said. "But for now you must rest, you will need all your energy for when you return to your body. I am sure your friends are worried about you."

"I just hope they haven't killed each other yet," Phoebe responded as her eyes started to close.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe coughed as she was knocked backwards into a stone pillar and fell to the ground.

"Get up!" Rowena ordered, standing over the young Gryffindor. "You must focus your energy on your magic."

"How did you do that?" Phoebe asked, getting to her feet.

"You're not hurt?"

"Oh, I am," Phoebe nodded. "But I have near-death experiences every year; I have learned how to deal with the pain."

Rowena nodded as she walked over to stand behind her protégé. "When you focus all of your energy on a specific object, you can make it do whatever you want. I merely focused my energy on knocking you backwards, and prevailed in doing so."

"Can I do that?" Phoebe asked.

"If you train,"

Phoebe grinned. "Teach me."

Rowena nodded. "First you must stand with your feet and shoulder length." Phoebe did as instructed. "Now, you must focus all of your emotions on a specific object - like that pillar," she pointed at a large marble pillar a few feet away, they had been practicing in the courtyard for over an hour now, and Phoebe was finally starting to make progress in her air-bending training. "Focus all of your emotions on the pillar, and then push outward."

Rowena curled her hands in close to her stomach, took a deep breath, her eyes glowed a dull white and she pushed outwards with her hands. The pillar exploded.

"Whoa!" Phoebe squeaked, taking a step backwards. "That was AWESOME!"

Rowena bowed her head in a respectful approval. "Now you try," she pointed at another pillar.

Phoebe nodded and mimicked her mentor's actions. The pillar didn't even move. "Oh...phooey!" the Gryffindor complained.

"Get angrier," Rowena instructed. "Think about something that really makes you want to hurt someone."

Closing her eyes Phoebe thought of what Flint had done to her in first year when he had attacked her, what he had said he would do to Terence if Phoebe didn't give into his advances, and what he was calling her now at Hogwarts. 'Gryffindor Whore'

This time, the pillar exploded. Shattering into a million tiny pieces.

"Excellent!" Rowena praised. "I see what Salazar means when he says you are a fast learner."

Phoebe smiled.

"Eventually, you will find that you do not have to focus on a specific emotion," Rowena explained. "With more training you will be able to use it without thinking. I just hope you use it wisely."

"I will," Phoebe promised. "I take great pride and pleasure in my actions as an Elemental; I do not want to give the Elders a reason to strip me of my magic."

Rowena nodded. "We will end our lesson here; you must rest, for I believe you will want to return to your body very soon."

"Thank you, Rowena, goodnight."

"Goodnight Little One. God bless."

And with one final smile, Phoebe turned and hurried back into the elemental manor behind her, leaving Rowena to watch her from the courtyard.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The first thing she heard and felt was her heart, pounding steadily behind her rib cage. It drowned out everything else her ears could have possibly detected, but it didn't bother her one bit; it was just a sound, a simple sound that brought comfort, because it was a sure sign that she was still alive.

But it only lasted a second.

Then the pain hit, like a tidal wave of scorching lava it ignited her body, burning its way from the base of her skull, all the way down her neck and spine, burning every nerve and fiber of her being.

Phoebe arched her back in pain. She wanted to scream, to cry, to make some sort of noise to make it stop, but her mouth refused to open and she couldn't make a single sound. She was stuck in a paralyzing state as ruptures of pain pierced the base of her skull, neck, spine and spread rapidly throughout her veins. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before, second only to the Cruciatus Curse.

_**Please make it stop...**_she begged silently, as a scream escaped her lips.

The bed shifted and she felt someone grab her shoulders and call her name. "Phoebe!"

Her body arched as the searing heat shot through her and her screams rebounded around the room. Everything seemed to stop; her own heart, her breathing, her whole world crashing down around her seemed to be lost in realm she was stuck in now. She wasn't home. She was neither here nor there. Neither dead nor alive.

"What's happening to her?" the voice demanded.

"She's going into shock," answered another voice.

"I thought you said she was dead!"

Silence followed the last statement, before - "She is a stubborn little witch!"

_**We have clarified that on more than one occasion!**_ Phoebe growled.

Everything hurt and she couldn't move a damn inch to make it stop, she was trapped in her own body.

_**MAKE THE PAIN GO AWAY!**_ Phoebe screamed.

"What are you doing?" someone yelled.

"Trust me, where she is now, she won't feel a thing!" someone snapped.

_Thump, thump, thump._

The pain had ceased. The lava was disappearing and the pain was becoming a dull numbing sensation, as if someone had just dumped a bucket of ice cold water over her and the searing heat was disappearing underneath the sheer coldness.

"I've got a pulse!" someone announced, surprise evident in their tone of voice.

_Thump, thump, thump._

Phoebe was fully aware that someone had grabbed her hand, kissed the back of it and was now feeling her wrist for the small thumping pulse of her heartbeat.

"She's a hell of a fighter, Serefina," stated the same voice as before. "Stubborn too."

"Don't I know it," answered Serefina Blackheart, and Phoebe felt her heart swell at the sound of a familiar voice reaching her senses.

They had done all that they could, now it was completely up to her to pull through. She had to; she hadn't just gone through all that pain to lose consciousness again. She refused to die, refused to leave her friends and her family. Now it was time for her to wake up, to break the blinds of unconsciousness and return to them.

It was just a matter of time.

"Come back to me Phoebe," another familiar voice pleaded.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Despite Phoebe having been pronounced dead and relocated to Portugal for the burial, life within the Hogwarts Castle continued on as normal. Phoebe's friends and housemates managed to get through each day with little pain as possible, it was still impossible for them to grasp the idea that one of their lions was no longer with them, no longer there to cheer them up when they were feeling down and help them when they had nowhere else to turn.

James Black was feeling a little disconnected from the rest of his housemates, but that was mainly because he was closer to Phoebe than the rest of them were. James and Phoebe had been friends since first year, along with Ashlyn Black of Slytherin, Sarah Thompson of Hufflepuff and Amelia Winchester of Hufflepuff - these four were feeling the pain of the loss of their friend more than the rest of the castle, the only other person who felt more disconnected than these five was Terence Higgs - Phoebe's boyfriend.

But the six also knew that while they mourned the loss of a good friend and girlfriend, life had to go on and there was nothing they could do to stop it. No matter how bad they wanted to. Christmas came and went, January faded slowly into February, and the Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor was approaching.

On the day of the match, James didn't really feel like attending. Who could blame him? Quidditch had been the last place he had seen Phoebe alive...how could he force himself to relive that scene over and over in his mind? Knowing that Quidditch would forever haunt him as the last place that his friend was alive and well...but despite his inner feelings of regret and loss he went anyway. The match started off fairly well, Gryffindor in the lead, and by the end of it Harry had caught the Snitch and won Gryffindor the game, despite a couple of Dementors swarming onto the pitch beneath the stands.

"Yes!" Ron yelled, as he hurried onto the pitch with the rest of Gryffindor, and yanked Harry's arm into the air. "Yes! Yes!"

"Well _done_, Harry!" said Percy, looking delighted. "Ten Galleons to me! Must find Penelope, excuse me -"

"Good on you, Harry!" roared Seamus Finnigan.

"Ruddy brilliant!" boomed Hagrid over the heads of the milling Gryffindor's.

"Well done, Potter," said Ashlyn as she arrived on scene with Sarah, James and Amelia. "Phoebe'd be proud..."

Harry felt his stomach sink slightly; as he noticed the tears appear in Sarah Thompson's eyes at the mention of the only missing Gryffindor. "Thanks..." he answered in a soft tone. "We dedicated this game to her."

Ashlyn nodded and wrapped her arm around Sarah. "She'd have liked that..."

"Yeah, I guess she would have," Harry nodded.

Ashlyn held his gaze for a few seconds longer before turning away with Sarah and Amelia, leaving James to offer his team congratulations before joining them on the edge of the pitch.

"That was quite some Patronus," said a voice in Harry's ear.

Harry tore his gaze away from the retreating figures of Phoebe's friends, and turned to see Professor Lupin, who looked both shaken and pleased.

"The Dementors didn't affect me at all!" Harry said excitedly. "I didn't feel a thing!"

"That would be because they - er - weren't Dementors," said Professor Lupin. "Come and see -"

He led Harry out of the crowd until they were able to see the edge of the pitch.

"You gave Mr. Malfoy quite a fright," said Lupin.

Harry stared. Lying in a crumpled heap on the ground were Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle and Marcus Flint, the Slytherin team captain, all struggling to remove themselves from long, black, hooded robes. It looked as though Malfoy had been standing on Goyle's shoulders. Standing over them, with an expression of the utmost fury on her face, was Professor McGonagall.

"An unworthy trick!" she was shouting. "A low and cowardly attempt to sabotage the Gryffindor Seeker! We have already lost a student to the Dementors, and today we could have lost another! Have you no shame in your actions! Detention for all of you, and fifty points from Slytherin! I shall be speaking to Professor Dumbledore about this, make no mistake Ah, here he comes now!"

If anything could have set the seal on Gryffindor's victor, it was this. Ron, who had fought his way through to Harry's side, doubled up with laughter as they watched Malfoy fighting to extricate himself from the robe, Goyle's head was still stuck inside it.

"Come on, Harry!" said George, fighting his way over. "Party! Gryffindor common room, now! We're also dedicating our win to Phoebe!"

Malfoy froze. "Wait! What do you mean dedicating your win to Phoebe? Where is Blackheart?"

Harry turned and glared at the blonde. "I don't believe you have the right to know that information, Malfoy!" he snapped. "But since you asked, when Professor McGonagall said that we have already lost a student to the Dementors, she was talking about Phoebe!"

Malfoy's face seemed to drain of colour. "She's not -" he whispered, his voice hoarse with the lack of moisture.

"Yes, Malfoy! Haven't you wondered why Ashlyn Black has been so terribly upset these past four months? Haven't you wondered why Phoebe hasn't been seen around Hogwarts for the past four months, or why she wasn't here playing in today's game?" Harry all but yelled.

Marcus Flint stared at Malfoy with a considerable amount of confusion. Why was his Seeker reacting this way?

"She's dead, Malfoy!" Harry answered. "Phoebe is dead!"

And with that, Harry turned and returned to the castle with the rest of the Gryffindor's, leaving Malfoy to stare after him, his heart hammering rapidly behind his rib cage. Phoebe was dead...his sister - his _twin_ sister - was dead!

**~*Phoebe*~**

"...We'll miss you Phoebe," said Fred as he raised his Butterbeer bottle to the picture of Phoebe Blackheart they had received from Professor Blackheart. "You were everything that no one could ever be! A friend! A team-mate! You were family! A true lion, wherever you are now, we wish that you are no longer in pain and are happy, and as carefree as you were here with us."

Oliver felt his hand shake, as he gripped his bottle tightly. "There will never be another like you, Pheebs," he said.

The rest of Gryffindor murmured in agreement. Phoebe was one of a kind, and they would never find another girl like her, no matter how hard they looked.

"Rest in peace, Phoebe," George said, raising his Butterbeer in respect before downing the contents. The rest of Gryffindor mimicked his actions before dispersing and commencing the victory party. Fred and George had managed to get bags and bags of Honeydukes sweets, Pumpkin pasties, Butterbeer, Pumpkin fizz and a variety of other sweets.

Only two people weren't involved with the celebrations - James Black, who had returned to Gryffindor tower yet and Hermione Granger, who was sat near the fire, attempting to read an enormous book entitled _Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles_. Harry broke away from the crowd and approached his friend.

"Did you even come to the match?" he asked.

"Of course I did," said Hermione. "It was a dedication to Phoebe, I wouldn't dream of missing it, and I'm glad we won, and I think you did really well, and Ashlyn was right when she said that Phoebe would have been proud of you, but I need to read this by Monday."

"Come on, Hermione, come and have some food," Harry said, looking over at Ron and wondering whether he was in a good mood to bury the hatchet.

"I can't, Harry, I've still got four hundred and twenty-two pages to read!" said Hermione, sounding almost hysterical. "Phoebe was supposed to help me...but she's...she's..." she cut off as her words turned to light sobs. "Excuse me!" and before Harry could say or do anything, she had tucked her enormous book under her arm, and, still sobbing, run towards the staircase to the girls' dormitories and out of sight.

Harry sighed as he realized, with a pang of guilty betrayal, that James, Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia and Terence weren't the only ones affected more than the rest of the castle by Phoebe's death. Hermione, who was Phoebe's room-mate and best friend, was also affected more than anyone else, and the bookworm was more than likely throwing herself into her work to avoid facing the reality that had sunk in around the whole castle in the last four months.

The Gryffindor party only ended when Professor McGonagall turned up in her tartan dressing gown and hair-net at one in the morning, to insist that they all went to bed. Harry and Ron climbed the stairs to their dormitory, still discussing the match. At last, exhausted, Harry climbed into bed, twitched the hangings of his four-poster shut to block out a ray of moonlight, lay back and felt himself almost instantly drifting off to sleep.

He had a very strange dream. He was walking through a dark void of nothingness, following the small whimpers of a familiar voice. Anxious to find out where the whimpers were coming from, Harry broke into a jog, rounded a corner into an open courtyard, and stopped dead at the familiar figure of a person curled up on the ground.

"Phoebe?" he questioned softly as he stepped closer to the whimpering body. "Phoebe..."

"Please..." Phoebe whimpered her arms wrapped around her legs as she rocked back and forth on the floor. "Make it stop! Please, make the pain go away!"

Harry knelt beside her and reached out a shaking hand. "Phoebe...it's me, Harry..."

Phoebe froze as his hand touched hers, her head lifted and her stormy grey eyes locked with emerald ones, her lips parted and for a second, Harry thought she was going to say his name, instead a piercing scream escaped her lips -

"AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Harry woke as suddenly as though he'd been hit in the face. Disorientated in the total darkness, he fumbled with his hangings - he could hear movements around him, and James Black's voice from the other side of the room.

"What's going on?"

Harry thought he heard the dormitory slam. At last finding the divide in his curtains, he ripped them back, and at the same moment, Dean Thomas lit his lamp.

Ron was sitting up in bed, the hangings torn from one side, a look of the utmost terror on his face.

"Black! Sirius Black! _Your_ father!" Ron pointed at James. "With a knife!"

"_What?"_

"Here! Just now! Slashed the curtains! Woke me up!"

"You sure you weren't dreaming, Ron?" said Dean.

"Look at the curtain! I tell you, he was here!"

They all scrambled out of bed, Harry reached the dormitory door first, and they sprinted back down the staircase. Doors opened behind them, and sleepy voices called after them.

"Who shouted?"

"What're you doing?"

The common room was lit by the glow of the dying fire, still littered with debris from the party. It was deserted.

"Are you _sure_ you weren't dreaming, Ron?"

"I'm telling you, I saw him!"

"What's all the noise?"

"Professor McGonagall told us to go to bed!"

A few of the girls had come down their staircase, pulling on dressing gowns and yawning. Boys, too, were reappearing.

"Excellent are we carrying on?" said Fred Weasley brightly.

"Everyone back upstairs!" said Percy, hurrying into the common room and pinning his Head Boy badge to his pyjamas as he spoke.

"Perce - Sirius Black!" said Ron faintly. "In our dormitory! With a knife! Woke me up!"

The common room went very still.

"Nonsense!" said Percy, looking startled. "You had too much to eat; Ron - had a nightmare -"

"I'm telling you -"

"Now, really, enough is enough!"

Professor McGonagall was back. She slammed the portrait behind her as she entered the common room and stared furiously around.

"I am delighted that Gryffindor won the match, but this is getting ridiculous! Percy, I expected better of you!"

"I certainly didn't authorize this, Professor!" said Percy, puffing himself up indignantly. "I was just telling them all to get back to bed! My brother Ron here had a nightmare -"

"IT WASN'T A NIGHTMARE!" Ron yelled. "PROFESSOR, I WOKE UP AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME, HOLDING A KNIFE!"

Professor McGonagall stared at him.

"Don't be ridiculous, Weasley, how could he possibly have got through the portrait hole?"

"Ask him!" said Ron, pointing a shaking finger at the back of Sir Cadogan's picture. "Ask him if he saw -"

Glaring suspiciously at Ron, Professor McGonagall pushed the portrait hole open and went outside. The whole common room listened with baited breath.

"Sir Cadogan, did you just let a man enter Gryffindor Tower?"

"Certainly, good lady!" cried Sir Cadogan.

There was a stunned silence, both inside and outside the common room.

"You - _you did_?" said Professor McGonagall. "But - but the password!"

"He had 'em!" said Sir Cadogan proudly. "Had the whole weeks; my lady! Read 'em off a little piece of paper!"

Professor McGonagall pulled herself back through the portrait hole to face the stunned crowd. She was white as chalk.

"Which person wrote down the week's passwords and left them lying around?"

There was utter silence, all of Gryffindor knew exactly who the person was, but neither of them were about to give up one of their own. They were _Gryffindor's_, they were lions, they had a loyalty to their own; and despite the fact that Sirius Black - of all people - had just broken in they were not about to hand over one of their own, like a pig to the slaughter. No, that was a _Slytherin's_ job, and they were not Slytherin's.

But the silence was broken by the smallest of terrified squeaks, and Neville Longbottom, trembling from head to fluffy-slippered toes, raised his hand slowly into the air.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally, Phoebe felt her presence break through whatever barrier was keeping her partially unconscious as she heard a voice. She couldn't tell what it said, but it pleaded in a painstakingly familiar voice. She recognized it; she just couldn't place a name.

She felt exhausted, like she hadn't slept in over a month. Phoebe bit back an antagonizing hiss as rational thought slowly returned to her mind, but her body kept telling to fall back into the unconscious, painless bliss.

But she knew that she couldn't afford to. She could no longer feel the coldness that the Dementors brought with them, no longer feel the soft hits the rain made on her face or the slimy skeletal hands of the Dementors as they tugged at her soaked clothing in desperation to get at her face and mouth.

Sucking in a breath, Phoebe forced her eyes open, and allowing her a moment or two for her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting. Something wasn't right. When she had passed out she'd been outside, now she was looking at the ceiling of the hospital wing. _**How'd I get here?**_

Her answer came in the form of a face, his lips moving but none of the words registering in her pain-addled brain. Terence. Her savior.

Gingerly Phoebe reached up with her right hand, cupped his cheek and forced a smile onto her lips. This was real. He grinned down at her, relief evident in his eyes as he turned to speak to someone else over his shoulder.

Footsteps approached and seconds later Serefina Blackheart appeared behind Terence, her face a mixture of shock and surprise, at the sight of her Goddaughter's open eyes Serefina rounded the bed and pulled the young Elemental into a hug.

Phoebe hissed before sinking into the soft and warm embrace. "Mum..." she murmured, her voice sounded strange to her own senses.

"It is okay, Phe," Serefina whispered. "It's okay. You're safe, you're alive, and you're home."

Serefina pulled back and stared hard at her Goddaughter, studied her painful expression and then hugged her again.

"Welcome come home,"

"It's good to be home..." Phoebe said, her voice stricken with pain. "What happened?"

Resting Phoebe back against the pillows, Serefina got to her feet to go and contact the Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey of Phoebe's awakening, this left Terence alone with his girlfriend to explain everything that had happened.

"Well, you fell from your boom into a swarm of Dementors," Terence answered. "We thought you had died."

"I did die," Phoebe answered, glancing his way. "For a whole month I was clinging on to the remnants of my life. When I managed to re-awaken I was in the Elemental dimension..."

Terence frowned. "A month?" he asked. "Phe, are you sure?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, Salazar told me himself, why?"

"Phe, you have been unconscious for several months," Terence explained. "You missed Christmas..."

"Where am I?"

"Elemental Academy," Terence answered. "They moved you from Hogwarts after Madam Pomfrey announced you to be dead, Serefina refused to believe it and organized with the academy to have you relocated here where they could keep a better eye on you. I've been here every day for the last four months."

"But -" Phoebe squeaked, "I have only been with the Founders for a month, are you sure?"

"I'm positive, Phoebe," Terence nodded. "You were pronounced dead back in November, Serefina relocated you here at the beginning of December, and it is now February."

The Gryffindor swallowed painfully and cast her gaze downwards. Four months. She had been unconscious and residing in the Elemental dimension for _four months_? How was that possible? And more importantly - why couldn't she remember it?

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I promised a longer chapter, so I hope this meets your approval.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, November 28, 2011 at 2:22am**


	45. Chapter 45

**Author's Note - **Sorry for not updating last night, but in all fairness I was completely wrecked. I didn't even have the energy to boot the computer up, I just came in from Uni and went straight to bed [and that's not like me. Thankfully I have Facebook on my phone, or I would have slept right through the night to this morning.] But anyway I figured that I couldn't go 48 hours without my computer fix, so I decided to jump online tonight. 24 hours was...okay...48 hours is a whole new ball game.

**Dedications - **Thank you to the following people: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Your-Biggest-Fan** and** Vivi Fontaine.**

**In Responses -** Now, I really can't believe I have to say this...but DID YOU HONESTLY THINK I WOULD KILL OFF PHOEBE? I'm glad that I provoked a reaction out of you all, but come on, seriously? Do you honestly think I would kill the main character? Like **Fan of Fics** said _**"I just couldn't see how the series could continue if the main character had died!"**_ although there _**IS**_ a way that could happen, it just wouldn't be the same. But it is like **Your-Biggest-Fan** also said to me _**"You won't kill Phoebe in the middle of your story. It's just a matter of time when her yearly 'near-death' experience happens."**_ and you couldn't have been more right sweetie; Phoebe has had "near-death" experiences for the last three stories, the Dementors was the _**ONLY**_ way I could incorporate this one, because she doesn't nearly die at the end of the year.

Oh...and **Vivi Fontaine**? That book hurt. If you are going to throw things please make them soft things... *Giggles* Oh, yes and Terence is perfect - too bad not everyone seems to share the same thought. Find out why soon.

Anyway -

Here is Chapter 45.

* * *

><p>Phoebe grinned as she slipped out of the Hospital bed, the morning following her return to England. After her awakening she had been relocated back to Hogwarts so that Madam Pomfrey could keep a better eye on her, while she attempted to catch up with the work she had missed in the last four months, she had managed to finish several essays the previous night [Charms. DADA, COMC and Potions] before Madam Pomfrey had bustled over and told her to go to sleep. However, today was the day, the day where she was allowed to actually physically leave the Hospital Wing and return to the walls outside; but she had to promise that she would return to the infirmary merely for sleep and rest purposes.<p>

Dumbledore, Serefina and Madam Pomfrey had already made it clear that they knew what Phoebe was like and that if she stayed outside of the infirmary then she would over-exhaust herself once more on coursework and end up back in there permanently by the end of the week.

"Good morning, Miss Blackheart," Madam Pomfrey smiled as she hurried over. "How are we feeling this morning?"

"Honestly?" Phoebe replied. "Fresh as a daisy. I feel like I have slept for days."

"Well, technically, you have slept for nearly five months." Madam Pomfrey corrected.

Phoebe nodded. "True. Very true."

"May I check your vitals before you dress?"

"Of course," Phoebe agreed, jumping back up onto the bed and crossing her legs in the centre. She watched as Madam Pomfrey waved her wand over her head, and a white light emitted from her chest; several colours were mixed within the light showing that some parts of Phoebe had healed quite nicely, whereas others were taking some time to heal completely.

Madam Pomfrey nodded in satisfaction. "Now remember, you must return here by curfew," she warned. "You may leave in the morning, but as agreed by Professor Blackheart and the Headmaster you are to remain in here until you are completely up to par."

"I understand," Phoebe nodded. "I will be back here by the time curfew has set in, I promise."

"Good girl," Madam Pomfrey smiled. "Now you may resume getting dressed."

Phoebe grinned, slipped from the bed, and grabbed the set of clothes that Serefina had brought her from Blackheart Manor. They consisted of a pair of black skinny jeans, her favorite blue Olang Puff Snow Boots, and a Te Amo Lace Drape Dress.

"Your Godmother left this," Madam Pomfrey said, as she returned after Phoebe had finished dressing. She was holding an official looking letter and a potion. Phoebe drank the potion with no problem, thanked the Matron for the letter and hurried off while reading it.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Upon reaching the Gryffindor common room, passed the security trolls and smiled at the Fat Lady. "Welcome back," she greeted.

"Same to you young Lion," the Fat Lady nodded. "It has been terribly depressing without you, the rumors of your being dead, the nerve of some people."

"They weren't rumors," Phoebe answered honestly. "I really did die, but I managed to cling onto life. I have too much to live for."

"Oh dear," the Fat Lady cried.

Phoebe giggled. "It's okay, it was rather unexpected so I don't blame you for thinking that my death was a rumor, and it is just good to be back. I'm happy to be back."

"Of course," the Fat Lady nodded. "Welcome Home"

"Thank you," Phoebe smiled. "_Flibbertigibbet."_

The Fat Lady looked delighted at the prospect of Phoebe knowing the password and swung open to permit her entry. Scrambling through the portrait hole into the common room, Phoebe located a familiar bushy-haired female at one of the tables at the back of the room.

"Hermione," Phoebe murmured, shaking her head slightly at her friend.

Crossing the common room Phoebe saw that Hermione was fast asleep, her head resting on an open Arithmancy book. Phoebe then proceeded to poke her friend in the shoulder until she woke.

"Wh-what?" said Hermione, waking with a start, and staring wildly around. "Is it time to go? W-which lesson have we got now?"

"Well technically I would say we have Ancient Runes," Phoebe answered. "But looking at your timetable...how the hell are you taking Divination, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes all at the same time?"

Hermione froze, snapped her head to the side as her eyes widened in retaliation. "Phoebe...?"

"Hi," Phoebe smiled, waving sheepishly.

"I'm dreaming..."

"Nope," Phoebe said, reaching across and pinching the skin on Hermione's arm between her fingers. "See..."

The Bookworm yelped in pain and pushed Phoebe slightly in the shoulder. The elemental giggled as she slipped from her seat and onto the floor.

"Would you stop picking on me and give me a damn hug?" Phoebe demanded, getting to her feet and opening her arms. Hermione jumped to her feet and melted into her best friend's embrace.

The two Gryffindor's didn't say a word in what felt like forever as they merely held one another for the longest time ever; Hermione couldn't believe that Phoebe was actually standing in front of her, alive and well, and Phoebe was just happy to be back with her friend.

"But...how?" Hermione asked. "Professor McGonagall told us that you were dead."

"I was," Phoebe answered. "When that Dementor collided with me during the Hufflepuff/Gryffindor match, I died when I hit the ground. Madam Pomfrey managed to stabilize me but it did very little to support me," she explained. "The damage had already been done."

Hermione frowned. "Then how are you back?"

"Because I am a stubborn little witch," Phoebe giggled.

The bookworm grinned. "Oh, the others are going to be so happy! It has been terrible around here without you Phoebe, everyone is depressed, no one can mention your name without adding gloom to everything...I mean look -" she pointed to a picture on the wall. "That was put up after the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw game, they dedicated the game to you and won, and then we all said our goodbyes right here before the after party."

"Aw, i'm touched," Phoebe smiled.

The portrait hole opened behind them, turning around Phoebe watched as Harry and Ron tumbled inside, and stopped dead when they saw her standing before them.

"Phoebe?" Harry questioned, wondering if he was dreaming again.

"No," Phoebe smiled, walking forward. "You're not dreaming."

Harry grinned and hugged her, lifting her off her feet in the process. Phoebe laughed as she hugged him tightly, before turning to Ron and holding her arms open, hesitantly, Ron reached forward and embraced her; their relationship may not have been brilliant, but that didn't mean he wasn't happy to see her.

"You have much explaining to do," Ron said, after he had let go.

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed.

Phoebe giggled. "It is okay 'Mione," she waved off the Bookworm. "He's right, I do have some explaining to do, but can we do it later? I want to wait until the rest of the house is here, and besides, don't you have class?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

News that Phoebe Blackheart was not dead and in fact wandering the halls of Hogwarts once again spread like wildfire in a crisp dry forest, many students approached Phoebe and welcomed her back, many told her that the last four months were pure torture without her within the castle, even some Slytherin's were glad that she was back. Ashlyn Black was more that ecstatic that her best friend was awake and walking around like the last four months had never even happened, Sarah Thompson hadn't quite come to grasps with the revelation that her friend was alive, Amelia Winchester kept poking Phoebe just to make sure that she was really there and James kept asking ridiculous questions to make sure that Phoebe really was who she said she was.

"What is Phoebe's favorite colour?" James asked on evening during the Easter holidays, he was sat in the back of the library with his usual friends researching information for his essays.

"Oh, come on," Phoebe groaned. "James, you have been at this for over a month! Aren't you satisfied that I am who I say I am?"

"No," James answered. "I want to know how you managed to survive!"

"Why?"

"Because," said James "People don't just revive themselves after four months!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "It has been clarified on many occasions," she responded. "I am a stubborn little witch; I don't give up that easily."

"But you can't revive yourself either!"

"No, but the doctors and nurses in Portugal are the best in country!" Phoebe argued. "They can revive you even if you are an inch from death!"

James narrowed his eyes. "You're hiding something," he accused. "What is it?"

"If I told you that, then I wouldn't really be hiding it, would I?" Phoebe grinned.

Ashlyn, Terence, Amelia and Sarah burst out laughing.

James scowled before a grin broke through. "Welcome home, Phoebe!"

"Finally," Phoebe sighed dramatically, pulling an enormously thick book towards her. It was labeled _A Study of Hippogriff Brutality._

Sarah eyed the book curiously. "Don't you have homework to catch up on?" she questioned.

"Finished it," Phoebe answered. "Madam Pomfrey lets me do work in the night before bed, I finished the last of my essays last night and handed them into the respective Professors earlier this morning."

Her friends frowned. "Then why don't you have this homework?" Amelia asked, motioning her Potions homework.

"Because Headmaster Dumbledore doesnt want me to over-exhaust myself," Phoebe explained. "I still get the essays, but I don't have to hand them in at the exact same time as you, most of my essays will take me into the summer, hopefully by then I will have enough energy to catch up on all that I have missed and then can go back to normal next year."

Ashlyn nodded. "What about exams?"

"I'm exempt,"

Her friends stared at her. "Lucky!" they exclaimed.

Phoebe grinned.

However, other than homework, Phoebe had something else to worry about, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match was taking place on the first Saturday after the Easter holidays. Slytherin were leading the tournament by exactly two hundred points. This mean't (as Oliver constantly reminded his team) that they needed to win the match by more than that amount to win the Cup, more to the point Phoebe knew that Madam Pomfrey wasn't exactly happy with her playing in the final Quidditch match in fear that she would over-exhaust herself, but Phoebe was determined, she wanted to play against Slytherin, she wanted to help win the Quidditch Cup.

The whole of Gryffindor house was obsessed with the coming match. Gryffindor hadn't won the Quidditch Cup since the legendary Charlie Weasley (Ron's second-eldest brother) had been Seeker. But Phoebe doubted that any of them, even Olive wanted to win as much as she and Harry did. The enmity between Harry and Malfoy was at its highest point ever, and Phoebe often had to drag Harry away from her brother before either of them did damage that would cost them to not play in the upcoming match.

As for herself, she had been given utmost protection at all times whenever she was in the Castle, Oliver knew how pissed of Marcus Flint was because he actually believed that Phoebe had died four months ago, and he believed that without her skill on the Gryffindor team, Slytherin had the chance to win for the eighth year running.

Never to anyone's memory had a match approached in such a highly charged atmosphere. By the time the holidays were over, tension between the two teams and their houses was at breaking point. A number of small scuffles broke out in the corridors, resulting in a nasty incident in which a Gryffindor fourth-year and a Slytherin sixth-year ended up in the hospital wing with leeks sprouting out of their ears.

Harry was having a particularly bad time of it. He couldn't walk into class without the Slytherin's sticking their legs out and trying to trip him up. Crabbe and Goyle kept popping up wherever he went, and slouched away looking disappointed when they saw him surrounded by people. Phoebe had instructed James, Ron and the rest of the third-year Gryffindor boys that they were to keep a close eye on Harry outside of the Gryffindor tower.

As for Phoebe, Oliver was a bit more concerned, seeing as he had only just gotten her back and he didn't want to risk losing her again. Serefina -who was more in tune with the goings on around Hogwarts than anyone- had offered her Goddaughter to bring in Blake and Jackson for the sole reason that she would need protecting while the rest of her friends were in class; which was why, a week before the match took place, Blake Brooks and Jackson Stream were patrolling the corridors of Hogwarts with Phoebe Blackheart [much to Marcus Flint's disappointment].

"They don't even go to Hogwarts!" he exploded one afternoon in the Entrance Hall, as Phoebe walked past arm in arm with her two best friends.

"It's a means of protection, Flint!" Blake retorted. "We already lost Phoebe once; you're not going to cause us to lose her again!"

Flint glared angrily at the older Durmstrang student as Phoebe led him out into the courtyard.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As usual pursuits were abandoned in the Gryffindor common room the night before the match. Even Hermione had put down her books.

"I can't work, I can't concentrate," she said nervously.

There was a great deal of noise. Fred and George Weasley were dealing with the pressure by being louder and more exuberant than ever. Oliver Wood was crouched over a model of a Quidditch pitch in the corner, prodding little figures across it with his wand and muttering to himself. Alicia and Katie were with Angelina and Roxanne laughing at the Weasley twin's jokes. Phoebe was sat near the fireplace with James, Blake, Jackson and Terence; while Harry, Ron and Hermione had removed themselves from the centre of things; trying not to think about the next day.

"You're going to be fine," Phoebe reassured Harry, as she joined him, Ron and Hermione later that evening.

"You've got a _Firebolt_!" said Ron.

"Yeah..." said Harry.

Phoebe smiled as she dropped down beside her friend and wrapped her arms around him. "Harry, listen to me," she said softly. "We're going to be fine. It doesn't matter what broom you have, or whether this game is against Slytherin, you belong on the field, this is your game!"

Harry smiled softly at the Elemental. "I missed you, Pheebs," he grinned.

"I missed you too," Phoebe responded, leaning in to hug him. "Just remember what my grandfather always tells me, 'It doesn't matter whether you win or lose -'"

"'- it's how you play the game.'" Blake and Jackson finished.

Phoebe grinned. "Yeah, that, so come on," she prodded Harry. "Cheer up. Just get some sleep tonight, and we'll go out there tomorrow and show Slytherin just how good we are. Deal?"

"Deal!" Harry nodded.

Just then, Oliver stood up and yelled. "Team! Bed!"

Hugging Blake and Jackson, Phoebe turned and kissed Terence, before heading upstairs to the girls dormitories with Alicia and Katie.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe, Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor team entered the Great Hall next day to enormous applause. Phoebe grinned at Harry as they noticed that both the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables were clapping them, too. The Slytherin table hissed loudly as they passed, and Phoebe noticed that Draco looked even paler than usual.

Wood spent the whole of breakfast urging his team to eat, while touching nothing himself. "Come on, Phoebe, eat up!"

"Leave me alone, Oliver," Phoebe snapped. "Go back to your own breakfast!"

After which he hurried them off to the pitch before anyone else had finished, so they could get an idea of the conditions. As they left the Great Hall, everyone applauded again.

"Good luck, Harry!" called Cho Chang.

Phoebe glanced at Harry and snickered as his face turned as red as Ron's hair. "Harry's got a girlfriend," the Elemental sang all the way out of the castle, before sprinting ahead as Harry chased after her. "HARRY'S GOT A GIRLFRIEND!" she managed to yell before the Seeker bowled her over and covered her mouth with his covered hand.

Harry grinned down at the Chaser, before falling sideways as Phoebe knocked him off of her, got up and sat cross-legged on his stomach.

"Guess what," said Phoebe, grinning down at Harry.

"What?"

"Harry's got a girlfriend!"

And with that Phoebe jumped up and hurried into the changing room's first.

Harry huffed and watched her disappear, before looking around at Fred and George as the offered their hands to help him up.

"It's brilliant to have her back," Alicia said. "Isn't it?"

"Yeah," Katie agreed. "It's a lot more fun when she is around."

"Never seems to be nervous, that one," George commented.

"A good source of reassurance," Fred nodded.

Harry grinned and nodded in agreement, as he followed the rest of the team inside to find Phoebe sitting cross-legged on the benches waiting for them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Okay…no wind to speak of…sun's a bit bright, that could impair your vision, watch out for it…ground's fairly hard, good, that'll give us a fast kick-off…"

Oliver was pacing in front of the board, with the team sitting patiently on the benches behind him, he was muttering over and over to himself of the conditions. While the rest of the team had entered the Changing rooms to change into their scarlet robes, he had gone out onto the pitch to inspect the conditions for this match.

"Oliver," said Phoebe. "Would you relax? Everything is going to be fine, you'll see."

But that didn't ease the worry that she could feel radiating off of her captain, with a loud huff, the Elemental dropped down into her seat and examined her _Chocolate Swiss _while the rest of her team-mates watched their Captain pace.

"You're making me nervous!" Phoebe finally shouted, causing Oliver to stop pacing. "Just stop pacing! I know this match is important to you, Ollie, but you're not doing yourself any good in worrying too much about it! Please, just calm down!"

The rest of the team stared at her. Oliver opened and closed his mouth several times before finally saying. "It's time. Let's go…"

They walked out onto the pitch to a tidal wave of noise. Three-quarters of the crowd were wearing scarlet rosettes, waving scarlet flags with the Gryffindor lion upon them or brandishing banner's with slogans as 'GO GRYFFINDOR!' and 'LIONS FOR THE CUP!'. Behind the Slytherin goalpost, however, two hundred people were wearing green; the silver serpent of Slytherin glittered on their flags, and Professor Snape sat in the very front row, wearing green like everyone else, and a very grim smile.

"And here are the Gryffindor's!" yelled Lee Jordan, who was acting as commentator as usual. "Potter, Blackheart, Bell, Spinnet, Weasley, Weasley and Wood. Widely acknowledged as the best side Hogwarts has seen in a good few years -"

Lee's comments were drowned by the tide of 'boo's' from the Slytherin end.

"And here comes the Slytherin team, led by captain Flint. He's made some changes in the line-up and seems to be going for size rather than skill -"

Phoebe snickered as the Slytherin's booed again from the stands.

_**How can they deny that Lee is telling the truth?**_ Phoebe asked herself as she surveyed the Slytherin team, from where she was standing Draco was easily the smallest person on the whole team, the rest were enormous. _**Huh, I see he booted Adrian for Warrington…**_

"Captain's shake hands!" said Madam Hooch.

Flint and Oliver approached each other and grasped each other's hands very tightly; it looked as though each was trying to break the others fingers.

"Mount your brooms!" said Madam Hooch. "Three…two…one…"

The sound of her whistle was lost in the roar from the crowd as fourteen brooms rose into the air. Phoebe grinned as she shot into the air alongside Harry, pulled her broom around and hovered between Alicia and Katie, as Harry sped off in search of the Snitch with Draco in tow.

The balls were released and the game begun.

"And it's Gryffindor in possession, Alicia Spinnet of Gryffindor with the Quaffle, heading straight for the Slytherin goalposts, looking good, Alicia! Argh, no – Quaffle intercepted by Warrington, Warrington of Slytherin tearing up the pitch – WHAM! – nice Bludger work there by George Weasley, Warrington drops the Quaffle, it's caught by – Blackheart, Gryffindor back in possession – _duck Phoebe, that's a Bludger -_"

Phoebe dropped her altitude by an inch or two, ducked and then shot off towards the Slytherin goalposts, she was mildly aware of both Warrington and Flint either side of her, but leaning closer to the handle of her broom Phoebe burst forward, threw the Quaffle through the air and watched as it soared through the centre hoop.

"- SHE SCORES! TEN-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!"

Phoebe punched the air as she soared around the end of the pitch, the sea of scarlet below was screaming in delight.

"OUCH!"

Phoebe screamed as she was nearly thrown from her broom as Marcus Flint smashed into her.

"Sorry!" said Flint, as the crowd below booed. "Sorry, didn't see her!"

"Phoebe, are you alright?" Fred asked as he arrived beside Phoebe who was glaring after Flint.

The elemental nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," she smiled.

Fred nodded before throwing his Beater's bat at the back of Flint's head. Flint's nose smashed into the handle of his broom and began to bleed.

"That will do!" shrieked Madam Hooch, zooming between them. "Penalty to Gryffindor for an unprovoked attack on their Chaser! Penalty to Slytherin for deliberate damage to _their_ Chaser!"

"Come off it, Miss!" Fred bellowed. "He nearly knocked Phoebe out of the air!"

But Madam Hooch had already blown her whistle and Alicia flew forward to take the penalty.

"Come on, Alicia!" yelled Lee into the silence that had descended on the crowd. "YES! SHE'S BEATEN THE KEEPER! TWENTY-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!"

Phoebe watched as Flint, still bleeding freely, flew forwards to take the Slytherin penalty. Oliver was hovering in front of the Goalposts; his jaw clenched. _**Come on Ollie**_ she thought desperately.

"'Course, Wood's a superb Keeper!" Lee Jordan told the crowd, as Flint waited for Madam Hooch's whistle. "Superb! Very difficult to pass – very difficult indeed – YES! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! HE'S SAVED IT!"

Phoebe shared a grin with Fred, before both zoomed off to do their intended jobs.

"Gryffindor in possession, no, Slytherin in possession – no! – Gryffindor back in possession and it's Katie Bell, Katie Bell for Gryffindor with the Quaffle, she's streaking up the pitch – THAT WAS DELIBERATE!"

Montague, a Slytherin Chaser, had swerved in front of Katie, and instead of seizing the Quaffle, had grabbed her head. Katie cartwheeled in the air, managed to stay on her broom but dropped the Quaffle.

Zooming underneath her team-mate, Phoebe seized the football-sized ball and streaked through Warrington and Flint towards the Slytherin goalposts. A minute later, Phoebe had scored another goal for Gryffindor, followed by a penalty shot made my Katie.

"FOURTY-ZERO! TAKE THAT YOU, DIRTY, CHEATING -"

"Jordan, if you can't commentate in an unbiased way -"

"I'm telling it like it is, Professor!"

WHOOSH!

Phoebe spun around as a Bludger streaked past her and headed straight towards Harry, grazing his right ear, swiveling her head around the elemental spotted the gigantic Slytherin Beater, Derrick.

Next moment –

WHOOSH!

The second Bludger had streaked past Harry and grazed Phoebe's elbow. The other Beater Bole was closing in.

"Harry!" Phoebe yelled, pointing Bole out to her friend and team-mate.

"Phoebe!" Harry pointed over her shoulder as Derrick tried to sneak up on her from behind.

With a burst of speed both the _Firebolt_ and the _Chocolate Swiss_ shot upwards at the last second, and Bole and Derrick collided with a sickening crunch.

"Ha haaa!" yelled Lee Jordan, as the Slytherin Beaters lurched away from each other; clutching their heads. "Too bad boys! You'll need to get up earlier than that to beat these two star players! And it's Gryffindor in possession again, as Spinnet takes the Quaffle – Flint alongside her – poke him in the eye, Alicia! – it was a joke, Professor, it was a joke – oh, no – Flint in possession, Flint flying towards the Gryffindor goalposts, come on, now, Wood, save -!"

But Flint had scored, there was an eruption of cheers from the Slytherin end and Lee swore so badly that Professor McGonagall tried to tug the magical megaphone away from him.

"Sorry, Professor, sorry! Won't happen again! So, Gryffindor in the lead, forty points to ten, and Gryffindor in possession –"

It was turning into the dirtiest match Phoebe had ever played in. Enraged that Gryffindor had taken such an early lead, the Slytherin's were rapidly resorting to any means to take the Quaffle. Bole hit Alicia with his club and tried to say he'd thought she was a Bludger. George Weasley elbowed Bole in the face in retaliation.

Madam Hooch awarded both teams penalties, and Oliver pulled off another spectacular save, making the score fifty-ten to Gryffindor.

"Find the Snitch!" Phoebe yelled at Harry, as she flew past him.

But the Snitch had disappeared again. Draco was still keeping close to Harry as he soared over the match, looking around for it – Gryffindor were fifty points ahead.

Katie scored. Sixty-ten. Fred and George Weasley were swooping around her, clubs raised, in case any of the Slytherin's was thinking of revenge. Bole and Derrick took advantage of Fred and George's absence to aim both Bludgers at Wood.

"OLIVER!" Phoebe screamed, as both Bludgers caught him in the stomach, one after another, and he rolled over in the air, completely winded. Zooming forwards, Phoebe hovered beside her team-mate.

Madam Hooch was beside herself.

"_You do not attack the Keeper unless the Quaffle is within the scoring area!"_ she shrieked at Bole and Derrick. "Gryffindor penalty!"

"Ollie, are you alright?" Phoebe asked, her eyes wide with concern.

"I'm okay, Phoebe," Oliver coughed as his lungs expanded and he was able to breathe properly once more. "Go back to the game…"

Phoebe nodded and turning her broom returned to Katie as Alicia scored again bumping the score up to seventy-ten. Moments later, Fred Weasley pelted a Bludger at Warrington, knocking the Quaffle out of his hands; Katie seized it and put it through the Slytherin goal; eighty-ten.

The Gryffindor crowd below to screaming themselves hoarse – Gryffindor was eighty points in the lead, and if Harry caught the Snitch now, the Cup was theirs.

"Penalty! Penalty to Gryffindor! I've never seen such tactics!" Madam Hooch screeched, shooting up to where Malfoy was sliding back onto his _Nimbus Two Thousand and One_.

"YOU CHEATING SCUM!" Lee Jordan was howling into the megaphone, dancing out of reach of Professor McGonagall's reach. "YOU FILFTY, CHEATING B -"

Professor McGonagall didn't even bother to tell him off. She was actually shaking her fists in Malfoy's direction; her hat had fallen off, and she, too, was shouting furiously.

Phoebe took Gryffindor's penalty, but she was so angry at her brother that she missed by several feet. They Gryffindor's were losing concentration and the Slytherin's, delighted by Malfoy's foul on Harry, were being spurred on to greater heights.

"Slytherin in possession, Slytherin heading for goal – Montague scores -" Lee groaned. "Eighty-twenty to Gryffindor…"

_**Come on Phoebe!**_ The elemental chastised herself, as Alicia pelted down the pitch towards the Slytherin goalposts.

"Alicia Spinnet gets the Quaffle for Gryffindor, come on, Alicia, COME ON!"

Phoebe glared angrily as she watched every single Slytherin player –save for Malfoy- streaking up the pitch towards Alicia; even the Slytherin Keeper was heading directly for her.

"Katie! Fred, George! Harry!" Phoebe yelled, waving her team-mates over, she pointed at the opposing team and leaning so low she was lying flat along the handle, Phoebe kicked her broomstick forward.

Harry mimicked her actions from above, and like a bullet, both Chaser and Seeker shot towards the Slytherin's.

"AAAAAAAAAAARRRGH!"

They scattered as the _Firebolt_ and _Chocolate Swiss_ zoomed towards them; Alicia was clear.

"SHE SCORES! SHE SCORES! Gryffindor lead by ninety points to twenty!"

Phoebe screeched to a halt and zoomed back to the middle of the pitch, before her heart sank as she watched her brother dive, a look of triumph on his face – there, a few feet above the grass below, was a tiny, golden glimmer.

"HARRY!" Phoebe yelled, pointing at Draco.

Harry tilted his _Firebolt_ towards the ground and shot after Draco, inches away from the ground he threw himself forward, took both hands off the broom, knocked Draco's arm out of the way and –

"YES!"

Harry pulled out of his dive, his hand in the air, and the stadium exploded. He soared above the crowd, the tiny golden ball held tightly in his fist, beating its wings hopelessly against his fingers.

Hovering inches above the ground, Harry was taken by surprise as Phoebe collided with him sending them both rolling across the pitch. "You did it!" Phoebe squealed, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, while still lying on the field. "You did it! We won! We won the Cup!"

Then Oliver appeared over the two of them, pulled them up, threw his arms around the both of them, and sobbed unrestrainedly into Harry's shoulder. Fred and George arrived and collided with them as Alicia and Katie arrived last shouting. _"We've won the Cup! We've won the Cup!"_

Wave upon wave of crimson supporters were pouring over the barriers onto the pitch. Hands raining down on their backs, before Phoebe was lifted onto the shoulders of Blake and Jackson, while the rest of her team were hoisted onto the shoulders of the other supporters.

Thrust into the light, Phoebe saw Hagrid, plastered with crimson rosettes – "Yeh beat 'em, Harry, yeh beat 'em! Wait till I tell Buckbeak!"

There was Percy, jumping up and down like a maniac, all dignity forgotten. Professor McGonagall was sobbing even harder than Wood, wiping her eyes with an enormous Gryffindor Flag; and there, fighting their way towards her and Harry was Ron, Hermione and James. Words failed them. They simply beamed, as the Gryffindor team was borne towards the stands, where Dumbledore stood waiting with the enormous Quidditch Cup.

Jumping down from Blake and Jackson's shoulders, Phoebe felt a pair of arms seize her from behind, and turned to find Terence standing there, she grinned and threw her arms around him as he lifted her into the air, supporting her back as she bound her arms around his neck, her legs around his waist and kissed him strongly.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Yay! Gryffindor won! Whoo! – Oh! And Phoebe/Terence kiss – I know you all love it when that happens. =)**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at 3:28am**


	46. Chapter 46

**Author's Note - **I was going to update last night, but my final Harry Potter DVD arrived a day early and I spent the night watching it and writing up Chapter 20 of the final MWS installment. So now I have two Harry Potter stories on the go, should be fun. The only thing MWS is missing now is its readers, it has been over five months since I last updated and I have lost everyone =( - so any readers of Muggleborn Witches out there? Charlie, Riley and the rest of the Hogwarts is back and ready to rock!

Anyway, onto the next chapter of Phoebe.

**Dedications - **Chapter goes out to the following people: **10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd **and **Apotterfan.** You are all incredibly brilliant.

**In responses - Haven't** done one of these in a while. Here we go:

_**First too **_- **10th Squad 3rd Seat: **Many of you do, which is why I try to get as many in as possible. Hehe, yeah, I liked that line too. Love McGonagall she is brilliant. Yes! Phoebe is back and she kicked ass!

_**Second too**_ - **Vivi Fontaine:** Well, like James pointed out: Phoebe is hiding something. We know that, her family know that, and Harry, Terence and Draco know that - but no one else does. BUT people are starting to realize that there is something about Phoebe, I mean she has more lives than a Cat! But then again she has only 'almost' died 3 times, she as another six to go. Lol. As for Blake and Jackson, they are still in education, they were only brought in for the week leading up to the Quidditch match and got to stay for the match, but they won't be in the next chapter they will be back at Durmstrang. But we will see more of them next year. Plus there will be major changes in year 4.

_**Third too**_ - **Fan of Fics:** Of course Gryffindor won they are simply the best [and that's a lot coming from me because I am a Slytherin girl]. But I agree the Quidditch final was extremely exciting to write about as well as read, I was questioning myself when I wrote Phoebe's friends reactions because she was initially dead for four months and then just simply returned, many people must have thought her friends would go 'it's a miracle' on her, but that just sounded cheesy or stupid, besides it just didn't work when I was writing it, I wanted the reunion over as quickly as possible. As for James finding about Phoebe it is coming up to that time where the rest of her friends will soon find out about her, it is only a matter of time see. As for the return to Gryffindor tower, yes it was the same day that Hermione did all those things, I just didn't show them because the chapter was mostly about Phoebe and her return to normal, but when she was in the tower asleep that was before Divination.

_**Fourth too**_ - **KingdomHeartsNerd: **Flint is a complete ass in this story. I can't wait to start writing MWS again. I'm not going to answer any questions on the final battle, or how any of the characters turn out. You'll just have to wait and see. And I wouldn't know what hurts worse, getting killed or having your soul sucked out...because technically if he was killed he wouldn't suffer because he wouldn't be breathing or anything to physically feel the pain, and having his soul sucked out would end his suffering too because then he would be alive but still dead. He'd be a soulless shell. So neither one would bring enough pain...the only thing that would really bring enough pain for him would be to be alive but tortured to the brink of death, revived and tortured again; but that is just my psychopathic nature coming out now. :S

_**And last, but certainly not least**_ - **Apotterfan:** Ah cool, you got an account that makes things so much easier :D. Knew what? I'm lost and confused [and that is never a good thing when it comes to a chapter I have just written. :/] As for the Phoarry moments; you'd be surprised how many Harry Potter fics I have written where the main character has had some spark with Harry but never ended up with him, I never know why I don't do that because the whole Ginny/Harry relationship is not one of my favorites. I actually despise the relationship. I got nothing against Ginny, but I just don't like the relationship. :/ - Who knows, maybe one day I will write a story where the main character ends up with Harry. We'll have to wait and see I guess. :P - Other than that Phoarry comes in second to Teobe (Terence/Phoebe), but it was the same over in my MWS story. Other than that I am glad you are enjoying the story, especially enough to make an account. =).

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><p>The Gryffindor's euphoria at finally winning the Quidditch Cup lasted all week. Even the weather seemed to be celebrating; just as June approached, the days became cloudless and sultry, and all anybody felt like doing was strolling the grounds and flopping down on the grass with several pints of pumpkin juice, perhaps playing a casual game of Gobstones or watching the giant squid propel itself dreamily across the surface of the lake.<p>

But they couldn't. The exams were almost upon them, and instead of lazing around outside, the students were forced to remain inside the castle, trying to bully their brains into concentration. Even Fred and George Weasley had been spotted working, they were about to take their OWLS (Ordinary Wizarding Levels). Terence was getting ready to sit his NEWTS (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests), the highest qualifications Hogwarts offered.

He was becoming increasingly edgy and often snapped at Phoebe when his stress levels got too high.

"I'm trying to work!" Terence said one evening on top of the Astronomy tower, it was the night before his first exam and for some reason had agreed to meet Phoebe for their usual night away from the common rooms, but now Phoebe was staring to regret agreeing to meet him tonight.

The elemental slid away from her boyfriend, her eyes wide as little-by-little Terence showed signs of a true Slytherin. "I merely suggested that you take Dumbledore up on his offer," Phoebe said. "You didn't have to bite my head off; a simple 'No' would have been just fine!"

"Did it ever occur to you that I don't want to come back next here," Terence answered. "I don't want to have to repeat my seventh year; I just have to catch up on the four months of work I have missed."

"So are you going to say that is my fault too?"

"Yes!"

_**SMACK**_

Phoebe hit him.

Terence froze as Phoebe stared at him with wide eyes full of tears. "Phoebe…" he started as he got cautiously to his feet.

Phoebe backed away, her breathing ragged as her heart pounded painfully against her rib cage, before she turned and fled the Astronomy tower, leaving Terence behind.

The four months of work that Terence had been referring to where the lessons he had missed when he had been in Portugal with her; and although he would probably never have admitted it, Phoebe knew that he blamed her for the lessons he had missed. If she hadn't have died then he wouldn't have missed his lessons.

_**But you didn't ask him to stay with you,**_ Phoebe thought. _**He made that choice himself. You did nothing wrong. It was his choice.**_

Phoebe sighed, she knew that the NEWTs were stressing him out, and that this was his final year at Hogwarts, but Dumbledore had offered him the chance to come back next year and simply take the classes of the lessons he had missed; he wouldn't have to attend the rest of the classes unless he wanted too.

But no, he had turned down the offer, but Dumbledore didn't withdraw it, and Phoebe knew that it would still be there if Terence decided to change his mind.

Unlike her friends, Phoebe didn't have exams to worry about Professor Dumbledore had already exempt her from taking them this year, she was to use the time that she had free to catch up on her outstanding essays and then she would be graded mainly on them and able to sit her exams next year.

Phoebe knew that it wasn't Terence's fault – but did he have to bite her head off? She was only making a simple suggestion, one that could have caused him a lot less hassle and stress, but he was a Slytherin and Slytherin's were stubborn.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When she made it back to the common room, Phoebe quickly located Hermione, Harry and Ron on the furthest table away from everyone else, she hurried over just as there was a rustling noise at the window and Athena fluttered through it, a note clutched tightly in her beak.

"It's from Serefina," said Phoebe, taking the letter and smoothing out the feathers of her messenger bird. "Buckbeak's appeal – it's set for the sixth."

"That's when we finish our exams," said Hermione.

"And they are coming up here to do it," said Phoebe, still reading the letter. "Someone from the Ministry of Magic and – and – they can't do that!" she exploded.

Hermione, Harry and Ron looked at her startled.

"What?" Harry asked glancing over her shoulder at the letter; however, he pulled back when he noticed the letter was written in Portuguese.

"Why would they do that," Phoebe demanded, looking up at her friends. "They are bringing an executioner to the appeal!"

Hermione shook her head. "But that sounds as though they've already decided!"

"Yeah, it does," said Harry slowly.

"They can't!" Ron howled. "I've spent ages reading up stuff for him, they can't just ignore it all!"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, _Dragon's_ father made up their minds for them!" she answered. "There was never going to be an appeal, they had made up their minds from the word GO!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

In the next few days, Malfoy seemed to regain some of his old swagger. From sneering comments, he was sure that Buckbeak was going to be killed, and seemed thoroughly pleased with himself for bringing it about.

"You're a foul and evil little cockroach, Malfoy!" Phoebe snapped the next morning after breakfast.

Malfoy smirked at her before leading Crabbe and Goyle away for their first exam, Phoebe watched him go before turning to Harry, Ron and Hermione who had followed her out of the Great Hall.

"Go do your exams," said Phoebe. "Don't worry about Buckbeak; he's not going to die."

"What are you going to do?" Hermione asked.

"I'm going to finish some of my essays," said Phoebe. "Serefina is busy overlooking the NEWTs this morning. I'll meet you in the common room later."

Harry nodded. "Okay,"

"Have fun," Hermione smiled.

"Good luck," Phoebe wished them as she watched them hurry off to their first exam, leaving her alone in the Entrance Hall.

The elemental hung around for a few minutes while she waited for the older students to leave the Great Hall, she knew that Terence had his first NEWT exam that morning and wanted to wish him good luck, even if he didn't seem to be talking to her at the moment.

The doors to the Great Hall opened and the older students filed out, Phoebe spotted Oliver, Katie, Fred, George and the rest of the older Gryffindor's first and made her way over to them.

"Good luck today, guys," she wished them. "You'll do great, I know it."

Fred and George smiled, both looking nervous.

"Aren't you late for your first exam?" Oliver asked, looking suspicious.

"Nope," Phoebe answered. "I have been exempt from my exams this year, after dying for four months I get special treatment," she grinned. "I will do my exams next year; but I do have coursework to do, so I'm going to love you and leave you, and go finish it. Wish me luck."

Katie smiled. "Good luck,"

The elemental grinned and turned to walk away; she spotted Terence at the bottom the Marble staircase and approached him purposely.

"I don't know if you are in a better mood than last night," Phoebe said as she became level with him. "But I hope all that studying paid off."

Terence turned. "Phoebe…" he sighed.

Phoebe could see the conflict written across his face, his eyes held a sombre and guilty emotion, and she had to resist the urge to reach up and kiss him. "Good luck," she nodded, skirting around him and hurrying up the Marble staircase, her heart twisting painfully in her chest.

Terence watched her go. He had to apologize to her, he already hated himself for snapping at her the previous night, and he knew full well that it was uncalled for; it hadn't been her fault that she had died, she hadn't forced him to stay by her side waiting for her to recover, Serefina had even offered him to come back to Hogwarts and she would let him know if anything changed, but he had been stubborn and refused to leave Phoebe because he wanted to be there when she woke up.

_**I have to apologize to her**_ he thought. But just as he was about to follow after her up the Marble staircase, the examiner entered the Entrance Hall and called out to those sitting the Defence Against the Dark Arts NEWT examination. That was him.

_**I will apologize to her.**_ He swore as he entered the Great Hall for his final year exams.

**~*Phoebe*~**

But Phoebe didn't see Terence for the rest of the week, much to the Slytherin's displeasure, after his first NEWT exam Terence had realized that it wasn't much to just study the material and do the exam, he actually needed the lesson behind him to back up his confidence to pass the exam with the correct points awarded; which was why after his first day of NEWTs he had gone to Professor Dumbledore and asked if it was too late to take his offer.

Dumbledore – being the reasonable Headmaster that he was – agreed to exempt Terence from the rest of his exams, and agreed to allow him to return next year for the lessons that he wished to revise for the NEWTs next year.

Meanwhile, Phoebe was having trouble wrapping her head around her coursework because she was too busy worrying about Buckbeak. Which was why on the morning of the third years Care of Magical Creatures exam the elemental hurried down to Hagrid's hut with them, but while they sat outside and took their exam with Serefina overlooking them, Phoebe was sat inside with Hagrid discussing Buckbeak.

"Beaky's gettin' a bit depressed," Hagrid said. "Bin cooped up too long. But still – we'll know day after tomorrow – one way or the other."

Phoebe felt guilt settle in the pit of her stomach, she didn't have the heart to tell Hagrid that they were bringing an executioner to the appeal. _**That will just break him**_ she thought sadly, glancing out of the window to see how the exam was going.

It was nearly finished.

When it _had_ finished, Phoebe bid goodbye to Hagrid, Buckbeak and her godmother and hurried up the lawn with her friends.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The exams were starting to blur together, and by Wednesday Phoebe was almost sick of them, and she wasn't even sitting the stupid things.

"What did you have today?" she asked, as she curled up beside Harry on the sofa in front of the fireplace.

"We had History of Magic and Herbology."

Phoebe nodded. "When do you have Defence?"

"Tomorrow," James answered as he peered over the back of the couch. "Are you comfy?"

"Very," Phoebe answered, glancing up at her best friend. "Where have you been?"

"Library," James answered. "Study session with Sarah."

Phoebe grinned. "Oh yeah?" she teased. "How much work did you get done?"

"Quite a bit, actually,"

"I bet," Phoebe nodded. "I wonder how much an examiner would award you for snogging."

James's face flushed with colour as Phoebe giggled mercilessly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Defence Against the Dark Arts was the second to last exam on Thursday afternoon, and just like she had done Care of Magical Creatures, Phoebe joined her friends down on the front lawn where they were to participate in a sort of obstacle course set up by Professor Lupin.

The obstacle course started with a paddling pool where the students had to wade through the water which contained a Grindylow, then cross a series of potholes full of Red Caps, squish their way across a patch of marsh, ignoring the misleading directions from a Hinkypunk, then climb into an old trunk and battle with a new Boggart.

James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia managed to pass their exam with flying colours and were waiting beside Professor Lupin for Harry who had just entered the trunk with the Boggart.

Several moments later Harry was climbing out of the trunk a wide grin on his face.

"Excellent, Harry," Lupin muttered. "Full marks."

Flushed with success, Harry hung around with Phoebe to watch Ron and Hermione tackle the exam themselves.

Ron did very well until he reached the Hinkypunk, which successfully confused him into sinking waist-high into the quagmire.

Phoebe pointed at Ron and giggled.

Hermione did everything perfectly until she reached the trunk with the Boggart in it. After about a minute inside it, she burst out again, screaming.

"Hermione!" Phoebe screamed, darting forward and embracing her quivering best friend "What's the matter?"

"P-P-Professor McGonagall!" Hermione gasped, pointing into the trunk. "Sh-she said I'd failed everything!"

Ron rolled his eyes. "Oh for the love of -" he muttered turning away.

Phoebe shook her head and rubbed soothing circles in her friend's back. "It is okay, Hermione, you didn't fail anything! Just relax, it's not really Professor McGonagall, it's just a 3D version of your fears, I'm sure you have done everything perfectly!"

It took a while to calm Hermione down. When at last she had regained a grip of herself, she, Harry, Ron, Phoebe and the rest of Phoebe's friends went back to the castle. Ron was still slightly inclined to laugh at Hermione's Boggart.

"Say nothing, Ronald!" Phoebe snapped. "At least Hermione didn't get turned around by the Hinkypunk."

Ron glared at the elemental, but an argument was averted by the sight that met them on the top of the steps.

Cornelius Fudge, sweating slightly in his pinstriped cloak, was standing there staring out at the grounds. He started at the sight of Harry.

"Hello, there, Harry!" he said. "Just had an exam, I expect? Nearly finished?"

"Yes," said Harry.

Cornelius's eyes found Phoebe, as she had looped her arm through Harry's and was still hanging off his arm now. "Blackheart!" he nodded.

"Fudge," Phoebe answered. She didn't have an inch of respect for the Minister of England.

"Lovely day," said Fudge, casting an eye over the lake. "Pity…pity…"

The friends exchanged looks.

"What is a pity, Minister?" Ashlyn asked.

Fudge sighed deeply and looked down at the students.

"I'm here on an unpleasant mission. The Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures required a witness to the execution of a mad Hippogriff. As I needed to visit Hogwarts to check on the Black situation, I was asked to step in."

"Does that mean that appeal as already happened?" Ron interrupted, stepping forwards.

"No, no, it is scheduled for this afternoon," said Fudge.

"Then you might not have to witness an execution at all!" said Ron stoutly. "The Hippogriff might get off!"

Phoebe snorted. "Come off it, Ron," she said hotly. "They're not going to let Buckbeak off the hook -" she glared at Fudge. "You're a lot of things, Minister, but I never took you for a murderer! You are so terrified of Lucius Malfoy that you are eating straight out of his hands!"

"You do not know what you are talking about!" said Fudge.

"Buckbeak will die at sundown!" Phoebe snapped. "_That_ much I know!"

And unlinking her arm from Harry's, she stormed into the castle, Ashlyn, James, Amelia and Sarah hurrying after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe sighed and re-read the letter that Athena had just delivered to her; it was from Serefina and written in Portuguese – like always – to stop people from reading it if they managed to intercept it.

After a while, Hermione and Ron had joined her, and she relayed the message back to them; they were just as shell-shocked as she was.

"I told you," Phoebe murmured. "I told you Buckbeak would die at sundown, Fudge was never here to oversee an appeal, he was here to oversee the death of a magnificent creature!"

"What are we going to do?" Hermione asked, her eyes filling with tears.

Ron shook his head as he looked solemnly down at the table.

The portrait hole opened with a flash and Harry tumbled inside, he spotted them instantly and hurried over. "Trelawney just told me -" he paused when he saw their distraught faces.

"Buckbeak's lost," said Ron weakly. "Professor Blackheart sent this."

He pointed at the letter in Phoebe's hand.

"Read it," Hermione said. "You are the only one who is fluent in Portuguese."

Phoebe sighed and lifted her dull gaze to the letter.

"_Buckbeak lost his appeal. They will execute at sundown. I know what you are thinking Phoebe, and I am giving you one warning; do not think about coming down! There is nothing you can do, and I do not want you to see it. You tell Harry, Hermione and Ron that this goes to them too. You are to remain at the castle!_

_Serefina."_

"With all respect to your godmother, Phoebe, but we have to go," Harry said.

"I know," Phoebe agreed. "But sundown, we'd never be allowed…specially us -" she pointed at herself and then Harry.

Harry sank into the plush seat beside the elemental, his head in his hands.

"If we only had the Invisibility Cloak…" he said.

"Where is it?" Hermione asked.

Harry looked up. "I left it in the passageway under the one-eyed witch," he answered. "If Snape sees me anywhere near there again, I'm in serious trouble."

"That's true," said Hermione, getting to her feet. "If he sees _you_ – how do you open the witch's hump again?"

"You – you tap it and say '_Dissendium_',"said Harry. "But -"

Hermione didn't wait for the rest of his sentence; she strode across the room, pushed the Fat Lady's portrait hole and vanished from sight.

"She hasn't gone to get it?" said Ron, staring after her.

She had. Hermione returned a quarter of an hour later with the silvery Cloak folded carefully under her robes.

"Hermione, I don't know what's got into you lately!" said Ron astounded. "First you hit Malfoy, and then you walk out on Professor Trelawney -"

Hermione looked rather flustered.

Phoebe smirked and exchanged a grin with Harry.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They went down to dinner with everybody else, but did not return to Gryffindor Tower afterwards. Harry had the Cloak hidden down the front of his robes; he had to keep his arms folded to hide the lump. The skulked in an empty chamber off the Entrance Hall, listening, until they were sure it was deserted. They heard a last pair of people hurrying across the Hall, and a door slamming. Phoebe then poked her head out to check if all was clear.

"Clear," she whispered. "There is no one there – Cloak on -"

Walking very close together so that nobody would see them, they crossed the Hal on tiptoes beneath the Cloak, and then walked down the stone front steps into the grounds. The sun was already setting behind the Forbidden Forest, gilding the top branches of the trees.

"You are sure that your godmother will not be down here?" Harry asked, as they reached Hagrid's hut, and Phoebe reached out of the Cloak and knocked.

"Positive," the elemental answered. "She will be with Dumbledore, Fudge and the executioner up at the castle; she will come down when it is time."

The door opened in less than a minute, and when it did, the friends were able to see Hagrid he looked all around for his visitor, pale-faced and trembling.

"It's us," Harry hissed. "We're wearing the Invisibility Cloak. Let us in and we can take it off."

"Yeh shouldn't have come!" Hagrid whispered, but he stood back and they stepped inside. Hagrid shut the door quickly and Harry pulled off the Cloak.

Hagrid was not crying, nor did he throw himself upon their necks. He looked like a man who did not know where he was or what to do. This helplessness was worse to watch than tears.

"Wan' some tea?" he said. His great hands were shaking as he reached for the kettle.

"Where's Buckbeak, Hagrid?" said Hermione hesitantly.

"I – I took him outside," said Hagrid, spilling milk all over the table as he filled up the jug. "He's tethered in me pumpkin patch. Thought he oughta see the trees an' – an' smell fresh air – before -"

Hagrid's hand trembled so violently that the milk jug slipped from his grasp and shattered all over the floor.

"I'll do it, Hagrid," said Hermione quickly, hurrying over and starting to clean up the mess.

"There's another one in the cupboard," Hagrid said, sitting down and wiping his forehead on his sleeve. Harry glanced at Ron, who looked back hopelessly; even Phoebe – who usually had something comforting to say – was silent.

"Isn't there anything anyone can do, Hagrid?" Harry asked fiercely, sitting down next to him. "Dumbledore…"

"He's tried," said Hagrid. "He's got no power ter overrule the Committee. He told 'em Buckbeak's all right, but they're scared…yeh know what Lucius Malfoy's like…threatened 'em, I expect…an' the executioner, Macnair, he's an old pal o' Malfoy's…but it'll be quick an' clean…an' I'll be beside him…"

Hagrid swallowed.

Phoebe felt her hand's shake angrily. "You shouldn't have to be there!" she hissed. "This shouldn't be happening! Buckbeak didn't anything that wasn't in his nature, if Malfoy hadn't been a self-righteous little prat and done as he was told for once in his life then none of this would be happening!"

_**I am going to kill him!**_ She thought angrily. _**Next time I see Draco, I will kill him!**_

Hagrid swallowed. "Dumbledore's gonna come down while it – while it happens," Hagrid said. "And Serefina will be there. Great people them two, wonderful!"

"We'll stay with you, too, Hagrid," said Hermione, stifling a sob from the kitchen.

Hagrid shook his shaggy head. "Yeh're ter go back to the castle. Serefina told you, that she don' wan' yeh watchin'. An' yeh shouldn' be down here anyway…if Fudge an' Dumbledore catch yeh out without permission, Harry and Phoebe will be in trouble."

Silent tears were now streaming down Hermione's face, but she hid them from Hagrid, bustling around making tea. Then, as she picked up the milk bottle to pour some into the jug, she let out a shriek.

"Ron! I – I don't believe it – it's _Scabbers_!"

Ron gaped at her.

"What are you talking about?"

Hermione carried the milk jug over to the table and turned it upside down, with a frantic squeak, and much scrambling to get back inside, Scabbers the rat cam sliding out onto the table.

"Scabbers!" said Ron blankly. "Scabbers, what are you doing here?"

He grabbed the struggling rat and held him up to the light. Scabbers looked dreadful. He was thinner than ever, large tufts of hair had fallen out leaving wide bald patches, and he writhed in Ron's hands as though desperate to free himself.

"It is okay, Scabbers!" said Ron. "No cats! There's nothing here to hurt you!"

Hagrid suddenly stood up, his eyes fixed on the window. His normally ruddy face had gone the colour of parchment.

"They're comin'…"

The Golden Trio and Phoebe whipped around. A group of people were walking down the distant castle steps. In front was Serefina Blackheart, behind her was Albus Dumbledore and next to him was Cornelius Fudge. Behind them came a feeble old man and the executioner, Macnair.

"Yeh gotta go," said Hagrid. Every inch of him was trembling. "They mustn' find yeh here…go on, now…"

Ron stuffed Scabbers into his pocket and Phoebe picked up the Cloak.

"I'll let yeh out the back way," said Hagrid.

They followed him to the door and into his back garden. Phoebe choked back a sob as she spotted Buckbeak a few yards away, tethered to a tree behind Hagrid's pumpkin patch. Buckbeak seemed to know something was happening. He turned his sharp head from side to side, and pawed the ground nervously.

"It's OK, Beaky," said Hagrid softly. "It's OK…" he turned to the four students. "Go on," he said. "Get goin'."

They didn't move.

"Hagrid, we can't -"

"We'll tell them what really happened -"

"They can't kill him -"

"Go!" said Hagrid fiercely. "It's bad enough without you lot in trouble an' all!"

They had no choice. Phoebe grabbed Harry's hand and tugged him in the direction of the front of the house, there was no point in using the Cloak, it had barely covered the four of them when they had come down earlier that evening, there was no way it would cover them as they attempted to avoid her Godmother, the Headmaster and Fudge all at the same time.

"Go quick," said Hagrid. "Don' listen…"

And he strode back into his cabin as someone knocked at the front door.

Slowly, in a kind of horrified trance, Harry, Phoebe, Hermione and Ron set off silently around Hagrid's house. As they reached the other side, the front door closed with a sharp snap.

"Please, let's hurry," Hermione whispered. "I can't stand it, I can't bear it…"

Phoebe nodded and glanced back of her shoulder, they had to time this at the right moment or risk getting caught. Fudge had glanced out of the window causing Phoebe to withdraw into Harry, but the moment the Minister had disappeared the elemental pointed towards the sloping lawn that led back to the castle.

"Go!" she ordered.

Hermione and Ron sprinted for the slope, as Harry grabbed Phoebe's hand and pulled her along behind him.

The four of them hurried up the sloping lawn towards the castle. The sun was sinking fast now; the sky had turned to a clear, purple-tinged grey, but to the west there was a ruby-red glow.

Ron stopped dead.

"Oh, please, Ron," Hermione began.

"It's Scabbers – he won't – stay put -"

Ron was bent over; trying to keep Scabbers in his pocket, but the rat was going berserk; squealing madly, twisting and flailing, trying to sink his teeth into Ron's hand.

"Scabbers, it's me, you idiot, it is Ron," Ron hissed.

They heard a door open behind them and men's voices.

"Oh, Ron, please let's move, they're going to do it!" Hermione breathed.

"OK – Scabbers, stay _put -_"

They walked forwards; Phoebe, like Hermione, was trying not to listen to the rumble of voices behind them. Ron stopped again.

"I can't hold him – Scabbers, shut up, everyone'll hear us -"

The rat was squealing wildly, but not loudly enough to cover up the sounds drifting from Hagrid's garden.

"Phoebe?" called a familiar voice, and Phoebe looked up to see Terence and James making their way towards her across the front lawn. It had been James who had spoken.

Rushing forward, Phoebe pulled the two of them backwards. "What are you doing down her?" she asked.

"Looking for you," James answered. "Where did you disappear too after Dinner? Why are you down here?"

"I was right about Fudge," Phoebe answered. "They are killing Buckbeak!"

James glanced over her shoulder as the dulcet tones of a group of people echoed from Hagrid's garden. "They are doing it now?"

Phoebe nodded, before turning to Terence. "Why are you here?" she asked.

"I wanted to apologize," Terence sighed.

Phoebe stared at him.

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you this past week," Terence said. "But I was so freaked out with these exams, that I -"

Phoebe cut him off as she reached up and kissed him. "It's OK. I don't blame you, I know what NEWTs can do to a person; I have already taken them in Care of Magical Creatures, remember?"

Terence nodded. "I'm still sorry,"

"Stop saying you're sorry," Phoebe scolded

Terence smiled as Phoebe reached up and kissed him again. However, the kiss was short lived as a silence fell over the jumble of voices at the bottom of the slope and then, without warning; there was the unmistakeable swish and thud of an axe.

Hermione swayed on the spot.

Phoebe whipped around, approached the edge of the banking and peered down towards Hagrid's hut. "They did it!" she whispered. "I d-don't believe it – they – they killed him!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 03 December 2011 at 3:39am**


	47. Chapter 47

**Author's Note - **Getting so close to the end again. Can you believe it? Third year is almost over - Wow. Honestly, I never thought that this story would do so well, it has been an absolute joy writing this story, and hearing all the amazing feedback from you lovely people. Honestly, it is amazing. =D

**Dedications -** Chapter dedicated to the following: **Fan of Fics, Apotterfan and KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout out - **Big shout out to **Lunaria Celeste** for adding this story to her Favourite Stories and Story Alerts. Very much appreciated. =D

**In Responses - **First too **Fan of Fics: **Yes, I too believe that NEWTs should be banned for good. But then again everyone snaps at their friends/girlfriends/boyfriends when they are stressed out. I also wanted to show that not everything is fine and dandy after the revelation of Phoebe's awakening; that is not exactly something that you can just forget happened without repercussions, and well, even though this is a fantasy world it is all very realistic, and in the real world everyone fights, even those who are happy in love; like Phoebe and Terence - but at least they made up, that's the main thing. =)

**Apotterfan: **If I can think of another idea that does not cross with Muggleborn Witches and The Dark Lords Downfall then I will write it. It may take a while because I will have to generate a whole new idea -and sometimes they are difficult- but I will do my best. Promise. As for Aiden, he will be making an appearance next year.

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><p>The six students stood transfixed with horror at the top of the slope leading to Hagrid's hut. The very last rays of the setting sun were casting a bloody light over the long-shadowed grounds. Then, behind them, they heard a wild howling.<p>

"Hagrid," Harry muttered, and without thinking he started back down the slope.

"No!" Phoebe hissed, seizing his arm. "We' can't. He'll be in worse trouble if they know we've been to see him..."

"How - could - they?" Hermione choked, her breathing was shallow and uneven. "How _could_ they?"

Phoebe glanced back at the bookworm. "It is because they can," she answered. "They don't care about Buckbeak, or Hagrid, or anything other than the fact that they have the Power to do what they want!"

"Come on," said Ron, his teeth starting to chatter.

They set off back towards the castle. Light was fading fast now. By the time they reached open ground, darkness was settling like a spell around them.

"Scabbers, keep still," Ron hissed, clamping his hand over his chest. The rat was wiggling madly. Ron came to a sudden halt, trying to force Scabbers deeper into his pocket. "What's the matter with you, you stupid rat? Stay still - OUCH! He bit me!"

"Ron, be quiet!" Hermione whispered urgently. "Fudge will be out here in a minute -"

"He won't - stay - put -"

Scabbers was plainly terrified. He was writhing with all his might, trying to break free of Ron's grip.

"What's the _matter_ with him?" James asked.

The sound of grass breaking caused Phoebe to turn - there slinking towards them, his body low to the ground, wide yellow eye glinting eerily in the darkness - "Crookshanks!"

"Where?" Hermione asked, whirling around, and spotting her cat. "No, go away, Crookshanks! Go away!"

But the cat was getting nearer - Phoebe, Harry and Hermione crowded closer to Ron as if trying to prevent the cat from getting its paws on Scabbers.

But the rat had other ideas.

"Scabbers - NO!"

Too late - the rat had slipped between Ron's clutching fingers, hit the ground and scampered away. In one bound, Crookshanks sprang after him, and before Harry, Hermione or Phoebe could stop him, Ron had pelted away into the darkness.

"_Ron_!" Hermione moaned.

Phoebe and Harry exchanged looks, then followed at a sprint and hurtled after Ron; they could hear his feet thundering along ahead, and his shouts at Crookshanks.

"Get away from him - get away - Scabbers, come here -"

There was a loud thud.

"_Gotcha!_ Get off, you stinking cat -"

Harry and Phoebe almost fell over Ron; they skidded to a stop right in front of him. He was sprawled out on the ground, but Scabbers was back in his pocket; he had both hands held tight over the quivering lump.

"Get off, you stupid cat!" Phoebe hissed, grabbing Crookshanks and attempting to pull him away from Ron. "Ouch!" Phoebe cried, as Crookshanks sank his claws into the skin of her forearm, and tore at the skin; Phoebe dropped him, as scarlet streams of blood dribbled down her arm and onto the grass.

Hermione, Terence and James arrived.

"What happened?" Hermione asked, as Terence approached Phoebe, ripped the lower part of his cloak and tied it tightly around Phoebe's arm in a kind of makeshift bandage.

"You're stupid cat just clawed at my arm!" Phoebe answered. "That thing is a menace!"

But before Hermione could say anything back, the six of them heard the soft pounding of gigantic paws. Something was bounding towards them out of the dark - an enormous, pale-eyed, jet-black dog.

"Padfoot?" James questioned.

Phoebe frowned and turned to her friend. "Padfoot?" she repeated.

"Yeah, it's a dog I remember from my childhood," James answered. "I'm sure it is my childhood dog..."

But the dog showed no indication that it knew the name 'Padfoot' and charged through Terence, Phoebe and James, took an enormous leap and its front paws hit Harry on the chest. Harry keeled over backwards in a whirl of hair; Phoebe screamed in fear as Harry hit the ground and the dog lowered its great head, its elongated teeth very close to Harry's throat.

"No!" Phoebe yelled, reaching for her wand. She pulled it from the inside of her robe and pointed it at the dog. "Let him go!"

There was a loud BANG and the dog turned towards Phoebe and growled as it prepared for another attack.

"No!" Harry yelled, as he staggered back to his feet, feeling as though his ribs had been broken. "Get away from her!"

Terence grabbed Phoebe's arm and pulled her behind him as the dog slunk towards them.

"Padfoot..." James yelled, trying to direct his childhood pet's attention off of his best friend. "Padfoot, it's me, James!"

The great dog turned its head in James's direction and seemed to pause in its attack, it seemed to recognize him. And then, without warning, the dog lunged, toppled James over, fastened its jaws around his leg and started to pull him away as easily as if he were a rag-doll.

"JAMES!" Phoebe screamed, as she abandoned her friends and sprinted after the dog. She followed him out onto open grounds -

And then, out of nowhere, something hit Phoebe so hard across the face and she was knocked off her feet. She heard Hermione scream, and a grunt of pain echoed not that far away from her. Phoebe groped for her wand, blinking blood from her eyes -

"_Lumos!"_ she whispered.

The wand-light showed her at the trunk of a very thick tree; they had chased Scabbers into the shadow of the Whomping Willow and its branches were creaking as though in a high wind, whipping backwards and forwards to stop them going nearer.

And there, at the base of the trunk, was the dog, dragging James backwards into a large gap in the roots - James was fighting furiously, but his head and torso were slipping out of sight -

"James!" Phoebe shouted, trying to follow; but a heavy branch whipped lethally through the air and she was forced backwards again.

All they could see now was one of James's arms, which he had hooked around a root in an effort to stop the dog pulling him further underground. Then a horrible crack cut the air like a gun-shot, James's arm had broken, and next second, his hands had vanished from sight.

"Phoebe," Terence hissed, appearing behind his girlfriend and touching the cut on the right side of her face, it was from where the Whomping Willow had struck her, and it was bleeding profusely. To the right of them, Phoebe could see Hermione helping Harry to his feet, it would have seemed that he had chased after her, after she had followed the dog and James, and he too was bleeding. The Whomping Willow had struck him across the shoulder.

"We've got to go for help," Hermione cried.

"No! That thing's big enough to eat him!" Phoebe answered, whipping around and swaying on the spot. "We haven't got time -"

"We're never going to get through without help -" Ron stated, still maintaining a firm grip on his rat. "And I need to get Scabbers inside -"

Phoebe's eyes narrowed at the red head. "I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR STUPID RAT!" she yelled. "MY BEST FRIEND HAS JUST BEEN PULLED UNDERGROUND BY A MASSIVE DOG, ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN TO HIM!"

Enraged by all the yelling, the Whomping Willow took another swipe at the five students standing in its shadow.

"If that dog can get in, we can!" Harry panted, looking for a way through the thick vines to the base of the tree; but everywhere he looked there seemed to be a thick branch blocking his path.

"We need help!" Hermione moaned.

Crookshanks darted forwards. He slithered between the battering branches like a snake and placed his front paws upon a knot on the trunk.

Abruptly, as though the tree had been turned to marble, it stopped moving. Not a leaf twitched or shook.

"Crookshanks!" Hermione whispered uncertainly. She now grasped Ron's arm painfully hard. "How did he know -?"

Ron stared at her in disbelief. "Do you know listen to anything?" he asked. "That cat is not _normal_!"

"And he his friends with that dog," said Harry. "I have seen them together."

"I don't care if they are friends or not," Phoebe answered. "I'm going down there."

"I'm coming too," Terence said without hesitation. "Like you said, that dog is big enough to _eat_ James and it has already tried to attack you. Don't argue with me, i'm coming!"

Phoebe sighed. "Fine. But keep your wand out."

They covered the distance to the trunk in seconds, but before they had reached the gap in the roots, Crookshanks had slid into it with a flick of his bottle-brush tail. Phoebe went next; she crawled forwards, headfirst, and slid down an earthy slope to the bottom of a very low tunnel. Crookshanks was a little way along, his eyes flashing in the light from Phoebe's wand. Seconds later, Hermione slithered down beside her, followed by Harry, Terence and Ron.

"Where's James?" Hermione whispered in a terrified voice.

"This way," said Phoebe, setting off, bent-backed, after Crookshanks.

"Where does this tunnel come out?" Hermione asked breathlessly from behind her.

"I don't know..." Harry answered. "It's marked on the Marauder's Map but Fred and George told me that no one's ever got into it. It goes off the edge of the map, but it looked like it ends up in Hogsmeade..."

They moved as fast as they could, bent almost double; ahead of them, Crookshanks's tail bobbed in and out of view. On and on went the passage and all Phoebe could think of was James, and what the enormous dog might be doing to him...she was drawing in sharp, painful gasps, running at a crouch.

And then the tunnel began to rise; moments later it twisted, and Crookshanks had gone. Instead, Phoebe could see a patch of dim light through a small opening.

She paused, gasped for breath, edged forwards and raised her wand to see what lay beyond.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was a room, a very disordered, dusty room. Paper was peeling from the walls; there were stains all over the floor; every piece of furniture was broken as though somebody had smashed it. The windows were all boarded-up.

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder at the others, before pocketing her wand and pulled herself out of the hole, staring around. The room was deserted, but a door to her right stood open, leading to a shadowy hallway.

Turning around Phoebe held her hand out for Hermione to take and pulled the bookworm from the underground tunnel and took a step back as Harry, Ron and Terence followed.

"I think we're in the Shrieking Shack," Hermione whispered.

"Ghosts don't do that," Harry said, causing Phoebe to look around. He was pointing at a wooden chair near them. Large chunks had been torn out of it; one of the legs had been ripped off entirely.

There was a creak overhead. Something had moved upstairs. The five of them looked up at the ceiling, and before anyone could stop her, Phoebe was taking the steps two at a time and had reached the first floor landing before any of them had even touched the first step.

Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust except the floor, where a wide, shiny stripe had been made by something being dragged through it. When the others had reached the first floor, they found Phoebe at the opposite end of it. There was only one door open, and it was that door that Phoebe was stood outside of.

Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe raised her wand and whispered "_Nox!"_ the light was extinguished.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Terence mimicked her actions and they were thrown into darkness.

As the Golden Trio and Terence crept closer, Phoebe heard movement echo from behind the door, followed by a deep, loud purring and a low moan.

"Oh, shush! It's only a broken arm!" a man's voice said.

Phoebe growled under her breath, curled her hands inwards to her stomach and then - with a great rush of energy and wind - blasted the doors wide open.

On a magnificent four-poster bed with dusty hangings, lay Crookshanks, purring loudly at the sight of them. On the floor beside him, clutching his arm was James.

Phoebe dashed across the room and dropped to her knees beside him. "James - are you OK?"

"Where's the dog?"

"Not a dog," James answered. His teeth were gritted in pain.

"What -"

The door behind them closed with a snap. Harry, Ron and Terence wheeled around as Hermione knelt beside Phoebe and checked James over with her wand, it was clear that his arm was broken, and that his leg had been torn apart pretty badly.

There - standing in the shadows, with a mass of filthy, matted hair, his eyes shining out of their deep, dark sockets, his skin was waxy and stretched so tightly over the bones of his face, it looked like a skull. His yellow teeth bared - was Sirius Black.

"_Experlliarmus!"_ he croaked, pointing James's wand at them.

Three wands shot high into the air, and Black caught them. Then he took a step closer. His eyes fixed on Harry.

"Leave him alone!" Phoebe snapped, as she left James in the care of Hermione and slipped between Ron and Terence, and took a protective stand in front of Harry.

Sirius considered her for a moment, she looked vaguely familiar - but where? Where had he seen her before? "It was very brave of you, not to run and get a teacher. I'm grateful...it will make everything much easier..."

Phoebe felt Harry step forward, but she leaned back into him and held him back. "If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill me too!" she stated.

"Phoebe..." Terence whispered.

Black's gaze flickered towards the Slytherin and then back at Phoebe, a grin forming on his face. "Aw, how sweet," he teased. "But only one will die tonight..."

"Why's that?" Harry spat. "Didn't care last time, did you? Didn't mind slaughtering all those Muggles to get at Pettigrew...What's the matter, gone soft in Azkaban?"

"Harry!" Hermione whimpered. "Be quiet!"

"HE KILLED MY MUM AND DAD!" Harry roared, and with a huge effort shoved Phoebe aside -into Terence's arms- and lunged forwards.

He had forgotten about magic. All Harry knew was that he wanted to hurt Black as badly as he could and that he didn't care how much he got hurt in return.

Perhaps it was the shock of Harry doing something stupid, but Black didn't raise the wands in time. One of Harry's hands fastened around Black's wasted wrist, forcing the wand tips away; the knuckles of Harry's other hand collided with the side of Black's head and they fell, backwards, into the wall -

Hermione was screaming; James was yelling; there was a blinding flash as the wands in Black's hand were sent into the air a jet of sparks missed Harry's face by inches; and the free hand of Black's had found Harry's throat.

"No," he hissed. "I've waited too long -"

The fingers tightened. Harry choked his glasses askew.

Then - there was a huge gust of wind - it hit both Harry and Black, knocking them apart.

Hermione and Ron hurried across the room and helped Harry to his feet, and then turned to face Phoebe who stood in front of Terence, her hand out stretched and pointing at the exact same place Sirius and Harry had been lying moments ago, her eyes were a brilliant cobalt blue.

"Phoebe -" Hermione squeaked.

Black grunted in pain. Phoebe's attack had caught him off guard and smashed him into the opposite wall of the bedroom; he pushed himself to his feet as she lowered her hand. "Ah, now I know where I have seen you before," he grinned. "It's not very often that you find one of your kind in the Noble house of Gryffindor..."

"It's not very often that someone escapes from Azkaban," Phoebe answered.

"Touché," Sirius nodded.

The others within the room frowned in confusion.

"Would someone like to explain to me," said James, as he carefully pushed himself to his feet. "What the hell is going on?"

Black turned towards his son. "Lie down," he said quietly. "You will damage your arm and leg even more."

"No, not until you tell me what the hell is going on!" James snapped. "Why are you and Phoebe acting like you know each other, and Phoebe, how did you just knock Harry and my father apart? You didn't even use a wand!"

Phoebe didn't answer straight away, when she did, her eyes never left Sirius as she said: "I will tell you later, right now I think we should hear the whole story."

"The whole story?" Harry repeated, his voice shaking slightly. "He killed my parents."

Black turned to stare at him. "I don't deny it," he said. "But you've got to listen to me. You'll regret it if you don't...you don't understand..."

"I understand a lot better than you think," said Harry, and his voice shook more than ever. "You never heard her, did you? My mum...trying to stop Voldemort killing me...and you did that - you did it..."

Harry raised his wand and aimed it at Black; James's breathing hitched, and Phoebe took a step forward, placing herself between Sirius and Harry.

"Phoebe -" Terence hesitated, as Harry faltered slightly.

"Phoebe, move!" Harry demanded.

"I can't do that, Harry," said Phoebe. "You're right, none of us heard what your mother said that night, and none of us can hear it when the Dementors are near, but I believe that there is more to this story than meets the eye."

Harry stared at her. "Like what?"

"Like, why Sirius would throw away everything he had that night just to kill your parents," Phoebe said. "Harry, your father, was Sirius's best friend! You don't hand your best friends over to the Dark Lord. He also had a family! A wife and a son, why would he want to throw all that away?"

Harry didn't answer.

The seconds lengthened, and still Harry stood frozen there, wand poised, Black staring at him, Phoebe blocking his path. James's ragged breathing came from near the bed, while Terence, Ron and Hermione were exceptionally silent.

And then came a new sound -

Muffled footsteps were echoing up through the floor - someone was moving downstairs.

"WE'RE UP HERE!" Hermione screamed suddenly. "WE'RE UP HERE - SIRIUS BLACK - QUICK!"

Black made a startled movement and grabbed Phoebe around the waist, plunged his hand into the pocket of her robe, pulled out her wand and held it across her throat. Phoebe froze, Terence took a step forward, Hermione covered her mouth and muffled a scream, Ron's eyes widened, James yelled 'Dad!', and Harry's hand tightened around his own wand as it remained poised on the two forms in front of him.

The footsteps were thundering up the stairs and still no one moved.

The door to the room burst open in a shower of red sparks. Harry wheeled around as Professor Lupin came hurtling into the room, his face bloodless, his wand raised and ready. His eyes flickered over James, lying on the floor, over Hermione, cowering next to Ron in the corner, to Terence who was staring at Phoebe with wide pleading eyes, to Harry, standing there with his wand poised, and then to Black who was still holding Phoebe, her wand tip pressed against her throat.

"_Experlliarmus!"_ Lupin shouted.

Harry and Phoebe's wand flew into the air. Lupin caught them all deftly, and then moved into the room, staring at Black, who was still holding Phoebe against his chest.

"Where is he, Sirius?"

Several pairs of eyes looked quickly at Lupin. They didn't understand, _Sirius Black_ - mass murderer - was standing in the bedroom of the Shrieking Shack, holding a Hogwarts student, and Lupin was acting as calm and casual, like he was speaking to an old friend.

Black's face was expressionless. For a few seconds, he didn't move at all. Then, very slowly, he raised his empty hand, and pointed straight at Ron.

"But then..." Lupin muttered, staring at Black so intently it seemed he was trying to read his mind, "...why hasn't he shown himself before now? Unless -" Lupin's eyes suddenly widened, as though he was seeing something beyond Black, something none of the rest could see, "- unless _he_ was the one...unless you switched...without telling me?"

Very slowly, his sunken gaze never leaving Lupin's face, Black nodded.

"Professor Lupin," Harry interrupted loudly, "what's going -?"

But he never finished the question, because what he saw made his voice die in this throat. Lupin lowered his wand. Next moment, he had walked towards Black and Phoebe, held his hand out the the young Gryffindor and pulled her away from Black. Phoebe slipped from Black's grip and shot across the room into Terence's arms. Lupin then seized Black and embraced him like a brother.

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" Hermione screamed.

Lupin let go of Black and turned to her. She had raised herself off the floor, and was pointing at Lupin, wild-eyed. "You - you -"

"Hermione -"

"- you and him!"

"Hermione, calm down -"

"I didn't tell anyone!" Hermione shrieked. "I've been covering up for you -"

"Hermione, listen to me, please!" Lupin shouted. "I can explain -"

Terence could feel Phoebe shaking with unrestrained fury, her eyes flashing between silvery grey and cobalt blue as she tried to control her powers.

"I trusted you," Harry shouted at Lupin, his voice wavering out of control, "and all this time you've been his friend!"

Terence felt Phoebe's hands grasping the back of his robes as they curled into fists, and looked down as she closed her eyes and buried her face further into his chest, he tightened his grip around her waist, as one hand disappeared beneath her hair and he cradled the back of her neck.

"You're wrong," said Lupin. "I haven't been Sirius's friend for twelve years, but I am now...Let me explain..."

"NO!" Hermione screamed. "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too - _he's a werewolf!"_

There was a ringing silence. Everyone's eyes were now on Lupin, who looked remarkably calm, though rather pale.

"Not at all up to your usual standard, Hermione," he said. "Only one out of three, I'm afraid."

"What are you talking about?" Ron hissed his eyes widened at the revelation of Lupin's secret.

Phoebe shifted in Terence's arms, and turned her attention in the red-heads direction. "He means she got a few crucial points wrong," she said. "Although you are right about Professor Lupin being a werewolf, Hermione, you are wrong about everything else. He hasn't been helping Black into castle, and why would he want Harry dead? If that were the case then he has had numerous times to kill him all year, if I remember correctly the first trip into Hogsmeade, you spent the day with Professor Lupin didn't you, Harry?"

Harry nodded numbly, as an odd shiver passed over his face.

James made a valiant effort to get up again, but fell back with a whimper of pain. Lupin made towards him, looking concerned, but Ron gasped. "_Get away from him, werewolf!"_

Lupin stopped dead. Then, with an obvious effort, he turned to Hermione and said, "How long have you known?"

"Since Professor Snape set the essay," Hermione answered.

"He'll be delighted," said Lupin coolly. "He set that essay hoping someone would realize what my symptoms meant. And what of you, Phoebe? How long have you known?"

Phoebe swallowed. "Since your Boggart turned into a full moon," she answered. "I also checked the Lunar charts, you were always ill on days that ended with a full moon; and that potion that Harry saw you drinking during the first trip to Hogsmeade, it was Wolfsbane, Professor Snape has been making it for you all year."

Lupin forced a laugh.

"Now I see what Dumbledore meant when he said you two were really the brightest witches of your age," Lupin said, looking between Phoebe and Hermione.

"We're not," Hermione whispered. "If we'd been a bit cleverer, we'd have told everyone what you are!"

"But they already know," said Lupin. "At least, the staff does."

"Dumbledore hired you when he knew you were a werewolf?" Ron gasped. "Is he mad?"

"Some of the staff thought so," said Lupin. "He had to work very hard to convince certain teachers that I'm trustworthy -"

"AND HE WAS WRONG!" Harry yelled. "YOU'VE BEEN HELPING HIM ALL THE TIME!" He was pointing at Black, who had crossed to the four-poster bed and sank into it next to James, who was cradling his broken arm.

"I have _not_ been helping Sirius," said Lupin. "If you'll give me a chance, I'll explain. Look -"

He separated Harry and Phoebe's wands and threw each of them back to its owner, he then picked up Ron, James and Terence's from the ground and passed them back too.

"There," said Lupin, sticking his own wand back into his belt. "You're armed, we're not. Now will you listen?"

Harry didn't know what to think. Was this a trick?

"If you haven't been helping him," said Terence, "how did you know he was here?"

"The map," said Lupin. "The Marauder's Map. I was in my office examining it -"

"You know how to work it?" Harry said suspiciously.

"Of course I know how to work it," said Lupin, waving his hand impatiently. "I helped write it. I'm Moony - that was what my friends nicknamed me at school."

"You _wrote -_"

"The important thing is, I was watching it carefully this evening, because I had an idea that you, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe might try and sneak out of the castle to visit Hagrid before his Hippogriff was executed. And I was right, wasn't I?"

Harry and Phoebe exchanged guilty looks.

Lupin smirked and nodded at them both. "You might have been wearing your father's Cloak, Harry -"

"How'd you know about the Cloak?"

"The number of times I saw James disappearing under it..." said Lupin, waving an impatient hand again. "The point is, even if you're wearing an Invisibility Cloak you show up on the Marauder's Map. I watched you cross the grounds and enter Hagrid's hut. Twenty minutes later, you left Hagrid, and set off back towards the castle. But you were now accompanied by someone else."

"What?" said Harry. "No, we weren't!"

"I couldn't believe my eyes," said Lupin, ignoring Harry's interruption. "I thought the map must be malfunctioning. How could he be with you?"

"No one was with us!" said Harry.

"And then I saw another dot, moving fast towards you, labeled Sirius Black...I saw him collide with you, I watched as he pulled James into the Whomping Willow -"

"I had to get him away from that _traitor_!" Sirius hissed.

Phoebe looked around at James and Sirius, and then back to Lupin who had started speaking again.

"-and I watched as the rest of you - the six of you follow after him."

"Five of us!" Phoebe said.

"No, Phoebe," said Lupin. "Six of you."

His eyes moved away from Phoebe, and over onto Ron.

"Do you think I could have a look at your rat?" he said evenly.

"What?" said Ron. "What's Scabbers got to do with it?"

"Everything," said Lupin. "Could I see him, please?"

Ron hesitated then put a hand inside his robes. Scabbers emerged, thrashing desperately; Ron had to seize his long bald tail to stop him from escaping. Crookshanks hissed from the shadows.

Lupin moved closer to Ron. He seemed to be holding his breath as he gazed intently at Scabbers.

"What?" Ron said again, holding Scabbers close to him, looking scared. "What's my rat got to do with anything?"

"That's not a rat," croaked Sirius Black suddenly.

"What d'you mean - of course he's a rat -"

"No, he's not," said Lupin quietly. "He's a wizard."

"An Animagus," said Black, "by the name of Peter Pettigrew."

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, December 04, 2011 at 1:46am**


	48. Chapter 48

**Author's Note – **If anyone is wondering how or why I am uploading early tonight, it has nothing to do with the test I have tomorrow in University, or that I have a Timed Assignment due by 4pm tomorrow and I am still working on it – but honestly enough I started writing this chapter after I had posted chapter 46 last night, and managed to finish it in the same night. So this was pre-written.

**Dedications – **Chapter goes out too **Fan of Fics, Apotterfan** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**. I am aware that I am not leaving enough spaces between these updates for other readers to review, but as most of you know, I like to update daily every chance I get. And during the weekends that is easier than during the weeks, but special thanks to those who know me so well here on Fanfiction.

**In responses: **

**Fan of Fics** - Yeah. I thought it would be a cute moment for James to remember Padfoot; it also makes for a cute family thing between father and son. But I also agree that James remembered him personally as Padfoot and not that it was his father changing into the dog, because yes, they would have all tried to kill him there and then. I think Phoebe still wants to kill him...I mean; he did hold her at wand point [with her own wand! The nerve of him!]. As for finding out about Phoebe, I thought it was rather fitting, don't you agree?

**ApotterFan -** Thank you very much.

**KingdomHeartsNerd - **Phoebe retakes her role as 'Head Bitch' in this chapter. And yes, Daddy is back. I don't think Phoebe likes him all that much mind, like I said to **Fan of Fics** he held her at wand point [with her own wand!]

Here is chapter 48 for you...

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><p>It took a few seconds for the absurdity of this statement to sink in.<p>

"You're both mental!" Ron said.

"Ridiculous!" said Hermione faintly.

"Peter Pettigrew is dead!" said Harry. "He killed him twelve years ago!"

He pointed at Black, whose face twitched convulsively.

"I meant to," he growled, his yellow teeth bared, "but little Peter got the better of me...not this time, thought!"

Black lunged at Scabbers; Ron yelled in fear as he pulled Scabbers back from the mad man who had just collided with him. Hermione stumbled backwards into the wall as Sirius knocked into her shoulder in his haste to get at the rat.

"Sirius, NO!" Lupin yelled, launching himself forwards and dragging Black away from Ron again. "WAIT! You can't do it just like that - they need to understand - we've got to explain -"

"We can explain afterwards!" snarled Black, trying to throw Lupin off, one hand still clawing the air as he tried to reach Scabbers, who was squealing like a piglet, scratching Ron's face and neck as he tried to escape.

"You can explain now!" Phoebe said, stepping in front of Ron and Scabbers. "We have a right to know everything! Scabbers is Ron's pet, you can't just kill him without giving us a proper reason for it!"

"There - are - parts - of - it - even - I - don't - understand!" Lupin panted, still trying to restrain Black. "And Harry - you owe Harry the truth, Sirius!"

"And James," said Phoebe. "Twelve years ago you left your wife and son, neither of them knows what happened that night. Harry _and_ James deserve to know the truth, and you're not leaving here until they get it!"

Black stopped struggling, though his hollowed eyes were still fixed on Scabbers, who was clamped tightly under Ron's bitten, scratched and bleeding hands.

"All right, then," Black said, without taking his eyes off the rat. "Tell them whatever you like. But make it quick, Remus, I want to commit the murder I was imprisoned for..."

"You're nutters, both of you," said Ron shakily, looking round at his friends for support. "I've had enough of this. I'm off."

He pushed off the wall, winced and started to limp towards the door. When Sirius had collided with him, he had caught his ankle on a loose floorboard and it was throbbing nastily now as he tried to walk. Phoebe flicked her hand towards the door, and with a rush of wind it slammed shut.

"You're not going anywhere, Ron," the elemental said. "We're going to hear what they have to say, then, if I believe the story we're going to give them what they want -" Black looked hopeful. "If I don't _then_ and only _then_ will we go back to the Castle."

"Phoebe..." Harry murmured, stepping closer to his friend. "Do you know what you are doing?"

"Do you trust me?"

Harry nodded.

"Then sit down, shut up, and let them speak," Phoebe said, turning back to Lupin and Black. "Go on...we're listening."

Lupin considered his student for a moment, before noticing that the others were heeding Phoebe's orders and taking up residence around the room. Ron had sunk into a near-by armchair, Hermione was on a table, and Terence had taken up residence on the bottom of the bed; while James lay behind him, but Harry remained on his feet behind Phoebe.

"Everyone thought Sirius killed Peter," Lupin began. "I believed it myself - until I saw the map tonight. Because the Marauder's Map never lies...Peter's alive. Ron's holding him."

Harry looked around at Ron.

"But Professor Lupin," Hermione spoke, in a trembling, would-be calm sort of voice. "Scabbers can't be Pettigrew...it just can't be true, you know it can't..."

"Why can't it be true?" Lupin said calmly.

"Because...because people would know if Peter Pettigrew had been an Animagus. We did Animagi in class with Professor McGonagall. And I looked them up when I did my homework...the Ministry keeps tabs on witches and wizards who can become animals; there's a register showing what animal they become, and their markings and things...and I went and looked Professor McGonagall up on the register, and there have only been seven Animagi this century, and Pettigrew wasn't on the list -"

Lupin began to laugh again.

"Right again, Hermione!" he said. "But the Ministry never knew that there used to be three unregistered Animagi running around Hogwarts."

"If you're going to tell them the story, get a move on, Remus," snarled Black, who was still watching Scabbers's every desperate move.

Phoebe glared at him. "Unless the next words out of your mouth are relevant to the story," she snapped. "I don't want to hear another word from you!"

Her friends stared at her with wide eyes.

"You are exactly like your mother," Black croaked. "She was a bitch too!"

There was a loud creak as the bedroom door opened on its own accord. All of eight of them stared at it. Then Lupin strode towards it and looked out into the landing.

"No one there..."

"This place is haunted!" said Ron.

"It's not," said Lupin, still looking at the door in a puzzled way. "The Shrieking Shack was never haunted...the screams and howls the villagers used to hear were made by me."

He pushed his greying hair out of his eyes, thought for a moment, and then said, "That's where all of this starts - with my becoming a werewolf. None of this could have happened if I hadn't been bitten...and if I hadn't been so foolhardy..."

He looked sober and tired. Ron started to interrupt, but Hermione said, "Shh!" She was watching Lupin very intently.

"I was a very small boy when I received the bit. My parents tried everything, but in those days there was no cure. The Potion that Professor Snape has been making for me is a very recent discovery. It makes me safe, you see. As long as I take it in the week preceding the full moon, I keep my mind when I transform...I am able to curl up in my office; a harmless wolf, and wait for the moon to wane again. Before the Wolfsbane Potion was discovered, however, I became a fully-fledged monster once a month. It seemed impossible that I would be able to come to Hogwarts. Other parents weren't likely to want their children exposed to me -"

"But that's not fair!" Phoebe exclaimed. "Just because you were a werewolf doesnt mean you should have been treated any differently to anyone else's child! You were a human before you were bitten!"

Lupin smiled sadly at her. "I wish others shared the same views as you, Phoebe. But luckily enough Dumbledore became Headmaster, and he was more sympathetic. He said that, as long as we took certain precautions, there was no reason I shouldn't come to school..." Lupin sighed, and looked directly at Harry. "I told you, months ago, that the Whomping Willow was planted the year I came to Hogwarts."

"But that's not the complete truth..." Phoebe said, studying Lupin closely. "Is it?"

"No, the truth is that it was planted _because_ I had come to Hogwarts. This house -" Lupin looked miserably around the room, "- the tunnel that leads to it - they were built for my use. Once a month, I was smuggled out of the castle, into this place, to transform. The tree was placed at the tunnel mouth to stop anyone coming across me while I was dangerous. My transformations in those days were - were terrible. It is very painful to turn into a werewolf. I was separated from humans to bite, so I bit and scratched myself instead. The villagers heard the noise and the screaming and thought they were hearing particularly violent spirits. Dumbledore encouraged the rumor...even now, when the house has been silent for years, the villagers don't dare approach it..."

Phoebe glanced back at Harry to see the confusion on his face; she smiled lightly at him, and then turned back to Lupin who continued the story.

"But apart from my transformations, I was happier than I had ever been in my life. For the first time ever, I had friends, three great friends. Sirius Black...Peter Pettigrew...and, of course, your father, Harry - James Potter. Now, my three friends could hardly fail to notice that I disappeared once a month. I made up all sorts of stories. I told them my mother was ill, and I had to go home and see her..."

"Why didn't you just tell them the truth?" Phoebe asked.

"I was terrified that they would desert me the moment they found out what I was," Lupin answered.

"Then they were never great friends," said Phoebe. "Great friends stick with you no matter what or who you are!"

Lupin stared at her. "Then why don't you tell your friends your secret?"

Phoebe swallowed and looked down at the floorboards. "Mine is more complicated," she muttered.

"Than being a werewolf?" Lupin questioned. "I think not, Phoebe..."

"My secret could end the world!" Phoebe exclaimed, looking up at her Professor with wide terrified eyes. "If I was found out, by the wrong people...it would be the end of everything we hold most dear!"

Hermione, Ron and James looked on in confusion, whilst Harry and Terence stared at Phoebe sympathetically. They knew what she was referring too, having been in on the secret for the last year nearly.

Phoebe lowered her gaze once more. "Please continue with your story," she prompted Lupin.

"When my friends found out the truth," Lupin continued, his gaze still trained on Phoebe. "They didn't desert me. Instead they did something for me that would make my transformations not only bearable, but the best of my life. They became Animagi."

"My dad, too?" said Harry, astounded.

"Yes, indeed," said Lupin. "It took them the best part of three years to work out how to do it. Your father and Sirius here were the cleverest students in the school, and lucky they were, because the Animagus transformation can go horribly wrong - one reason the Ministry keeps a close watch on those attempting to do it. Peter needed all the help he could get from James and Sirius. Finally, in our fifth year, they managed it. They could each turn into a different animal at will."

"But how did that help you?" said Hermione, sounding puzzled.

"They couldn't keep me company as humans, so they kept me company as animals," said Lupin. "A werewolf is only a danger to people. They sneaked out of the castle every month under James's Invisibility Cloak. They transformed...Peter, as the smallest could slip beneath the Willow's attacking branches and touch the knot that freezes it. They would then slip down the tunnel and join me. Under their influence, I became less dangerous. My body was still wolfish, but my mind seemed to become less so while I was with them."

"Hurry up, Remus," snarled Black.

Phoebe glared at him.

"I'm getting there, Sirius, i'm getting there...well, highly exciting possibilities were open to us now we could all transform. Soon we were leaving the Shrieking Shack and roaming the school grounds and the village by night, Sirius and James transformed into large animals, and they were able to keep a werewolf in check. I doubt Hogwarts students ever found out more about the grounds and Hogsmeade than we did...and that's how we came to write the Marauder's Map, and sign it with our nicknames. Sirius is Padfoot -"

Phoebe looked towards James at this point. "Your childhood dog," she whispered.

James nodded as Lupin continued. "Peter was Wormtail. James was Prongs."

"What sort of animal -" Harry started, but Hermione cut across him.

"That was still really dangerous! Running around in the dark with a werewolf! What if you'd given the others the slip, and bitten somebody?"

"A thought that still haunts me," said Lupin heavily. "And these were near misses, many of them. We laughed about them afterwards. We were young, thoughtless - carried away with our own cleverness. I sometimes feel guilty about betraying Dumbledore's trust, of course...he had admitted me to Hogwarts when no other Headmaster would have so, and he had no idea I was breaking the rules he had set down for my own and others' safety. He never knew I had led three fellow students into becoming Animagi illegally. But I always managed to forget my guilty feelings every time we stand down to plan our next month's adventure. And I haven't changed..."

Lupin's face had hardened, and there was self-disgust in his voice. "All this year, I have been battling myself, wondering whether I should tell Dumbledore that Sirius was an Animagus. But I didn't do it. Why? Because I was too cowardly. It would have meant admitting that I'd betrayed his trust while I was at school, admitting that I'd led others along with me...and Dumbledore's trust has meant everything to me. He let me into Hogwarts as a boy, and he gave me a job, when I have been shunned all my adult life, unable to find paid work because of what I am. And so I convinced myself that Sirius was getting into the school using Dark Arts he learnt from Voldemort, that being an Animagus had nothing to do with it...so, in a way, Snape's been right about me all along."

"Snape?" said Black harshly. "What's Snape got to do with it?"

"He's here, Sirius," said Lupin heavily. "He's teaching here as well." He looked up at the students before him. "Professor Snape was at school with us. He fought very hard against my appointment to the Defence Against the Dark Arts job. He has been telling Dumbledore all year that I am not to be trusted. He has his reasons...you see, Sirius here played a trick on him which nearly killed him, a trick which involved me -"

Phoebe gasped as she realized -before anyone else- what Lupin meant.

"It served him right," Black sneered. "Sneaking around, trying to find out what we were up to...hoping he could get us expelled..."

"Severus was very interested in where I went every month," Lupin told the students. "We were in the same year, you know, and we - er - didn't like each other very much. He especially disliked James. Jealous, I think, of James's talent on the Quidditch pitch...anyway, Snape had seen me crossing the grounds with Madam Pomfrey one evening as she led me towards the Whomping Willow to transform. Sirius thought it would be - er - amusing, to tell Snape all he had to do was prod the knot on the tree-trunk with a long stick, and he'd be able to get in after me. Well, of course, Snape tried it - if he'd got as far as this house, he'd have met a fully grown werewolf - but your father, who'd heard what Sirius had done, went after Snape and pulled him back, at great risk of his life...Snape glimpsed me, though, at the end of the tunnel. He was forbidden to tell anybody by Dumbledore, but from that time on he knew what I was..."

"So that's why Snape doesn't like you," said Harry slowly, "because he thought you were in on the joke?"

"That's right," sneered a cold voice from the wall behind Lupin.

The students within the room froze. Lupin whipped around and Sirius rose from the bed.

Severus Snape was pulling off the Invisibility Cloak, his wand pointing directly at Lupin.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, December 05, 2011 at 12:42am**


	49. Chapter 49

**Author's Note** – Not much to say here, except please make sure you answer the question at the bottom. Thanks.

**Dedications - **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, 0Goddess Nyx0, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** and **ApotterFan.**

**Shout out** – To new readers: **HaeleaH** and **0Goddess Nyx0.**

**In responses – **Too tired to do them tonight. It's late and I have class in a few hours. So, I'm gonna leave them tonight.

Night.

* * *

><p>Hermione screamed. Black leapt to his feet. Harry jumped as though he'd received a huge electric shock.<p>

"I found this at the base of the Whomping Willow," said Snape, throwing the Cloak aside, careful to keep his wand pointing directly at Lupin's chest. "Very useful, Potter. I thank you..."

Snape was slightly breathless, but his face was full of suppressed triumph. "You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here?" he said, his eyes glittering. "I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your Potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did...lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know, I saw you running long this passageway and out of sight."

"Severus -" Lupin began, but Snape overrode him.

"I've told the Headmaster again and again that you've been helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout -"

"Severus, you're making a mistake," said Lupin urgently. "You haven't heard everything - I can explain - Sirius is not here to kill Harry -"

"Two more for Azkaban tonight," said Snape, his eyes now gleaming frantically. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this...he was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin...a _tame_ werewolf..."

"You fool," said Phoebe softly.

Everyone turned their attention towards her, stunned by her accusation.

Snape glared at her. "What did you say, Blackheart?"

"I said you're a fool!" Phoebe repeated. "Is a schoolboy grudge seriously worth putting an innocent man behind bars? It wouldn't hurt to hear what they have to say!"

"Miss Blackheart, you are already facing suspension from this school," Snape spat. "You, Potter, Weasley, Granger, Higgs and Black are out of bounds, in the company of a convicted murderer and a werewolf. For once in your life, _hold your tongue_."

"But if there _was_ a mistake -"

"KEEP QUIET YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape shouted. "DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" A few sparks shot out of the end of his wand, which he had now turned in her direction. The room began to tremble and the door burst open with a loud **BANG.**

Everyone within the room turned towards the door, and was stunned to find an angry looking Serefina Blackheart standing there. "Do not threaten my goddaughter, Snape!" she snapped angrily, her eyes returning to their normal colour.

"Serefina!" Phoebe gasped, dashing across the room and into the arms of her godmother. "But...how -?"

"The same way Severus knows," Serefina answered. "Professor Dumbledore asked me to check-up on Professor Lupin tonight, to make sure that he had taken his Potion, I arrived at his office just in time to see Severus disappear off the corner of the map -"

Harry looked surprised. "You know about the Map too?" he asked.

"Of course, Potter," Serefina answered. "But not in the way you think, I never attended Hogwarts as a child, I know of the Marauder's Map through other sources," she paused and looked around the room. "Now, would someone like to inform me on what is going on?"

"Professor Lupin was just explaining his story to us," Hermione said, hurrying across the room to stand alongside Serefina. "Professor Snape revealed himself a few moments ago and has been threatening Professor Lupin with Azkaban, he turned his wand on Phoebe and then you arrived - how did you save her?"

Serefina smiled down at the Bookworm. "There is a simple answer to that question, Hermione, but now is not the time to indulge in such explanations."

Hermione deflated and looked across at Phoebe, who gave her an 'I-Will-Explain-Everything-Later' look.

"Professor Blackheart is correct," said Lupin. "Now is not the time. Come, if we all go back to the castle we can finish this conversation there."

"As long as the boy brings his rat -" Black said, jerking his head at Ron, "- I'll come quietly."

"Up at the castle?" said Snape silkily. "I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the Dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black...pleased enough to give you a little kiss, I daresay..."

What little colour there was in Black's face left it.

"You - you've got to hear me out," he croaked. "The rat - look at the rat -"

But there was a mad glint in Snape's eyes that no one had ever seen before. He seemed beyond reason.

"Come on, all of you," he said. "Back to the castle!"

Phoebe panicked and exchanged a look with Serefina. They couldn't leave there was more to the story, she could feel it.

But before Phoebe or Serefina could stop the Potions Master, Harry had crossed the room and stood directly in front of the door, blocking anyone from leaving.

"Get out of the way, Potter, you're in enough trouble already," snarled Snape. "If I hadn't been here to save your skin -"

"Professor Lupin could have killed me about a hundred times this year," said Harry. "I've been alone with him loads of times, having defence lessons against the Dementors. If he was helping Black, why didn't he just finish me off then?"

"Don't ask me to fathom the way a werewolf's mind works," hissed Snape. "Get out of the way, Potter."

"YOU'RE PATHETIC!" Harry yelled. "JUST BECAUSE THEY MADE A FOOL OF YOU AT SCHOOL YOU WON'T EVEN LISTEN -"

"SILENCE! I WILL NOT BE SPOKEN TO LIKE THAT!" Snape shrieked, looking madder than ever. "Like father, like son, Potter! I have just saved your neck; you should be thanking me on bended knee! You would have been well served if he'd killed you! You'd have died like your father, too arrogant to believe you might be mistaken in Black - now get out of the way or I will make you -"

Phoebe stepped around Harry, and stood in front of him. "Professor, you don't understand! Like I told Harry and the others, Sirius Black had everything twelve years ago, he had a wife and a son...why would he suddenly want to throw all that away?" she asked.

"I do not pretend to understand the way of a murderer's mind, Blackheart!" Snape answered. "Now, both you and Potter, get out of the way!"

"No," Phoebe answered. "There is something we are missing. A piece of the puzzle that was about to be revealed before you arrived, and no one is leaving until I find out what that piece is!"

She had made her decision in a split second. Before Snape could even take a step towards her and Harry, she had curled her hand in towards her stomach, before pushing outwards towards Snape. The Potions Master was lifted off of his feet and slammed into the wall, then slid down it to the floor, a trickle of blood oozing from under his hair. He had been knocked out.

"Phoebe!" Serefina scolded, as the others looked around at the elemental.

"You shouldn't have done that," said Black, looking at Phoebe. "You should have left him to us adu -"

Phoebe glared at him. "To you adults? So far the only adults I see are my godmother! All you and Professor Lupin were doing was arguing with Snape like a couple of prepubescent school boys!"

"Phoebe, you attacked a teacher!" Hermione wailed.

"Shut up, Hermione!" Harry said, looking around at the Bookworm.

Lupin looked down at Phoebe. "You believe me?" he questioned.

"There is something about your story that seems realistic," Phoebe answered. "I'm intrigued to know more, and I know that I will not get the answers to the questions that I seek if we go back to the castle. I need to bide my time as carefully as I can here, in the Shrieking Shack, and until I get the information I need no one is too leave."

Serefina smirked at how mature her goddaughter sounded and looked at this very moment.

"What more do you need to know?" Black asked.

"It is not what I need to know," Phoebe answered. "It is more of what I need to see! I want proof!"

Black stared at her perplexed.

"Show me proof," Phoebe continued. "That Pettigrew is alive, that you are as innocent as you claim, and then I will believe your story."

Lupin and Black exchanged looks before turning to Ron.

"You, boy - give me Peter. Now."

Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest.

"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say you broke out of Azkaban just to get your hands on _Scabbers_? I mean..." he looked up at his friends for support. "OK, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat - there are millions of rats - how's he supposed to know which one he's after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"

"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question," said Lupin. "How _did_ you find out where he was?"

Black put one of his claw-like hands inside his robes and took out a crumpled piece of paper, which he smoothed flat, and held out to show the others.

It was a photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the _Daily Prophet_ the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers.

"How did you get this?" Serefina asked Black, thunderstruck.

"Fudge," said Black. "When he came to inspect Azkaban last year, he gave me this paper. And there was Peter, on the front page...on this boy's shoulder...I knew him at once...how many times had I seen him transform? And the caption said the boy would be going back to Hogwarts...to where Harry was..."

"My God," said Lupin softly, staring from Scabbers to the picture in the paper and back again. "His front paw..."

"What about it?" said Ron defiantly.

"He's got a toe missing," said Black.

"Of course," Lupin breathed, "so simple...so _brilliant_...He cut it off himself?"

Phoebe cringed.

"Just before he transformed," said Black. "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself - and sped down into the sewer with the other rats..."

"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?" said Lupin. "The biggest bit of Peter the found was his finger."

"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or somethin! He's been in my family for ages, right -"

"Twelve years, in fact," said Lupin. "Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?"

"We - we've been taking good care of him!" said Ron.

"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?" said Lupin. "I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again..."

"He's been scared of that mad cat!" said Ron, nodding towards Crookshanks.

"This cat isn't mad," said Black hoarsely. "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was straight away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me. Finally, I managed to communicate to him what I was after, and he's been helping me..."

"What do you mean?" breathed Hermione.

"He tried to bring me Peter, but couldn't...so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me...As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table."

Phoebe shook her head, her brain sagging under the weight of what she was hearing. "This must have happened while I was dead, because I don't remember any of this,"

"Yes, Phoebe, this was all when you were 'dead'," said James from the bed. "That reminds me, do you want to refresh your story on how you managed to survive?"

"Later," said Phoebe, turning to Black. "Continue."

Black nodded. "But Peter got wind of what was going on and ran for it...this cat - Crookshanks, did you call him? - told me Peter had left blood on the sheets...I suppose he bit himself...well, faking his own death had worked once..."

"And why did he fake his death?" Harry asked furiously. "Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!"

"No," said Lupin. "Harry -"

"And now you've come to finish him off!"

"Yes, I have," said Black, with an evil look at Scabbers.

"Then we should have let Snape take you!" Harry shouted.

"Harry," said Phoebe, touching Harry's shoulder, "don't you see? All this time we've thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down - but it was the other way around, don't you see it? _Peter_ betrayed your mother and father - Sirius tracked _Peter_ down -"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Harry yelled, shoving Phoebe away from him. "HE WAS THEIR SECRET KEEPER! HE SAID SO! HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!"

Phoebe stared at Harry from Terence's arms, he had caught her after Harry had shoved her away, and was now sitting on the bed with his arms around her waist, and Phoebe leaning against him.

"Harry...I as good as killed them," Sirius croaked. "I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use them as Secret Keeper instead of me...I'm to blame, I know it...the night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, I told Sam that I would be going out for a while and that she and James should lock the doors behind me in case anybody unwanted came looking. We weren't in hiding, but I was afraid that the Death Eaters would take my wife and child to use against me, in order to get you and your parents. When I arrived at Peter's hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right, I was scared, and I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies - I realized what Peter must have done. What I'd done."

His voice broke. He turned away.

"I've heard enough to make my own judgments!" Phoebe said. "I want to see proof that this story is true! Ron, _give them that rat!"_

"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?" Ron asked Lupin tensely.

"Force himself to show himself," said Lupin. "If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him."

Ron hesitated, then at long last held out Scabbers and Lupin took him. Scabbers began to squeak without stopping, twisting and turning, his tiny black eyes bulging in his head.

"Ready, Sirius?" said Lupin.

Black had already retrieved Snape's wand from the floor. He approached Lupin and the struggling rat, and his wet eyes suddenly seemed to be burning in his face.

"Together?" he said quietly.

"I think so," said Lupin, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. "On the count of three. One - two - THREE!"

A flash of blue-white light erupted from both wands; for a moment, Scabbers was frozen in mid-air, his small black form twisting madly - Ron yelled - the rat fell and hit the floor. There was another blinding flash of light and then -

It was like watching a speeded-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting upwards from the ground; limbs were sprouting; next moment, a man was standing where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands. Crookshanks was spitting and snarling, the hair on his back standing up.

He was a very short man; hardly taller than Harry and Hermione. His thin, colorless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who had lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers's fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose, his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Phoebe saw his eyes dart to the door and back again.

"Well, hello, Peter," said Lupin pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. "Long time, no see."

"S-Sirius...R-Remus..." Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted towards the door. "My friends...my old friends..."

Black's wand arm rose, but Lupin seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning look, and then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.

"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Lily and James died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squealing around down there on the floor -"

"Remus," gasped Pettigrew, "you don't believe him, do you...He tried to kill me, Remus..."

"So we've heard," said Lupin, more coldly. "I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'd be so -"

"He's come to try and kill me again!" Pettigrew shrieked suddenly, pointing at Black, and Phoebe saw that he used his middle finger, because his index finger was missing. "He killed Lily and James and now he's going to kill me, too...you've got to help me, Remus..."

Black's face looked more skull-like than ever as he stared at Pettigrew with his fathomless eyes.

"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out," said Lupin.

"Sorted things out?" squealed Pettigrew, looking wildly about him once more, eyes taking in the boarded windows and, again the only door. "I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!"

"You knew Black was going to break out of Azkaban?" said Serefina. "When nobody has ever done it before?"

"He's got Dark powers the rest of us can only dream of!" Pettigrew shouted shrilly. "How else did get out of there? I suppose He Who Must Not Be Named taught him a few tricks!"

Black started to laugh, a horrible, mirthless laugh that filled the whole room.

"Voldemort, teach me tricks?" he said.

Pettigrew flinched as though Black had brandished a whip at him.

"What, scared to hear your old master's name?" said Black. "I don't blame you, Peter. His lot isn't very happy with you, are they?"

"Don't know - what you mean, Sirius -" muttered Pettigrew, his breathing faster than ever.

"You haven't been hiding from _me_ for twelve years," said Black. "You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things in Azkaban, Peter...they all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them...I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser, double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information...and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban did they? There are still plenty out there, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways...if they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter -"

"Don't know...what you're talking about..." said Pettigrew again, more shrilly than ever. "You don't believe this - this madness, Remus -"

"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat," said Lupin evenly.

"Innocent, but scared!" squealed Pettigrew. "If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban - the spy, Sirius Black!"

Black's face contorted.

"How dare you," he growled, sounding suddenly like the bear-sized dog he had been. "I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful then myself? But you, Peter - I'll never understand why I didn't see you the spy from the start. You always liked big friends who'd look after you, didn't you? It used to be us...me and Remus...and James..."

"Me, a spy...must be out of your mind...never...don't know how you can say such a -"

"Lily and James only made you Secret Keeper because I suggested it," Black hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backwards. "I thought it was the perfect plan...a bluff...Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you...it must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters."

Pettigrew was muttering distractedly, Phoebe caught words like 'far-fetched' and 'lunacy', but she couldn't help paying more attention to the ashen colour on Pettigrew's face, and the way his eyes continued to dart towards the window and door.

"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione, "Can - can I say something?"

"Certainly, Hermione," said Lupin.

"Well - Scabbers - I mean, this - this man - he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he was working for You-Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?"

"There!" said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Hermione. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair on Harry's head! Why should I?"

"I'll tell you why," said Phoebe. "Because he is too cowardly! He couldn't do it. He could hand James and Lily over to Voldemort, stand back and watch the fireworks from afar. But he could never bring himself to do the deed himself. It's not in a Gryffindor's nature to go out and kill someone, but it is in the nature of a _rat_ to squeal on someone else." she turned to Pettigrew. "That is exactly what you are, a _Rat_! You weren't about to commit a murder in a school where Albus Dumbledore was Headmaster, you wanted to make sure that Voldemort was the biggest bully on the playground before you considered doing anything else for him, like harming Harry Potter. For the last twelve years, Voldemort has been in hiding, he is half-dead! If you killed Harry Potter, then he wouldn't be able to protect, and that didn't sit right with you. That is why you found yourself a Wizarding family to take care of you, weren't it? To keep an ear out for news, just in case your old protector regained strength and it was safe to rejoin him..."

Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk.

"Er - Mr. Black - Sirius?" said Hermione timidly.

Black jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though being spoken to politely was something he'd long forgotten.

"If you don't mind me asking, how - how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?"

"Thank you!" gasped Pettigrew, nodding frantically at her. "Exactly! Precisely what I -"

Lupin silenced him with a look. Black was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he was annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.

"I don't know how I did it," he said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the Dementors couldn't suck it out of me...but it kept me sane and knowing who I am...helped me keep my powers...so when it all became...too much...I could transform in my cell...become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know..." He swallowed. "They...feel...their...way...towards...people...by...sensing...their emotions...they could tell that my feelings were less - less human, less complex when I was a dog...but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand...But then I saw Peter in that picture...I realized he was at Hogwarts with Harry...perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again..."

Pettigrew was shaking his head again, mouthing noiselessly, but staring all the while at Black as though hypnotized.

"...ready to strike the moment he could be sure of allies...to deliver the last Potter to them. If he gave them Harry, who'd dare say he'd betrayed Lord Voldemort? He'd be welcomed back with honors...So you see, I had to do something. I was the only one who knew Peter was alive..."

"He's at Hogwarts..." Ron muttered.

Phoebe snapped her head in his direction. "What?" she asked.

Ron frowned. "Huh?"

"What did you just say?" Phoebe questioned him.

"Oh, something I overheard my dad telling mum over the summer," Ron answered. "The guards say he's been talking in his sleep...always the same words...'_He's at Hogwarts_'"

Phoebe frowned. "And everyone thought that the 'He' was Harry," she pointed towards her friend. "When in fact it was...him," she turned back to Pettigrew.

Sirius nodded at Phoebe. "It was as if someone had lit a fire in my head, and the Dementors couldn't destroy it...it wasn't a happy feeling...it was an obsession...but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog...it's so much harder to sense animal emotions that they were confused...I was thin, very thin...thin enough to slip through the bars...I swam as a dog back to the mainland...I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog...I've been living in the Forest ever since...except when I come to watch the Quidditch, of course...you fly as well as your father did, Harry..."

He looked at Harry, who did not look away.

Phoebe smiled at the exchange.

"Believe me," croaked Black. "Believe me. I never betrayed your James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them."

"I believe you," Phoebe confirmed. "Your concern for Harry's safety is genuine. I can sense that..." she smiled, and turned to Harry. "He's trustworthy."

Harry stared at the man in front of him, before; at long last, he nodded.

"No!"

Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though Harry's nod had been his on death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, groveling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying.

"Sirius - it's me...it's Peter...your friend...you wouldn't..."

Black kicked him and Pettigrew recoiled.

"There's enough filth on my robes with you touching them," said Black.

"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Lupin instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. "You don't believe this...Wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd change the plan?"

"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter," said Lupin. "I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?"

"Forgive me, Remus," said Black.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Lupin, who was now rolling up his sleeves. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing _you_ were the spy?"

"Of course," said Black, and the ghost of a grin flittered across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. "Shall we kill him together?"

"Yes, I think so," said Lupin grimly.

"You wouldn't...you won't..." gasped Pettigrew. And he scanned around for Ron.

"Ron...haven't I been a good friend...a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you...you're on my side, aren't you?

But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.

"I let you sleep in my _bed!"_ he said.

"Kind boy...kind master..." Pettigrew crawled towards Ron, "you won't let them do it...I was your rat...I was a good pet..."

"If you made a better rat than human, it's not much to boast about, Peter," said Black harshly.

Ron pulled himself out of Pettigrew's grasp, causing the man to turn towards Hermione.

"Sweet girl...clever girl...you - you won't let them...help me..."

Hermione stepped backwards, as Serefina's eyes burned a soft cobalt blue. A warning signal that Pettigrew took heartedly and backed away from the bookworm.

Pettigrew knelt, trembling uncontrollably, and turned his head slowly towards Harry.

"Harry...Harry...you look just like your father...just like him..."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?" roared Black. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?"

"Harry," whispered Pettigrew, shuffling towards him, hands outstretched. "Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed...James would have understood, Harry...he would have shown me mercy..."

Phoebe stepped away from her godmother, and came between Pettigrew and Harry. "If you wanted mercy then you're looking in the wrong place," she told him. "You killed two innocent people, you may not have taken their lives yourself, but their blood is on your hands! You put an innocent man behind bars for twelve years, took him away from his family, cost him everything! It's too late to be begging for mercy, Pettigrew. Just suck it up and take your punishment like a man!"

Both Lupin and Black strode forwards, seized Pettigrew's shoulders and threw him backwards onto the floor. He saw there, twitching with terror, staring up at them.

"You sold James and Lily to Voldemort," said Black, who was shaking too. "Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew burst into tears. It was horrible to watch: he looked like an oversized, balding baby, cowering on the floor.

"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord...you have no idea...he has weapons you can't imagine...I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen...He Who Must Not Be Named forced me -"

"DON'T LIE!" bellowed Black. "YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He - he was taking over everywhere!" gasped Pettigrew. "Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"What was there to be gained by fighting the most evil wizard who has ever existed?" said Black, with a terrible fury in his face. "Only innocent lives, Peter!"

"You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Black. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.

"You should have realized," said Lupin quietly. "If Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Goodbye, Peter."

Hermione covered her face with her hands and hid further behind Serefina.

"NO!" Harry yelled. He stepped around Phoebe and ran forwards, placing himself in front of Pettigrew facing the wands. "You can't kill him," he said breathlessly. "You can't."

Black and Lupin both looked staggered.

"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents," Black snarled. "This cringing bit of filth would have seen you die, too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your whole family."

"I know," Harry panted. "We'll take him to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors. He can go to Azkaban...just don't kill him."

"Harry!" gasped Pettigrew, and he flung his arms around Harry's knees. "You - thank you - it's more than I deserve - thank you -"

"Get off me," Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because I don't reckon my dad would've wanted his best friends to become killers - just for you."

No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. Black and Lupin were looking at each other then, with one movement, they lowered their wands.

"You're the only person who has the right to decide, Harry," said Black. "But think...think what he did..."

"He can go to Azkaban," Harry repeated. "If anyone deserves that place, he does..."

Pettigrew was still wheezing behind him.

"Very well," said Lupin. "Stand aside, Harry."

Harry hesitated.

"I'm going to tie him up," said Lupin. "That's all, I swear."

Harry stepped out of the way. Thin cords shot from Lupin's wand this time, and next moment Pettigrew was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged.

"But if you transform, Peter," growled Black, his own wand pointing at Pettigrew, too, "we _will_ kill you. You agree, Harry?"

Harry looked down, and nodded so that Pettigrew could see him.

"Right," said Lupin, suddenly business-like. "James, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap up your arm and leg until we can get you to the hospital wing. You always was an accident prone child."

Phoebe smirked as James scowled and Sirius laughed loudly.

Lupin tapped James's leg with his wand and muttered _"Ferula."_ Bandages spun up James's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. He repeated the spell on his arm and bandages appeared there too. James then, with the help of his godfather, put his feet to the floor and stood up gingerly, but didn't wince.

"That's better," he said. "Thanks."

"What about Professor Snape?" said Terence, looking down at the prone figure of his Head of House.

"There's nothing seriously wrong with him," said Serefina. "Phoebe was just a little temperamental. Still out cold. Er - perhaps it will be best if we don't revive him until we're safely back in the castle. We can take him like this..."

She muttered _"Mobilicorpus_." As though invisible strings were tied to Snape's wrists, neck and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, head still lolling unpleasantly, like a puppet. He hung a few feet above the ground, his limp feet dangling. Phoebe picked up the Invisibility Cloak and tucked it safely into her pocket.

"And two of us should be chained to this," said Black, nudging Pettigrew with his toe. "Just to make sure."

"I'll do it," said Lupin.

"And me," said Ron savagely, limping forwards.

Black conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Pettigrew was upright again, left arm chained to Lupin's right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken to Scabbers's true identity as a personal insult. Crookshanks padded across the room and led the way out of the bedroom door, his bottle-brush tail held jauntily high.

"Come on," Phoebe said, turning to Terence and holding out her hand, as the others filed from the room. "I'm sorry for dragging you into all this."

Terence grasped her hand tightly. "If dragging me into this means I can stop you from getting yourself killed," he answered, tucking a strand of stray black hair behind her ear. "Then you can drag me into anything."

"Careful what you say," Phoebe replied. "I may take you up on that offer..."

Terence smirked, brushed his thumb across her cheek, and then brought her lips to his. "Although, you do have some explaining to do!" he added, before kissing her.

Phoebe smiled into it, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I had to include that last scene between Phoebe and Terence, because there wasn't much dialogue between them; and there were slight Phoebe/Harry scenes in this chapter.**

**Before I go; I must ask, who should be at the lake with the Dementors?**

**Harry and Sirius or Harry, Sirius and Phoebe. Choice is yours.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Tuesday, 06 December 2011 at 4:05am**


	50. Chapter 50

**Author's Note - **I just want to tell you that I do **NOT** know when the next update for this series will be, because I currently have 3 essays that need to be completed within the next week. They are to be handed in on the 16th December and that is a week Friday (also known as the end of term for me) and they have to be 2,500 words each. So I hope you bear with me when I say that putting this story on hold is the **LAST** thing I want to do, but sadly University comes first. I just hope you are all here when I come back, because I have many more surprises to come.

**Dedications - **Chapter goes out to the following: **10th Squad 3rd Seat, ApotterFan, 0Goddess Nyx0, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics **and new reviewer: **Vmarslovahhh18.** Thank you all for taking the time to read and review, I really appreciate it.

There are no in responses at this time.

Again, I apologize for leaving you for what seems to be a week and a half, but I hope you understand that it is not something I want. As soon as I finish University for Christmas I will come back. You have my word!

Here is Chapter 50 –

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><p>Phoebe had never been a part of a stranger group. Crookshanks led the way down the stairs; Lupin, Pettigrew and Ron went next, looking like contestants in six-legged race. Next came Professor Snape, drifting creepily along, his ties hitting each stair as they descended, held up by his own wand, which was being pointed at him by Sirius. Harry and Hermione came next, supporting James. And Phoebe, Terence and Serefina brought up the rear.<p>

Getting back into the tunnel was difficult. Lupin, Pettigrew and Ron had to turn sideways to manage it; Lupin still had Pettigrew covered with his wand. Phoebe could see them edging awkwardly along the tunnel in a single file. Crookshanks was still in the lead. Harry went after Sirius, and turned to help James and Hermione into the darkness, leaving Phoebe, Terence and Serefina to follow them.

"_You are in so much trouble, Phoebe," _Serefina was saying in a language that only Phoebe could understand. "_I specifically told you to __**stay in the castle!**__ Do you have any idea what could have happened to you tonight! Do you even care that you put your friends in danger?"_

Phoebe lowered her gaze to the stone tunnel beneath her feet. "_In my defence, Serefina, James and Terence came looking for __**me**__. It was only me, Harry, Ron and Hermione down in Hagrid's; we had to see him before they executed Buckbeak! We couldn't leave him like that! He was so heartbroken!"_

_"That is beside the point, Phoebe!"_ Serefina scolded. "_You were out of bounds after hours! You followed a murderer into the Shrieking Shack! You exposed yourself to countless of people! Do you have any idea what you have done?"_

_"Does this mean I have to leave Hogwarts?"_ Phoebe squeaked, her grandfather had always told her when she was growing up, that if she was not careful in hiding her elemental magic then she and the family would have had to move, leave everything they had behind and go find a new home in a new country. She didn't want to leave Hogwarts. She didn't want to leave her friends.

Serefina sighed and glanced over her shoulder at her goddaughter. "_I do not know I will have to talk with Papa."_

"_But he is going to be disappointed in me!"_ Phoebe cried. "_Please, Serefina, please don't tell Papa."_

_"I am sorry, Little Star,"_ Serefina apologized. "_But they must know. It is by the code."_

Phoebe frowned. What was the code? "_What's the code?"_

_"The code of the Elementals,"_ Serefina answered. "_You will understand one day."_

_"So far?"_ Phoebe said. "_The code sucks!"_

Meanwhile, up ahead, Sirius and Harry were having a similar conversation.

"You know what this means?" Sirius was saying to Harry. "Turning Pettigrew in?"

"You're free," said Harry.

"Yes..." said Sirius. "But I'm also - I don't know if anyone ever told you - I'm your godfather."

"Yeah, I knew that," said Harry.

"Well...your parents appointed me your guardian," said Sirius stiffly. "If anything happened to them..."

Harry waited.

"I'll understand, of course, if you want to stay with your aunt and uncle," said Sirius. "But...well...think about it. Once my name's cleared...if you wanted a...a different home..."

"What - live with you?" Harry said, accidentally cracking his head on a bit of rock protruding from the ceiling. "Leave the Dursleys?"

"Of course, I though you wouldn't want to," said Sirius quickly. "I understand. I just thought I'd -"

"Are you mad?" said Harry. "Of course I want to leave the Dursleys! Have you got a house? When can I move in?"

Sirius turned right around to look at him. "You want to? You mean it?"

"Yeah, I mean it!" said Harry.

Sirius's gaunt face broke into the first true smile Harry had seen upon it. The difference it had made was starting, as though a person ten years younger was shining through the starved mask; for a moment, he was recognizable as the man who had laughed at Harry's parents wedding.

No one spoke again until they reached the end of the tunnel. Crookshanks darted up first; he had evidently pressed his paw to the knot on the trunk, because Lupin, Pettigrew and Ron clambered upwards without any sound of savaging branches.

Sirius saw Snape up through the hole, and then stood back for Harry, Hermione and James to pass. Terence was next, and with the help of Harry was able to pull Phoebe up out of the hole. Next came Serefina, followed finally by Sirius.

At last, all of them were out.

The grounds were very dark now; the only light came from distant windows of the castle. Without a word, they set off.

Pettigrew was still wheezing and occasionally whimpering.

"One wrong move Peter," said Lupin threateningly, ahead. His wand was still pointed sideways at Pettigrew's chest.

Silently they tramped through the grounds, the castle lights growing larger. Snape was still drifting weirdly ahead of Sirius, his chin bumping on his chest. And then -

A cloud shifted. There were dim shadows on the ground. Their party was bathed in moonlight.

"_You forgot to take your Potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along."_

Terence collided with Phoebe, who had stopped abruptly. "What?" he asked, causing Serefina and Hermione to turn back.

Phoebe pointed at the moon and turned her gaze towards Lupin. He had gone rigid, and his limps began to shake.

"Stop!" she called.

Sirius froze. He flung out an arm to make Harry stop.

"He didn't take his Potion tonight," Phoebe stated. "That's how Professor Snape knew where we were, he saw it on the Map when he took Lupin his Potion! He's not safe!"

"Oh my -" Hermione gasped.

"Run," Sirius whispered. "Run! Now!"

But Phoebe couldn't run. Ron was chained to Pettigrew and Lupin. She darted forward but Sirius caught her around the chest and threw her back, into Harry, who caught her around the waist as she doubled over after stumbling.

"Leave it to me - RUN!"

There was a terrible snarling noise. Lupin's head was lengthening. So was his body. His shoulders were hunching. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. Crookshanks fur was on end again, he was backing away -

As the werewolf reared, snapping its long Jaws. Sirius disappeared. He had transformed. The enormous, bear-like dog bounded forwards. As the werewolf wrenched itself free of the manacle binding it, the dog seized it about the neck and pulled it backwards, away from Ron and Pettigrew. They were locked, jaw to jaw, claws ripping at each other -

There was a bang, a burst of light - and Ron lay motionless on the floor.

Hermione screamed. Pettigrew had managed to get ahold of Lupin's fallen wand, and had used it not once, but twice - once on Ron, and the second time on Crookshanks, who flew into the air and back to the earth in a heap.

"_Experlliarmus!"_ Terence yelled, pointing his own wand at Pettigrew; Lupin's wand flew high into the air and out of sight.

"Stay where you are!" Harry shouted, passing Phoebe over to Terence and running forwards.

Too late. Pettigrew had transformed, his bald tail whipped through the manacle on Ron's outstretched arm, and scurried away through the grass.

"Damn it!" Phoebe swore, before looking up as a shrill cry joined the commotion of the fighting Black Dog and Werewolf. A Golden Eagle flew up into the air, before diving forward and started to claw at Lupin's face.

The werewolf swiped its elongated claw at the Eagle which screeched as the claws ripped through her right wing and sent her crashing into a heap on the earth.

"SEREFINA!" Phoebe yelled.

Lupin turned its attentions onto the students, all of which backtracked away from the advancing werewolf -

There was a howl and a rumbling growl, and before anyone could blink - Lupin had taken flight, he was galloping into the Forest -

"Sirius, he's gone, Pettigrew transformed!" Harry yelled.

Sirius was bleeding; there were gashes across his muzzle and back, but at Harry's words, he scrambled up again, and in an instant, the sound of his paws were fading to silence as he pounded away across the grounds.

Phoebe and Hermione dashed over to Ron.

"What did he do to him?" Hermione whispered. Ron's eyes were only half-closed; his mouth hung open. He was definitely alive, they could hear him breathing, but he didn't seem to recognize them.

"I don't know."

James looked desperately around. Black and Lupin had gone...they had no one by Snape and Serefina for company. Snape was still hanging, unconscious, in mid-air, and Serefina was lying semi-conscious on the grass a few feet away; her shoulder and arm were a bloody mess from the open gash that Lupin had made when she was in her Animagus form.

"Why couldn't this have waited until we were closer to the lake?" Phoebe cried. "I can heal you if we were near a body of water,"

"I'll be fine, Pheebs," Serefina promised. "You and the others just get back to the castle, go find Dumbledore and tell him what has happened."

Phoebe shook her head. "I am not leaving you out here with a werewolf on the loose!" she stated. "They may not be that much of a deal to us, Serefina, but I am not going to risk it! You have lost too much blood; Lupin may take it as a sign of weakness and go straight for an attack."

"Phoebe, listen to me," Serefina scolded. "Go back to the castle, and get help!"

But Phoebe was stubborn. "No! Listen to me, please! I can't lose you!"

"And you won't, as long as you do as I say!"

The young Gryffindor shook her head, as fresh tears appeared in her eyes. She wasn't leaving her godmother alone on the grounds, bleeding from her arm, unable to use her powers, and with a werewolf on the loose. "I'm not leaving," she said in a final tone. "But the rest of you can!"

"Are you crazy?" Harry snapped. "We're not leaving you in the grounds with a werewolf, any more than you want to leave Professor Blackheart!"

"I can hold off a werewolf," Phoebe argued. "I'm stronger! I can do it!"

"You are supposed to be resting!" Harry responded. "You can't rest your core if you keep using it!"

Phoebe glared. "Don't argue with me Harry, just do as I say!"

"You're not in char -" Harry started, but out of the darkness, they heard a yelping, a whining of a dog in pain.

James paled. "Dad!" he exclaimed, at the same time Harry muttered "Sirius,"

"Someone has to help him," James yelped. "Please -"

There was a moment if indecision, but there was nothing he could do for Ron at the moment, and by the sound of it, Black was in trouble -

Harry set off at a run, Hermione calling after him.

"No," Phoebe yelled, pointing at Hermione as she started after Harry. "Don't move! You, Terence and James are to stay here! I'll go get Harry."

"But Phoebe -"

Phoebe shook her head and jumped to her feet, "Keep pressure on Serefina's arm, James stay off your leg, and for Merlin's sake, everyone stay together, there is safety in numbers!"

And with that she set off into the darkness after Harry.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The yelping seemed to be coming from near the lake. Phoebe pelted through the trees, towards the water's edge.

Suddenly, the yelping stopped abruptly, and Phoebe became aware of the sudden drop in temperature. _**Oh no...**_ She thought as she realized too late what it meant.

As she reached the break in the trees, Phoebe witnessed Sirius; he had turned back into a man. He was crouched on all fours, his hands over his head.

_"Nooo,"_ he moaned. "_Nooo...please..."_

And then Phoebe saw them. Dementors, at least a hundred of them, were gliding in a black mass around the lake towards Harry and Sirius. She spun around, the familiar, icy cold penetrating her insides, fog started to obscure her vision; more were appearing out of the darkness of every side; they were encircling them.

_**Think of something happy**_ Phoebe coached herself, as she reached for her wand. She had taken Defence training against Dementors when she was a younger girl, her grandfather had taught her. And although she wasn't anywhere close to a genius, as people believed her to be, she was a fast learner and was able to quickly grasp the concept of spells in their natural context. In other words; she had been able to create a corporeal Patronus since the age of 7.

The Dementors were closing in; barely ten feet from them. Phoebe sought out Harry's hand, taking the younger Gryffindor by surprise; he hadn't seen or heard her arrive.

Together the Dementors formed a solid wall around Harry and Phoebe, and were getting closer -

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM!"_ Harry yelled, "_EXPECTO PATRONUM!"_

A wisp of silver escaped his wand and hovered like mist before him. At the same moment, Phoebe felt her legs buckle as a small whisper of "_Expecto Patronum!"_ escaped her lips. Her wand shone brightly, and the Dementors back off slightly from the light, but with Phoebe's brain becoming foggier by the minute, the spell didn't last long.

"Phoebe..." Harry murmured, scared as he watched Phoebe hit the cold grass. He was alone...completely alone...

"_Expecto...expecto patronum..."_

Harry fell his knees hit the cold grass beside his unconscious friend and godfather. Fog was clouding his eyes. With a huge effort, he fought to remember - Sirius was innocent - innocent - _we'll be OK - I'm going to live with him -_

"_Expecto patronum!"_ he gasped.

By the feeble light of his formless Patronus, he saw a Dementor halt, very close to him. It couldn't walk through the cloud of silver mist Harry had conjured. A dead, slimy hand slid out from under the cloak. It made a gesture as though to sweep the Patronus aside.

"No - _no -"_ Harry gasped. "He's innocent - _expecto - expecto patronum -"_

He could feel them watching him, hear their rattling breath like an evil wind around him. The nearest Dementor seemed to be considering him. Then it raised both its rotting hands - and lowered its hood.

Where there should have been eyes, there was only thin, grey-scabbed skin, stretched bleakly over empty sockets. But there was a mouth...a gaping, shapeless hole, sucking the air with the sound of a death-rattle.

A paralyzing terror filled Harry so that he couldn't move or speak. His Patronus flickered and died.

White fog was blinding him. He had to fight..._expecto patro-num_...He couldn't see...and in the distance, he heard the familiar screaming..._expecto patronum_...he groped in the mist for Phoebe and Sirius, he found both of them...they weren't going to take either of them...

But a pair of strong, clammy hands suddenly wrapped themselves around Harry's neck. They were forcing his face upwards.

_**I wonder if this is what Phoebe felt months ago?**_ Harry wondered. He could feel his breath...it was going to get rid of him first...he could feel its putrid breath...his mother was screaming in his ears...she was going to be the last thing he ever heard -

And then, through the fog that was drowning him, he thought he saw a silvery light, growing brighter and brighter...he felt himself fall forwards onto the grass.

Face down; too weak to move, sick and shaking, Harry opened his eyes. The blinding light was all around him, it illuminated the grass ...the screaming had stopped; the cold was ebbing away...

Something was driving the Dementors back...it was circling around him and Sirius and Phoebe...the rattling, sucking sounds of the Dementors were fading. Thy were leaving...the air was warm again.

With every ounce of strength he could muster, Harry raised his head a few inches and saw an animal amidst the light, galloping away across the lake. Eyes blurred with sweat, Harry tried to make out what it was...it was bright as a unicorn. Fighting to stay conscious, Harry watched it canter to a halt as it reached the opposite shore. For a moment, Harry saw, but its brightness, somebody welcoming it back...raising his hand to pat it...someone who looked strangely familiar...but it couldn't be...

Harry didn't understand. He couldn't think any more. He felt the last of his strength leave him, and his head hit the ground as he fainted.

The second Harry's had hit the ground, soft footfalls resounded across the grass, as a pair of black boots approached the three unconscious bodies on the grassy shore. A figure knelt beside Phoebe, touched her shoulder and rolled her over; her eyes were half-closed, and the figure could see the soft burning of cobalt blue in her irises.

"_It's her_," said a voice, in what sounded to be Russian. "_What do we do, we cannot just leave her here!"_

_"They will be waking up soon,"_ another voice answered in the same language. "_Serefina will find her..."_

There was a heavy pause, and -

"_Pettigrew escaped...The twin cores must be united...before it's too late!"_

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, December 07, 2011 at 3:26am**


	51. Chapter 51

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the delayed update. I would have updated on Friday, but was caught up in planning ahead for this story and MWS. Also, I have not finished writing my essays and they are seriously starting to annoy me [I honestly can't wait for the end of term]. But anyway, here is another update for Phoebe.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat.**

**Shout outs:** Big hello to **Culdrencakeaddiction** and **Misssmartt** for adding me to their Story Alerts. Big thank you on my part.

**In responses: **First to **Fan of Fics**: The Eagle is supposed to be presented as wise, and it just seemed to fit Serefina so perfectly. At first it was meant to be for Phoebe, but I have another in mind for her. As for the Dementors she did attempt her Patronus but she was too overcome with false hope and bad memories that it didn't take affect straight away, the Russian accents don't necessarily mean Durmstrang students; Phoebe can speak Russian and she doesnt go to Durmstrang. And the twin cores will be explained soon.

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** Phoebe would love a hug. She will need one by the end of all this.

* * *

><p><em>"What are you doing here? If Phoebe were to catch you -"<em>

_"Is that all you care about? If Phoebe were to catch me? She doesn't know me! What is she going to do?"_

_"She is brighter than anyone can ever imagine! She will pick up on the connection before anyone else, Aiden!"_

_"That's beside the point and you know it! What are your true fears of me being here?"_

Phoebe blinked as she lay listening to the whispered conversation of her Godmother and someone that she did not recognize; all she did get was a name. Aiden. Who was this 'Aiden', and why did it matter if she knew him, if she were to catch him? And was connection could she possibly make of him?

_"I have no fears of you being here, Aiden, I just want to know why!"_

_"The twin cores,"_

There was a pause.

_"How do you know about them?"_

_"He told me! He told me everything there was to know about the twin cores. She is one half, isn't she?"_

There was another pause, and Phoebe could almost imagine her Godmother shaking her head. "_What makes you think she is a twin core?"_

_"There are only two four-core elementals in existence, she is one of them! It is not that hard to make the connection when you think about it."_

_"That is why you are here,"_ Serefina said. "_To make the connection. Unite the twin cores."_

_"Yes. It is time they were united. You cannot keep it a secret forever! She deserves to know!"_

_"And she will know," _Serefina argued. "_When I believe the time is right, if she is told at the wrong moment then it could turn everything upside down. She is still unfit; she does not have full control of four elements yet. Telling her now could turn her completely against us. We must wait until the right moment."_

There was an aggravated sigh. _"And when will that be?"_

A slight tremor rocked the dormitory. "_Do not take that tone with me Aiden; I make the choices when it comes to Phoebe's safety, not you! If you so much as breathe a word to her about all this, do you understand?"_

There was another pause, and then -

_"Yes. I understand."_

_"Good. Now, you are to return to Salem,"_ Serefina instructed. "_You tell Thomas that operation 'Twin-cores' does not go ahead until I have given my say so; tell him that Phoebe is not ready for it, and when she is, I will send her to him."_

Phoebe turned away from the whispered conversation, and rolled her head over the pillow to look to her left; her gaze connected with Harry's, who had been lying in his bed and staring at the door in curiosity.

"What are they saying?" he asked.

"Something about Twin cores," Phoebe answered. "I'm not completely sure, but Serefina is telling him that I am not to know about anything to do with the topic subject, that I am not ready to know."

"Doesn't that worry you?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, I will know soon enough, I have already mastered the control of my water powers, and after tonight I think it is safe to say that I have mastered my air powers too. Rowena will be pleased."

Harry smiled as he watched Phoebe push herself carefully up into a sitting position, and look around the dormitory. James and Ron were lying in separate beds on the opposite side of the Hospital wing, Ron's ankle had been bandaged, and so had James's arm and leg. Hermione was sitting on the edge of her own bed looking thoroughly shaken at the events that had taken place in the past few hours, and Terence was sitting on the bottom of Phoebe's bed playing with invisible lint from the covers. He looked up as Phoebe shifted.

Madam Pomfrey now came walking briskly up the dark ward to Phoebe's bed. The elemental turned to look at her. She was carrying the largest block of chocolate Phoebe had ever seen in her life. It looked like a small boulder.

"Ah, you're awake!" she said briskly. She placed the chocolate on Phoebe's bedside table and began breaking it apart with a small hammer.

"How's James?" said Phoebe. "And Ron?"

"They'll live," said Madam Pomfrey grimly. "As for you and Mr. Potter...you'll be staying here until I'm satisfied you're - Potter, what do you think you're doing?"

Harry was sitting up, putting his glasses back on and picking up his wand.

"I need to see the Headmaster," he said.

"Potter," said Madam Pomfrey soothingly, "it's all right. They've got Black. He's locked away upstairs. The Dementors will be performing the Kiss any moment now -"

"WHAT?"

Harry and Phoebe had jumped out of bed. But their shouts had alerted those who were conversing in the corridor outside the Hospital Wing, because seconds later the door had opened and Cornelius Fudge and Severus Snape entered the ward.

"Harry, Harry, what's this?" said Fudge, looking agitated. "You should be in bed - has he had any chocolate?" he asked Madam Pomfrey anxiously.

"Minister, listen!" Harry said, "Sirius Black's innocent. Peter Pettigrew faked his own death! We saw him tonight! You can't let the Dementors do that thing to Sirius, he's -"

But Fudge was shaking his head with a small smile on his face. "Harry, Harry, you're very confused, you've been through a dreadful ordeal, lie back down, now, we've got everything under control..."

"YOU HAVEN'T!" Harry yelled. "YOU'VE GOT THE WRONG MAN!"

"Minister, listen, please," Hermione said; she had hurried to Harry's side and was gazing imploringly into Fudge's face. "I saw him, too. It was Ron's rat, he's an Animagus, Pettigrew, I mean, and -"

"You see, Minister?" said Snape. "Confunded, all of them...Black's done a very good job on them..."

"WE'RE NOT CONFUNDED!" Harry roared.

"Minister! Professor!" said Madam Pomfrey angrily. "I must insist you leave. Potter is my patient, and he should not be distressed."

"I'm not distressed; I'm trying to tell them what happened!" Harry said furiously. "If they'd just listen -"

But Madam Pomfrey suddenly stuffed a large chunk of chocolate into Harry's mouth. He choked, and she seized the opportunity to force him back onto the bed.

"Now, _please_, Minister, these children need care. Please leave -"

The door opened again. It was Dumbledore and Serefina. Phoebe jumped at the sight of her Godmother and the Headmaster. "Sirius Black -"

"For heaven's sake!" said Madam Pomfrey hysterically. "Is this a hospital wing or not? Headmaster, I must insist -"

"My apologies, Poppy, but I need a word with these students," said Dumbledore calmly. "I have just been talking to Sirius Black -"

"I suppose he's told you the same fairy tale he's planted in Potter's mind?" spat Snape. "Something about a rat, and Pettigrew being alive -"

"That, indeed, is Black's story," said Dumbledore, surveying Snape closely through his half-moon spectacles.

"And does my evidence count for nothing?" said Snape. "Pettigrew was not in the Shrieking Shack, nor did I see any sign of him in the grounds."

Phoebe shook her head. "That was because you were unconscious! You didn't arrive in time to hear -"

"Miss Blackheart, HOLD YOUR TONGUE!"

"No!" Phoebe snapped. "I won't! You weren't there when Professor Lupin and Sirius told us the whole story, and then when you were there you tried take control of everything! You're not in charge here, Professor! You don't know the whole truth; you just want revenge for something that Sirius did to you in the past!"

Snape looked murderous, but Phoebe looked equally murderous; both Student and Professor were glaring at one another from across the hospital wing, and it wasn't until Fudge step in did either one of them back down.

"Now, Snape," the Minister said, "this young lady is disturbed in her mind, we must make allowances -"

"I would like to speak with these students alone," said Dumbledore abruptly. "Cornelius, Severus, Serefina, Poppy - please leave us."

"Headmaster!" spluttered Madam Pomfrey. "They need treatment, they need rest -"

"This cannot wait," said Dumbledore, "I must insist."

Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips and strode away into her office at the end of the ward, slamming the door behind her. Fudge consulted the large gold watch dangling from his waistcoat.

"The Dementors should have arrived by now," he said. "I'll go and meet them. Dumbledore, I'll see you upstairs."

He crossed to the door and held it open for Snape and Serefina; the latter consulted her goddaughter with a calculating look before leaving the ward completely. Snape, however, remained.

"You surely don't believe a word of Black's story?" Snape whispered his eyes fixed on Dumbledore's face.

"I wish to speak to these students alone," Dumbledore repeated.

Snape took a step towards Dumbledore.

"Sirius Black showed he was capable of murder at the age of sixteen," Snape breathed. "You haven't forgotten that, Headmaster? You haven't forgotten that he once tried to kill _me_?"

"My memory is as good as it ever was, Severus," said Dumbledore quietly.

Snape turned on his heel and marched through the door Fudge was still holding. It closed behind them and Dumbledore turned to Harry, Hermione, Terence and Phoebe. Both Phoebe and Harry burst into speech at the same time.

"Professor, Black's telling the truth - we saw, Pettigrew -"

"- He escaped when Professor Lupin turned into a werewolf -"

"- He's a rat -"

"- Pettigrew's front paw, I mean, finger, he cut it off -"

"- Pettigrew attacked Ron, it wasn't Sirius -"

But Dumbledore held up his hand to stem the flood of explanations.

"It is your turn to listen, and I beg you will not interrupt me, because there is very little time," he said quietly. "There is not a shred of proof to support Black's story, except your word - and the word of four students will not convince anybody. A street full of eye-witnesses swore they saw Sirius murder Pettigrew. I myself gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius had been the Potters' Secret-Keeper"

"Professor Lupin can tell you -" Harry said, unable to stop himself.

"Professor Lupin is currently deep in the Forest, unable to tell anyone anything. By the time he is human again, it will be too late, Sirius will be worse than dead. I might add that werewolves are so mistrusted by most of our kind that his support will count for very little -"

Phoebe huffed. "I can relate..." she muttered.

"But -"

"_Listen to me, Harry._ It is too late, you understand me? You must see that Professor Snape's version of events is far more convincing than yours."

"He hates Sirius," Hermione said desperately. "All because of some stupid trick Sirius played on him -"

"Sirius has not acted like an innocent man. The attack on the Fat Lady - entering Gryffindor Tower with a knife - without Pettigrew, alive or dead, we have no chance of overturning Sirius's sentence."

Phoebe frowned. "What if you could see what we saw in the Shrieking Shack?" she questioned.

"I wish we could, Phoebe," said Dumbledore sadly.

"No, you can," Phoebe insisted. "All you need is our memories. All six of our memories are exactly the same, because we all witnessed the same thing!"

Harry, Hermione and Terence stared at Phoebe in surprise. That was a true fact.

"If you were to confirm that our memories were exactly the same," Phoebe continued, "the Ministry of Magic could view them, and come to the same conclusion, and even though we do not have Pettigrew as evidence the sentence would be overruled, and Sirius would still be free!"

Dumbledore stared wondrously at his student.

"Would that work?" Harry wondered aloud.

"It is the only chance we've got," Phoebe answered. "I mean, it's not like any of us can go back in time"

Hermione suddenly looked sheepish.

Phoebe eyed her best friend curiously. "There _isn't_ a way for us to go back in time, is there?"

"Now pay attention," said Dumbledore, speaking very low and very clearly, "Sirius is locked in Professor Flitwick's office on the seventh floor. Thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower. If all goes well, you will be able to save more than one innocent life tonight. But remember this, all of you. _You must not be seen_. Miss Granger, you know the law - you know what is at stake..._you - must - not - be - seen._"

Harry exchanged a look with Phoebe who shrugged to indicate that she didn't have a clue what was going on any more than he did. Dumbledore turned his heel and looked back as he reached the door.

"I am going to lock you in. It is -" he consulted his watch, "five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three turns should do it. Good luck."

"Good luck?" Harry repeated, as the door closed behind Dumbledore. "Three turns? What's he talking about? What are we supposed to do?"

Phoebe eyed her best friend curiously; a small glint from Hermione's neck caught her attention. _**Oh, I can't believe I didn't see that before!**_ She thought. "Hermione, how long have you been time-travelling?"

"Nearly all year," Hermione answered, removing a very thin, fine golden chain from beneath her shirt. "Now come here. _Quickly!"_

Harry moved forward looking completely bewildered, Phoebe grabbed Terence's hand and pulled him up from the bed as Hermione threw the chain around their necks.

"What are we doing?" Harry said, completely lost.

Hermione turned the hour-glass pendant over three times.

The dark ward dissolved, and the sensation of flying, very fast, backwards swarmed over the four of them. A blur of colours and shapes rushed past them; their ears pounding. And then their feet hit solid ground, and everything came into focus again.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Hermione, what -?" Harry started, looking around. They were standing in the deserted Entrance Hall and a stream of golden sunlight was falling across the paved floor from the open front doors.

"In here!" Phoebe said, seizing Terence's arm and dragging him across the hall to the door of an empty room, she opened it, pushed him inside, followed and waited for Hermione and Harry to join them, when they had she slammed the door behind them.

"What - how - Hermione, what happened?" Harry stuttered.

"We've gone back in time," Hermione whispered.

"How far back?" Phoebe asked.

"Three hours,"

Phoebe nodded and turned back to the door, and pressed her ear against it as none of this was a surprise to her.

"But -"

"Shh! Listen! Someone's coming! I think - I think it might be us!" There was a pause. "Footsteps across the hall...yes, I think it might be us going down to Hagrid's!"

"Are you telling me," Harry whispered, "that we're here in this room and we're out there, too?"

"Yes," said Hermione, "Phoebe?"

"I'm sure it's us," the elemental answered "it doesnt sound like more than four people...and we're walking slowly because we're under the Invisibility Cloak -"

She broke off, listening intently.

"We've gone down the steps..."

Hermione nodded and turned back to Harry, who was staring at her questionably. "It's called a Time Turner," she whispered, "and I got from Professor McGonagall on our first day back. I've been using it all year to get to all my lessons. Professor McGonagall made me swear I wouldn't tell anyone. She had to write all sorts of letters to the Ministry of Magic so I could have one. She had to tell them I was a model student, and that I'd never, ever use it for anything except my studies...I've been turning it back so I could do hours over again, that's how I've been doing several lessons at once."

"That's why you were always disappearing on us," said Phoebe. "Why me, Ashlyn, Harry and Ron clashed in Transfiguration the first day back; you was in Ancient Runes and you was in Divination, but you disappeared before Transfiguration."

The bookworm nodded in confirmation.

"I can now tell Ash that we weren't going crazy," said Phoebe, turning back to the door. "Unless we can't tell anyone about this, then I can just tell her that Ron is crazy!"

"But _I don't understand what Dumbledore wants us to do._ Why did he tell us to go back three hours? How's that going to help Sirius?"

"There must be something that happened around now he wants us to change," said Harry slowly. "What happened? We were walking down to Hagrid's three hours ago..."

_**Buckbeak!**_

Phoebe gasped. "'_If you succeed more than one innocent life will be spared...'_" she muttered. "Oh, My God! That's it!"

"What's it?" Hermione, Harry and Terence asked at the same time.

"Three hours ago, Buckbeak was executed!" Phoebe stated. "Dumbledore told us that if we succeed then more than one innocent life will be spared...Buckbeak was unfairly executed, he didn't do anything, and he was innocent! Dumbledore sent us back to this particular time, so that we could save Buckbeak!"

Harry frowned. "But how is that going to help Sirius?" he asked

"I don't know," Phoebe shrugged, turning to press her ear to the door. "Come on, I can't hear anyone else...let's go."

Phoebe pushed the door open. The Entrance Hall was deserted. As quietly and quickly as they could, they darted across the hall and down the steps. The shadows were already lengthening, the tops of the trees in the Forbidden Forest glided once more with gold.

"If anyone's looking out of the window -" Hermione squeaked, looking up at the castle behind them.

"They'll see four students walking around on the grounds," said Phoebe. "Relax; they won't know it's us."

Harry nodded. "If it makes you feel better, we'll run for it. Straight into the Forest, all right? We'll have to hide behind a tree or something and keep a lookout -"

"OK, but we'll go round by the greenhouses!" said Hermione breathlessly. "We need to keep out of sight of Hagrid's front door, or we'll see us! We must be nearly at Hagrid's by now!"

Harry looked confused, but before he could say anything Phoebe and Hermione and broke into a run. Both girls tore across the vegetable gardens to the greenhouses, paused for a moment behind them, then set off again, fast as they could, skirting around the Whomping Willow, tearing towards the shelter of the Forest.

Safe in the shadows of the trees, Phoebe turned and grinned as Harry and Terence joined them. "You know for a pair of Seekers, you guys are slow," she teased.

Both Terence and Harry glared at her.

Phoebe grinned. "Now, what?" she asked, turning to Hermione who was beside her panting.

"We need to sneak over to Hagrid's," Hermione answered. "Remember to keep out of sight."

"Yes, ma'am," Phoebe saluted, before turning back to the two boys. "Think you can keep up this time?"

But not waiting for an answer, the elemental turned and silently darted through the trees, keeping to the very edge of the Forest. Then, as they glimpsed the front of Hagrid's hut, they heard a knock upon his door. Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe spotted the other three close by, and motioned for them to follow her closer towards the edge of the Forest.

Phoebe pressed up against a wide oak trunk and peered out from the side, she felt a body cover hers and glanced back to see Terence standing directly behind her; Harry and Hermione stood opposite her, peering around another large oak tree.

And then Harry's own voice reached them from Hagrid's front door.

"It's us. We're wearing the Invisibility Cloak. Let us in and we can take it off."

"Yeh shouldn't have come!" Hagrid whispered. He stood back, and then shut the door quickly.

"This is the weirdest thing we've ever done," Harry said fervently.

Phoebe glanced across at him. "Really? As if hunting a Basilisk wasn't weird enough for you?"

"Let's move along a bit," Hermione whispered. "We need to get nearer to Buckbeak!"

They crept through the trees until they saw the nervous Hippogriff, tethered to the fence around Hagrid's pumpkin patch.

"Now?" Harry whispered.

"No!" said Hermione. "If we steal him now; those Committee people will think Hagrid set him free! We've got to wait until they've seen he's tied outside!"

"That's going to give us a window of about sixty-seconds," said Phoebe.

"That's impossible!" Terence whispered. "There is no way you'll get him out of there without being caught!"

Phoebe bit her lower lip; this was starting to seem impossible.

At that moment, there was a crash of breaking china from inside Hagrid's cabin.

"That's Hagrid breaking the milk jug," Hermione whispered. "I'm going to find Scabbers in a moment -"

Sure enough, a few minutes later, they heard Hermione's shriek of surprise.

"Hermione," said Harry suddenly, "what if we - we just run in there, and grab Pettigrew -"

"No!" said Hermione and Phoebe.

Hermione shook her head, as Phoebe turned back to the hut.

"Don't you understand? We're breaking one of the most important Wizarding laws. Nobody is supposed to change time, nobody! You heard Dumbledore, if we're seen -"

"We'd only be seen by ourselves and Hagrid!"

"Harry, what do you think you'd do if you saw yourself bursting into Hagrid's house?" said Phoebe.

"I'd - I'd think I'd gone mad," said Harry, "or I'd think there was some Dark Magic going on -"

"_Exactly!"_ said Hermione. "You wouldn't understand you might even attack yourself! Don't you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awful things that have happened when wizards have meddled with time...loads of them ended up killing their past or future selves by mistake!"

Harry sighed. "OK! It was just an idea, I just thought - wait a minute, why can't he go in?" he pointed at Terence.

"Because when we come out," Phoebe answered, "he and James are waiting on top of the slope for us, and don't you think it will be a bit strange if he suddenly appears in Hagrid's hut and again on top of the slope? More to the point, why would he want Scabbers in the first place?"

"Because he knows who Scabbers is,"

Phoebe nodded. "_He_ does! Past Terence doesn't! Think about it Harry, everything we know about Sirius and Pettigrew hasn't happened yet, either one of us breaking in there and demanding ourselves to hand over the Rat will cause chaos."

Hermione nodded in agreement.

"Phoebe," Terence murmured, he was staring up at the castle where a cluster of people where coming down the slope.

"Here they come," Phoebe confirmed. "We're about to come out!"

And sure enough, moments later, Hagrid's back door opened and the Golden Trio and Phoebe walked out of it with Hagrid.

"It's OK, Beaky, it's OK..." said Hagrid to Buckbeak. Then he turned to Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe. "Go on. Get goin'"

"Hagrid, we can't -"

"We'll tell them what really happened -"

"They can't kill him -"

"Go! It's bad enough without you lot in trouble an' all!"

Phoebe watched herself grab Harry's arm and tugged him in the direction of the front of the house.

"Go quick," said Hagrid. "Don' listen..."

There was a knock on Hagrid's front door. The execution party had arrived. Hagrid turned around and headed back into his cabin, leaving the back door ajar. Phoebe watched as her past self-lead the way around the house.

"Please, let's hurry," Hermione whispered. "I can't stand it, I can't bear it..."

Fudge appeared in the window causing past Phoebe to withdraw backwards into past Harry; Terence tensed at the exchange out in the pumpkin patch, and glanced down at his girlfriend and then across at the Harry that hid behind a second oak tree; his arm wound around Phoebe's waist and he held he between himself and the tree.

"Go!" past Phoebe ordered and the four students in the pumpkin patch took off up the grassy slope. Past Harry grabbing Phoebe's hand and pulling her along behind him.

Despite their past self's had left, Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and Terence could hear everything that was being said inside the cabin from the door which stood ajar at the back of the house.

"Where is the beast?" came the cold voice of Macnair.

"Out - outside," Hagrid croaked.

Terence pulled Phoebe out of sight as Mcnair's face appeared at Hagrid's window, staring out at Buckbeak. Then they heard Fudge.

"We - er - have to read you the official notice of execution, Hagrid. I'll make it quick. And then you and Macnair need to sign it, Serefina. Macnair, you're supposed to listen too, that's procedure -"

Macnair's face vanished from the window. It was now or never.

"Wait here," Harry whispered to Hermione. "I'll do it."

As Fudge's voice started again, Harry darted out from behind his tree, vaulted the fence into the pumpkin patch and approached Buckbeak.

"_It is the decision of the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures that the Hippogriff Buckbeak, hereafter called for condemned, shall be executed on the sixth of June at sundown. Sentenced to execution by beheading, to be carried out by the Committee's appointed executioner, Walden Macnair..."_

Phoebe edged around the Forest towards the pumpkin patch where Buckbeak was staring at Harry, who was fumbling with the chain.

"Come on, Buckbeak," Harry murmured, "come on, we're going to help you. Quietly...quietly..."

_"...witnessed below._ Serefina, you sign here..."

Harry glanced up and spotted Phoebe, she was waving at him to hurry up. He shrugged, before throwing his weight onto the rope, but Buckbeak had dug in his front feet.

"Well, let's get this over with," said a reedy voice from inside Hagrid's cabin. "Hagrid, perhaps it would be better if you stayed inside -"

"No, I - I wan' ter be with him...I don' wan' him ter be alone -"

Footsteps echoed from within the cabin.

"_Buckbeak, move!"_ Harry hissed, tugging harder on the rope around Buckbeak's neck. The Hippogriff began to walk, rustling its wings irritably. They were still ten feet away from the Forest, in plain view of Hagrid's back door.

"One moment, please, Macnair," came Dumbledore's voice. "You need to sign, too." The footsteps stopped. Harry heaved on the rope. Buckbeak snapped his beak and walked a little fast.

"Harry, hurry!" Phoebe mouthed, waving him urgently towards her.

Dumbledore's voice could still be heard talking from inside the cabin. Harry gave the rope another wrench. Buckbeak broke into a grudging trot. They had reached the trees.

"Quick! Quick!" Phoebe moaned, darting out from behind her tree, seizing the rope too and adding her weight to make Buckbeak move faster.

"Stop!" Harry whispered, when they were at a good distance from the garden. "They might here us -"

Hagrid's back door had opened with a bang. Harry, Phoebe and Buckbeak stood quite still; even the Hippogriff seemed to be listening intently.

Silence...then -

"Where is it?" said the reedy voice. "Where is the beast?"

"It was tied here!" said the executioner furiously. "I saw it! Just here!"

"How extraordinary," said Dumbledore. There was a note of amusement in his voice.

Phoebe frowned and turned to Harry, was it possible that Dumbledore..._knew?_

_**But how could he? He hasn't told us to go back in time yet**_ the elemental thought, turning her attention back to the pumpkin patch.

"Beaky!" said Hagrid briskly.

There was a swishing noise, and the thud of an axe. The executioner seemed to have swung at the fence in anger, and then came the howling, and this time they could hear Hagrid's words through his sobs.

"Gone! Gone! Bless his little beak, he's _gone_! Musta pulled himself free! Beaky, yeh clever boy!"

Buckbeak started to strain against the rope, trying to get back to Hagrid. Harry and Phoebe tightened their grip and dug their heels into the Forest floor to stop him.

"Help!" Phoebe mouthed at Hermione and Terence, who darted forward silently and grabbed the rope, putting their own weight into keeping the Hippogriff beside them.

"Someone untied him!" the executioner was snarling. "We should search the grounds, the Forest -"

"Macnair, if Buckbeak has indeed been stolen, do you really think the thief will have led him away on foot?" said Serefina. "Search the skies, if you must...but I have other arrangements that I must attend too. Hagrid. Headmaster."

"Serefina," Dumbledore said, his voice still sounding amused.

The sound of retreating footsteps alerted Phoebe and her friends to Serefina returning to the castle.

"Sirius must have James by now," Phoebe whispered. "If not History changes, because Serefina is going to catch us fighting with Crookshanks."

Harry nodded and looked around at Hermione. "Now what?" he whispered.

"We'll have to hide in here," said Hermione. "We need to wait until they've gone back to the castle. Then we wait until it's safe to fly Buckbeak up to Sirius' window. He won't be there for another couple of hours...oh; this is going to be difficult."

She looked nervously over her shoulder into the depths of the Forest. The sun was setting now.

"We're going to have to move," said Harry. "We've got to be able to see the Whomping Willow, or we won't know what's going on."

"OK," said Hermione, getting a firmer grip on Buckbeak's rope. "But we've got to keep out of sight, Harry, remember?"

They moved around the edge of the Forest, darkness falling thickly around them, until they were hidden behind a clump of trees through which they could make out the Willow.

"There we go..." Phoebe whispered, pointing at herself in the distance. She had approached the Whomping Willow and was lowering herself into the ground and out of sight. Hermione was next, followed by Harry, Terence and Ron. "We're in."

The moment they disappeared, the tree began to move again. Seconds later, they heard footsteps quite close by. Dumbledore, Macnair, Fudge and the old Committee member were making their way up to the castle.

"Right after we'd gone down into the passage!" said Hermione. "If _only_ Dumbledore had come with us...or if Serefina had caught us seconds before..."

"I would have been grounded for eternity!" Phoebe hissed.

"Not to mention Fudge and Macnair would've come too," said Harry bitterly. "I bet you anything Fudge would've told Macnair to murder Sirius on the spot..."

They watched the four men climb the castle steps and disappear from view. For a few minutes the scene was deserted. Then -

"Here comes Lupin!" said Harry, as they saw another figure sprinting down the stone steps and haring towards the Whomping Willow. Phoebe looked up at the sky. Clouds were obscuring the moon completely.

They watched Lupin seize a broken branch from the ground and prod the knot on the trunk. The tree stopped fighting, and Lupin, too, disappeared into the gap between its roots.

"If he'd only grabbed the Cloak," said Harry. "It's just lying there..."

He turned to Hermione.

"If I just dashed out now and grabbed it, Snape'd never be able to get it and -"

"Harry, we _mustn't be seen!"_

"How can you stand this?" he asked Hermione fiercely. "Just standing here and watching it happen?" he hesitated. "I'm going to get it and -"

"Harry, _no_!" Phoebe hissed, grabbing her friend around the middle and holding him back, and not a moment too soon. Just then, they heard a burst of song. Hagrid was making his way up to the castle, singing at the top of his voice, and weaving slightly as he walked. A large bottle was swinging in his hands.

"_See?"_ Hermione whispered. "_See what would have happened?_ We've got to keep out of sight! _No, Buckbeak!"_

The Hippogriff was making frantic attempts to get to Hagrid again. Phoebe and Terence seized the rope, both straining to hold Buckbeak back. They watched Hagrid meander tipsily into the castle. He was gone. Buckbeak stopped fighting to get away. His head drooped sadly.

Barely two minutes later, the castle doors flew open yet again, and Snape had come charging out of them, running towards the Willow.

Harry's fists clenched as they watched Snape skid to a halt next to the tree, looking around. He grabbed the Cloak and held it up.

"Get your filthy hands off it," Harry snarled under his breath.

"Shh!" Phoebe hissed, prodding him in the ribs.

Snape seized the branch Lupin had used to freeze the tree, prodded the knot, and vanished from view as he put on the Cloak. No sooner had Snape disappeared, Serefina arrived.

Phoebe watched as her Godmother manipulated the Earth around the Willow, causing it to stop moving, she too, then disappeared. "Your Godmother can control elements too?" Hermione asked turning to her best friend.

"My whole family can," Phoebe answered. "I'm the only one who has control over all four elements though," she added, her mind snapping back to the conversation she had overheard between Serefina and the mysterious boy outside the Hospital wing.

_"There are only two four-core elementals in existence, she is one of them!"_

What had he meant? And what were the twin cores?

"So that's it," said Hermione quietly. "We're all down there...and now we've just got to wait until we come back up again..."

She took the end of Buckbeak's rope and tied it securely around the nearest tree, then sat down on the dry ground, arms around her knees. Harry mimicked her actions, as Terence pulled Phoebe onto his lap, and wrapped his arms around her, as she rested her head on his forehead.

"Harry," Phoebe called quietly. "There is something I don't quite understand...why didn't the Dementors get Sirius? I remember them coming, and then I think I passed out...there were so many of them..."

Harry glanced across at the elemental before explaining everything that had happened down at the Lake. He explained how, as the nearest Dementor had lowered its mouth to Harry's, a large silver something had come galloping across the lake and forced the Dementors to retreat.

"But what was it?" Hermione asked her mouth open slightly by the time Harry had finished.

"There's only one thing it could have been, to make the Dementors go," said Harry. "A real Patronus. A powerful one."

"But who conjured it?"

Harry didn't say anything.

"Didn't you see what they looked like?" said Hermione eagerly. "Was it one of the teachers?"

"No," said Harry. "He wasn't a teacher."

"So it was male," said Phoebe. "But it must have been a pretty powerful wizard, to drive all those Dementors away...If the Patronus was shining so brightly, didn't it light him up? Couldn't you see -?"

"Yeah, I saw him," said Harry slowly. "But...maybe I imagined it...I wasn't thinking straight...I passed out right afterwards..."

_"Who do you think it was?"_

"I think -" Harry swallowed, knowing how strange this was going to sound. "I think it was my dad."

Silence.

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks, before Phoebe addressed Harry in her usual soothing voice. "Harry, your dad's - well - _dead_," she said quietly.

"I know that," said Harry quickly.

"Do you think you saw his ghost?"

"I don't know...no...He looked solid..."

"But then -"

"Maybe I was seeing things," said Harry. "But...from what I could see...it looked like him...I've got photos of him..."

Hermione, however, was still looking at him as though worried for his sanity.

"I know it sounds mad," said Harry flatly. He turned away from the two girls and looked at Buckbeak instead, Phoebe frowned sadly, but didn't say anything else, instead she buried her face further into Terence's shoulder; as his arms wrapped around her tighter, as if protecting her from the breeze which had started to pick up around them.

The leaves overhead rustled faintly in the breeze. The moon drifted in and out of sight behind the shifting clouds. Hermione sat with her face turned towards the Whomping Willow, as Phoebe fought to remain conscious, as the silence played on her need to sleep.

And then, at last, after over an hour...

"Here we come!" Hermione whispered.

She, Harry, Phoebe and Terence got to their feet. Buckbeak raised his head. They saw Lupin, Ron and Pettigrew clambering awkwardly out of the hole in the roots. Then came Hermione...then the unconscious Snape, drifting weirdly upwards. Next came Harry and Terence, then Phoebe, Serefina and Black. They all began to walk towards the castle.

Phoebe glanced at Harry, as if reading his thoughts, and touched his shoulder. "Harry, we've got to stay put. We mustn't be seen. There's nothing we can do..."

"So we're just going to let Pettigrew escape all over again..." said Harry quietly.

"How do you expect us to find a rat in the dark?" snapped Phoebe. "There's nothing we can do! We came back to help Sirius. We're not supposed to be doing anything else!"

"_All right!"_

The moon slid out from behind its cloud. They saw the tiny figures across the grounds stop. Then they saw movement...

"There goes Lupin," Hermione whispered. "He's transforming..."

"Hermione!" said Harry suddenly. "We've got to move!"

"We mustn't, I keep telling you -"

"Not to interfere! But Lupin's going to run into the Forest, right at us!"

Phoebe gasped. "He's right! We've got to get out of here!"

"Quick!" Hermione moaned. "Quick! Where are we going to go? Where are we going to hide?"

"Back to Hagrid's!" Harry said. "It's empty now - come on!"

They ran, fast as they could. Buckbeak cantering along behind them. They could hear the werewolf howling behind them...

The cabin was insight. Harry skidded to the door, wrenched it open and Hermione, Terence and Buckbeak flashed past him; Harry threw himself in after them and bolted the door. Fang the boarhound barked loudly.

"Shh, Fang, it's us!" said Hermione. "That was really close!"

"Yeah...wait...where's Phoebe?" Harry asked, realizing that Phoebe was not present. He turned to Terence.

The Slytherin shook his head. "I don't know she was right behind me!"

"You don't think she remained in the forest, do you?" asked Hermione. "Remember what she said about Werewolves not affecting Elementals like they did Humans? That she was stronger, she could hold them off?"

"No, she wouldn't have stayed behind," Harry defended. "She only has control over two of her elements, and her Elemental core is still weak."

"So where is she then?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't know..."

"We need to find her!" Terence said, looking out of the window into the growing darkness.

"I'll go out and look for her," Harry said. "Besides, I can't see anything from here; we won't know when it's time -"

Hermione looked up. Her expression was suspicious.

"I'm not going to try and interfere," said Harry quickly. "But if we don't see what's going on, how're we going to know when it's time to rescue Sirius? Plus, we need visual on Phoebe!"

Terence hesitated. "I'm coming with you,"

"No! Phoebe would kill me if anything happened to you," Harry told him. "Stay here with Hermione and Buckbeak. I'll find Phoebe and bring her back."

The Slytherin glared at the younger Gryffindor male, his mind working overtime as he tried to quell his jealousy. He knew how close Phoebe and Harry were, and he also believed that there was nothing between them, but he couldn't shake the feeling of jealousy after seeing how many times Phoebe run off after Potter, or how many times it was always _his_ girlfriend and Potter in life threatening situations. "Fine..." he grudgingly agreed.

Harry stepped outside again and edged around the cabin.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Damn it,"_ cursed a male voice. "_We weren't supposed to knock her out, just grab her and talk to her!"_

_"What are we going to do?"_ asked another male voice. "_There is a werewolf in these woods, and we have to get to the lake."_

_"Wait, isn't she supposed to be at the lake?"_

_"This is future Phoebe,"_ answered the first male. "_If I know Dumbledore, which living with an Elder has given me the privilege of knowing these things, he would have sent Phoebe back in time to save that Hippogriff."_

_"But why did he send four students back? Wouldn't it have been easier to send only Blackheart and Potter?"_

There was a pause...a heavy intake of breath, before -

"_She is not a Blackheart..."_

_"She was raised a Blackheart,"_

_"Being raised does not quell who you were born to be,"_

There was another pause.

"_Aiden, I know you are upset that Serefina gave you up at birth, and then agreed to raise his daughter, but you cannot take your anger of him out on Phoebe. She didn't do anything wrong."_

_"I am very aware that it is not Phoebe's fault!"_ the first voice - Aiden - stated._ "But the fact remains, my own mother gave me up because I was a danger of ruining __**his**__ family; and then several weeks later she agrees to raise his child? Another who is exactly like me, wouldn't it have made more sense to raise us together, rather than keep us apart?"_

Aiden's companion sighed. _"It is all very confusing and I am sure that Serefina has reasons for not raising you and Phoebe together; but you must understand that what she did with your father was against the rules. Not only was he a married man, but he was also expecting children when he got your mother pregnant with you..."_

_"DO YOU NOT THINK I KNOW THAT?"_ Aiden snarled, his eyes flickering cobalt blue, and a near-by tree burst into flames.

There was a whine; both Aiden and his companion whipped around, startled to find a werewolf snarling at them from a few feet away.

"_SCRAM!"_

There was a strangled scream and the two companions took off into the trees, leaving an unconscious Phoebe on the Forest floor with an approaching rabid Werewolf.

Lupin approached the unconscious student, lowered his snout and sniffed at her form; he backtracked slightly and sneezed before turning his head skyward and letting out a loud howl.

He considered Phoebe's body once more, before turning and taking off once more into the trees.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe groaned as her gaze slid back into focus, she blinked and looked around noticing the canopy of the trees above her. Then everything came flooding back. She was in the Forbidden Forest; she had been running behind Terence, Hermione and Harry back to Hagrid's cabin to avoid being killed by Professor Lupin who had now transformed into a werewolf.

A howl startled the elemental, causing her to push her bruised and battered body up off the floor. Whirling around, Phoebe looked in just about every direction for any indication that the werewolf was close, but she couldn't see anything and oddly enough this brought a little sense of comfort.

Phoebe paused at the sound of yelping in the distance. _**Sirius.**_ That meant the Dementors were closing in on him...she and Harry would be running to him any moment...

Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe could vaguely make out the outline of Hagrid's cabin through the trees, whoever or whatever had struck her during the run couldn't have done it any closer to civilization, could they? Were they stupid? Or plain idiotic? What if she had yelped or screamed? That would have caught the attention of her friends and then where would the attackers have been? And more to the point, why had it been her they had attacked? They were spoilt for choice, had four students to target and they had targeted her. Why?

_**They could have been Voldemort supporters**_ Phoebe thought as her feet stumbled over roots and grass, and carried her in the direction of the Lake. _**But it was still risky for them to have attacked me in so close proximity of the others, unless they were that desperate...**_

Phoebe's thoughts disappeared as she reached the edge of the lake, there were the Dementors. They were emerging out of the darkness from every direction, gliding around the edges of the lake...they were moving away from where Phoebe stood, to the opposite bank, where tiny glimmers of silver appeared and disappeared.

"Harry..." Phoebe murmured, as she watched herself hit the ground on the opposite bank. Harry landed on his knees beside her as a flicker of silver protected him from a near-by Dementor, but it didn't last long; as the light flickered off the Dementor reached up and removed it's hood, before reaching out for Harry in front of it

Phoebe could feel her heart pounding in her ears, as she watched the Dementor pull Harry's face up towards its gaping mouth and start to suck in the air surrounding them.

_**I have to do something...**_

Taking a hesitant step forward, Phoebe removed her wand from inside of her jacket, raised it and -

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

Phoebe jumped at the sudden yell of an all too familiar voice, spinning around she spotted Harry standing a few yards in front of her, on the edge of the lake. His wand outstretched in front of him. A blinding, dazzling, silver animal burst out from the tip of his wand. Phoebe raised her hand to protect her eyes from the fierce glare of the creature as it galloped silently away across the black surface of the lake. It lowered its head and charged at the swarming Dementors...now it was galloping around and around the black shapes on the ground, and the Dementors were falling back, scattering, retreating into the darkness...they were gone.

The Patronus turned. It was cantering back towards the figure at the edge of the lake, which Phoebe recognized as Harry.

The Patronus stopped on the back. Its hooves made no mark on the soft ground as it stared at Harry with its large, silver eyes. Slowly, it bowed its antlered head. Harry raised his shaking hand to touch the silver mist as it vanished.

"_Prongs,"_ he whispered, as Phoebe approached him from behind. "It wasn't my dad who cast the Patronus. It was me...I just thought it was my dad..."

"It's because you are a carbon copy of your father, Harry," Phoebe answered. "I've seen the pictures of him, remember? You are exactly like him in every physical aspect! The only difference is your eyes. You have your mother's eyes."

Harry smiled as he looked down at the Elemental beside him; Phoebe returned the smile and reached out to take his hand. "Come on," she said softly. "We better get out of here before Snape arrives to 'save' us -" she nodded across the lake "- it's nearly time to save Sirius."

"Yeah," Harry nodded, and turning their backs on the lake the two friends hurried back up the slope and disappeared into the trees, missing the two figures that had appeared on the opposite bank, and had rolled past Phoebe over onto her back.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hermione shook her head. "You said you were only going to keep a lookout and find Phoebe!"

"I just saved all our lives..." said Harry. "Phoebe, tell her!"

"He's telling the truth, Hermione," Phoebe nodded. "I just watched him cast a corporeal Patronus."

Hermione's jaw dropped. "You conjured a Patronus that drove away all those Dementors! That's very, _very_ advanced magic...

"I know. I knew I could do it this time," said Harry, "because I'd already done it...Does that make sense?

"No," Hermione and Terence answered simultaneously.

Phoebe giggled and wrapped her arms around Terence's waist. "Don't worry, point is he just saved mine, Sirius and his own life, if he hadn't then we would be dead right now; and you two would have disappeared because you wouldn't have had to go back in time to save anyone.2

Terence nodded as he wrapped his arms around Phoebe's shoulders. "How's your head?" he asked, remembering that he had told them she had been struck from behind when they had been running for the cabin.

"Sore," Phoebe answered. "Whoever hit me went for a blitz attack. Cowards..."

Hermione smiled sympathetically. "Right, it's nearly time," she said tensely, looking at her watch. "We've got about forty-five minutes until Dumbledore locks the door to the hospital wing. We've got to rescue Sirius and get back into the ward before anybody realizes we're missing..."

They waited, watching the moving clouds reflected in the lake, while the trees around them whispered in the breeze. Buckbeak, bored, was ferreting for worms.

"D'you reckon he is up there yet?" said Harry, checking his watch. He looked up at the castle, and began counting the windows to the right of the West Tower.

"Look!" Phoebe whispered. "Who's that? Someone's coming back out of the castle!"

The friends stared hard into the distance, trying to distinguish the moving figure across the law.

"Macnair!" said Terence. "He's gone to get the Dementors!"

"This is it," Harry said.

Hermione and Phoebe nodded, and according to plan, Hermione put her hands on Buckbeak's back and Harry gave her a leg up. Then he placed his foot on one of the lower branches of a near-by bush and climbed up in front of the bookworm. He pulled Buckbeak's rope back over his neck and tied it to the other side of his collar like reins.

"Well meet you in the courtyard," Phoebe said looking up at them.

Harry nodded. "Be careful, Professor Lupin is still in here somewhere."

"We're not that far away," Phoebe reassured him. "Go get Sirius and meet us in the courtyard. Go on! And be careful."

"OK," Harry nodded again. "Ready? You'd better hold onto me, Hermione..."

He nudged Buckbeak's sides with his heels.

Buckbeak soared straight into the dark air, leaving Phoebe and Terence on the Forest floor as Harry and Hermione headed towards the castle.

"Come on," Phoebe said, turning to Terence. "We don't have much time..."

She started to walk away.

Reaching out, Terence caught her hand and pulled her back. Phoebe stumbled into him. "What are yo -" she started but cut off as Terence leaned in and kissed her. When he pulled away, Phoebe frowned. "What was that for?"

"Felt like it," Terence answered.

Phoebe considered him for a split second, before smiling. "You're weird..." she told him. "But I like you."

"I like you too,"

The Gryffindor giggled as she dropped her head onto his chest. "Come on, Harry and Hermione would have rescued Sirius by now."

And slipping away from his embrace, she grabbed his hand and pulled him across the darkened grounds towards the Courtyard.

A shadow fell over them and Phoebe didn't need to look up to know that it was Buckbeak returning to the courtyard with Harry, Hermione and Sirius perched on his back.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Buckbeak landed with a clatter on the battlements and Harry and Hermione slid off of him as Phoebe and Terence joined them.

"Sirius, you'd better go, quickly," Harry panted. "They'll reach Flitwick's office any moment, they'll find out you've gone."

Buckbeak pawed the ground, tossing his sharp head.

"Where is James?" Sirius asked urgently, "and the other boy? Ron?"

"They're OK - Ron is still out of it, and James is mending nicely," Phoebe answered, "Madam Pomfrey says she will be able to make them better. But you better go, quickly - go find Samantha, explain to her everything that has happened, go have the life you were supposed to have!"

But Black was stared at her for a moment, a ghost of a smile on his lips at the mention of his wife.

"How can I ever thank -"

"GO!" Harry, Hermione and Phoebe shouted together.

Black wheeled Buckbeak around, facing the open sky.

"We'll see each other again," he said. "You are - truly your father's son, Harry..."

He squeezed Buckbeak's sides with his heels. Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and Terence jumped back as the enormous wings rose once more...the Hippogriff took off into the air...he and his rider became smaller and smaller as Harry gazed after them...then a cloud drifted across the moon...they were gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, December 13, 2011 at 3:20am**


	52. Chapter 52

**Author's Note: **I HATE SHAKESPEARE! Am so dropping next year. Anyway, with that out of the way, I thought I would start writing this new chapter. I hope you all enjoyed last chapter took me forever to write it, but it was worth it.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Murder-Winter-Cullen, Fan of Fics** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat**.

**In Responses: **First too: **Murder-Winter-Cullen**: To be honest, no there are no connections between Harry's father and Sirius's son via their names. I did notice that when I started writing year 3, but no there are no connections. James Potter [while being Sirius's best friend] was not the inspiration for Sirius's son, his wife; Samantha had a younger brother James, who died when he was five years old from Spattergroit.

Second too: **KingdomHeartsNerd**: And there are even more surprises to come. Spoiling you? No, I'm not doing that, who would do that? It's cheating! *winks and grins*

Third too: **Fan of Fics**: I feel for you. Homework sucks! As if they don't give us enough work to do while we are actually in class, they have to take away our free time at home too? Why? It's probably because they have no life, and they want to take ours away too. Selfish! Good luck with your homework, I hope you get everything finished before the Christmas holidays.

Lastly too: **10th Squad 3rd Seat**: Oh yeah, very complicated. Adding more than just Hermione and Harry to the end of third year is usually complicated in the general sense, but it was fun to write. Glad you enjoyed it =)

Onto chapter 52 [OMG! CHAPTER FIFTY TWO!]

* * *

><p>"Harry?"<p>

Phoebe was tugging on his sleeve. "Come on, Harry! We've got exactly ten minutes to get back to the Hospital wing without being seen - before Dumbledore locks the door."

"OK," said Harry, wrenching his gaze from the sky, "let's go..."

They slipped through the doorway behind them and run along a deserted corridor, pausing at the corner and flattening themselves against the wall as they heard voices approaching. It sounded like Fudge and Snape. They were walking quickly along the corridor parallel to the one they were on.

"...only hope Dumbledore's not going to make things difficult," Snape was saying. "The Kiss will be performed immediately?"

"As soon as Macnair returns with the Dementors. This whole Black affair has been highly embarrassing. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to informing the _Daily Prophet_ that we've got him at last...I daresay they'll want to interview you Snape...and once young Harry's back in his right mind, I expect he'll want to tell the _Prophet_ exactly how you saved him..."

Phoebe felt Harry's hand close tightly around her own, as they caught a glimpse of Snape's smirk as he passed where they were hiding. Their footsteps died away, but the four students waited a few moments to make sure they'd really gone, then started to run in the opposite direction. Up one staircase, then another, along a new corridor - then they heard a cackling ahead.

"_Peeves!"_ Harry muttered, pulling Phoebe and Hermione (who had been in the lead) to a skidding halt.

"In here!" Terence whispered, opening the door to an empty classroom. They darted inside, just in time; Peeves seemed to be bouncing along the corridor in tearing spirits, laughing his head off.

"Oh, he's horrible," whispered Hermione, her ear to the door. "I bet he's all excited because the Dementors are going to finish Sirius..."

Phoebe checked her watch. "Too bad there isn't anything up there too finish off! Three minutes."

They waited until Peeves's gloating voice had faded into the distance, then slid back out of the room and broke into a run again.

"Hermione - what'll happen - if we don't get back inside - before Dumbledore locks the door?" Harry panted.

"I don't want to think about it!" Hermione moaned, checking her watch again. "One minute!"

They had reached the end of the corridor with the hospital wing entrance. "OK - I can hear Dumbledore," said Phoebe. "Come on!"

They crept along the corridor. The door opened. Dumbledore's back appeared.

"I am going to lock you in," they heard him saying. "It is five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three times should do it. Good luck."

Dumbledore backed out of the room, closed the door and took out his wand to magically lock it. Panicking, Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and Terence ran forwards. Dumbledore looked up, and a wide smile appeared under the long silver moustache. "Well?" he said quietly.

"We did it!" said Harry breathlessly. "Sirius has gone, on Buckbeak..."

Dumbledore beamed at them.

"Well done, I think -" he listened intently for any sound within the hospital wing. "Yes, I think you've gone, too. Get inside - I'll lock you in -"

The four students slipped back inside the dormitory. It was empty expect for James and Ron, who was still lying motionless in the end bed. As the lock clicked behind them, Harry and Phoebe crept back to their own beds, Hermione tucked the Time-Turner back under her robes, and settled down on her bed, while Terence slipped on the bed beside Phoebe. Next moment, Madam Pomfrey had come striding back out of her office.

"Did I hear the Headmaster leaving? Am I allowed to look after my patients now?"

She was in a very bad mood. Harry and Phoebe thought it best to accept their chocolate quietly. Madam Pomfrey stood over them, making sure they ate it; she then proceeded to give Phoebe several strengthening potions and refused to leave her beside until the younger Gryffindor had taken each and every one.

"Urgh!" Phoebe gagged as the last of her potions slipped down the back of her throat. "It's like taking acid!" she complained!

"Maybe you wouldn't have to take them so often if you were more careful," Madam Pomfrey sniffed, as she took the empty vial, waved her wand and they disappeared. "Now you must rest! You do understand that meaning, do you not?"

Phoebe huffed as she flopped back into her pillows. "Yes," she answered.

"Good!"

Harry grinned at the elemental as Madam Pomfrey left to check on James and Ron. "Phoebe had a row..."

"Shut up, Potter!"

Terence shook his head in amusement, placed is arm around Phoebe's shoulders and hugged her close as her potions started to kick in.

And then, they heard a distant roar of fury echoing from somewhere above them...

"What was that?" said Madam Pomfrey in alarm.

Now they could hear angry voices, growing louder and louder. Madam Pomfrey was staring at the door.

"Really - they'll wake everybody up! What do they think they're doing?"

Harry and Phoebe exchanged looks as they strained to hear what the voices were saying. They were drawing nearer -

"He must have Disapparated, Severus; we should have left somebody in the room with him. When this gets out -"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Some things never change," she muttered.

"HE DIDN'T DISAPPARATE!" Snape roared, now very close at hand. "YOU CAN'T APPARATE OR DISAPPARATE INSIDE THIS CASTLE! THIS - HAS - SOMETHING - TO - DO - WITH - POTTER!"

"Severus - be reasonable - Harry has been locked up -"

BAM.

The door of the hospital wing burst open.

Fudge, Snape, Dumbledore and Serefina came striding into the ward. Dumbledore looked calm, Serefina confused. Fudge looked angry. But Snape was beside himself.

"OUT WITH IT POTTER!" he bellowed. "WHAT DID YOU DO?"

"Professor Snape!" shrieked Madam Pomfrey. "Control yourself!"

"See here, Snape, be reasonable," said Fudge. "This door's been locked, we just saw -"

"THEY HELPED HIM ESCAPE, I KNOW IT!" Snape howled, pointing at Harry and Phoebe.

"Calm down, man!" Fudge barked. "You're talking nonsense!"

"YOU DON'T KNOW POTTER!" shrieked Snape. "HE DID IT, I KNOW HE DID IT -"

"That will do, Severus," said Dumbledore quietly. "Think about what you are saying. This door has been locked since I left the ward ten minutes ago, Madam Pomfrey, have these students left their beds?"

"Of course not!" said Madam Pomfrey, bristling. "I've been with them ever since you left!"

"Well, there you have it, Severus," said Dumbledore calmly. "Unless you are suggesting that Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and Terence are able to be in two places at once, I'm afraid I don't see any point in troubling them further."

Snape stood there, seething, staring from Fudge, who looked thoroughly shocked at his behavior, to Dumbledore, whose eyes were twinkling behind his glasses, to Serefina who had crossed the dormitory and was now checking Phoebe's vitals'. Snape whirled around, robes swishing behind him, and stormed out of the ward.

"Fellow seems quite unbalanced," said Fudge, staring after him. "I'd watch out for him, if I were you, Dumbledore."

"Oh, he's not unbalanced," said Dumbledore quietly. "He's just suffered a severe disappointment."

"He's not the only one," said Fudge. "The _Daily Prophet's_ going to have a field day! We had Black cornered and he slipped through our fingers yet again! All it needs now is for the story of that Hippogriff's escape to get out, and I'll be a laughing stock!"

Phoebe pushed herself up onto her elbows and called after Fudge: "Does this mean that Harry doesn't have to say how Snape saved his life?" she asked.

Fudge paused, turned around and stared in bewilderment at the young Gryffindor. "Excuse me...?" he spluttered.

"You know, for the _Daily Prophet_ interview?"

Harry and Hermione exchanged strangled looks, as Fudge continued to stare at Phoebe. "How do you know I said -?"

"Said what?" Phoebe asked, feigning innocence.

Fudge shook his head, blinked and said "Never mind. If you'll excuse me, I'd better go and notify the Ministry."

"And the Dementors?" said Dumbledore. "They'll be removed from the school, I trust?"

"Oh, yes, they'll have to go," said Fudge, running his fingers distractedly through his hair. "Never dreamed they'd attempt to administer the Kiss on an innocent boy -"

Phoebe tensed. "What about me?" she snapped. "As if they didn't just try to kill me four months ago! Let me tell you, Minister, you didn't see them tugging my Quidditch robes to get at my face; you didn't have to feel their slimy hands over your skin! Hear their rattling breath as darkness set in..." she was hyperventilating as anger started to take over. "They weren't the last things you saw before you lost the battle between life and death!"

"Well - I - I - Uhh..." the Minister spluttered, looking for the right words to say. It wasn't rocket science to see how much Phoebe loathed Cornelius Fudge, and by the way he was opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish, lost for words, it was easy to see that he either had no idea that Phoebe had died four months previously, or that he had no feelings whatsoever about the whole incident.

Serefina, calmly pushed her goddaughter back down onto the bed, and turned to Fudge. "I think its best you leave, Minister, Phoebe and her friends have been through a great ordeal tonight, and dare I say you are not helping the situation. These are Madam Pomfrey's patients, but where she may be too polite to ask you to leave, I am not!"

Fudge looked disgruntled at being talked to out of context in the way that he was, before he turned toe and left the dormitory. With a swift smile at the students, Dumbledore followed him, leaving Serefina to console Phoebe, before the older Elemental left the dormitory to write home to her parents about what had happened, and that Phoebe was fine and safe.

As Serefina left, Madam Pomfrey hurried to the door and locked it again. Muttering angrily to herself, she headed back to her office.

"Well, you don't hold back when you're angry, do you?"

Phoebe jumped and looked across the ward to where James was trying to sit up. "Welcome back," she smiled. "How are feeling?"

"Like I have been run over by a herd of Hippogriffs," said James. "What happened? Why are we in here? Where's Lupin? Where's my father? What's going on?"

"Relax, James," Phoebe smiled. "We'll explain everything later -"

"You always say that," James interrupted. "But you never do tell us anything!"

"This time I will," Phoebe promised him. "I have some explaining to do, and Professor Lupin is right, if you guys truly are my friends, then you will understand why I kept this from you."

Her friends stared at her with empathy, nodded once and allowed Phoebe to slide under her covers as sleep kicked in.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When the Golden Trio, James, Phoebe and Terence left the hospital wing at noon the next day, it was to find an almost deserted castle. The sweltering heat and the end of term exams meant that everyone was taking full advantage of another Hogsmeade visit. Neither Ron nor Hermione felt like going, however, so they and Harry wandered into the grounds, still talking about the extraordinary events of the previous night and wondering where Sirius and Buckbeak were now.

This left James, Phoebe and Terence to find Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia so that Phoebe could explain her whole hidden secret to them in private. Thankfully enough, they found the three other girls in the library pouring over several books on - much to Phoebe's disbelief - "Elemental Magic?" she asked, sliding into a seat beside Ashlyn. "It's a gorgeous day outside and you're in here reading?"

"It was a hunch that I had to check out," Ashlyn answered. "And I didn't feel like going into Hogsmeade, we heard that you were getting out today so I figured do some research before I asked you..."

"Asked me what?"

Ashlyn offered her friend a look. "The truth..."

"About?"

Amelia and Sarah looked up from the books they were reading. "Are you an elemental?" they asked.

Phoebe considered them all for a few moments, exchanged a look with Terence who nodded at her to continue. They were her best friends, if the Golden Trio could accept her secret, then why would her best friends be any different? Granted James already knew the answer, because he had been there when she explained everything to Hermione and Ron earlier that morning, after they had explained how they had rescued Sirius and Buckbeak and now the two of them were on the run from the Ministry.

Turning back to her friends, Phoebe consulted their eager looks, sighed and said "Yes..." she nodded. "I am a four-core Elemental."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted<strong>

***Shivers* Oh, I just LOVE that ending. =D**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated 14 December 2011 at 02:48am**


	53. Chapter 53

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the delayed update, I know I promised an update on Friday 16th December (the same day I finished University) but you will not believe the past couple of days I have had. My sister was taken into hospital on Thursday and my baby nephew was born Friday 16th December bang on midnight (how cool?) so I have been busy congratulating my sister and making a fuss of my gorgeous little nephew/godson.

Here is Chapter Fifty-Three and also the beginning of - yes, you named it - the beginning of FOURTH YEAR. OMG! Also, would like to warn you against major changes this year.

**Dedications: **To everyone who has been immensely supportive of me since the beginning of this story. It would be nowhere without you lovely people. I hope you enjoy this year as much as you have the last three.

**Shout outs: **New readers. Thank you too **SleepyPuppy** for adding this story to her Favourite Story alerts. Big smiles all around. **(Btw I love your pen name).**

**Warnings: **There **WILL** be minor adult themes this year. I hope that doesnt bother anyone, I will post a warning at the top of any chapters that contain these scenes, so it will be your choice on whether you read the scene or not, I won't force you. If adult themes are uncomfortable for you, then please don't flame me for them, or accuse me of not warning you beforehand, because I will be warning you.

Other than that...enjoy.

* * *

><p><em>"My Lord, may I ask how long we are going to stay here?"<em>

_"A week," said a cold voice. "Perhaps longer. The place is moderately comfortable, and the plan cannot proceed yet. It would be foolish to act before the Quidditch World Cup is over."_

_"The - the Quidditch World Cup, my Lord?" said a high-pitched terrified voice. "Forgive me, but - I do not understand - why should we wait until the World Cup is over?"_

_"Because, fool, at this very moment wizards are pouring into the country from all over the world, and every meddler from the Ministry of Magic will be on duty, on the watch of signs of unusual activity, checking and double-checking identities. They will be obsessed with security, lest the Muggles notice anything. So we wait."_

_"Your Lordship is still determined, then?"_

_"Certainly I am determined, Wormtail."_

_"It could be done without Harry Potter, my Lord."_

_"Without Harry Potter? I see..."_

_"My Lord, I do not say this out of concern for the boy! The boy is nothing to me, nothing at all! It is merely that if we were to use another witch or wizard - There is another - a girl - a witch -"_

_"No! It must be done with the boy!" the cold voice sneered._

_There was a squeak of terror, before - "But sir...t-the girl. S-She is s-st-stronger...S-she controls the e-el-elements."_

_There was a heavy pause._

_"Bring her to me!"_

_"Yes, my Lord!"_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"_PHOEBE!"_

Serefina yelled as she came to a stop outside of her goddaughter's bedroom. Today was the day that Phoebe travelled to Muggle London to spend the remainder of the week with her boyfriend Terence Higgs, before the two of them left for the Quidditch World Cup; Phoebe had been personally invited by Robert Masters, the coach of the Salem Warriors, to attend the World Cup with a friend of her choosing. The Earth elemental smiled as she remembered Phoebe's face when the letter had come the previous morning.

"_I must write to Terence_," were the first words out of Phoebe's mouth, the second she had finished writing.

After that things had been out of Serefina's control. Phoebe had written to Terence about the match, he had written back agreeing that he would accompany her, also within the same letter had been an invitation to spend the remainder of the summer holidays with him and his family.

Raising her hand once more, Serefina knocked on her goddaughter's door, reached for the handle and twisted it. "_Phoebe Avalon Blackheart, if you do not wake up this sec -" _she cut off as she noticed Phoebe was sitting cross-legged on her bed, reading a letter that Athena had seemed to have just delivered. "_What is wrong, Phoebe?"_

"_Harry had a dream," _Phoebe answered. "_A dream about Voldemort."_

"_Voldemort? Are you sure?"_

Phoebe nodded. "_Yes, he said that in the dream Wormtail was talking with Voldemort about something, something that had to be completed after the Quidditch World Cup. They mentioned Harry, but they also mentioned me."_

"_How can you be sure that it is you, Phoebe?"_

"_Because Wormtail mentioned a girl that could control the elements_," Phoebe answered. "_How many girls do you know that can do that_?"

"_Fair point_," Serefina nodded.

Phoebe sighed and looked back down at the letter. "_Does this mean that I cannot attend the Quidditch World Cup?"_

"_Normally, I would say 'yes'," _Serefina agreed. Phoebe deflated. "_But since the Quidditch World Cup will be heavily guarded, I do not see any reason in preventing you from attending."_

"_Seriously?" _Phoebe asked looking up; a grin split her features when she saw that Serefina was being genuine. With an over-excited squeal, the fourteen year old jumped from her bed, threw her arms around her Godmother and hugged her for all she was worth. "_Oh, Serefina, you're the best! I love you!"_

Serefina laughed whole heartedly. "_And I love you, Phoebe, now get dressed, you are expected at the Higgs home within the hour_."

Phoebe nodded, hugged her godmother once more, before grabbing her clothes and disappearing in her adjoining bathroom to shower and dress. Harry's letter lay forgotten on the bed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe closed school trunk and pulled out onto the second floor landing of her home; she had barely reached the top of the stairs when the weight disappeared and the trunk hovered a few inches above her head. "_Brooks, you drop my trunk and I will rearrange your limbs!"_ she swore as Blake appeared behind her, his wand aloft in his hand.

Blake had turned seventeen a few days ago, and was entering his final year at Durmstrang, this also meant that he could do magic whenever he wanted now. _"Oh, little miss tough gal, now are you?"_ he asked. "_Mastered your air powers in four months and now you think you're a rock?"_

_"No,"_ Phoebe grinned. "_But I don't need elemental powers to deal with you, hot shot."_

"_Show off!"_

Phoebe laughed and pointed at her trunk which was hovering down the stairs. "_Look who's talking, you do know that using magic for every little thing is personal gain, right?"_

_"I thought you could have used the help,"_

_"Yeah, right,"_ Phoebe nodded. "_You're just showing off...no one is here, you know, no one like -"_

Phoebe cut off as Blake's free hand wrapped around the back of her neck and covered her mouth. "_Hey, enough of that!"_ he said, stepping off the bottom step and lowering her trunk back onto the floor. Taking up the handle he pulled it into the family room. _"So, how long are you going to be gone for again?"_

"_The rest of the summer,"_ Phoebe answered. _"Which reminds me, could you charm my wand to be a Portkey?"_

_"Why don't you use the Floo?"_

_"Because they live in __**Muggle**__ London,"_ Phoebe answered. "_I'm not sure if they're connected the Floo network, and for all I know they could have Muggle friends over, I don't want to go risking the exposure of magic to the Muggle world."_

_"Well, don't you think their friends are going to freak out when you appear out of thin air, anyway?"_

_"No, because I am being transported to his bedroom,"_

_"You're what -"_

Phoebe rolled her eyes and grabbed her wand. "_Charm it! I'm leaving! I know you don't trust Terence, but I do and so does Serefina, that is got to count for something."_

_"But, Phoebe -"_ Blake started.

"_No, Blake, just remember, you don't trust Terence because he is in Slytherin," _Phoebe pointed out. _"But who is the one who goes to an all Dark Arts Academy?"_

_"That's not fair!"_

_"Neither is the way you have been treating Terence!"_ Phoebe retorted. "_He hasn't done anything wrong, he has been nothing but civil towards you and Jackson, and both of you continue to treat him like he is the bad guy! I'm tired of it, Blake! I'm tired of having to come up with excuses for your behavior; Terence won't even come here to the manor because you are watching his every move when he is here," _she argued. "_And if I can see that, then you can bet that he sees it! He is my boyfriend, Blake, has been since the end of my second year at Hogwarts, I think it is high time you got used to it!"_

Her wand glowered faint silver and seconds later Phoebe felt a tug behind her naval, and she was pulled through a swirl of colour as Blackheart Manor disappeared.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe's feet slammed into solid ground and she stumbled forward a few steps, her head was spinning and she realized it must have been from the surprise take off from Blackheart Manor; last time she had checked Blake hadn't charmed her wand to act like a Portkey. _**So how did I get here?**_ She wondered looking around the bedroom, in which she had landed.

Blinking the young elemental placed her trunk down and tucked her wand into her jacket pocket, as she looked around the bedroom. It was empty - for the most part - a double bed was situated on the far wall, a desk sat under the window which seemed to face out onto the back garden, a single wardrobe stood behind Phoebe, on the front of which hung a few Muggle clothes. A chest of draws stood next to the wardrobe and an array of picture frames were displayed on top, curiously Phoebe crept closer and inspected the non-moving pictures, instantly her eyes found a sandy-blonde haired boy with soft calming eyes, she smiled and Terence Higgs smiled back.

"Who are you?" asked an unfamiliar voice from the other side of the room.

Phoebe jumped and spun around, behind her stood another female with shoulder length sandy blonde hair. She looked vaguely familiar, and Phoebe realized it was because she had a striking resemblance to Terence, not in every physical aspect, but there were some general similarities. Like her eyes and her hair colour. "I'm Phoebe," the elemental answered. "Phoebe Blackheart!"

"Ah," the second female grinned. "You're Terence's girlfriend?"

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "I'm sorry for turning up unexpected..."

The second female shook her head. "It is OK. You're right on time actually."

"Is Terence here?"

"He's just stepped out," the girl answered. "He shouldn't be long and he'll be back. I'm Esmee, by the way. Esmee Higgs. Terence's sister."

Phoebe smiled. "Pleasure to meet you, Esmee,"

"Likewise," Esmee returned the smile. "Why don't we get you set up in the guest room, and then we can go look for something to do while we wait for Terence to come back."

"OK," Phoebe nodded, grabbing the handle of her trunk and following Esmee from the room.

Esmee led Phoebe down the hallway to the last door on the right; she opened the door and allowed Phoebe to bypass her into the room first. The room Phoebe was staying in was a light purple colour; it had a queen sized bed under the window, which was covered in silvery white curtains.

"Wow..." Phoebe breathed.

"Yeah," Esmee nodded. "Mum usually goes all out when it comes to the guest room. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love my room, but the Mum goes to extreme lengths to make sure that our guests - when we have any - feel right at home."

Phoebe smiled and set her trunk down at the foot of the bed. "I love it," she stated. "Thank you."

"No problem. So, do you want to put your clothes away the Muggle way or do can you use magic?"

"I'm only fourteen," Phoebe answered. "And I don't really want the Ministry of Magic coming all the way to London to get me for using underage magic."

Esmee frowned. "What do you mean 'all the way to London'?" she asked.

"It means -"

"She's not English, Esmee," said a familiar voice from the door.

Both girls paused and looked around; Terence Higgs was standing on the threshold of the guest room. "Phoebe..." he smiled.

"Terence," Phoebe grinned, crossing the room and throwing her arms around him. Terence caught her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and leaned in to kiss her.

Esmee cringed. "Oh, I'll leave you two alone," and she quickly left the room.

Terence tugged at her hair and deepened the kiss, and before either of them noticed they had crossed the room and Phoebe was pinned beneath the burly Slytherin on the bed.

Phoebe giggled as she pulled out of the kiss. "I take it you missed me then," she said.

"I was just about to ask you the same," Terence grinned, kissing her forehead, cheek, along her jaw line and down to her neck.

"You have no idea how much I have missed you," Phoebe answered, pushing up on his shoulders. Terence rolled over onto his back taking Phoebe with him.

The elemental grinned down at her boyfriend.

"What's wrong?" Terence asked, finally noticing the edge of doubt in her silvery grey gaze.

"Nothing,"

"Phoebe..."

Phoebe sighed. "Blake and I argued before I left," she answered, sliding off of him and sitting cross-legged on the bed instead.

Terence pushed himself up and sat beside her. "What did he say?"

"Nothing," Phoebe answered. "I just told him that before he goes judging someone on their house, he should take a look at the school he goes too."

"So, again, it was about me being in Slytherin,"

"I'm sorry," Phoebe apologized. "I wish I could get him to see that you are not like other Slytherin's, but after Flint..."

Terence cut her off by pressing his lips to hers. "You can't force him to do something he doesn't want to do," he said. "If Brooks' doesnt trust me, then I guess that's fine. I don't need him, I have you."

Phoebe looked up at him and smiled. "I love you,"

"I love you," Terence whispered, kissing the tip of her nose.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe spent the rest of the morning with Terence putting her clothes away, when they had finished, the Slytherin grabbed Phoebe around the waist and kissed her again. "Mhmm, Ter, i'm not going to disappear if you let me go," the elemental giggled.

"I know," Terence answered. "It's just been a long 5 weeks; I wish you could have come earlier."

"I wanted too," Phoebe replied. "But for some reason Serefina wouldn't let me, don't ask, I don't know."

Terence shook his head and frowned, it wasn't like Serefina to not tell Phoebe why she couldn't go or do something. Professor Blackheart was usually always very relaxed when it came to her Goddaughter's activities outside of Hogwarts. "There is also the minor detail of Brooks and Stream!"

"Yeah, Blake and Jackson wanted to spend some time with me too," Phoebe nodded. "They're still jealous that I chose to take you to the Quidditch Cup - oh, that reminds me - we leave day after tomorrow."

"Cool," grinned Terence leaning down, his lips hovering over hers again. "I've spoken to Adrian, and I think he and Ashlyn will also be there. Ashlyn also says that the Malfoy's are going to be there..."

Phoebe nodded. "I didn't expect anything less from the Malfoy's," she admitted. "Lucius Malfoy has Fudge living out of his pocket, he can get anything he wants now, he his feeding the Minister like a puppy on a leash."

"You really do not like Fudge, do you?"

"Give me one good reason why I should," Phoebe said. "Then I might reconsider, but at the moment he is a spineless coward who cares about nothing other than self-image."

Terence whistled lowly. "Strong words,"

"No truer words have been spoken," Phoebe replied, brushing her lips across his, "at least not out loud, anyway."

Terence nodded, as he kissed her. That was true.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next morning, Esmee Higgs sat at the breakfast table with her eldest brother Philip and youngest sister Bambi. They were each waiting for Terence to join then with his girlfriend, both of whom had slept in the guest room the previous night.

"Mum and Dad are going to kill him when they find out," Esmee kept muttering. "Oh, they are going to kill him!"

"They can't kill him if they don't know," Philip said. "Just don't say anything when they come home - where are they, anyway?"

Esmee looked up. "Mum is working overtime at the Ministry," she answered. "What with the Quidditch World Cup and everything, it's all hands on deck, and Dad still isn't back from his business trip yet, he should be back sometime tomorrow."

Philip nodded and looked towards Bambi who was playing with her breakfast. "Eat up Bambi, the faster you eat, the faster we get to your practice today."

"Do I have to go?" five-year-old Bambi Higgs asked, she was sat at the table with her sandy-blonde hair pulled into two pigtails and tied with pink ribbons. "I want to meet Phoebe."

"And you can," Esmee nodded. "But you still have to go to practice, OK?"

Bambi sighed but caved nonetheless. "Okay," she nodded, spooning her cereal into her mouth.

Esmee smiled and looked away from her sister, movement in the hallway caught her attention and she nudged Philip beside her.

Terence had just stepped off the bottom step of the stairs and was walking towards them, his arm wrapped around the shoulders of a petite female.

Philip wolf-whistled when he saw Phoebe.

Esmee glared. "Philip, be nice!" she warned.

"I'm always nice," Philip protested. "We never get to meet any of Terence's girlfriends."

Esmee rolled her eyes and turned away from her older brother. "Yeah, that's because Terence knows how much of a sex-craved lunatic you are."

"What? She's hot!" Philip stated, as he turned to watch his sister walk away.

Terence entered the kitchen and introduced Phoebe. "Phe, this is my brother Philip, younger sister Bambi and you met Esmee, yesterday."

"Hi," Phoebe smiled, waving politely in Philip and Bambi's directions.

Bambi giggled. "You're pretty," she smiled.

"And so are you," Phoebe returned the smile.

"I must be dreaming," Philip said, causing Terence, Esmee and Phoebe to turn in his direction. "Because this is simply too good to be true."

"What is too good to be true?" Terence asked.

Philip gestured to Phoebe. "She is far too pretty to be with you lad," he said. "How much you paying her?"

Terence clenched his teeth to keep from retorting, but felt Phoebe squeeze his hand in return.

"Philip -" Esmee started, sensing an escalation between her two brothers. Why couldn't Philip just leave well enough alone?

"What? It is an honest question," Philip answered.

Phoebe smiled sweetly up at the older male in front of her. "This is not the sex trade of the eighteen century," she answered. "And I simply do not charge those I deem worthy."

Esmee grinned, lowered her gaze and turned away. Terence bit back a grin as he wrapped his arm around Phoebe's shoulders and pulled her closer, Bambi, meanwhile, remained oblivious to everything, whilst Philip stared at her thunderstruck.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that afternoon Phoebe stood in front of Terence's fireplace; he was connected to the Floo Network at the Ministry, mostly because his mother worked within the Department of Magical Games and Sports at the Ministry.

"You don't have to come with me," said Phoebe, as Terence closed the front door and returned the family room. "I mean, you are welcome to stay here with your friends, I can go to the Burrow alone."

"I want to come," Terence replied. "Julian and the others will still be here when we get back."

Phoebe had met Terence's Muggle friends earlier that morning and she was have been the first to admit that she had never met a more friendlier group, at least not a Muggle group anyway. But then again she didn't know many Muggles.

"If you're sure," Phoebe said, turning to the fireplace. "Individually or together?"

"After what you told me about Potter's dream," Terence replied. "I'm going to say together."

Phoebe smirked. "And it has nothing to do with the fact that you suck at landing anything other than a broomstick?" she teased.

"Ha, got your work cut out for you with this one, Ter," said Philip from the doorway leading into the kitchen. "She's got spunk, I'll give her that."

"Yeah," Terence agreed. "She does."

Phoebe grinned and shrugged. Esmee had taken Bambi to soccer practice already, Mr. and Mrs. Higgs had yet to return from work, so this left Philip home with the couple but not for long. "Well, I keep you on your toes," she pointed out.

"Well, that's for sure," Terence agreed, turning to his brother. "We're going to the Burrow, Phoebe needs to see Potter about something. If Mum and Dad are home before us just let them know we won't be late, as for Bambi and Esmee, just make sure they get home safe."

Philip frowned. "I thought I was supposed to the older one?"

"Yeah, but a goldfish as a bigger memory span than you,"

Phoebe snorted, covering her mouth with her hand to cover her giggles. Terence smirked in her direction as Philip gawked at his brother's comeback.

"And now he looks like a goldfish," Phoebe pointed out, sauntering over towards Philip. She placed two fingers under his chin and pushed up, closing his mouth.

Terence grinned and reached for the Floo Powder. "Come on then, Phe," he called. Phoebe returned to his side, stepped into the fireplace and waited for him to join her. "Ready?"

Phoebe nodded and next moment she had begun to spin really fast, and the Higgs' family room was whipped out of sight in a rush of emerald green flames.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Sunday, December 18, 2011 at 2:47am**


	54. Chapter 54

**Author's Note:** Would have had this update out sooner but everything is being thrown out of the window what with the Christmas festivities so close. So, when does everyone break up for Christmas? Oh, by the way, if you haven't already, I would like to recommend that you all go see (if you get the chance) Arthur Christmas. It was a VERY good film. I saw it tonight with my youngest brother and I cried because it was a happy ending (I know, i'm just an emotional wreck. Lol)

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat **and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Shout outs:** Thank you too **angelx51** for adding this story to their Favourite Story and Story Alert, **koemia** for adding me to their Favourite Story, and **loisje** for adding me to their Story Alert. Very much appreciated. And I would like to thank **world-of-imagination-dreams** for adding me to their Favourite Author's.

Thank you to the above, but can I ask you to show your support my reviewing and telling me what you like or don't like? I hope to read 300 reviews before the end of the 4th year. Thanks to everyone.

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><p>Phoebe clutched Terence's robes as they spun faster and faster, blurred fireplaces flashed past them, until she started to feel sick. Then, when at last she felt herself slowing down, she brought herself to a halt and stepped out in a kitchen full of laughter.<p>

"Phoebe!"

Harry - who had been standing a few feet in front of the fireplace - spun around and grinned at the elemental. "Where did you come from?"

"Well, yesterday I travelled from Portugal to London to stay with Terence," Phoebe answered, pulling her boyfriend from inside the fireplace, "and then I found your letter while unpacking, and wanted to see you. When did you get here?"

"A few minutes ago," Harry answered, he nodded in greeting at Terence who stood behind Phoebe. "Higgs."

"Potter," Terence responded.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and scoped out the kitchen from over Harry's shoulder. It contained a large wooden table with eight chairs around the edges, all of which seemed to be occupied by a head of red hair; three of which Phoebe recognized, two of which she didn't, though she knew immediately who they were: Bill and Charlie, the eldest Weasley brothers.

"Um...Hello?" Phoebe said.

There was a low chuckle.

"How're you doing?" said the nearer of the two, grinning at her and holding out a large hand, which Phoebe shook, feeling calluses and blisters under her fingers. This had to be Charlie, who worked with dragons in Romania. Charlie was built like the twins, shorter and stockier that Percy and Ron, who were both long and lanky. He had a broad, good-natured face, which was weather-beaten and so freckly that he looked almost tanned; his arms were muscly, and one of them had a large, shiny burn on it.

Bill got to his feet, smiling, and also shook Phoebe's hand. Bill came as something of a surprise. Phoebe knew that he worked for the Wizarding bank, Gringotts, that he had been Head Boy of Hogwarts, and had always imagined Bill to be an older version of Percy; fussy about rule-breaking and fond of bossing everyone around. However, Bill was - there was no other word for it - _cool_. He was tall, with long hair that he had tied back in a ponytail. He was wearing an earring with what looked like a fang dangling from it. His clothes would not have looked out of place at a rock concert, except Phoebe recognized his boots to be made, not of leather, but of dragon hide.

"Please tell that is faux," were the first words out of Phoebe's mouth as she noticed his shoes.

Charlie grinned. "Ha! I told you someone would notice, William," he teased.

"Actually, you said only a true Dragon lover would notice," Bill replied. "How was I to know that she would be a dragon lover?"

Phoebe smiled. "It's a guilty pleasure," she admitted as Charlie and Bill turned back in her direction. "Oh, i'm Phoebe, by the way, Phoebe Blackheart, this is -"

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute," Bill interrupted. "Blackheart? As in Serefina Blackheart? As in the Portugal Blackhearts?"

"The very same," Phoebe nodded. "Why?"

"Nothing, it's just the number of stories I have heard about your family over the years, it's unbelievable to actually be in the presence of a Blackheart."

Ginny frowned. "You're acting like she is a Princess or something,"

"The way the Portuguese Wizarding world worship her family," Bill told his sister. "She may has well be. Your family is legend in Portugal. Your grandparents are said to be the most powerful witch and wizard in the states, do you deny it?"

"Not really, no," Phoebe answered. "My family goes all the way back to the Salem witch trials. I have recently come to learn a bit more about my family's history; it is rather interesting the stuff that is hidden in my Grandfather's study."

Before any of them could say anything else, there was a faint popping noise, and an older gentleman appeared out of thin air at George's shoulder. Phoebe noted that this must have been Mr. Weasley, and he was looking angry.

"That _wasn't funny,_ Fred!" he shouted. "What on earth did you give that Muggle boy?"

"I didn't give him anything," said Fred, with an evil grin. "I just _dropped_ it...it was his fault he went and ate it, I never told him to."

"You dropped it on purpose!" roared Mr. Weasley. "You knew he'd eat it, you knew he was on a diet -"

Phoebe turned to Harry. "I'm guessing they are talking about Dudley?" she questioned.

"Yeah," Harry nodded.

"How big did his tongue get?" George asked eagerly.

"It was four foot long before his parents would let me shrink it!"

Harry and the Weasley's roared with laughter, as Phoebe and Terence looked lost at what was transpiring.

"It _isn't funny!_" Mr. Weasley shouted. "That sort of behavior seriously undermines wizard-Muggle relations! I spend half my life campaigning against the mistreatment of Muggles, and my own sons -"

"We didn't give it to him because he was a Muggle!" said Fred indignantly

"No, we gave it to him because he's a great bullying git," said George. "Isn't he, Harry?"

"Yeah, he is, Mr. Weasley," said Harry earnestly

"That's not the point," Phoebe interrupted, looking between Harry and the twins. "There are half a billion people in the world, and most of them are bullies. But just because _you_ are being bullied -" she looked pointedly at Harry, "- doesn't give _them_ the right to deal out justice."

Bill and Charlie exchanged looks.

Fred and George's smiles faltered. "Oh, Phoebe..." they whined.

"Stop whining," Phoebe scolded. "You sound like a couple of three year olds!"

Everyone -save for the twins- laughed.

"Not cool, Blackheart," Fred pouted.

Phoebe grinned. "Got you to shut up though, didn't it?" she pointed out.

At that moment the door leading out into the back garden opened, and Mrs. Weasley stepped through into the kitchen. She paused and looked around at the large number of people in her kitchen. "Oh, hello, Harry dear," she said, spotting him and smiling. Then her eyes slid over onto Phoebe and Terence. "Hello, I don't believe we have met,"

"Hello, I'm Phoebe. Phoebe Blackheart," Phoebe smiled. "This is Terence Higgs. We're friends of Ginny, Ron and Harry's."

"Nice to meet you dears, I'm Mrs. Weasley."

Then two girls appeared in the kitchen doorway behind Mrs. Weasley. One, with very bushy brown hair and rather large front teeth, was Phoebe's best friend, Hermione Granger. The other, who was small and red-haired, was Ron's younger sister, Ginny. Both of them grinned as they spotted Phoebe and Harry, and while Harry grinned back - causing Ginny to turn scarlet -, Hermione squealed and hurried across the room, threw her arms around Phoebe and hugged her.

"I didn't know you were coming!" Hermione said.

"Neither was I," said Phoebe. "That was until Harry wrote to me this morning. How long have you been here?"

"A few days! Why didn't you reply to any of my letters?"

Phoebe looked sheepish. "Sorry, I was busy. Things have been hectic since the end of last year," she explained, offering Hermione a knowing look.

The Bookworm understood instantly what Phoebe was talking about; at the end of last year, Phoebe had fully mastered her Air elemental powers, a task that had taken just under 4 months to complete, one that had been faster to complete than her natural powers over water. "Oh, I get it," Hermione smiled. "Tough time?"

"Pretty tough," Phoebe nodded. "Grandma is a tough teacher."

"I bet,"

Those who were not in on the secret, frowned in confusion, but not one of them looked or felt brave enough to interrupt and ask what Phoebe and Hermione were talking about. Instead Mrs. Weasley turned to Ron and said: "Why don't you show Harry where he will be sleeping?"

"He already knows where he's sleeping," Ron answered. "Where he slept last time!"

"Then why don't you go show him where he can stow his things," Mrs. Weasley responded, before turning to Phoebe and Terence. "We are having Dinner in the garden, will you be joining us?"

Phoebe and Terence exchanged looks. "Um, we don't want to impose," the Elemental said. "I've only come to talk to Harry about a letter he sent me yesterday morning..."

"Now, now, dear," Mrs. Weasley smiled. "You will not be imposing on anything; it would be my pleasure to have you both for dinner,"

"Well, if you insist," Phoebe shrugged. "I guess we could stay,"

Mrs. Weasley grinned. "Perfect! Bill, Charlie, could you be dears and set the tables in the garden for me. Fred, George, Ginny, why don't you go too!"

The five Weasley children nodded and hurried off into the garden, leaving Harry, Phoebe, Terence, Hermione and Ron in the kitchen.

"We'll go put your things in Ron's room, Harry," said Hermione, snatching up his backpack. "Come on, Ronald!"

"But I want to -" Ron pointed at Harry and Phoebe, but Hermione grabbed his wrist and pulled him from the room.

Phoebe and Harry exchanged looks. "Shall we go out into the garden?" the Elemental suggested, linking hands with Terence. "He already knows," she added, noticing the look on Harry's face. "I told him when I arrived at his yesterday."

"OK," Harry nodded, leading the way across the kitchen. He opened the back door and allowed Phoebe to bypass him out onto the lawn, Terence followed, and Harry closed the door behind him as he brought up the rear.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry stopped at the back of the Burrow and faced Phoebe who was leaning against the side of the house, her arms folded over her stomach, her foot propped up against the wood and her eyes fixed on the floor in front of her. "So, do you think it's real?" he asked.

"I don't know what to think," Phoebe answered.

"It sounds very much like a nightmare..." Terence pointed out.

"But it also sounds like a vision," Phoebe replied. "I wish my grandmother was here, she would be able to tell the difference between a nightmare and a vision. But if it were a vision, then there is a chance that she already knows,"

Harry frowned, he had been very skeptical when he had learned that Phoebe's Grandmother was a Seer, but when Phoebe had explained that her grandmother was _nothing_ like Sybil Trelawney he had started to open up to the fact that maybe there were real Seer's in the Wizarding world - even though they were rare.

"If she already knows," said Harry. "Why hasn't she told you about it?"

"I don't know," Phoebe shrugged. "That is why I said 'I think' she knows! I am not sure if she does know or not, there is a chance that she has no clue about this."

Terence furrowed his brow in confusion. "That is confusing," he pointed out.

Phoebe giggled. "Basically, I said if my grandmother knew about this vision/nightmare then why hasn't she told me? The only answer is that either she wants to stop me from investigating further into the vision, because she knows I will put myself in danger to find out the truth, or she hasn't had the vision and it really is a nightmare, so writing to her would be a complete waste of time." she explained. "Did you follow that?"

"A little," Harry nodded.

The elemental shook her head. "Never mind. Harry, if you have any more of these dreams, I want you to tell me right away, OK?"

"What about Ron and Hermione?" Harry asked. "I normally tell them first!"

"They can know," Phoebe nodded. "I just need to know so that I can keep a recorded log of them, then if my suspicions spike I can write to Grandmama and ask for her advice. OK?"

Harry nodded. "OK," he agreed.

Just then a bandy-legged, ginger cat pelted across the garden in front of them, its bottle-brushed tail held high in the air, chasing what looked like a muddy potatoes on legs. "What the -" Terence pointed.

"Gnome," Harry answered. "The Weasley's are infested with them."

"Crookshanks seems to be enjoying himself," Phoebe grinned as she watched the cat insert a paw into a boot as he tried to reach the giggling creature inside.

Meanwhile, a very loud crashing noise was coming from the other side of the garden. The source of the commotion was revealed as they went to investigate and saw that Bill and Charlie both had their wands out, and was making two battered old tables fly high above the lawn, smashing into each other, each attempting to knock the other's out of the air. Fred, George and Ron were cheering, Ginny was laughing, and Hermione was hovering over the hedge, apparently torn between amusement and anxiety.

Billy's table caught Charlie's with a huge bang, and knocked one of its legs off. There was a clatter from overhead, and they all looked up to see Percy's head poking out of a window on the second floor.

"Will you keep it down?" he bellowed.

"Sorry, Perce," said Bill, grinning. "How're the cauldron bottoms coming on?"

"Very badly," said Percy peevishly, and he slammed the window shut again. Chuckling, Bill and Charlie directed the tables safely onto the ground, end to end, and then, with a flick of his wand, Bill reattached the table leg, and conjured tablecloths from nowhere.

**~*Phoebe*~**

By seven o'clock, the two tables were groaning under dishes and dishes of Mrs. Weasley's excellent cooking, and the nine Weasley's, Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and Terence were settling themselves down to eat beneath a clear, deep-blue sky. To somebody who was used to three square meals a day all summer, Phoebe sat and talked with Charlie and Bill, whilst Harry - who sat beside her - listened to the conversations around him rather than spoke himself.

"Yeah, Dragons have always been a guilty pleasure of mine," Phoebe was saying to Charlie. "Ever since I was about five years old and I saw a picture of one in Blake's school books - he was homeschooled by his mum - and then he started teaching me everything there was to know about Dragons, he is kind of like you in a way, I have been interested in then ever since."

Charlie grinned as he and Phoebe continued to converse about Dragons, oblivious to most of the others around the table.

At the far end of the table, Percy was telling his father all about his report on cauldron bottoms.

"I've told Mr. Crouch that I'll have it ready by Tuesday," said Percy. "That's a bit sooner than he expected it, but I like to keep on top of things. I think he'll be grateful I've done it in good time. I mean, it's extremely busy in our department just now, what with all the arrangements for the World Cup. We've just now getting the support we need from the Department of Magical Games and Sports. Ludo Bagman -"

"I like Ludo," said Mr. Weasley mildly. "He was the one who got us such good tickets for the Cup. I did him a bit of a favor; his brother, Otto, got into a spot of trouble - a lawn-mower with unnatural powers - I smoothed the whole thing over."

"Oh, Bagman's _likeable_ enough, of course," said Percy dismissively, "but how he ever got to be Head of Department...when I compare him to Mr. Crouch! I can't see Mr. Crouch losing a member of our department and not trying to find out what's happened to them. You realize Bertha Jorkins has been missing for over a month now? Went on holiday to Albania and never came back?"

"Yes, I was asking Ludo about that," said Mr. Weasley, frowning. "He says Bertha's got lost plenty of times before now - though I must say, if it was someone in my department, I'd be worried..."

"Oh, Bertha's _hopeless_, all right," said Percy. "I hear she's been shunted from department to department for years, much more trouble than she's worth...but all the same, Bagman ought to be trying to find her. Mr. Crouch has been taking a personal interest - she worked in our department at one time, you know, and I think Mr. Crouch was quite fond of her - but Bagman just keeps laughing and saying she probably misread her map and ended up in Australia instead of Albania. However," Percy heaved an impressive sigh, and took a deep swig of elderflower wine, "we've got quite enough on our plates at the Department of International Magical Co-operation without trying to find members of other departments too. As you know, we've got another big event to organize right after the World Cup!"

He cleared his throat significantly and looked down towards the end of the table where Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe sat. "_You_ know the one I'm talking about, Father." he raised his voice slightly. "The top-secret one."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, because _that_ was very conspicuous!" she said, rather loudly herself. "What makes you think we don't already know what is happening at Hogwarts this year, Perce?"

"You - you know?" Percy blinked.

"Of course I know," Phoebe grinned. "My godmother is Professor at the school, and she doesnt keep a single thing a secret from me!"

Percy blinked, spluttered slightly and turned back to his father.

"You don't know do you?" Hermione asked, as Phoebe slouched in her chair.

"Not a clue," the Elemental snickered. "Put Percy in his place though, didn't it?"

Ron grinned a he noticed Percy shooting Phoebe suspicious glances down the table. "I think you got a new admirer," he pointed out.

"Oh, no thank you," Phoebe shook her head. "I'm happy with what I have!"

Terence grinned and kissed the side of her head. Meanwhile, Charlie, had turned his conversation to the World Cup and was conversing with Fred and George seeing as he had lost Phoebe's attention.

"It's got to be the Salem Warriors," said Charlie thickly through a mouthful of potato. "They flattened Peru in the semi-finals."

"Bulgaria has got Viktor Krum, though," said Fred.

"Krum's one decent player," interrupted Phoebe. "The Salem Warriors have got seven."

Charlie glanced her way. "I wish England had got through, though. That was embarrassing, that was."

Phoebe grinned and giggled into her goblets. "I found it rather entertaining," she teased.

Harry frowned. "What happened?"

"Went down to Transylvania, three hundred and ninety to ten," said Charlie gloomily. "Shocking performance! And Wales lost to Uganda, and Scotland was slaughtered by Luxembourg."

"Basically, you European's sucked!" Phoebe said simply.

Charlie, Fred, George and Harry glared at the Elemental. "We didn't suck," they each defended.

Phoebe giggled.

Mr. Weasley conjured up candles to light the darkening garden before they had their pudding (home-made strawberry ice-cream), and by the time they had finished, moths were fluttering low above the table and the warm air was perfumed with the smells of grass and honeysuckle. Phoebe was feeling extremely at peace with the world as she watched several gnomes sprinting through the rose bushes, laughing madly and closely pursued by Crookshanks.

"So - _have_ you heard from Sirius lately?" Ron asked.

Phoebe looked around, listening closely.

"Yeah," said Harry softly, "twice. He sounds OK. I wrote to him the day before yesterday. He might write back while I'm here."

"Did he find his wife?" Hermione asked, looking around at Phoebe.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "James hasn't mentioned anything in any of his letters, and I have asked him several times."

Terence suddenly turned to Phoebe. "We should go," he said. "Philip will be wondering where we are, and if my parents are home - which my dad was supposed to have been by now - they will want to meet you before we leave tomorrow."

"OK," Phoebe nodded.

"Can't they meet her tomorrow before you leave?" Harry asked.

"His mum works for the Department of Magical Games and Sports," Phoebe answered. "She has been busy for weeks dealing with this World Cup; there is a chance that she may not be there tomorrow before we leave; besides, like you, we have to be up at the crack of dawn."

Harry frowned, and was about to ask why, when Phoebe beat him too it.

"We're meeting Robert Masters at the stadium," the Elemental explained. "He wants to make sure that everything is in order before tomorrow's game; there is also the fact that he hasn't seen me since I was 6 years old."

"Robert Masters?" Bill questioned. "Isn't he the Salem Warrior's coach?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, he is also the person who provided me with tickets to the match,"

"So you know him?"

"Yup! He and my grandfather used to work together," Phoebe explained. "He was a decent Chaser back in the day."

"How did your grandfather come to work with him?"

Phoebe grinned. "Because my grandfather was an awesome chaser when he played for the Salem Warriors!"

Charlie and Bill's eyes widened. "Your Grandfather was a Salem Warrior?"

"Wow, Bill, you disappoint me," Phoebe teased. "I thought you know quite a bit about my family, obviously not."

Bill frowned. "I do know quite a bit about your family, I just didn't know that your grandfather was a Salem Warrior; or that you knew Robert Masters on a personal level."

"Yeah, he is like an uncle to me," Phoebe explained. "Oh and while we are at the confessing stage..." she smirked. "Viktor Krum? Yeah, I know him on a personal level too."

Ron's eyes bulged. "How do you know him?"

"You remember my friend Blake, yeah?" Phoebe asked. Ron nodded. "Well, he and Krum are real good friends at Durmstrang. I spent the summer once in Bulgaria with Krum at his home, he is a real nice guy when you get to know him," she smiled and glanced back at Terence who was hovering a few feet away. "Well, best get going, see you tomorrow at the Cup."

She blew them a friendly kiss, turned and hurried off towards Terence.

The Slytherin wrapped his arms around her, turned on the spot and the two disappeared with a _crack_.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated ****Wednesday, December 21, 2011 at 2:14am**


	55. Chapter 55

**Author's Notes: **Started writing this a few nights ago, but been too busy since to upload it. I hope it is worthy enough.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics **and **KingdomHeartsNerd.** Where has all my readers gone? Come back to me…please.

**Warning: ****ADULT THEMES ALERT!** There will be an adult theme scene in this chapter. Read at own risk.

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><p>"Are you sure you kids are going to be all right?" Josephine Higgs fussed as she stood at the mouth of her son's tent watching as he prepared for the night's festivities. She could hear the sounds of thousands of people moving around behind her, all heading towards the surrounding woods, on the opposite side of which held the stadium for the 422nd Quidditch World Cup.<p>

The atmosphere of feverish excitement was highly infectious, but Josephine couldn't shake the nagging feeling that something bad was going to happen tonight and while she knew that she was going to be fine with her husband and three other children, she also knew that Terence and Phoebe would be alone before and after the game.

Terence sighed in annoyance but was careful not to show it on his face, but also careful to hide it from his voice as he spoke. "Yes, mum, we'll be fine." he said.

"But are you sure?" Josephine stressed. "You know it is not too late to join me and your father."

"What does it matter anyway, Mum?" Terence asked. "We are all going to be in the Top Box. The only difference being Phoebe and I will be with the Minister and the Quidditch coaches and other Prime Ministers."

Josephine still looked uneasy.

"Mum, calm down, everything is going to be fine tonight," Terence promised. "Besides, I am seventeen now..."

Phoebe touched his shoulder as she passed him. "Just because you're seventeen doesnt mean your Mum is going to stop worrying about you," she said. Josephine looked smug.

"Phoebe..." Terence whined. "I thought you were on my side?"

"There are no sides," Phoebe pointed out. "Your mum has every right to be worried about you, you are her son after all, but seriously Mrs. Higgs there is no reason to be worried, Terence is in safe hands. Uncle Robert and Minister Vienna will not allow anything to happen to us. I promise."

Josephine considered the fourteen year old for a few moments, before sighing. "I guess I will have to take your word for it," she said. "But remember we are only three rows behind you, you come and get me if you need anything, all right?"

"Of course," Phoebe nodded. "You have my word."

"OK," Josephine nodded. "I guess I will see you at the match."

"Yes, you will"

Josephine surveyed them for a moment or two longer, before nodding once and backtracking from the tent.

Terence paused and then turned to Phoebe. "How did you do that?" he asked. "My mother take's worrying to a whole new level, you are the first person I know who has been able to calm her down in under a few minutes."

Phoebe shrugged. "Must be a female thing," she said, reaching up and kissing his cheek. "Come on, we've got exactly 10 minutes before we are to meet Uncle Robert in the Top box. And I don't want to be late."

"OK," Terence said watching as Phoebe disappeared back into the bedroom, and returned moments later pulling on a black and silver jacket with the outline of a Wolf Warrior on the back, he recognized it as a Salem Warriors windbreaker.

"Ready?"

The Slytherin nodded, held his hand out to his girlfriend and Disapparated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe grinned as she pushed open the door leading to the Top Box and stepped inside, hundred thousand witches and wizards were taking their places in the seats which rose in levels around the long oval pitch. Everything was suffused with a mysterious golden light that seemed to come from the stadium itself. The pitch looked smooth as velvet from their lofty positions. At either end of the pitch stood three goal hoops, fifty feet high; right opposite the Top Box was a gigantic blackboard. Gold writing kept dashing across it as though in invisible giant's hand was scrawling upon it and then wiping it off again.

"Ah, Phoebe," Robert Masters boomed as he looked around to see who had entered. "There you are, thought you had got lost for a second."

"Sorry about that Uncle," Phoebe smiled. "We got a little sidetracked,"

Phoebe glanced sideways at Terence who grinned in response.

"Uh-huh," Robert nodded, eyeing the pair suggestively. "Ah, here comes Vincent," he stepped around the couple and approached an elder gentleman that had just entered the box followed closely by the Weasley family, Harry and Hermione.

Hermione spotted Phoebe and hurried towards her. "When you said you were getting here early you weren't kidding!" the bookworm said.

"I only just got here actually," Phoebe answered. "Terence wouldn't let me leave the tent,"

"Excuse me?" Terence questioned, "Who was it that jumped me?"

"Who was it that pinned me to the bed?"

Terence opened his mouth to retort but cut off a Hermione interrupted. "I don't want to know anymore," she said, turning to Harry and Ron who had just arrived.

"Know what?" Ron asked.

Phoebe grinned. "Well, after Terence pinned me to the bed -"

"Wait! I don't want to know!" Ron shook his head.

Phoebe giggled. "Why ever not, Ronald?"

Ron glared at the use of his full name, but before he could retort Cornelius Fudge arrived on scene and greeted Harry as if he were an old friend, and introduced him to the wizards on either side of him; one of which Phoebe recognized as Vincent Vienna, Prime Minister of Salem.

"Harry Potter, you know," Fudge loudly told the Bulgarian Minister, who was wearing splendid robes of black velvet trimmed with gold, and didn't seem to understand a word of English. "_Harry Potter..._oh come on now, you know who he is...the boy who survived You-Know-Who...you _do_ know who he is -"

The Bulgarian wizard suddenly spotted Harry's scar and started gabbling loudly and excitedly, pointing at it.

"Knew we'd get there in the end," said Fudge wearily to Harry. "I'm not great shakes at languages; I need Barty Crouch for this sort of thing. Ah, I see his house-elf's saving him a seat...good job too, these Bulgarian blighters have been trying to cadge all the best places...ah, and here's Lucius!"

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe turned quickly. Edging along the second row to three still-empty seats right behind Mr. Weasley were none other than Lucius, Draco and Narcissa Malfoy. Phoebe's eyes widened in fear as she subtly glanced around at her friends; Harry and Ron were glaring at Draco, while Hermione was staring at Narcissa in surprise.

Phoebe turned away quickly and occupied herself with something else; she knew that seeing Narcissa face-to-face would send Hermione into frenzy; mostly because Phoebe knew that she was almost a carbon copy of her mother. _**Oh, this is not going to end well,**_ Phoebe thought as she heard Hermione whisper her name, but she didn't dare turn around to face her best friend.

"Phoebe!" a voice squealed.

Phoebe whipped around and staggered backwards as Ashlyn Black collided with her, wrapped her arms around the Gryffindor and hugged her tightly. "Nice to see you, Ash," the Gryffindor giggled extracting herself from her best friend. "How's your summer been?"

"Slow," Ashlyn admitted. "Spent most of it in France, how about yours?"

"Same," Phoebe shrugged. "Spent the first five weeks at home with my family, Grandmama wanted to see how far I had gotten with my training, and I am spending the last week with Terence and his family."

Ashlyn grinned. "Cool. So, I guess it's easier for me to see you if you are staying in London?"

"Well you know you're welcome at Blackheart Manor," Phoebe pointed out. "We're not going to turn you away."

"I wouldn't want to distract you from your training,"

The elemental rolled her eyes. "I don't train _every_ day! Most of the five weeks in Portugal I spent dancing. Serefina put the finishing touches into my dance studio during the third week of break."

"Cool," Ashlyn grinned. "So we're all set for this year, then?"

"Pretty much," Phoebe nodded. "I can't wait to see what we will be learning this year."

Ashlyn nodded. "Did you hear of the event that is supposed to be happening?"

Phoebe glanced around at Percy and dropped her voice to a whisper. "Percy Weasley thinks I know what is happening," she explained. "But I don't have a clue, do you?"

"No! Adrian's parents refuse to tell us anything," Ashlyn pouted. "I thought for sure you would know; given Professor Blackheart is your godmother.

Phoebe pouted. "This is not cool,"

Next moment Ludo Bagman charged into the box. "Everyone ready?" he said, his round face gleaming like a great, excited Edam. "Minister - ready to go?"

"Ready when you are, Ludo," said Fudge comfortably.

Ludo whipped out his wand, directed it at his own throat and said "_**Sonorous!"**_ and then spoke over the roar of sound that was now filling the packed stadium, his voice echoed over them, booming into every corner of the stands: "Ladies and gentlemen...welcome! Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup!"

The spectators screamed and clapped. Thousands of flags waved, adding their discordant national anthems to the racket. The huge blackboard opposite them was wiped clean of its last message and now showed BULGARIA: ZERO - SALEM: ZERO.

"And now, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome - the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you - Dimitrov!"

A scarlet-clad figure on a broomstick, moving so fast it was blurred, shot out onto the pitch from an entrance far below, to wild applause from the Bulgarian supporters.

"Ivanova!"

A second scarlet-robed player zoomed out.

"Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volkov! Aaaaaaaaand - _Krum!"_

"That's him, that's him!" yelled Ron, nudging Harry with his arm.

Phoebe smiled as she watched Krum fly around the pitch like an over-grown bird of prey, and knew that if she didn't know him as well as she did, she would never have said he was eighteen years of age.

"And now, please greet - the Salem National Quidditch Team!" yelled Bagman. "Presenting - Gibbs! Galaxy! Ziktor! McKnight! Grayson! Bradley! Aaaaaaaaand _Cyrus!_"

Seven silver blurs swept onto the pitch; behind Phoebe, Harry spun a small dial on the side of his Omnioculars, and slowed the players down enough to read the words '_Chocolate Swiss'_ on each of their brooms, and see their names, embroided in black upon their backs.

Turning in her seat, Phoebe grinned at her fellow Gryffindor, winked and turned back to the match.

"And here, all the way from Egypt, our referee, acclaimed Chairwizard of the International Association of Quidditch, Hassan Mostafa!"

A small and skinny wizard, completely bald but with a moustache, wearing robes of pure gold to match the stadium, strode out onto the pitch. A silver whistle was protruding from under the moustache, and he was carrying a wooden crate under one arm, his broomstick under the other. Mostafa mounted his broomstick and kicked the crate open - four balls burst into the air; the scarlet Quaffle, the two black Bludgers and the minuscule, winged Golden Snitch.

With a sharp blast on his whistle, Mostafa shot into the air after the balls.

"Theeeeeeeeeeeey're OFF!" screamed Bagman.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The game had been fantastic and now Phoebe was beyond tired. She was wrapped up in her windbreaker and Terence's cloak as she made her way through the crowds now flooding out of the stadium and back to their campsites. Raucous singing was borne towards her and Terence on the night air as they followed Adrian and Ashlyn along the lantern-lit pitch.

"No wonder we didn't see you," Ashlyn was saying, as she walked between Phoebe and Adrian. "He's doing side-along Apparition!"

Phoebe grinned and shrugged. "It comes in handy,"

"Ew," Ashlyn crinkled her nose as she caught the double meaning behind her friend's words.

"Oh, Amelia is right! You and Ron are perfectly made for each other!" Phoebe exclaimed. "He jumped to the same conclusion..."

"Well, what did you tell him?" Adrian asked.

Phoebe grinned. "That Terence pinned me to the bed!"

Adrian's head snapped up to his best friend, who was glaring at Phoebe, who was grinning innocently. "You _pinned_ her to the bed?" Adrian asked.

"No," Terence answered. "She jumped me before we reached the Top Box; I think your exact words were "_We've got time!'"_ he directed his response towards Phoebe.

A dull blush rose in Phoebe's cheeks and she stared ahead of her at the trail.

Ashlyn grinned. "Where's Sarah and Amelia when you need them?" she asked, causing Phoebe to shove her off the trail.

When they reached the Pucey's tent Elladora Pucey was waiting for them at the mouth, after a quick introduction Terence and Phoebe Apparated back to their own tent, and Phoebe plopped herself down onto their bed, staring at the ceiling, and reflecting back on the night. She got to spend time with boyfriend, and her friends from school. All in all it had been a very enjoyable night.

Terence joined Phoebe on the bed a few minutes later and smiled as the Gryffindor curled up beside him, her arm over his stomach and her head resting comfortably on his chest; the Slytherin wrapped his arm around her and pulled the cover over her to warm her against the slight chill of the night's air.

Within mere seconds Phoebe's eyes had drooped shut, her breathing leveled out and Terence felt her entire body relax instantly against him. "Goodnight Phe," he murmured, lightly tucking a strand of black hair behind her ear.

Phoebe smiled in her sleep and cuddled closer, burying her face further into his clothes. Her hand grasped a handful of his clothes beneath the covers and she pulled herself closer to him. "Goodnight," she muttered sleepily, before the evading darkness enveloped her and she lost the battle to a comfortable sleep.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Phoebe..."_

_Terence didn't finish his words as Phoebe's hands slipped up to his face and her mouth hungrily captured his. He pushed against her, pinning the Gryffindor's body between his and the bed on which they lay, a part of him was hesitant but he continued pushing, letting his fingers slip beneath the thin cotton of her t-shirt._

_"Terence..." she whispered seductively in his ear. Terence could feel himself shaking slightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her lips found his again._

_Pushing him over onto the bed, Phoebe straddled him, engulfed the bottom of her shirt, pulled it up over her head, and tossed it carelessly aside._

_Terence was tongue-tied; he couldn't muster a single coherent word. He was still in shock over the fact that Phoebe was straddling his lap and half dressed._

_"I know you've been dreaming about me..." Phoebe whispered, running her fingers along the hem of his shirt, "...fantasizing about me..." her fingers grasped at his shirt and started to remove it, "...wanting me..."_

_Her fingers danced lightly across his skin, her silvery grey gaze watching as shivers of anticipation and delight shivered throughout his body._

_She grinned as she lowered her lips to his ear. "I want you..." she told him, making him groan out loud. "Do you want me...?"_

Oh sweet Merlin_...he thought, as her lips left a trail of kisses from the left side of his neck, across his collarbone and to the right side._

_"Ph-Phoebe..." Terence gasped, as Phoebe run her hand tentatively down his stomach._

_"Take 'em off..." she whispered against his lips, and she unbuckled his jeans._

_Terence complied with her request and then rolled over again, his arms grappled the Gryffindor's legs and wrapped them around his waist, as their lips remained locked, their tongues twisting and battling for dominance. Their bodies were pressed so close nothing could come between them._

_"Phoebe..." Terence groaned, breaking the heated connection. "Wait...maybe we shouldn't -"_

_Phoebe propped her upper body up onto her elbows, and seeking out the full swollen lips, darted her tongue around his mouth before devouring his lips with the hunger of a wolf._

_"I trust you," Phoebe whispered._

_Terence stared at her for a moment or two, before licking and nipping at her collarbone._

_The Slytherin felt her hands pushing on his shoulders but he proved to be stronger than her, as he brought her back down onto the mattress. He pinned her wrists with one hand while the other trailed down across the chest and stomach._

_Phoebe squirmed at the sudden rush of butterflies in her stomach. "Terence..." she cried in frustration, as he continued tracing his finger over her stomach._

_"Relax," he whispered, kissing her neck. Phoebe gasped out loud, and run her fingers through his hair as he pressed his lips softly against the right side of her neck to work on the weak spots there. "Patience is a virtue..."_

_"Patience is also torture!" Phoebe responded, hooking her fingers around the brim of his boxers and edging them slowly downwards._

_She smirked. "And my patience is wearing thin!"_

_Terence matched her smirk with one of his own as he rested his forehead against her's and their eyes locked. Phoebe pushed against him as he traced his finger down her stomach to her thigh and -_

"Get up! Terence - come on, get up, this is urgent!"

Terence jolted awake, his eyes snapping open to find the canopy of the tent staring back at him. Dimly, he could tell that something was wrong. The noises in the campsite had changed. The singing had stopped and he could hear screams, and the sound of people running. He groaned and looked around for Phoebe. "'S'matter?" he asked once he found her standing at the bottom of the bed, her wand in her hand.

"We got to go," Phoebe told him, tossing him his wand and jacket. "Death Eaters in the campsite!"

"Death Eaters?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Meet me outside!"

"But, Phoebe, wait!"

But Phoebe had already darted through the mouth of the tent and disappeared into the impending chaos.

"Damn it!" Terence cursed, as he slipped out of bed -ignoring a pressing problem he seemed to have received thanks to his dream- snapped up his wand from the bed, pulled on his jacket and chased his girlfriend from the tent. "Phoebe! Pheebs! Where are you?"

By the light of the few firs that were still burning, Terence could see people running away into the woods, fleeing something that was moving across the field towards him, something that was emitting odd flashes of light, and noises like gunfire. Loud jeering, roars of laughter and drunken yells were drifting towards him, and then came a burst of strong green light, which illuminated the scene.

A crowd of wizards, tightly packed and moving together with wands pointing straight upwards, was marching slowly across the field. Terence spotted the skull masks beneath their hoods and realized Phoebe had been correct in assuming that these people were Death Eaters. High above them, floating along in mid-air, four struggling figures were being contorted into grotesque shapes.

More wizards were joining the marching group, laughing and pointing up at the floating bodies. Two of which were very small. Tents crumpled and fell as the marching crowed swelled. Several tents were blasted aside, and caught fire. The screaming grew louder.

Terence watched as one of the Death Eaters spun the smallest figure around sixty feet above the ground, his head flopping limply from side to side. He felt his heart tighten as he realized there was nothing much he could do for the Muggles that was until he heard Phoebe's voice yelling from a few feet away.

"Let them go!" Phoebe screamed she was standing in front of the growing crowd of Death Eaters, her eyes on the smallest Muggle. "He's a baby! You're going to kill him!"

"Then he deserves it!" a Death Eater snarled pointing his wand at the Elemental.

Phoebe threw herself aside as a beam of red was directed straight at her. A Stunning spell. "Two can play at that game!" she spat, raising her wand and casting several stunning spells back. They hit several different Death Eaters, all of which fell from their ranks; but the others kept coming, still spinning the baby in the air and mortifying the Muggle family of four to the rest of the Wizarding community.

"Phoebe!" Charlie Weasley yelled, stopping beside the Elemental and pulling her to her feet. "Get out of here! Go find Harry, Ron and Hermione!"

He shoved her in the direction of the trees, and Phoebe knew instantly not to argue. With her wand still in her hand Phoebe tore off towards the trees and the small group of three that were waiting for her.

"What were you thinking?" Ashlyn asked, as Phoebe joined her, Terence and Adrian in the safety of the forest.

"He's a baby!" Phoebe pointed. "They'll kill him!"

"He's a Muggle! They don't care!"

"Muggles! Wizards! What's the difference?" Phoebe challenged. "The only difference I see is that we have magic, they don't! But nothing else changes. You treat and protect a magical baby the same way you treat and protect a Muggle baby, with the utmost care!" she turned back to the scene. "They're going to snap his neck if they're not careful!"

Terence wrapped his arms around Phoebe's waist and turned her away from the scene. "The Ministry will sort them out," he murmured. "They'll get them down and the baby will be fine! But we can't stay here, we have to keep moving!"

The coloured lanterns that had lit the path to the stadium had been extinguished. Dark figures were blundering through the trees; children were crying; anxious shouts and panicked voices were reverberating around them in the cold night air.

Then -

"Mummy! Mummy!"

Phoebe ground to a halt, causing Terence to crash into the back of her.

"What is it?" he asked, as Adrian and Ashlyn stopped alongside him. "Phoebe -"

Phoebe hesitated for a second, before running further into the thicket of trees; she dodged and ducked underneath low hanging branches as she followed the screams of what she assumed was a small child.

"Hello? Where are you?"

"Phoebe!" Terence yelled as he, Ashlyn and Adrian chased after the elemental.

"Phoebe?"

Turning around the Phoebe stumbled as a blur of colour tackled her, wrapped their arms around her waist and knocked her over onto the ground. She blinked and looked down at the small child that had knocked her over, and was surprised to see that it was Bambi Higgs.

"Bambi?" Phoebe frowned. "What are you doing out here? Where are Esmee and Philip? Where are your parents?"

"We got separated," Bambi cried, tears cascading down her cheeks. "We were running from the Death Eaters, they tried to hurt daddy!"

Phoebe hugged her. "Shh, it's OK! You're OK! Your Daddy is OK."

"Phoebe!" Ashlyn yelled finally catching up. "Whoa...who is she?"

"Bambi...?" Terence frowned hurrying towards his sister. "What happened? Where are mum and dad?"

"The Death Eaters went for your father," Phoebe answered, wrapping her arm around Bambi who was shaking like a leaf. "I can't stop her from shaking, we have to keep going!"

Adrian and Ashlyn nodded.

Screams had started up again, louder and wilder this time, people were now darting past the small group in such frenzy you would have thought a wild animal was chasing them. Terence grasped Phoebe's hand and pulled her back up onto her feet, and still holding her hand led the way further into the trees. Bambi clung to Phoebe for dear life, as Ashlyn and Adrian followed behind them; all four had their wands out in preparation for some unwanted guests.

A yell of pain cut through the tense atmosphere as Terence continued to lead the way through the trees.

"What was that?" Ashlyn asked.

Phoebe shook her head, before pointing in the direction of voices.

"What happened?" said a familiar voice anxiously.

A bright light illuminated the path in front of the two groups, and Phoebe was able to see Harry, Hermione and Ron up ahead, she sighed in relief and hurried towards them. "Thank god you guys are OK," she said.

Relief flooded Harry's eyes as he spotted Phoebe; a frown replaced it when he saw Bambi. "You do know you got a kid on your hip, right?"

"Yes, this is Bambi," Phoebe answered. "She's Terence's younger sister. We just found her a few minutes ago; she was separated from her parents after the Death Eaters attacked her father."

"Is he OK?" Hermione squeaked.

"We hope so," Phoebe replied, looking back at Terence who was pacing nervously. "What happened?"

"Ron tripped over a tree-root," said Harry.

"Well, with feet that size, hard not to," said a drawling voice from behind a tree.

The group of seven turned sharply. Draco Malfoy was standing alone nearby them; leaning against a tree, looking utterly relaxed. His arms folded, he seemed to have been watching the scene on the campsite through a gap in the trees.

Ron sneered angrily at Malfoy. Something that Phoebe knew that he would never dare say in front of Mrs. Weasley.

"Language, Weasley," said Malfoy, his pale eyes glittering. "There are children present. Hadn't you better be hurrying along, now? You wouldn't like _her_ spotted, would you?"

He nodded at Hermione, and at the same moment, a blast like a bomb sounded from the campsite. Bambi screamed and clutched Phoebe tighter as a flash of green light momentarily lit the trees around them.

"What's that supposed to mean?" said Hermione defiantly.

"Why don't you ask, Blackheart?" Draco asked. "She's been out there arguing with them..."

Harry, Hermione and Ron turned towards Phoebe.

"Pheebs, do you know what he is talking about?" Hermione asked.

"Muggles," Phoebe sighed. "Their little _puppets_ are a family of four Muggles! I was trying to get the baby down; he's looks to be only a few weeks old! And i'm afraid that if they keep treating him the way they are then they're going to snap his neck!" she glared at her brother. "They're not that much different from us, you know? They have families! Friends! They go to school! Have brothers and sisters. They have every right to live and breathe like we do! The only difference between us is the fact that we can do magic..." she paused. "But even then that doesn't make us different because Muggles can do magic! Hermione is a Muggle and she can do magic! We may be different breeds! But we are all still human! All still apart of the human race! Who are we to decide: Who lives and who dies?"

Draco sneered. "Have it your own way, Blackheart!" he said. "But if you don't think they can't spot a Mudblood, stay were you are."

"You watch your mouth!" shouted Ron. Everybody present knew that the word 'Mudblood' was a very offensive term for a witch or wizard of Muggle parentage.

There came a bang from the other side of the trees that was louder than anything they had heard. Several people nearby screamed.

Malfoy chuckled softly. "Scare easily, don't they?" he said lazily. "I suppose your daddy told you all to hide? What's he up to -trying to rescue the Muggles?"

"Where're _your_ parents?" said Harry, his temper rising. "Out there wearing masks, are they?"

Malfoy turned his face to Harry, still smiling. "Well...if they were, I wouldn't be likely to tell you, would I, Potter?"

"Harry," Phoebe called softly, clutching Bambi closer. "Don't start a fight! We've got more important things to worry about."

"You should listen to her, Potter," Malfoy grinned.

Phoebe glared. "I didn't ask for your input," she snapped. "Why don't you be a good little snake and slither back under the rock in which you came!"

Malfoy looked positively stunned by the comment.

Harry shared a grin with Ron, before Hermione directed them away from the sneering platinum blonde.

"Come on, guys," Phoebe said to Terence, Adrian and Ashlyn. "Let's go and find more decent company!"

"You can't hide forever, Blackheart! They will find out the truth," Malfoy shouted after them, "and when they do...it'll all be over for you!"

He snickered and withdrew into the safety of the trees, leaving Phoebe to walk ahead of her friends, Bambi still clutching her tightly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I'll bet you anything his dad is one of that masked lot!" said Ron hotly, as he led the way through the forest.

"Well, with any luck, the Ministry will catch him!" said Hermione fervently. "Oh, I can't believe this, where have the others got to?"

Fred, George and Ginny were nowhere to be seen, though the path was packed with plenty of other people, all of them looking nervously over their shoulders towards the commotion back at the campsite.

A huddle of teenagers in pyjamas was arguing vociferously a little way along the path. When they saw Harry, Phoebe and the others, a girl with thick, curly hair turned and said quickly. _"Où est Madame Maxime? Nous l'avons perdue -"_

"Er - what?" said Ron.

"Oh..." The girl who had spoken turned her back on him, and as they walked on they distinctly heard her say, "'Ogwarts."

"Beauxbatons," muttered Phoebe and Hermione.

"Sorry?" said Harry.

"Beauxbatons," Phoebe repeated. "It's an Academy of Magic in France."

"Oh...yeah...right," said Harry, nodding feverishly.

Phoebe grinned and shook her head at the younger Gryffindor; it didn't take a genius to tell her that he didn't have a clue what she had said.

"Terence!"

Terence whipped around and opened his arms as Esmee run into them, her arms wrapping around her brother tightly, as she burst into tears seconds later. "Ter, they attacked Daddy!" she cried.

"What? Where is he?" Terence asked.

"I don't know," said Esmee. "We got separated. The Death Eaters separated me and Philip from them and we lost Bambi..."

"Bambi is OK," Terence answered. "We found her a while back. Where's is Philip now?"

Esmee shook her head. "I don't know! Another Death Eater appeared minutes after we lost Mum and Dad, he attacked and Philip told me to run. I found a few girls from school, they've lost Madam Maxime..." she pointed at the group of girls from before. "Where have you been? Mum is going crazy because she can't find you..."

"Phoebe and I made it back safely," Terence said. "We were asleep when the Death Eaters attacked."

"Excuse me," said Phoebe. "You would have slept _through_ the attack! Your brother sleeps like a rock..."

Esmee giggled for the first time that night. "He takes after Philip and my dad,"

"Well, Philip can't have gone that far," said Phoebe, pulling out her wand, lighting it like Hermione, and squinting up the path. All around her the others lit their own wands, illuminating the path more and more.

"Ah, no, I don't believe it...I've lost my wand!" said Harry.

"You're kidding!"

Ron, Hermione and Phoebe raised their wands high enough to spread the narrow beams of light further on the ground; Harry looked all around him, but his wand was nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe its back in the tent," said Ron.

"Maybe it fell out of your pocket when we were running?" Hermione suggested anxiously.

"Yeah," said Harry, "maybe..."

Phoebe smiled sympathetically at him. "We'll find it, Harry; right now let's focus on not getting ourselves killed, yeah?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, OK,"

A rustling noise made all of them jump. A house-elf was fighting its way out of a clump of bushes nearby.

"Dobby?" Harry questioned.

The house-elf froze and looked around. "Did sir just call me Dobby?" squeaked the elf curiously, its voice high and squeaky. Clearly it was female.

"Sorry," Harry told the elf, "I just thought you were someone I knew."

"But I knows Dobby too, sir!" squeaked the elf. "My name is Winky, sir - and you, sir -" her dark brown eyes widened to the side of side plates as they rested upon Harry's scar, "you is surely Harry Potter!"

Phoebe smirked and looked up at Harry. "Wow, Harry, even house-elves know who you are!"

"What can I say?" Harry grinned. "My reputation precedes me..."

The elemental rolled her eyes and shoved him playfully. "You're such a big head, Harry Potter!"

Winky was moving in a most peculiar fashion, apparently with great difficulty; it was as though someone invisible was trying to hold her back.

"There are bad wizards about!" she squealed distractedly, as she leant forwards and labored to keep running. "People high - high in the air! Winky is getting out of the way!"

And she disappeared into the trees on the other side of the path, panting and squeaking as she fought the force that was restraining her.

"What's up with her?" said Ron. "Why can't she run properly?"

"Bet she didn't ask permission to hide," said Harry.

"You know, house-elves get a _very_ raw deal!" said Hermione."

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "This is why I don't use House-elves," she stated. "Rose, Rachel and the others are just as efficient."

"Do you pay them?" Hermione asked.

"We're one of the richest families in Portugal," Phoebe answered. "Of course we pay those who work for us."

Hermione held up her hands. "Sorry, just wondering."

Another loud bang echoed from the edge of the wood.

"Let's keep moving, shall we?" said Ashlyn. They set off again, Harry still searching for his wand, Phoebe still holding Bambi.

They followed the dark path deeper into the wood, still keeping an eye out for Fred, George, Ginny and Philip. They passed a group of goblins, who were cackling over a sack of gold they had undoubtedly won betting on the match, and who seemed quite unperturbed by the trouble on the campsite.

Further still along the path, they walked into a patch of silvery light, and when they looked through the trees, they saw three tall and beautiful Veela standing in a clearing, surrounded by a gaggle of young wizards, all of whom were talking very loudly.

"I pull down about a hundred sacks of Galleon's a year," one of them shouted. "I'm a dragon-killer for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures."

"No, you're not," yelled his friend, "you're a dish-washer at the Leaky Cauldron...but I'm a Vampire Hunter, I've killed about ninety so far -"

Esmee, Phoebe and Ashlyn giggled.

A third young wizard, whose pimples were visible even by the dim, silvery light of the Veela, now cut in. "I'm about to become the youngest ever Minister for Magic, I am."

Suddenly, Ron's voice joined the commotion. "Did I tell you I've invented a broomstick that'll reach Jupiter?"

"_Honestly!"_ said Hermione, as she and Harry reached forward and grabbed Ron's arms.

"Hey!" Phoebe and Ashlyn cried as Terence and Adrian pushed past them and hurried to join the group of gagging wizards in front of the Veela.

"Oh, that's nice!" Phoebe pouted. "My own boyfriend!"

Esmee smiled and held her arms out to Bambi, the youngest Higgs hugged her older sister as Phoebe and Ashlyn pulled Terence and Adrian away, wheeled them around and marched them away. By the time the sounds of the Veela and their admirers had faded completely, they were in the very heart of the wood.

They seemed to be alone now; everything was much quieter.

Harry looked around. "I reckon we can just wait here, you know, we'll hear anyone coming a mile off."

The words were hardly out of his mouth, when Ludo Bagman emerged from behind a tree right ahead of them. By the light of the few wands that were lit, it was easy to tell that he no longer looked buoyant and rosy-faced; there was no more spring in his step. He looked very white and strained.

"Who's that?" he said, blinking down at them, trying to make out their faces. "What are you doing in here, all alone?"

They looked at each other, surprised.

"Well - there's a sort of riot going on," said Ron.

Bagman stared at him. "What?"

"Yeah, Death Eaters in the campsite," Phoebe answered.

Bagman swore loudly. "Damn them!" he said, looking quite distracted, and without another world, he Disapparated with small _pop_.

"Not exactly on top of things, Mr. Bagman, is he?" said Hermione, frowning.

"He was a great Beater, though," said Ron, leading the way off the path into a small clearing, and sitting down on a patch of dry grass at the foot of a tree. "The Wimbourne Wasps won the league three times in a row while he was with them."

He took a small figure of Krum out of his pocket, set it down on the ground and watched it walk around for a while. Like the real Krum, the model was slightly duck-footed and round-shouldered, much less impressive on his splayed feet than on his broomstick. Phoebe and Harry stood at the edge of the clearing listening for noise from the campsite, Esmee had settled down with Bambi at the base of another tree, Terence was also with his sisters, while Ashlyn and Adrian huddled together beside the Higgs family and Hermione joined Ron.

Everything seemed quiet; perhaps the riot was over.

"I hope the others are OK," said Hermione after a while.

"They'll be fine," said Ron.

"Imagine if your dad catches Lucius Malfoy," said Harry, walking away from Phoebe and sitting down next to Ron. "He's always said he'd like to get something on him."

"That'd wipe the smirk off old Draco's face, all right," said Ron.

"Those poor Muggles, though," said Hermione nervously. "What if they can't get them down?"

Phoebe flashed back to the little baby who had been spun like a top in mid-air; she felt her blood bubble as her anger levels sky-rocketed. Clenching her hands tightly around her wand, she jumped as sparks shot out of the end.

Arms wrapped around her waist as Terence whispered for her to calm down. "You'll expose yourself even more," he warned her. "They'll find a way to get that baby down, just relax."

"What if they can't?" Phoebe whispered.

"Hey," Terence murmured lifting her chin so she was looking at him directly. "They will!"

Phoebe sighed and looked away. "Sorry, i'm just a little uneasy,"

"Does anyone find it strange that they decided to do something like this tonight?" Hermione asked. "When the whole Ministry of Magic's out! I mean, how do they expect to get away with it? Do you think they've been drinking, or are they just -"

"They were Death Eaters," Phoebe interrupted.

"What are Death Eaters?" Harry asked.

"It's what Voldemort's supporters called themselves," Phoebe answered. "We saw what is left of them tonight - the ones who managed to keep themselves out of Azkaban, anyway."

"You can't prove it was them," said Esmee.

Phoebe looked around at her. "I was close enough to see their masks..." she answered. "Death Eaters always wore skull like masks that covered their eyes, and when I said that they were going to kill that baby if they weren't careful, they didn't care and said that he would have deserved it. I know there are quite a few Purebloods out there that don't care about Muggles, but I also know that they wouldn't go out and kill a few week old baby just for the sake of it! They were definitely Death Eaters; there is no doubt about it!"

"But what were Voldemort's supporters up to, levitating Muggles? I mean, what was the point?"

"The point?" said Phoebe. "Harry _that_ is their idea of fun! Half the Muggle killings back when Voldemort was in power were done for fun. I guess tonight was the perfect time for a little reunion, they couldn't resist reminding the rest of us that there are lots of them still at large."

Esmee paused and looked over her shoulder. "Guys," she whispered. "Someone's coming!"

Everyone paused, waiting and listening to the sounds of the uneven steps behind the dark trees. But the footsteps came to a sudden halt.

"Hello?" called Harry.

There was silence. Phoebe walked forward and peered around the tree. It was too dark to see very far, but she could sense somebody standing just beyond the range of her vision.

"Who's there?" she said.

And then, without warning, the silence was rent by a voice unlike any they had heard in the wood; and it uttered, not a panicked shout, but what sounded like a spell.

"_**MORSMORDE!**_"

And something vast, green and glittering erupted from the patch of darkness Phoebe's eyes had been struggling to penetrate; it flew up over the treetops and into the sky.

"What the -?" Ashlyn gasped, as she sprang to her feet again, staring up at the thing that had appeared.

"No, it can't be..." Phoebe breathed, as she backed up into Terence.

"What?" Harry asked in confusion. "I can't be what, Phoebe?"

Phoebe blinked, her gaze unmoving from the serpent tonged, colossal skull that had appeared in the sky. "It's the Dark Mark! It's _his_ Mark!"

"Voldemort!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, December 23, 2011 at 4:16am**


	56. Chapter 56

**Author's Note: **Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all my readers and their families! I hope you have a great Christmas.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to **Fan of Fics**, **Vivi Fontaine** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.** Merry Christmas all. You deserve it for the dedication you have brought since the beginning of this story. I cannot thank you enough.

**In Responses:** Firstly to **Fan of Fics**: Yes. Salem won the World Cup. I wanted someone to figure out Phoebe secret [not her elemental secret] in fourth year, and I remembered that in the books Narcissa attends the World Cup with Lucius and Draco, so it was the perfect time for Hermione to realize it. The plan is that as Phoebe gets older she will start to look more and more like Narcissa. I mean she has the Black's looks, and already has Narcissa's black and blonde hair. As for the dream, sorry if Phoebe seemed to be rushing it, but in all fairness it was Terence's dream so he was practically controlling dream-Phoebe to do what he wanted. So it is his fault =).

Second to **Vivi Fontaine:** Welcome back! It's good to hear from you. I have missed you're reviews =). Yes, Terence really is a hormonal teenager. Well, he is eighteen years of age, who can blame him for having these dreams? We all get them [even if we don't like to admit it] just trying to be as realistic as possible. Glad someone realized it was a dream, and I quite agree, Phoebe does not talk like Dream-Phoebe does. =P

Lastly too **KingdomHeartsNerd:** I just got one thing to say to you: Each to their own! I do not think that Phoebe was 'Hermione'ish last chapter.

**Shout outs: **This goes out to **Laura2497** and **Lady Syndra** for adding me to their **Favourite Story** alerts. Very much appreciated.

* * *

><p><em>"Voldemort!"<em>

Suddenly, the wood all around them erupted with screams.

"Harry, come on, _move!"_ Hermione yelled seizing the back of his jacket and tugging him backwards.

Harry stumbled backwards into Phoebe as Hermione let him go, the Elemental squeaked as she was knocked off her feet and landed on the damp grass of the clearing. "Harry!" she moaned, picking herself up from the ground and turning in the direction her friends had run, however, she paused and grabbed the hand of the person closest to her "DUCK!" she yelled as a series of popping noises announced the arrival of twenty wizards, appearing from thin air, surrounding them.

"_STUPEFY!"_ roared twenty voices - there was a blinding series of flashes and Phoebe felt her hair ripple as though a powerful wind had swept the clearing. Raising her head a fraction of an inch she saw jets of fiery red light flying over them from the wizards' wands, crossing each other, bouncing off tree-trunks, rebounding into the darkness -

"Stop!" yelled two voices she recognized. "STOP! _That's my son!"_

"They're my children!"

Phoebe's hair fell around her face. She raised her head a little higher. The wizard in front of her had lowered his wand. She rolled over and saw Mrs. Higgs striding towards them along with Mr. Weasley, both were looking terrified.

"MUM!" Bambi squealed darting out of Esmee's arms and throwing herself at her mother.

Josephine hugged her youngest back tightly and then turned back to the rest of the group. "Esmee - Terence - Phoebe - are you all right?"

"Out of the way, Josephine!" said a cold, curt voice.

It was Mr. Crouch. He and the other Ministry wizards were closing in on them. Phoebe got to her feet to face them. Mr. Crouch's face was taut with rage.

"Which of you did it?" he snapped, his sharp eyes darting between them. "Which of you conjured the Dark Mark?"

"We didn't do that!" said Harry, gesturing up at the skull.

"We didn't do anything!" said Ron, who was rubbing his elbow, and looking indignantly at his father. "What did you attack us for?"

"Do not lie, sir!" shouted Mr. Crouch. His wand was still pointing directly at Ron, and his eyes were popping - he looked slightly mad. "You have been discovered in the scene of the crime!"

"Barty," whispered a witch in a long woolen dressing gown, "they're kids, Barty, they'd never have been able to -"

"Where did the Mark come from?" said Mrs. Higgs quickly.

"Over there," said Ashlyn, point at the place where they had heard the voice, "there was someone behind the trees...they shouted words - an incantation -"

"Oh, stood over there, did they?" said Mr. Crouch, turning his popping eyes on Ashlyn now, disbelief etched all over his face. "Said an incantation, did they? You seem very well informed of how that Mark is summoned, missy -"

But none of the Ministry wizards apart from Mr. Crouch seemed to think it remotely likely that the group of seven students had conjured the skull, on the contrary, at Ashlyn's words, they had raised all their wands again, and were pointing in the direction she had indicated, squinting through the darkness.

"We're too late," said the witch in the woolen dressing gown, shaking her head. "They'll have Disapparated."

"I don't think so," said a wizard with a scrubby brown beard. "Our Stunners went right through those trees...there's a good chance we got them..."

"Amos, be careful!" said a few wizards warningly, as the wizard squared his shoulders, raised his wand, marched across the clearing and disappeared into the darkness. Hermione watched him vanish with her hands over her mouth.

A few seconds later, they heard him shout.

"Yes! We got them! There's someone here! Unconscious! It's - but - blimey..."

"You've got someone?" shouted Mr. Crouch, sounding highly disbelieving. "Who? Who is it?"

They heard snapping twigs, the rustling of leaves, and then crunching footsteps as the bearded wizard re-emerged from behind the trees. He was carrying a tiny, limp figure in his arms. Phoebe recognized the tea-towel at once. It was Winky.

"Oh no..." the elemental breathed, her eyes wide as the wizard deposited the house-elf on the ground at Mr. Crouch's feet.

The other Ministry wizards were all staring at Mr. Crouch. For a few seconds Crouch remained transfixed, his eyes blazing in his white face as he stared down at Winky. Then he appeared to come to life again.

"This - cannot - be," he said jerkily. "No -"

He moved quickly across the clearing and strode off to the place where Winky had been found.

"No point, Mr. Crouch," Amos called after him. "There's no one else there."

But Mr. Crouch did not seem prepared to take his word for it. They could hear him moving around, the rustling of leaves as he pushed the bushes aside, searching.

"Bit embarrassing," Amos said grimly, looking down at Winky's unconscious form. "Barty Crouch's house-elf...I mean to say..."

"Come off it, Amos," said Mr. Weasley quietly, "you don't seriously think it was the elf? The Dark Mark's a wizard's sign. It requires a wand."

"Yeah," said Amos, "and she _had_ a wand."

"_What?"_ said Mr. Weasley.

"Here, look," Amos held up a wand and showed it to Mr. Weasley. "Had it in her hand. So that's clause three of the Code of Wand Use broken for a start. _No non-human creature is permitted to carry or use a wand."_

Just then there was another pop, and Ludo Bagman Apparated right next to Mr. Weasley. Looking breathless and disorientated, he spun on the spot, goggling upwards at the emerald green skull.

"The Dark Mark!" he panted, almost trampling Winky as he turned imploringly to his colleagues.

"Winky!" Phoebe squealed darting forward and collecting the house-elf into her arms and withdrawing with the elf safe from harm.

"Who did it?" Bagman asked. "Did you get them? Barty! What's going on?"

Mr. Crouch had returned empty-handed. His face was still ghostly white, and his hands and his toothbrush moustache were both twitching.

"Where have you been, Barty?" said Bagman. "Why weren't you at the match? Your elf was saving you a seat, too - Gulping gargoyles!" Bagman had just noticed Winky in Phoebe's arms. "What happened to _her?"_

"I have been busy, Ludo," said Mr. Crouch, still talking in the same jerky fashion, barely moving his lips. "And my elf has been Stunned."

"Stunned? By you lot, you mean? But why -?"

Comprehension dawned suddenly on Bagman's round, shiny face; he looked up at the skull, down at Winky and then at Mr. Crouch.

"_No!_" he said. "Winky? Conjure the Dark Mark? She wouldn't know how! She'd need a wand for a start!"

"And she had one," said Amos. "I found her holding one, Ludo. If it's all right with you, Mr. Crouch, I think we should hear what she's got to say for herself."

Crouch gave no sign that he had heard Amos, but Amos seemed to take his silence for assent. He turned to Phoebe and motioned for her to come forward. "Miss. Blackheart, if you will..."

Phoebe hesitated, exchanged a look with Harry, before walking forward and setting Winky on the ground at Amos's feet. Once she had retreated back to her friends, Amos raised his wand and muttered _"Enervate!"_

Winky stirred feebly. Her great brown eyes opened and she blinked several times in a bemused sort of way. Watched by the silent wizards, she raised herself shakily into a sitting position. She caught sight of Amos's feet, and slowly, tremulously, raised her eyes to stare up into his face; then, more slowly still, she looked up into the sky. The Dark Mark reflected in her glassy brown orbs. She gave a gasp, looked wildly around the crowded clearing and burst into terrified sobs.

"Elf!" said Amos sternly. "Do you know who I am? I'm a member of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures!"

Winky began to rock backwards and forwards on the ground, her breath coming in short bursts. Phoebe felt her heart clench at the sight and resisted the urge to just scoop Winky up and cradle her like a new-born baby.

"As you see, elf, the Dark Mark was conjured here a short while ago," said Amos. "And you were discovered moments later, right beneath it! An explanation, if you please!"

"I - I - I is not doing it, sir!" Winky gasped. "I is not knowing how, sir!"

"You were found with a wand in your hand!" barked Amos, brandishing it in front of her. And as the wand caught the green light that was filling the clearing from the skull above, Phoebe recognized it.

"Hey - that's Harry's wand!" she said.

Everyone in the clearing turned to look at her.

"Excuse me?" said Amos, incredulously.

Harry stepped up behind Phoebe and nodded. "Yeah, I must have dropped it while we were running from the campsite."

"You dropped it?" repeated Amos in disbelief. "Is this a confession? You threw it aside after you conjured the Mark?"

"Amos, think who you're talking to!" said Mr. Weasley, very angrily.

Phoebe glared at the bearded wizard. "Are you stupid or just plain idiotic?" she asked. "This is _Harry Potter_, the _Boy-Who-Lived_! Are you seriously suggesting that he conjured the Dark Mark?"

"Of course not," Amos mumbled. "Sorry...carried away..."

"I didn't drop it there, anyway," said Harry, jerking his thumb towards the trees beneath the skull. "I missed it right after we got into the wood."

"So," said Amos, his eyes hardening as he turned to look at Winky again, cowering at his feet. "You found this wand, eh, elf? And you picked it up and thought you'd have some fun with it, did you?"

"I is not doing magic with it, sir!" squealed Winky, tears streaming down the sides of her squashed and bulbous nose. "I is...I is...I is just picking it up, sir! I is not making the Dark Mark, sir, I is not knowing how!"

"It wasn't her!" said Phoebe. "Winky's got a squeaky little voice and the voice we heard doing the incantation was much deeper. It didn't sound anything like Winky, it wasn't even female!"

Her friends nodded in agreement with her.

"It was definitely a human voice," Ashlyn agreed. "Not even considerably close to that of an elf."

"Well, we'll soon see," growled Amos, looking unimpressed. "There's a simple way of discovering the last spell a wand performed, elf, did you know that?"

Winky trembled and shook her head frantically, her ears flapping, as Amos raised his own wand again, and placed it tip to tip with Harry's.

_"Prior Incantato!"_ roared Amos.

Phoebe heard Hermione gasp, horrified, as a gigantic serpent-tonged skull erupted from the point where the two wands met, but it was a mere shadow of the green skull high above them, it looked as though it was made of thick grey smoke, the ghost of a spell.

"_Deletrius!"_ Amos shouted, and the smoky skull vanished in a wisp of smoke. "So," he said with a kind of savage triumph, looking down upon Winky, who was still shaking convulsively.

"I is not doing it!" she squealed, her eyes rolling in terror. "I is not, I is not, I is not knowing how! I is a good elf, I isn't using wands, I isn't knowing how!"

"_You've been caught red-handed, elf!"_ Amos shouted. "_Caught with the guilty wand in your hand!"_

"STOP IT!" Phoebe yelled, her voice louder that Amos's and rebounding around the clearing bringing silence. "First off: her name is Winky, not _elf_! Secondly, there are very few wizards who know how to conjure the Dark Mark...where do you suspect Winky learned that spell?"

Amos's glare hardened as he rounded onto Phoebe. "Now, listen here -"

"No! You listen," Phoebe cut across him. "You have already tried accusing Harry of conjuring the Dark Mark! The only way Winky would have been able to learn that spell is if someone told her, and since she is Mr. Crouch's elf, it sounds like you are suggesting that he has routinely taught her how to conjure it!"

There was a deeply unpleasant silence.

Amos Diggory looked horrified. "What...no...not at all..."

"You have come very close to accusing two people in this clearing who are _least_ likely to conjure that Mark!" snapped Phoebe. "One of which happens to rank higher than you within the Ministry! Everyone knows Harry's story, and I'm sure that being a Ministry Official means that Mr. Crouch would never dream of conjuring the Dark Mark, let alone teaching others to do it instead..."

"I - I never suggested Mr. Crouch had anything to do with it!" muttered Amos, now reddening behind his scrubby beard.

Phoebe's eyes narrowed. "House-elves represent their masters," she stated. "If you accuse Winky then you are accusing Mr. Crouch! Where else do you think she would've learnt how to conjure it?"

"She - she might've picked it up anywhere -"

"Precisely, Amos," said Mrs. Higgs. "_She might have picked it up anywhere..._Winky?" she said kindly, turning to the elf, but Winky flinched as though Josephine was shouting at her too. "Where exactly did you find Harry's wand?"

Winky was twisting the hem of her tea-towel so violently that it was fraying beneath her fingers.

"I - I is finding it...finding it there, miss..." she whispered, "there...in the trees, miss..."

"You see, Amos?" said Mrs. Higgs. "Whoever conjured the Mark could have Disapparated right after they'd done it, leaving Harry's wand behind. A clever thing to do, not using their own wand, which could have betrayed them. And Winky here had the misfortune to come across the wand moments later and pick it up."

"But then, she'd have been feet away from the real culprit!" said Amos impatiently. "Elf -"

Phoebe growled. "Her. Name. Is. Winky!"

_"Elf_," Amos continued on, ignoring Phoebe. "Did you see anyone?"

Winky began to tremble worse than ever. Her giant eyes flickered from Amos to Ludo Bagman, and on to Mr. Crouch. Then she gulped, and said, "I is seeing no one, sir...no one..."

"Amos," said Mr. Crouch curtly, "I am fully aware that, in the ordinary course of events, you would want to take Winky into your department for questioning. I ask you, however, to allow me to deal with her."

Amos looked as though he didn't think much of this suggestion at all, but it was clear to Phoebe that Mr. Crouch was such an important member of the Ministry that he did not dare refuse him.

"You may rest assured that she will be punished," Mr. Crouch added coldly.

"What?" Phoebe yelped. "For what?"

"Quiet Miss. Blackheart!" snapped both Amos and Crouch.

Phoebe fell silent, but that did not mean she relinquished her cold glares at both men.

"M-m-master..." Winky stammered, looking up at Mr. Crouch, her eyes brimming with tears. "M-m-master, p-p-please..."

Mr. Crouch stared back, his face somehow sharpened, each line upon it more deeply etched. There was no pity in his gaze. "Winky has behaved tonight in a manner I would not have believed possible," he said slowly. "I told her to remain in the tent. I told her to stay there while I went to sort out the trouble. And I find that she disobeyed me. _This means clothes_."

"No!" shrieked Winky, prostrating herself at Mr. Crouch's feet. "No, master! Not clothes, not clothes!"

Phoebe stepped forward, shook off Terence as he attempted to stop her, and scooped up the quivering mess that was Winky. "She was frightened!" she burst out angrily. "Death Eaters were trampling the campsite and levitating four Muggles in the air! You cannot expect her to stay in the tent when all that is going on, she could have been killed! You can't blame her for wanting to get out of the way!"

Mr. Crouch took a step backwards, freeing himself from contact with the angry elemental.

"I have no use for an house-elf that disobeys me," he said coldly, looking down at Phoebe. "I have no use for a servant who forgets what is due to her master, and to her master's reputation."

Phoebe saw red. The wind started to pick up slightly startling the Ministry wizards, and worrying Phoebe's friends to the bone. "_Reputation?_" she hissed. "You are _exactly_ like your Minster! You care about nothing other than how you look in the face of the people in which you overrule! You cannot treat Winky with disrespect because she was scared! We are all afraid of something, including _you_ Mr. Crouch, and it is not Winky ruining your reputation within the Ministry!"

For a moment, Phoebe was sure that a flicker of fear swept across Crouch's face.

"You're hiding something," Phoebe continued. "Something that would ruin you within the Ministry a lot worse than a simple disobeying House-elf! If you dismiss Winky then I will make it my personal vendetta to find out exactly what it is you are hiding."

There was a nasty silence, which was ended by Mr. Weasley, who said quietly, "Well, I think I'll take my lot back to the tent, if nobody's got any objections. Amos, that wand's told us all it can - if Harry could have it back, please -"

Mr. Diggory handed Harry his wand and Harry pocketed it.

"Come on, you three," Mr. Weasley said quietly. But Hermione didn't seem to want to move; her eyes were still upon the sobbing elf that had curled up into ball in Phoebe's arms. "Hermione!" Mr. Weasley said, more urgently.

Phoebe glanced back at her best friend. "Hermione, go!" she said.

Hermione nodded, turned and followed Harry and Ron out of the clearing and off through the trees.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe sighed as she sat cross-legged outside the tent, she heard the sound of footsteps behind her and didn't need to glance back to know that it was Terence. She had woken a few hours ago and instead of waking him up decided to set to work on packing everything up for their return to London.

"You can't keep her, you know," said Terence. "She's not a pet!"

"And she's not a rag doll, either," Phoebe answered, pushing herself to her feet and walking past him back into the tent. "She's not something that you can play with once, and then throw away when something bad happens."

Terence turned and caught her wrist. "Phoebe, she's an elf..."

"She's a living breathing creature!" Phoebe retorted. "She has a heart! She has feelings!"

A sob echoed from the bedroom.

"She needs a master!" Terence said.

Phoebe glanced in the direction of the double bed and watched as Winky rolled over onto her stomach and sobbed into the discarded pillow in the middle of the bed. "She's free now," the elemental said slowly. "She can do what she wants..."

"Phoebe, look at her," Terence sighed. "She is not going to last long without a master...she needs Crouch, you have to take her back."

"So he can sack her?" Phoebe asked, turning to face him. "I can't do that, presenting her with clothes is going to destroy her."

"And holding her hostage is helping her?"

The elemental shook her head. "I'm not holding her hostage," she protested. "She is free to come and go as she pleases, I just don't want her to end up dead or something, which is what, is going to happen!"

"You've grown accustom to her, haven't you?"

Phoebe looked away. "If that's what you want me to say, then yes," she nodded. "I have."

"Don't say it, if you don't mean it!"

Phoebe paused. "I want her..." she murmured. "I want to be able to protect her...if not from Crouch, then at least from herself. Harry saved Dobby..." she turned to face him. "Why can't I save Winky?"

Terence cupped her face. "Because Winky doesn't want saving," he answered. "You can't force her to do something that she doesnt want to do, Phe,"

"I'm not going to force her," Phoebe answered. "I'm going to give her a choice. Go back to Mr. Crouch and be sacked..."

"Or?"

"Or stay with me," Phoebe answered. "And be treated as an equal!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I didn't know whether to continue on to the next chapter or just add my own little scene at the end. I decided on a scene of my own just to wrap up the previous night's incidents.**

**So, who will Winky choose? Phoebe or Crouch?**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, December 25, 2011 at 4:12am**


	57. Chapter 57

**Author's Note:** I hope everyone had a good Christmas and are looking forward to the New Year. Sorry I didn't update this last night but I was out with my grandparents. Also I apologize for the early morning update, I didn't start writing until late.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat** (thanks for playing catch-up, your reviews made me smile)

**Shout outs: **Big shout out to my new reader **Aratay Ulcahymay** who has added me to their **Story Alert **and **Favourite Story.** Appreciate it =)

**In Responses: **Firstly to **Vivi Fontaine: **That is along the lines I am thinking if I am quite truthful. I don't want Winky drunk either and I think Phoebe would be an awesome friend to the House-elf.

Secondly to **KingdomHeartsNerd:** Nothing wrong with Phoebe being a little like Hermione. She still saves the world at her own risk, but she also cares about the creatures that don't get enough respect in the first place. Don't be jealous that Phoebe gets more attention from creatures that Purebloods consider beneath them and don't respect what they have! Like Kreacher for example.

Thirdly too **Fan of Fics**: Hey, that doesnt sound like a bad idea. Hermione always needed the support to create SPEW and she didn't get any of it from Ron and Harry. That and Phoebe is Hermione's best friend anyway.

And lastly to **10th Squad 3rd Seat:** First, I would like to say thank you for reviewing each chapter that you missed due to my daily updates [I apologize if I update either to fast or too late for you to review. I don't mean it.] Also to answer your previous reviews: No, the Weasley's did not know that Terence was a Slytherin, but I don't think that really mattered, they are a nice family that doesnt judge people. As for chapter 55 it was a dream that Terence had, no way is Phoebe _that_ eager. Voice of reason? Well, someone has to speak up to these Ministry officials, don't they? =)

Onto the chapter...

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><p><strong>SCENES OF TERROR AT THE QUIDDITCH WORLD CUP<strong>

Phoebe frowned as she stared at the front page of the _Daily Prophet_, she was lying on her stomach in the guest room at Terence's home; it had been a few days since the attack at the World Cup and still the papers were printing about the incident, she had yet to read about Winky being found in possession of a wand and convicted of casting the Dark Mark above the campsite, but she knew that just because she hadn't read it yet didn't mean that it would show up at some point.

The reporters were about to catch wind of the whole ordeal with Mr. Crouch and his House-elf and there would be a huge story on that, she and Harry may be mentioned because they had been at the 'scene of the crime' as Mr. Crouch had described it, but they hadn't been alone; Hermione, Ron, Esmee, Bambi and Terence Higgs, Adrian Pucey and Ashlyn Black had also been present; but the chances of them being mentioned were next to nothing, mostly because they had been good students and kept their mouths shut when in the presence of respectable witches and wizards of the British Ministry.

"_If the terrified wizards and witches who waited breathlessly for news at the edge of the wood expected reassurance from the Ministry of Magic, they were sadly disappointed. A Ministry official emerged sometime after the appearance of the Dark Mark, alleging that nobody had been hurt, but refusing to give any more information. Whether this statement will be enough to quash the rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods an hour later, remains to be seen."_

"Oh, seriously?" said Phoebe angrily. "No one was hurt! There will definitely be rumors now this has been printed, won't there?"

She glanced sideways at the small bundle of grey fur which lay beside her; it was Terence's new kitten, Banshee. The kitten looked up at her with wide amber eyes and let out a small noise. Phoebe giggled and reached over to scratch the small ball of fur behind the ears.

On the opposite side of the room the door opened and Terence stood on the threshold, his clothes were sticking to his skin, his usually golden brown hair was a dark brown and there was water dripping down his neck and under his collar. Phoebe had to bite down on her lower lip to keep from laughing at the sight. "I see that it is raining," she commented.

"Raining?" Terence repeated. "It's like a monsoon out there!"

"It's a little bit of water," Phoebe added in. "It's not like you're made of sugar,"

Terence narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you mocking me?"

"No, why would I do that?" Phoebe grinned.

"Oh, so you're just laughing at me?"

The elemental smirked as she rolled over onto her back and stared at her boyfriend upside down, "Mhmm...You're getting warmer," she teased.

Stepping into the room, Terence closed the door behind him, locked it with his wand and started towards the bed. Phoebe squealed, jumped to her knees and skirted further up the bed away from him. Banshee hissed as the bed was jostled around too much for his liking.

"What's wrong, Phe?" Terence asked. "I won't hurt you..."

"You're wet," Phoebe pointed out. "Go shower and then I'll play with you!"

"Oh, really?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Get your head out of the gutter," she responded.

"You implied it,"

"It's not the mouth it comes out of," Phoebe answered. "But the mind it goes into, you sir, have a dirty mind!"

"Eighteen love."

Again, Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Age is merely a number!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

That evening, after his shower, Terence returned to Phoebe's room and found her writing a letter addressed to her grandmother. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Writing a letter,"

"I can see that," Terence said as climbed onto the bed behind her. "Why are you writing a letter to your grandmother, what's wrong?"

"I want to ask her if she has had any visions involving Dark Magic lately,"

Terence watched her cautiously for a few minutes. "This is to do with Potter's dream, isn't it?"

"I just find it a bit strange,"

Terence blinked in confusion. "What?"

"Harry's scar pains him and three days later the Death Eaters are on the march and Voldemort's sign's up in the sky again."

"Don't say his name," Terence whispered.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Harry also reckons that Professor Trelawney made a prediction at the end of last year, something about the Dark Lord rising..._greater and more terrible than before_...and he'd manage it because his servant was going to go back to him...and the same night Wormtail escaped."

"You're not going to believe anything that old fraud says, are you?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "I don't believe that Trelawney has the Seeing Eye, but I know that my grandmother does, which is why I am writing to her and asking for help."

Terence sighed as he watched her add the last sentence to her letter, fold it, seal it away inside an envelope and shuffle across the room towards the window; it was only then that he realized that Athena was sitting on the windowsill watching him with amber eyes.

"Go straight to Grandmama," Phoebe instructed.

Athena screeched, took the letter in her beak and soared out of the window. "I still find it strange that you use Eagles instead of Owls," Terence commented as Phoebe watched the Golden Eagle fly out sight before she returned to his side.

"What's so strange about it?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, Golden Eagles are birds of prey," Terence pointed out, "and are found mostly in Britain"

Phoebe glanced back at him. "Well it's still strange for me to understand the use of Owls amongst witches and wizards."

Terence frowned. "Why is that? It's more common to use an owl instead of a Golden Eagle."

"Well, Owls are supposed to be nocturnal creatures," Phoebe pointed out. "To see an owl out during the day is weird..."

"Good point," the Slytherin agreed.

Phoebe grinned and curled up beside him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Josephine Higgs wasn't at home much over the following week. She had left the house each morning before the rest of the family got up, and returned well after dinner every night.

"It's been absolute uproar," said Philip, the Sunday evening before they were due to return to Hogwarts. "People keep sending Howlers and of course, if you don't open a Howler straight away, it explodes. Scorch marks all over the place."

"Why are they sending Howlers?" asked Esmee.

"Complaining about the security at the World Cup," said Philip. "They want compensation for their ruined property. Mundungus Fletcher's put in a claim for a twelve-bedroomed tent with en-suite Jacuzzi, but John's on his tail, he's got proof that he was sleeping under a cloak propped on sticks."

John Blackwell was Philip's friend from Durmstrang, he was a Pureblood wizard from London and had gone to work at the Ministry the moment he had graduated school; both his parents were Ministry officials and that guaranteed him a position as soon as he became seventeen.

"Mum's never had to go into the office at weekends," Esmee sighed, "not since the days of You-Know-Who. They do know that she has four children and a husband, right? Her dinner's going to be ruined if she doesn't come home soon."

Rain lashed against the living-room window. Phoebe glanced out at the darkening clouds and her mind instantly went to Serefina and her grandparents, what where they doing? Where they worried about her? Technically if they were seriously worried about her they would have written by now and asked her to come home, so they must have trusted the Higg's family to keep her safe, or trusted her enough to keep herself out of trouble. Did they know about the Dark Mark? And most importantly - had Grandmama received the letter she had sent three days ago?

"Hey," Terence nudged his girlfriend, causing Phoebe to blink and turn in his direction. "You OK?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Sorry, zoned out then,"

"We noticed," Esmee agreed. "Are you sure you're OK?"

Phoebe smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking of home."

Esmee smiled weakly and nodded. "Does your family know about everything that is happening over here?" she asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "We don't get the _Daily Prophet_ but my grandparents and godmother usually get the information somehow, they always seem to know what is happening outside of the Portuguese Wizarding community. They scare me sometimes."

Suddenly there was a _crack_ and Josephine appeared near the backdoor of her kitchen, she looked completely exhausted.

"Mum!" Esmee exclaimed, skidding across the room and hugging her mother. "Quickly, sit down! What's happened?"

"Well, the fat's really in the fire now," Josephine said. "Rita Skeeter's been ferreting around all week, looking for more Ministry mess-ups to report. And now she's found out about poor old Bertha going missing. Bagman should have sent someone to look for her ages ago."

Philip nodded in agreement. "John says Crouch has been saying it for weeks and weeks."

"Crouch is very lucky Rita hasn't found out about Winky," said Josephine irritably. "There'd be a week's worth of headlines in his house-elf being caught holding the wand that conjured the Dark Mark."

Terence felt Phoebe bristle from beside him. "Well, if i'm quite honest, Mr. Crouch is very lucky no one at the _Daily Prophet_ knows how he treats his house-elves!" she said angrily. "I get that House-elves are used to serve Wizards, and that has been their role for decades, but that still doesnt give Wizards the right to be so cruel to someone that has devoted their entire life to you!"

The rain sounded even louder outside the silent kitchen, accompanied by the loud whistling's and moans from the wind.

Banshee hissed from his corner near the back door and scurried across the tiled kitchen for the shadows under the stairs, Philip, Esmee and Bambi were staring at Phoebe with wide-eyes, Terence had wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and Phoebe was glaring at the floor her eye's burning a cobalt blue.

"I completely agree with you, Phoebe," nodded Josephine. "But there are witches and wizards within the Ministry that view a house-elf as a servant."

"Slave!" Phoebe interjected. "They don't view them as servants, they're slaves! They don't get paid!"

Josephine nodded. "All right, their slaves," she agreed. "Now, it's late, I think it would be best if you three -" she pointed at Esmee, Terence and Phoebe, "- go upstairs and check that you have packed properly!"

The three students nodded and left the kitchen.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Standing in the middle of her room, Phoebe stared longingly out of the rain-covered window. It had been three days and still she hadn't heard anything back from her grandmother, was that sign? Had Elena Blackheart had a vision and she wasn't sure if she wanted to share with her granddaughter in fear that Phoebe would investigate further, or was there another reason? Had she had vision at all?

"I'm sure if there was any news to report you'd have heard something by now," Terence said, as he appeared behind his girlfriend. "Your grandmother has never let you down before, as she?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "But what if she knows that I will investigate further? What if she has seen something but isn't telling me because she knows what I am like?"

Terence wrapped his arms around her waist. "Then that's her choice," he murmured. "You can't make her tell you if she wants to keep you safe."

Phoebe sighed. That was true.

"There you are," Philip's voice cut through the silence that had fallen, he was leaning on the doorframe to the room and watching the interaction between his younger brother and elemental with an amused gaze. "Not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Would you leave if I said 'yes'?" Terence asked.

"And miss out on the chance to tease you?" Philip asked. "No!"

Terence rolled his eyes. "Then, no, you're not interrupting anything,"

"Shame,"

"What do you want, Philip?"

The elder of the two brothers held up a rectangular shaped box. "Mum ordered this for you a few days before the World Cup," he said. "It's only now coming back. Diagon Alley has been back-logged due to everything that has happened."

"What is it?" Terence asked.

"Dunno," Philip answered. "All I know is that it's for Hogwarts. Mum would have brought it up herself but she has had to go back to work."

"But she's going to be there to see us off tomorrow, right?"

Philip smirked. "Aw, does little Terry need his mummy to put him on the train to school?" he cooed.

"Shut up,"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and reached for the box that Philip was holding. "May I?"

"'Course," Philip nodded and he handed the box over. "I have to check on Esmee, make sure that she received her own delivery. Enjoy. Don't do something you'll regret," he smirked in Terence's direction and then left the room.

Terence glared at the closed door. "I hate him,"

"Hey, come on, he's only messing around," Phoebe reassured, placing the parcel down on the bed. "He doesnt mean anything by it..."

"Yes he does," Terence protested. "You don't know him like I do! When he first found out that I had asked you to come stay, the first thing he asked me was if I was planning on sleeping with you while Mum and Dad were at work."

Phoebe frowned. "But you do sleep with me," she pointed out innocently.

"You don't understand, Phe," Terence shook his head. "Not sleeping with you, like we have been, but _sleeping_ with you!" he stressed.

Phoebe's eyes widened. "Oh, you mean..."

Terence nodded.

"Oh, that's just wrong!" Phoebe groaned.

"Well, not according to my brother."

By now Terence had opened the parcel that lay on the bed, pulled out its contents and unfolded them onto the bed so that he and Phoebe were looking out a brand new set of Dress Robes. They were basic black, with a crisp white shirt and black tie to match.

"Very nice," Phoebe commented.

"But why do we need Dress robes?" Terence asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "Must have something to do with what is happening at the castle this year," she replied.

Terence nodded, folded the Dress Robes back up and placed them back into the box. All the while aware that Phoebe was watching him closely. "What's wrong?" he asked glancing at her.

"About what your brother said,"

"Don't worry about it," Terence reassured her. "He can just be a bit of a pervert sometimes,"

"But we'd never do that, right?"

Terence looked thoughtful, how could he say that they'd never go that far? They'd only been together 2 years and still that wasn't enough time to be talking - let alone thinking - about taking their relationship to the next level, he may have been eighteen, but Phoebe was still only fourteen; that and he would never rush her into doing something she didn't want to do, not unless she was comfortable with the whole situation. He just wasn't that type of person.

"I don't know," Terence answered. "Even if we did, I wouldn't force you too, unless you completely wanted it."

"But I'm fourteen!"

"Not _now_!"

Phoebe stared at him in innocent confusion, a state that pulled on the heartstrings.

Terence touched her shoulder. "Phoebe, listen to me," he said softly. "What Philip says, and what I do, are two different things. Just know that I would _never_ force you to do something that you're not completely comfortable with. I would never pressure you into anything, OK?"

With a soft smile, Phoebe slid her arms around his waist and Terence wrapped his around her shoulders embracing her tightly.

Outside the door - Philip smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Aww, the last scene was inspired by Terence's dream a few chapters ago.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, December 28, 2011 at 5:44am**


	58. Chapter 58

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **Fan of Fics.**

**Shout outs:** Big shout out to **SolitaryNyght** for adding me to their Story Alert.

**In responses: **First to **Vivi Fontaine**: I agree storylines where characters are forced to do sexual acts and it's not in the plotline are just stupid. What's the point? Stick to the plotline and don't venture out of that comfort zone; I also completely agree that Terence is a total sweetheart.

Second to **KingdomHeartsNerd**: It was supposed to be filler. Nothing was supposed to happen except an explanation of sorts to Terence's dream.

Third to **Fan of Fics**: Scary how that works out, yeah? No, Phoebe won't be pressured into anything. Promise. There will be an Author's Note on the Champions soon. I need help on something and you guys are the perfect audience. See ya soon.

**Author's Note: **This has been bubbling up for a few days now, and I feel that if I don't say something then my head is going to explode. But this is to people who can't seem to wrap their head around the fact that there are changes in this story that do not co-exist or agree with the original series. Including the way that Phoebe looks and feels about British Ministry officials and British wizards and witches in general. In comparison to my previous Harry Potter story _**The Muggleborn Witches series**_ Phoebe plays a different role to the one that Harry has. Phoebe isn't another savior, she isn't another chosen one. She is something **completely** different. Phoebe isn't a rule breaker [at least not to the extent of Harry and Ron] she doesnt go looking for trouble, trouble finds her. Phoebe **is** more like Hermione, but doesn't share the whole bookworm nature, she **will** put her life on the line to save others, she **will** protect those who need protecting and she **will** stand up for what she believes in. Phoebe is a new breed, a new species of witch, and if you can't handle that then that is your problem. If you don't like the way the story is going then that isn't my problem. You've either got to learn to deal with what is happening or keep your comments to yourself.

Don't get me wrong; I do not mind constructive criticism. But I will **NOT** stand back and let people rip and flame my story.

* * *

><p>There was a definite end-of-holidays gloom in the air when Phoebe awoke next morning. Heavy rain was still splattering against the windows as she got dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans and gold metallic top, she would change into her school robes on the Hogwarts Express, she was reaching for her black buckle riding boots when there came a knock on her bedroom door.<p>

"Come in," Phoebe called, as she slipped into her boots and zipped them up.

Esmee pushed open the door and smiled at the Elemental. "I just wanted to say goodbye," she smiled.

"It was nice meeting you," Phoebe nodded, zipping up her second boot and straightening up. "It was nice to meet Terence's family. Hopefully one day you'll meet mine."

Esmee smiled and nodded. She then embraced the younger witch tightly. "You're truly amazing, Phoebe, don't ever change."

Phoebe frowned slightly as she hugged Esmee back. "Wouldn't dream of it," she answered a little unsure of what had brought this on. "Esmee, is everything OK? Are you OK?"

"Yes, everything is fine," Esmee nodded pulling from the hug. "I must go. Madam Maxime is awaiting my arrival in her office. Goodbye Phoebe."

"Bye..." Phoebe waved as the oldest Higgs daughter left the room. _**Well that was strange**_ she thought as she pulled on her jacket, grabbed her trunk and started to pull it out onto the landing.

Philip appeared behind her. "Need help?" he asked.

Phoebe smiled. "I got it," she answered, starting down the stairs.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah,"

"Phoebe..."

The Elemental sighed. "Fine," she caved. "Will you please help me?"

"Sure," Philip nodded. "You are the guest, after all."

Skirting around the elemental, Philip carried the trunk down the stairs and placed it next to Terence's, before leading Phoebe into the kitchen for some breakfast. Terence and Bambi were sat at the table with their mother eating quietly but Esmee was nowhere to be found.

"Has Esmee gone?" Philip asked.

Josephine nodded. "She said she would write as often as she can," she said.

"Cool," Philip nodded. "Are you going into work today, because if you are I can take these two too the station, can't we Bambi?"

Bambi grinned and nodded enthusiastically.

Before Josephine could respond there was a call from the living room, Josephine got to her feet and disappeared through the adjoining door, her hair had barely whipped around the corner before the four kids in the kitchen were following after her.

Mr. Weasley's face was sitting in the middle of the fireplace amidst the flickering orange flames. "...Muggle neighbors heard bangs and shouting, so they went and called those what-d'you-call-'ems - please-men -"

"Policemen, Arthur," Josephine corrected.

Mr. Weasley nodded. "Joey, you have got to get over there

With a wave of her wand, Josephine summoned a pen and pad of paper to her and turned back to Mr. Weasley. "What does Mad-Eye say happened?" she asked.

"According to Amos," Mr. Weasley answered. "Said that he heard an intruder in his yard. Says they were creeping towards the house, but they were ambushed by his dustbins."

"What did the dustbins do?"

"Made one hell of a noise and fired rubbish everywhere, as far as I was told," Mr. Weasley answered. "Apparently one of them was still rocketing around when the please-men turned up -"

"Policemen,"

Mr. Weasley nodded again.

"And what about the intruder?"

"Joey, you know Mad-Eye," Mr. Weasley said. "Someone creeping into his yard at the dead of night? More likely there's a shell-shocked cat wandering around somewhere, covered in potato peelings. But if the Improper Use of Magic lot got their hands on Mad-Eye, he's had it - think of his record - we've got to get him off on a minor charge."

Josephine frowned. "Well, I don't see how much help I can be," she pointed out, "my Department is dealing with international games and this event that is happening at Hogwarts. Tell me, what is exploding dustbins worth?"

"Might be a caution," said Mr. Weasley.

"Did he use his wand?" Josephine asked. "Did he hex or curse anyone?"

"Probably jumped out of bed and started jinxing everything he could reach, the windows," said Mr. Weasley, "but they'll have a job proving it, there aren't any casualties."

Josephine nodded. "Well, I'll see what I can do about the Police," she said. "But if i'm honest, Arthur, I think it should be you down there, you deal with Muggle things."

"I thought it be best if I spoke with you, Joey," said Mr. Weasley. "You seem to understand the Muggles better than some of us."

"I see your point," Josephine nodded. "Well, I'm off," she waved her wand and the pen and pad of paper disappeared, she then turned to her children. "Philip, Terence and Phoebe need to be on that train before 11:00am, and do not forget that Bambi has soccer practice at 3:00."

Philip saluted. "Orders heard and received," he grinned. "Go, mum, I'll see you at Dinner."

Josephine nodded and swooped down to hug Terence and then Phoebe. "It was nice meeting you, Phoebe, I hope to see you soon." she said, before turning on the spot and disappearing with a _crack_.

Mr. Weasley had also gone from the fireplace.

"Well, now what?" Bambi asked, looking up at her brothers.

"Breakfast," Philip said, glancing at the clock. "It's only a 30 minute drive to Kings Cross from here; we'll leave as soon as everyone is finished."

Bambi nodded and climbed back up into her seat, Terence and Phoebe reclaimed their seats at the breakfast table, leaving Philip to stare at the fireplace silently. _**Be careful Mum**_.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You ever passed through the barrier before?" Terence asked as he and Phoebe followed Philip and Bambi through Kings Cross station.

Phoebe shook her head. "No," she answered. "But I know that you have to walk at the wall between Platforms Nine and Ten."

"The only problem is doing it in an unconstructive way," Philip said over his shoulder. "Go on, I'll keep a look out for Muggles."

Glancing around Phoebe pushed her trunk towards the barrier, lay back against the brick and allowed it to swallow her up...and as she did so, platform nine and three-quarters materialized in front of her. The Hogwarts Express, a gleaming scarlet steam engine, was already there, clouds of steam billowing from it, through which the many Hogwarts students and parents on the platform appeared like dark ghosts.

Banshee hissed at the noise as Terence appeared beside Phoebe they then set off to find seats, and were soon stowing their luggage in a compartment halfway along the train. They then returned to the platform to say goodbye to Philip and Bambi.

"Have fun this year," said Philip. "I really wish I was back at Hogwarts, this year. What I would give to be a part of this year's event."

"Why?" Terence asked.

"You're in for a real interesting year," Philip grinned. "I'll try and persuade Mum to let us come and watch a bit of it, what do you think, Thumper? You want to go to Hogwarts?"

'Thumper' was Bambi's nickname that her older siblings had given her. It was the name of the rabbit from her favourite Disney film 'Bambi' which had also been the inspiration for her name.

Bambi's eyes ignited at the prospect of being able to see the Hogwarts castle _before_ she was eleven years old. She bobbed her head feverishly. "I wanna go!" she squealed, darting for the train. "I wanna go! I wanna go!"

"Whoa," Philip exclaimed grabbing his younger sister around the waist and pulling her away from the steam engine. "Not now, princess. This event doesnt happen until Halloween anyway, and we need Mum's permission."

Bambi frowned and started to cry.

Phoebe smiled sadly and held her arms out to the five year. "Aw, don't cry Bambi," she smiled, wiping the tears. "You'll be at Hogwarts soon,"

"But I wanna go now!" Bambi pouted, her eyes sparkling with tears. "Can't I come?"

"Not right now, Thumper," Terence said, ruffling her hair. "One day..."

Bambi looked between Terence and Phoebe, and then without warning, threw her arms around Phoebe's neck. "I'm going to miss you!" she cried.

"I'm going to miss you too," Phoebe said, kissing the top of the five-year-olds head. "But I'll write every chance I get, keep a look out for Athena, OK?"

"Promise?" Bambi asked.

Phoebe smiled and winked. "I promise."

Bambi grinned and hugged her brother's girlfriend once more; she then held her arms out to Terence and hugged him just like she had done Phoebe.

At that moment the whistle blew, and Phoebe and Terence joined the swarm of students who were climbing aboard.

"Tell your mum that I appreciate her letting me stay," Phoebe said to Philip as she leaned out of the window to talk.

"I will," Philip nodded. "I know Bambi would love to have you round for Christmas, but I know that you are going to want to stay at Hogwarts, what with…one thing and another."

"Philip!" said Terence irritably. "What do you know that we don't?"

"You'll find out this evening, I expect," said Philip with a knowing grin. "It's going to be very exciting - mind you. I'm very glad they've decided to join the robes, especially with your track record, Phoebe."

Phoebe frowned. "My track record?" she questioned.

"What rules?" Terence asked. "What rules are they changing?"

Philip merely smiled and waved as the train started moving. Phoebe could see Bambi crying as the train disappeared around the corner; she sighed in defeat and turned to Terence. "This sucks!"

"Big time," Terence agreed. "Well, best go sit down, Ashlyn and Adrian should be on board somewhere. You want to go find them?"

Phoebe nodded. "Sure,"

Taking her hand, Terence led the way down the corridor of the train, looking into full compartments for the familiar faces of their friends.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Thick rain splattered the windows making it very difficult to see out of them. Ashlyn sat with her chin resting on the palm of her hand, her eyes not completely focused as she stared point blank out of the window. She was bored. She was sat in the corner of the Slytherin compartment with Adrian, Warrington, Montague, Bole and Derrick, all of whom were talking about one topic: Quidditch.

"Father actually considered sending me to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts, you know. He knows the Headmaster, you see. Well, you know his opinion of Dumbledore - the man's such a Mudblood lover - and Durmstrang doesn't admit that sort of riff-raff. But Mother didn't like the idea of me going to school so far away," Draco Malfoy was saying as he passed their compartment, the door had been left open slightly and his voice was impossible to miss, especially when he was standing right outside.

Ashlyn blinked and looked around as Draco continued his slander against Hogwarts.

"Father says Durmstrang takes a far more sensible line than Hogwarts about the Dark Arts. Durmstrang students actually _learn_ them, not just the defence rubbish we do..."

"Yeah, and if you break any of their rules the consequences are severe," said another familiar voice. "Durmstrang also enjoys tormenting their students and submitting them to the Torture curse. I wonder what your father would say if that happened to you?"

Phoebe appeared outside the compartment, her eyes focused on Draco.

"No one asked for your input, Blackheart!" Draco snapped.

"When have I ever been known to not comment on something that isn't my business?" Phoebe asked. "Sure, Durmstrang has a reputation for having practical lessons in the Dark Arts. But obviously your father doesnt know what happens there or he would have told you about the punishment clause."

Draco glared. "And how do _you_ know about the punishment clause?" he questioned.

"I actually have _friends_ that attend the Durmstrang Institute," Phoebe answered. "Believe it or not, Viktor Krum is one of them!"

Draco snorted in an unmanly fashion. "Viktor Krum? Friends with you? In what world?"

"Reality,"

Draco glared. "Whatever, Blackheart, be careful you don't get caught in your own web of lies," he said as he carried on down the corridor with Crabbe and Goyle. He reached the end and disappeared into a compartment.

Phoebe glanced back at Terence. "Wonder how he would have reacted if I told him I was related to the Headmaster?" she grinned.

Terence rolled his eyes and turned his gaze to the Slytherin compartment, but was taken by surprise when the door slid open and Ashlyn threw herself at Phoebe. "Please, save me!" the fourteen year old Slytherin begged.

"Whoa..." Phoebe yelped as her back hit the windows behind her. "Ash, what the hell?"

"They are so boring!" Ashlyn said, pointing back into the compartment. "Don't get me wrong, I love Quidditch as much as the next girl, but there is only so much of it I can take!"

The older Slytherin's looked up. "Hey!" they each exclaimed.

Phoebe giggled. "Um...well, I have an empty compartment in that direction -" she pointed behind Terence. "If you're interested?"

"Yes! Just let me grab Badger,"

And she disappeared back into the compartment. Badger was Ashlyn's pet cat, a rather chubby black cat with silvery green eyes.

Badger hissed when he saw Phoebe.

Phoebe glared at the cat, he had never liked her. "You know I could transfigure you into a snake," she commented, looking down at the ball of black fur. "You sound like a snake when you hiss!"

"Phoebe!" Ashlyn gasped, holding the cat close to her chest.

"What? That cat doesnt like me!"

"Nonsense!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Come on Hermione number 2," she said, skirting around Terence. "Let's go find the others before they think I'm picking favorites."

"But I am your favourite!" Ashlyn protested.

"Shh," Phoebe said, pressing her finger to her lips. "Do you want the others to hear you?"

Terence rolled his eyes and turned to follow the two girls down the corridor, their playful banter loud enough for the whole train to hear.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally locating the rest of their friends, Phoebe and Terence led them back to their empty compartment and the explanation of what had happened at the World Cup began.

The rain became heavier and heavier as the train moved further north. The sky was so dark and the windows so steamy that the lanterns were lit by midday. The lunch trolley came rolling down the corridor, and Phoebe bought a large stack of pumpkin pasties and Cauldron cakes for them to share.

Several people looked in on them as the afternoon progressed, including Cedric Diggory, Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet and Daphne Greengrass.

"How was the match?" Daphne asked, looking at Ashlyn expectantly. She had already been too look for Adrian and had been relocated here after he had told her Ashlyn was in the company of her friends. "Mum couldn't get tickets,"

"It was fun," Ashlyn nodded. "Top Box. And I saw Viktor Krum right up close."

"He's the tall, dark and brooding one, isn't he?"

Phoebe grinned at the description. Before a loud joy of ecstasy was heard from outside the door which Daphne had left ajar. "Excuse me," the elemental said with a smile as she stepped out to find Draco tormenting those in the next compartment. She didn't need telling twice on who was inside.

"Picking on people again, Dragon?" Phoebe asked as she stepped closer and peered in at Hermione, Harry, Ron and Neville.

"Why can't you mind your own business, Blackheart?" Draco sneered.

Phoebe ignored him as she spied the thing he was holding. "What is that?" she asked, holding the sleeve nimbly between her fingers, looking as if it was about to attack her at any minute.

"It's Weasley's," Draco answered. "It looks like something someone has taken straight out of the 1800s. Tell me, Weasley, you're not planning on actually _wearing_ this, are you?"

"Eat dung, Malfoy!" said Ron, his face the same colour as his robes as he snatched them back out of Malfoy's grip. Malfoy howled with laughter, Crabbe and Goyle guffawed stupidly.

"So...going to enter, Weasley? Going to try and bring a bit of glory to the family name? There's money involved as well, you know...you'd be able to afford some decent robes if you won..."

"What are you talking about?" snapped Ron.

"_Are you going to enter?"_ Malfoy repeated. "I suppose you will, Potter? You never miss a chance to show off, do you?"

"Either explain what you're on about or go away, Malfoy," said Hermione.

A gleeful smile spread across Malfoy's pale face.

"Don't tell me you don't _know_?" he said delightfully. "You've got a father and brother at the Ministry and you don't even _know_? My God, _my_ father told me about it ages ago...heard it from Cornelius Fudge himself. But then, Father's always associated with the top people at the Ministry...maybe your father's too junior to know it, Weasley...yes...they probably don't talk about important stuff in front of him..."

Laughing once more, Malfoy beckoned to Crabbe and Goyle, and the three of them disappeared.

Phoebe watched them go before jumping at the suddenly slamming of the compartment door and the shattering of glass. "_Ron!"_ she scolded, removing her wand, muttered _"Reparo!"_, and the glass shards flew back into a single pane, and back into the door. She then waved to her Gryffindor housemates and hurried of in search of her brother.

"Phoebe," James called, sticking his head out of their compartment. "Where are you going?"

"I'll be back soon," Phoebe answered. "Have to use the bathroom..."

And she disappeared.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Soon the Hogwarts Express slowed down at last, and finally stopped in the pitch-darkness of Hogsmeade station.

As the train doors opened, there was a rumble of thunder overheard. Ashlyn bundled Badger up in her cloak as she left the train, head bent and eyes narrowed against the downpour. The rain was now coming down so thick and fast that it was as though buckets of ice-cold water were being emptied repeatedly over them.

"Where's Phoebe?" Amelia yelled.

Sarah shrugged as she shivered, and inched her way across the platform with her friends.

A hundred carriages stood waiting for them outside the station. Terence grasped the handle of one of them and clambered inside, jumping almost a foot in the air when he realized that it was already occupied. "Damn it Phoebe!" he cursed. "You're going to kill me!"

Phoebe blinked. "What took you guys so long?" she asked. "I've been waiting here for ages!"

"Where did you disappear too?" James asked, clambering in last and sitting beside Sarah. The carriage gave a lurch and they were trudging off towards the castle.

"Needed information," Phoebe answered.

"What information?" Ashlyn asked.

"And from whom?" Amelia questioned.

Phoebe grinned. "That's not important," she said, waving the Hufflepuff off. "What _is_ important is what is happening at Hogwarts this year!"

Amelia and Sarah looked confused.

While James, Ashlyn and Terence said: "What?"

"The Triwizard Tournament!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Again - sorry for the late update.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated**** Thursday, December 29, 2011 at 5:28am**


	59. Chapter 59

**Author's Note:** Updating tonight because I won't be here tomorrow night to update. My cousins are turning 19 and we're all going out to celebrate.

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you to new reader: **BeautifullySarcastic22** for adding me to their **Favourite Story** and **Story Alert.**

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In responses: **First to **Vivi Fontaine:** First I am glad that you approve of Bambi [or Thumper]; she was inspired by the monster I call Niamh, who is three years old and a little banshee [her nickname also inspired Terence's cat]. Yes, Terence is eighteen, he his repeating his seventh year because he spent four months in Portugal with Phoebe when she 'died' after the Dementor incident last year. He missed four months of school and found that the NEWTs were just too hard for him to complete without that four months' worth of work. Cedric will be around this year. I also have a surprise at the end of this year for everyone, another alternative ending.

Secondly to **Fan of Fics:** Phoebe only had to threaten Draco a little bit. Phoebe isn't afraid at all. Who knows what Hermione was thinking in the book, maybe she was afraid that they would do some extensive damage to Malfoy in order to find out information and end up getting expelled or something, we can only assume.

Lastly to **KingdomHeartsNerd: **I have said everything I need to say to you. As for Draco...you're only now figuring that out? Just because he knows about Phoebe doesnt mean he is going to stop being an ass.

Here is Chapter 59...

* * *

><p>Through the gates, flanked with statues of winged boars, and up the sweeping drive the carriages trundled, swaying dangerously in what was fast becoming gale. "Can't you do something about the storm?" Amelia asked, looking at Phoebe expectantly.<p>

"No," Phoebe answered. "I tried it two years running now and both times bad things have happened. The year hasn't even started yet; I don't want to end up in the Hospital wing or worse...dead."

Amelia looked sheepish. "Sorry."

Phoebe smiled. "It's OK," she nodded, leaning against the window and watching as the Hogwarts castle came clearer in the distant. Lightning flashed across the sky as their carriage came to a halt before the great oak front doors, which stood at the top of a flight of stone steps. People who had occupied the front carriages were already hurrying up the stone steps into the castle.

James, Sarah, Ashlyn, Amelia, Phoebe and Terence jumped down from their carriage and made a mad dash for the stone steps, looking up only when they were safely inside the cavernous torch-lit Entrance Hall, although they hadn't taken more than two steps towards the Great Hall when a yell of surprise echoed from behind them.

Looking around, Phoebe spotted Ron pushing his soaking hair from his eyes, the left overs of a red balloon lay on the ground at his feet. In the air above the students hovered Peeves.

"PEEVES!" yelled an angry voice. "Peeves come down here at ONCE!"

Professor McGonagall, deputy headmistress and Head of Gryffindor house, had come dashing out of the Great Hall; she skidded on the wet floor and grabbed Amelia around the neck to stop herself from falling. "Ouch - sorry, Miss Winchester -"

"That's all right, Professors!" Amelia gasped, massaging her throat.

"Peeves get down here NOW!" barked Professor McGonagall, straightening her pointed hat and glaring upwards through her square-rimmed spectacles.

"Not doing nothing!" cackled Peeves, lobbing a water bomb at several fifth-year girls, who screamed and dived into the Great Hall. "Already wet, aren't they? Little squirts! Wheeeeeeeeee!" and he aimed another bomb at a group of second-years who had just arrived.

"I shall call the Headmaster!" shouted Professor McGonagall. "I'm warning you, Peeves -"

Peeves stuck out his tongue, threw the last of his water bombs into the air, and zoomed off up the marble staircase, cackling insanely.

"Well, move along, then!" said Professor McGonagall sharply to the bedraggled crowd. "Into the Great Hall, come on!"

Phoebe turned back to her friends and hurried through the double doors ahead of them.

The Great Hall looked its usual splendid self, decorated for the start-of-term feast. Golden plates and goblets gleamed by the light of hundreds and hundreds of candles, floating over the tables in mid-air. The four long house tables were packed with chattering students; at the top of the Hall, the staff sat along one side of a fifth table, facing their pupils. It was much warmer in here.

Waving to Ashlyn and Terence, Phoebe, James, Amelia and Sarah walked past the Slytherin and Ravenclaw tables towards their own, two seconds after claiming her seat, Phoebe looked up as Hermione, Harry and Ron joined her and James. "Hey,"

"Hey," Hermione smiled, as Harry sat opposite them and emptied his trainers of the water that had invaded them thanks to Peeves.

"I hope they hurry up with the Sorting. I'm starving."

The Sorting of the new students into houses took place at the start of every year, but by unlucky circumstances, Harry hadn't been present at one since his own.

Just then, a highly excited, breathless voice called down the table, "Hiya, Harry!"

It was Colin Creevey, a third year to whom Harry was something of a hero.

"Hi, Colin," said Harry warily.

"Harry, guess what? Guess what, Harry? My brother's starting! My brother Dennis!"

Phoebe exchanged a grin with James, as Colin babbled on excitedly about his brother. Then, when Colin had finished speaking, Harry turned to his friends. "Brothers and sisters usually go in the same houses, don't they?" he asked.

"Not necessarily," said Hermione. "Parvati Patil's twin is in Ravenclaw, and they're identical, you'd think they'd be together, wouldn't you?"

_**Yeah, and my twin brother is in Slytherin**_ Phoebe added thoughtfully, subtly glancing in the Slytherin tables direction, if anyone had seen her they would have thought she was looking out for Terence or Ashlyn, but instead she was looking for Draco amongst the sea of Green and Silver snakes.

"Where's the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher?" said Hermione, bringing Phoebe back to the conversations at the Gryffindor table.

Looking up at the staff table, Phoebe too noticed that there were several empty chairs, one of which belonged to their DADA professor. They had never yet had a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher who had lasted more than three terms. Everyone's favourite by far had been Professor Lupin, who had resigned at the end of last year.

"Maybe they couldn't get anyone!" said Hermione, looking anxious.

Phoebe glanced up at the ceiling, it was enchanted to look like the sky outside, and she had never seen it look this stormy. Black and purple clouds were swirling across it, and as another thunderclap sounded outside, a fork of lightning flashed across it.

"Oh, hurry up," Ron moaned. "I could eat a Hippogriff."

The words were no sooner out of his mouth that the doors of the Great Hall opened and silence fell. Professor McGonagall was leading a long line of first-years up to the top of the Hall. If the students inside the Hall were wet, it was nothing to how these first-years looked.

They appeared to have swum across the lake rather than sailing. All of them were shivering with a combination of cold and nerves as they filed along the staff table and came to a halt in a line facing the rest of the school - all of them except the smallest of the lot, a boy with mousey hair, who was wrapped in what appeared to be Hagrid's moleskin overcoat. The coat was so big for him that it looked as though he was draped in a furry black marquee.

His small face protruded from over the collar, looking almost painfully excited. When he had lined up with his terrified-looking peers, he caught Colin Creevey's eye, gave a double thumbs up and mouthed 'I fell in the lake!' He looked positively delighted about it.

Professor McGonagall now placed a three-legged stool on the ground before the first-years and, on top of it, an extremely old, dirty, patched wizard's hat. The first-years stared at it. So did everyone else. For a moment, there was silence. Then a tear near the brim opened wide like a mouth, and the hat broke into song.

It lasted for more than five minutes and then the Great Hall rang with applause as the Sorting Hat finished.

"That's not the song it san when it sorted us," said Harry, clapping along with everyone else.

"Sings a different song every year," said James. "It's got to be a pretty boring life, hasn't it, being a hat? I suppose it sends all year making up the next one."

Professor McGonagall was done unrolling a large scroll of parchment.

"When I call your name, you will put on the Hat and sit on the stool," she told the first-years. "When the Hat announces your house, you will go and sit at the appropriate table. Acklerley, Stewart!"

A boy walked forward, visibly trembling from head to foot, picked up the Sorting Hat, put it on and sat down on the stool.

"_Ravenclaw!"_

Stewart Ackerley took off the Hat and hurried into a seat at the Ravenclaw table, where everyone was applauding him.

"Baddock, Malcolm!"

_"Slytherin!"_

The table on the other side of the Hall erupted with cheers; Phoebe could see Malfoy clapping as Baddock joined the Slytherin's. James hissed Malcolm Baddock as he sat down.

"Branstone, Eleanor!"

_"Hufflepuff!"_

Phoebe spotted Amelia and Sarah smiling cheerfully as Eleanor joined their table.

"Cauldwell, Owen!"

_"Hufflepuff!"_

"Creevey, Dennis!"

Tiny Dennis Creevey staggered forward, tripping over Hagrid's moleskin, just as Hagrid himself sidled into the Hall through a door behind the teachers' table. About twice as tall as a normal man, and at least three times as broad, Hagrid, with his long, wild, tangled black hair and beard, looked slightly alarming - a misleading impression, for the Gryffindor's knew that Hagrid to possess a very kind nature.

_"Gryffindor!"_

Hagrid clapped along with the Gryffindor's, as Dennis Creevey, beaming widely, took off the Hat, placed it back on the stool, and hurried over to join his brother.

"Colin, I fell in!" he said shrilly, throwing himself into an empty seat. "It was brilliant! And something in the water grabbed me and pushed me back into the boat!"

"Cool!" said Colin, just as excitedly. "It was probably the giant squid, Dennis!"

"Wow!" said Dennis, as though nobody in their wildest dreams could hope for more than being thrown into a storm-tossed, fathoms-deep late, and pushed out of it again by a giant sea-monster.

"Dennis! Dennis! See that boy down there? The one with the black hair and glasses? See him? _Know who he is, Dennis?_"

Phoebe giggled as Harry looked away and returned his attention to the Sorting of Emma Dobbs.

The Sorting continued, boys and girls with varying degrees of fright on their faces moving, one by one, to the three-legged stool, the line dwindling slowly as Professor McGonagall passed the 'L's.

"Oh, hurry up," Ron moaned, massaging his stomach.

"Now, Ron, the Sorting's much more important than food," said Nearly Headless Nick, as 'Madley, Laura!' became a Hufflepuff.

"'Course it is, if you're dead," snapped Ron.

Phoebe glared at him. "Stop thinking about your stomach for two seconds, Ronald! There are other students in this castle besides you!"

Ron returned the glare. His and Phoebe's relationship had never been a good one; it had always had a rocky foundation. Mostly because he found her as a meddlesome little witch, and she found him as a self-loving, food-craving silly little boy. And as the years progressed neither did anything to the distinctive hatred that they both shared for each other.

"I do hope this year's batches of Gryffindor's are up to scratch," said Nick. "We don't want to break our winning streak, do we?"

"That's what we are for," James pointed out, motioning towards the Golden Trio, himself and Phoebe. "We break the rules, because Gryffindor to fall behind in the race for the House cup, then receive points at the end of the year and win the House cup anyway!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and clapped as McDonald, Natalie became a Gryffindor.

Gryffindor had won the Inter-House Championship for the last three years in a row.

"Pritchard, Graham!"

_"Slytherin!"_

"Quirke, Orla!"

_"Ravenclaw!"_

And finally as 'Whitby, Kevin' became a Hufflepuff the Sorting ended. Professor McGonagall picked up the Hat and the stool, and carried them away.

"About time," said Ron, seizing his knife and fork.

Dumbledore had got to his feet. He was smiling around at the students, his arms opened wide in welcome. "I have only two words to say to you," he told them, his deep voice echoing around the Hall. "_Tuck in_."

"Hear, hear!" said Harry and Ron loudly, as the empty dishes filled magically before their eyes.

Nearly Headless Nick watched mournfully as Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and James loaded their plates.

"Aah, 'at's be'er," said Ron, with his mouth full of mashed potato.

"You're lucky there's a feast at all tonight, you know," said Nick. "There was trouble in the kitchen earlier."

"Why? Wha 'appened?" said Harry, through a sizeable chunk of steak.

Phoebe grimaced. "Oh, please do eat what's in your mouth before you talk," she scolded. "It's disgusting!"

Harry swallowed. "Sorry."

"Peeves, of course," said Nick. "The usual argument, you know. He wanted to attend the feast - well, it's quite out of the question, you know what he's like, utterly uncivilized, can't see a plate of food without throwing it. We had a ghost' council - the Fat Friar was all for giving him the chance - but most wisely, in my opinion, the Bloody Baron put his foot down."

The Bloody Baron was the Slytherin ghost, a gaunt and silent spectre covered in silver bloodstains. He was the only person at Hogwarts who could really control Peeves.

"Yeah, we thought Peeves seemed hacked off about something," said Ron darkly. "So what did he do in the kitchens?"

"Oh, the usual," said Nick, shrugging. "Wreaked havoc and mayhem. Pots and pans everywhere. Place swimming in soup. Terrified the house-elves out of their wits -"

_Clang_. Hermione had knocked over her golden goblet. Pumpkin juice spread steadily over the tablecloth, but Hermione paid no attention.

"There are house-elves _here_?" she said, staring, horror-struck, at Nick. "Here at _Hogwarts?"_

"Certainly," said Nick. "The largest number in any dwelling in Britain, I believe. Over a hundred."

"I've never seen one!" said Hermione.

"Well, they hardly every leave the kitchen by day, do they?" said Nick. "They come out at night to do a bit of cleaning...see to the fires and so on...I mean; you're not supposed to see them, are you? That's the mark of a good house-elf, isn't it, that you don't know it's there?"

Phoebe shook her head.

"But they get _paid_?" Hermione continued. "They get _holidays,_ don't they? And - and sick leave, and pensions and everything?"

Nick chortled so much that his ruff slipped and his head flopped off. "Sick leaves and pensions?" he said, pushing his head back up onto his shoulders. "House-elves don't want sick leave and pensions!"

Hermione looked down at her hardly touched plate of food, then put her knife and fork down up on it and pushed it away from her.

"Oh, come on Hermione," said Phoebe. "I want to help the House-elves as much as you do, but starving yourself is not the answer!"

"Slave labour," said Hermione, breathing hard through her nose. "That is what made this dinner. _Slave Labour_! Sorry, Phoebe, but you're innocent charm isn't going to work this time!"

Phoebe stared at her best friend with wide-eyes. "I have an innocent charm?" she asked, turning to James and Harry.

They looked sheepishly apologetic and nodded.

The rain still drumming heavily against the high, dark windows. Another clap of thunder shook the windows, and the stormy ceiling flashed, illuminating the golden plates as the remains of the first course vanished and were replaced, instantly, with puddings.

"Treacle tart, Hermione!" said Ron, deliberately wafting its smell at her. "Spotted dick, look! Chocolate gateau!"

"Claimed!" Phoebe exclaimed, snagging the last chunk of Chocolate gateau and smearing it in whipped cream.

When the puddings, too, had been demolished, and the last crumbs had faded off the plates, leaving them sparkling clean. Albus Dumbledore got to his feet again. The buzz of chatter filling the Hall ceased almost at once, so that only the howling wind and pounding rain could be heard.

"So!" said Dumbledore. "Now that we are all fed and watered, I must once more ask for your attention, while I give out a few notices. Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle has this year been extended to include Screaming Yo-yos, Fanged Frisbees and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list compromises some four hundred and thirty-seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch's office, if anybody would like to check it out."

Phoebe and Harry exchanged looks; they had been in Filch's office once more and no desire to return.

"I would rather go swimming with the Giant squid," Phoebe said, in what she thought had been a muttered undertone, but the Hall was so silent several people heard her and a gaggle of giggling broke out. The corners of Dumbledore's mouth twitched.

He continued. "As ever, I would like to remind you all that the Forest in the grounds is out-of-bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year. It is also my painful duty to inform you that the inter-house Quidditch Cup will not take place this year."

_"What?"_ Harry gasped. He looked around at Phoebe, Fred and George, his fellow members of the Quidditch team.

_**I know that the Triwizard Tournament is happening,**_ Phoebe thought. _**But I didn't think it would happen at the expense of Quidditch!**_

Dumbledore continued. "This is due to an event that will be starting in October and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy - but I am sure you will enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts -"

But at that moment, there was a deafening rumble of thunder, and the doors of the Great Hall banged open.

A man stood in the doorway, leaning upon a long staff, shrouded in a black travelling cloak. Every heard in the Great Hall swiveled towards the stranger, suddenly brightly illuminated by a fork of lightning that flashed across the ceiling. He lowered his hood, shook out a long mane of grizzled, dark grey hair, and then began to walk up towards the teachers' table.

A dull _clunk_ echoed through the Hall on his every other step. He reached the end of the top table, turned right and limped heavily towards Dumbledore. Another flash of lightning crossed the ceiling. Hermione gasped.

The lightning had thrown the man's face into sharp relief. It looked as though it had been carved out of weathered wood by someone who had only the vaguest idea of what human faces were supposed to look like, and was none too skilled with a chisel. Every inch of skin seemed to be scarred. The mouth looked like a diagonal gash, and a large chunk of the nose was missing. But it was the man's eyes that made him frightening.

One of them was small, dark and beady. The other was large, round as a coin, and a vivid, electric blue. The blue eye was moving ceaselessly, without blinking, and was rolling up, down and from side to side, quit independently of the normal eye - and then it rolled right over, pointing into the back of the man's head.

The stranger reached Dumbledore. He stretched out a hand that was as badly scarred as his face, and Dumbledore shook it, muttering words that they couldn't hear. He seemed to be making some enquiry of the stranger, who shook his head unsmilingly and replied in an undertone. Dumbledore nodded, and gestured the man to an empty seat on his right-hand side.

The stranger sat down, shook his made of dark grey hair out of his face, pulled a plate of sausages towards him, raised it to what was left of his nose and sniffed it. He then took a small knife out of his pocket, speared the sausage on the end of it, and began to eat. His normal eye was fixed upon the sausages, but the blue eye was still darting restlessly around in its socket, taking in the Hall and its students.

Once or twice, Phoebe could have sworn she saw the eye stop on her and Harry, remain there for a few seconds longer than needed and then twist away to inspect the rest of the Hall. _**I got a bad feeling about him**_ she thought as she turned her attention back to Dumbledore.

"May I introduce our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher," said Dumbledore brightly, into the silence. "Professor Moody."

It was usual for new staff members to be greeted with applause, but none of the staff or students clapped except for Dumbledore and Hagrid. Both put their hands together and applauded, but the sound echoed dismally into the silence, and they stopped fairly quickly. Everyone seemed too transfixed by Moody's bizarre appearance to do more than stare at him.

"Moody?" Harry muttered. "_Mad-Eye Moody_? The one your dad went to help this morning?"

"Terence's mum went to help too," Phoebe whispered. "She was helping sort out the Policemen. Mr. Weasley said that he may have been able to get Moody off on a minor charge for his dustbins,"

Ron nodded.

"What happened to him?" Hermione whispered. "What happened to his _face_?"

"Dunno," Ron whispered back, watching Moody with fascination.

Dumbledore cleared his throat again.

"As I was saying," he said, smiling at the sea of students, "we are to have the honour of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event which has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year."

"You're JOKING!" said Fred loudly.

The tension that had filled the Hall ever since Moody's arrival suddenly broke.

Nearly everyone laughed, and Dumbledore chuckled appreciatively.

"I am _not_ joking, Mr. Weasley," he said, "though, now you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag and a leprechaun who all go into a bar -"

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat loudly.

"Er - but maybe this is not the time...no..." said Dumbledore. "Where was I? Ah yes, the Triwizard Tournament involves, so I hope those who _do_ know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely. The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago, as a friendly competition between the tree largest European schools of Wizardry - Hogwarts, Durmstrang and Beauxbatons. A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the Tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities - until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the Tournament was discontinued."

_"Death toll?_" Hermione whispered, looking alarmed.

"There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "none of which have been very successful. However, our own Department of International Magical Co-operation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt. We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that, this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger. The Heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."

"I'm going for it!" Fred Weasley hissed down the table, his face lit with enthusiasm.

"Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, "the Heads of the participating school, along with the Ministry of Magic, has agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age - that is to say, seventeen years or older - will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration. This -" Dumbledore raised his voice slightly, for several people had made noises of outrage at these words, and the Weasley twins were suddenly looking furious "- is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the Tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below sixth and seventh year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion. I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen."

He paused and then continued.

"The delegates from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October, and remaining with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign gusts while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop! Chop!"

Dumbledore sat down and turned to talk to Mad-Eye Moody. There was a great scraping and banging as all the students got to their feet, and swarmed towards the double doors into the Entrance Hall.

"They can't do that!" said George. "We're seventeen in April, why can't we have a shot?"

"They're not stopping me entering," said Fred stubbornly. "The champions will get to do all sorts of stuff you'd never be allowed to do normal. And a thousand Galleons prize money!"

"Yeah," said Ron, a faraway look on his face, "a thousand Galleons..."

"Come on," said Phoebe, "we'll be the only ones left here if you don't move."

Harry, Ron, Fred and George turned and followed Phoebe, Hermione and James from the Hall. The Weasley twins trying to decide on the best way to submit their names.

"Ageing Potion," Fred suggested.

"But Dumbledore knows you're not of age," Hermione pointed out.

"Dumbledore's not deciding on who the champion is going to be," George said. "He is only stopping us from submitting our names. The judge is going to choose who he believes is the best from each school; he doesn't care about our age! And once we're chosen won't be able to stop us."

Hermione looked impassive. "He can," she said stubbornly. "He can refuse to let you compete."

"Unfortunately, he can't," said Phoebe, "They will be bound by a legal contract. This states that if they are chosen as Champions then they must play through, right to the very end."

Fred and George nodded in triumph. "See!"

"Phoebe," Hermione whined.

"I'm just stating facts," Phoebe responded, holding her hands up in defence. "I'm not even thinking of entering. All I care about is going to school with Jackson and Blake for an entire year."

Harry frowned. "I thought Jackson was a year older than you?"

"He is," Phoebe nodded. "I'm fourteen, he's fifteen and Blake is seventeen."

"Dumbledore said only sixth and seventh years will be coming,"

Hermione nodded. "Jackson is fifth year, so he won't be here."

Phoebe grinned and pointed at the bookworm. "You underestimate the power of friendship," she stated. "Blake, Jackson and I are best friends. Headmaster Karkaroff knows this, and I know that Blake would never agree to leave Jackson at Durmstrang if here was to come here and compete, he'd demand that Jackson be brought with him."

"But it is not his decision," James said.

"No, it's not," Phoebe agreed. "But if all else fails then I will just get Serefina to request Jackson to be brought here for the remainder of the year. You'll find that Blake, Jackson and I rarely go anywhere without one another; and if presented with the opportunity to spend an entire year together while still in school, then we are not going to pass it over!"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated** **Friday, December 30, 2011 at 5:14am**


	60. Chapter 60

**Author's Note:** Happy New Year!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, Vivi Fontaine** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat** (who once again has been playing catch up.)

**In responses:** Firstly to: **KingdomHeartsNerd:** Well I guess Phoebe isn't _exactly_ like Hermione after all.

Secondly to: **Vivi Fontaine:** Yeah! There has always been a reason that I sent Blake and Jackson to the Durmstrang Institute, and _this_ is that reason. The Triwizard Tournament. There will be major changes this year.

Thirdly to: **10th Squad 3rd Seat:** Again, I apologize if my everyday updates have thrown you off. I usually update Phoebe and then my MWS story, but for the past few nights I have had writers block when it comes to MWS. But that story is nearing its end now, so hopefully there won't be any confusion and I can get into a routine of updates.

Fourthly to: **Fan of Fics:** The Joke? I agree, why couldn't McGonagall just have allowed Dumbledore to tell it, but I guess the Tournament is more important. I guess Phoebe always knew that she had a way to get people to do things without trying all that hard, but to have someone she considers a best friend say it so bluntly, like Hermione did, made her even more aware of it.

**Warnings: **A little bit of foul language will be used at the end of the chapter. Not a lot but there will be one or two words.

* * *

><p>The storm had blown itself out by the following morning, though the ceiling in the Great Hall was still gloomy; heavy clouds of pewter grey swirled overhead as Phoebe and James examined their new timetables at breakfast. A few seats along Fred, George and Lee Jordan were discussing magical methods of ageing themselves and bluffing their way into the Triwizard Tournament.<p>

"Today's not bad...outside all morning," said James, who was running his finger down the Monday column of his timetable, "Herbology with the Hufflepuff's and Care of Magical Creatures with the Slytherin's..."

"Double Divination this afternoon," Phoebe said, looking down.

James paused. "You're taking Divination?" he asked. Phoebe nodded. "Why?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Arithmancy just didn't grab my attention last year, so I decided that I needed a change. And I want to see what Divination was like."

"But your Grandmother is a Seer,"

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "Now I can draw a comparison between Trelawney and Grandma."

James shook his head.

There was a sudden rustling noise above them, and a hundred owls came soaring through the open windows, carrying the morning mail. A large tawny owl soared down to Neville Longbottom and deposited a parcel in his lap - Neville almost always forgot to pack something.

"Should we go?" Phoebe asked finishing her jam on toast.

James nodded and finished his Pumpkin juice, grabbed his backpack and got to his feet. Phoebe followed him and the two left the Great Hall, meeting up with Sarah and Amelia in the Entrance Hall.

"See you in Care of Magical Creatures," Ashlyn said as she hurried up the marble staircase with Daphne and disappeared off to Charms.

Phoebe waved and turned to Terence. "I have Dance at 8:00," she told him. "And I finish at 10:00."

"Astronomy Tower?" Terence whispered.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I'll meet you after class," Terence told her, leaning down to kiss her.

Phoebe smiled. "Can't wait already."

Terence grinned as Phoebe kissed him back, then they both pulled away and Phoebe followed James out onto the front lawn as Terence and Adrian headed off to Transfiguration.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Bubotubers," Professor Sprout said briskly. "They need squeezing."

She was showing her class of fourth year Gryffindor's and Hufflepuff's a very ugly plant. Indeed, they looked less like plants than thick black giant slugs, protruding vertically out of the soil. Each was squirming slightly, and had a number of large, shiny swellings upon it, which appeared to be full of liquid.

"You will collect the pus -"

"The _what_?" said Seamus Finnigan, sounding revolted.

"Pus, Finnigan, pus," said Professor Sprout, "and it's extremely valuable, so don't waste it. You will collect the pus, I say, in these bottles. Wear your dragon-hide gloves, it can do funny things to the skin when undiluted, Bubotuber pus."

Squeezing the Bubotubers was disgusting, but oddly satisfying. As each swelling was popped, a large amount of thick yellowish green liquid burst forth which smelled strongly of petrol. They caught it in the bottles as Professor Sprout had indicated, and by the end of the lesson had collected several pints.

"That'll keep Madam Pomfrey happy," said Professor Sprout, stoppering the last bottle with a cork. "An excellent remedy for the more stubborn forms of acne, Bubotuber pus. Should stop students resorting to desperate measures to rid themselves of pimples."

"Like poor Eloise Midgen," said Amelia in a hushed voice. "She tried to curse hers off."

"Silly girl," said Professor Sprout, shaking her head. "But Madam Pomfrey fixed her noise back on it the end."

A booming bell echoed from the castle across the wet grounds, signaling the end of the lesson, and the class separated. Amelia and Sarah bid goodbye to James and Phoebe as the Hufflepuff's climbed the stone steps for Transfiguration, and the Gryffindor's headed in the other direction, down the sloping lawn towards Hagrid's small wooden cabin, which stood on the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Hagrid was standing outside his hut, one hand on the collar of his enormous black boarhound, Fang. There were several open wooden crates on the ground at his feet, and Fang was whimpering and straining at his collar, apparently keen to investigate the contents more closely. As they drew nearer, an odd rattling noise reached their ears, punctuated by what sounded like minor explosions.

"Mornin'!" Hagrid said. "Be'er wait fer the Slytherin's, they won' want ter miss this - Blast-Ended Skrewts!"

"Come again?" said Ron.

Hagrid pointed down into the crates.

"Eurgh!" squealed Lavender Brown, jumping backwards.

Blast-Ended Skrewts were basically deformed; shell-less lobsters, horribly pale and slimy-looking, with legs sticking out in very odd places and no visible heads. There were about a hundred of them in each crate, each about six inches long, crawling over each other, bumping blindly into the sides of the boxes.

They were giving off a very powerful smell of rotting fish. Every now and then, sparks would fly out of the end of a Skrewt and, with a small _phut_; it would be propelled forwards several inches.

"On'y jus' hatched," said Hagrid proudly, "so yeh'll be able ter raise 'em yerselves! Thought we'd make a bit of a project of it!"

"And why would we _want_ to raise them?" said a cold voice.

The Slytherin's had arrived. The speaker was Draco Malfoy. Crabbe and Goyle were chuckling appreciatively at his words.

Hagrid looked stumped at the question.

"I mean, what do they _do?_" asked Malfoy. "What is the _point_ of them?"

Hagrid opened his mouth, apparently thinking hard; there was a few seconds' pause, then he said roughly. "That's next lesson, Malfoy. Yer jus' feedin' 'em today. Now, yeh'll wan' ter try 'em on a few diff'rent things - I've never had 'em before, not sure what they'll go fer - I got ant eggs an' frog livers an' a bit o' grass-snake - just try 'em out with a bit of each."

"First pus and now this," muttered Seamus.

Nothing but deep affection for Hagrid could have made Phoebe pick up squelchy handfuls of frog's liver and lower them into the crates to tempt the Blast-Ended Skrewts.

"Dean, watch out!" Phoebe yelped after about ten minutes. There was a small explosion and suddenly Dean Thomas withdrew his hand from the crate, an ugly looking burn forming on the side of his hand.

Hagrid hurried over, looking anxious.

"Its end exploded!" said Dean angrily, showing Hagrid his hand.

"Ah, yeah, that can happen when they blast off," said Hagrid nodding.

Dean withdrew his hand and turned to Phoebe who had produced a bandage out of thin air with her wand and wrapped it carefully around his burn. "Here try this," the elemental said pulling out a tube of burn crème from her backpack.

"How did you -?" Dean stuttered

"My godmother is Care of Magical Creatures professor, remember?" Phoebe asked. "I've grown up around dangerous creatures; I know what do when something like this happens. Take it."

Dean took the burn crème and pocketed it. "Thanks," he muttered.

"Eurgh!" said Lavender Brown again. "Eurgh! Hagrid, what's that pointy thing on it?"

"Ah, some of 'em have got stings," said Hagrid enthusiastically. Lavender quickly withdrew her hand from the box. "I reckon they're the males...the females've got sorta sucker things on their bellies...I think they might be ter suck blood."

"Well, I can certainly see why we're trying to keep them alive," said Malfoy sarcastically. "Who wouldn't want pets that can burn, sting and bite all at once?"

"Just because they're not very pretty, it doesn't mean they're not useful," Hermione snapped. "Dragon bloods amazingly magical, but you wouldn't want a dragon for a pet, would you?"

Phoebe grinned at Hagrid, who gave her a furtive smile from behind his bushy beard. Hagrid would have liked nothing better than a pet dragon, as Harry, Phoebe, Ron and Hermione knew only too well. Hagrid simply loved monstrous creatures - the more lethal, the better.

"Well, at least the Skrewts are small," said Ron, as they made their way back up the castle for lunch an hour later.

"They are now," said Ashlyn, "but once Hagrid's found out what they eat, I expect they'll be six feet long."

"Well, that won't matter if they turn out to cure sea sickness or something, will it?" said Ron, grinning at Hermione.

"You know perfectly well I only said that to shut Malfoy up," said Hermione.

"If I'm perfectly honest," Phoebe interrupted. "I actually agree with Malfoy. The best thing to do would be to stamp on the lot of them before they start attacking us all."

Harry turned to Phoebe. "Where was Professor Blackheart?" he asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "I haven't seen her since the feast last night. If she's not at Lunch I am going to see the Headmaster."

"Why?" James asked.

"Because it's not like my godmother to miss first day lessons," Phoebe answered. "And even if she does, she would have let me know beforehand."

Ashlyn broke away from the Gryffindor's as they entered the Great Hall and took her place at the Slytherin table alongside Daphne, while Phoebe helped herself to lamb chops and potatoes at the Gryffindor table.

Beside the elemental sat Hermione who was eating so fast that Harry and Ron were staring at her.

"Er - is this the new stand on elf rights?" said Ron. "You're going to make yourself puke instead?"

"No," said Hermione, with as much dignity as she could muster with her mouth bulging with sprouts. "I just want to get to the library."

"_What?_" said James in disbelief. "Hermione - it's the first day back! We haven't even got homework yet!"

Hermione shrugged and continued to shovel down her food as though she had not eaten in days. Then she leapt to her feet and stared for the back of the hall.

"Slow down!" Phoebe yelled after her. "You'll make yourself sick!"

Hermione waved at the elemental and said "See you at dinner!" Over her shoulder as she fled.

When the bell rang to signal the start of afternoon lessons, Harry, Ron, James and Phoebe set off for the North Tower.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At least twenty small, circular tables were crammed inside it, all surrounded by chintz armchairs and fat little pouffees. Everything was lit with dim, crimson light; the curtains at the windows were all closed, and the many lamps were draped with dark red scarves.

It was stiflingly warm, and the fire which was burning under the crowded mantelpiece was giving off a heavy, sickly sort of perfume as it heated a large copper kettle. The shelves running around the circular walls were crammed with dusty-looking feathers, stubs of candles, many packs of tattered playing cards, countless silvery crystal balls and a huge array of teacups.

Phoebe coughed as she entered the room and looked around. _**It's a health hazard in here**_ she thought as she followed James towards a table near the window, dropping her bag onto the floor, the elemental hopped up onto the window sill and pushed open the top window to allow some fresh air into the room.

"Good day," said a misty-voice and Professor Trelawney appeared right behind Phoebe, making her jump.

Professor Trelawney was a very thin woman with enormous glasses that made her eyes appear far too large for her face. She was peering down at Phoebe with a tragic expression, while the large amount of beads, chains and bangles that adorned her person glittered in the firelight.

"You are preoccupied, my dear," she said mournfully. "My Inner Eye sees past your brave face to the troubled soul within. And I regret to say that your worries are not baseless. I see difficult times ahead for you, alas...most difficult...I fear the thing you dread will indeed come to pass...and perhaps sooner than you think..."

Her voice dropped almost to a whisper. James rolled his eyes at Phoebe who looked stonily back. Professor Trelawney swept past them and seated herself in a large winged armchair before the fire, facing the class. Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil were sitting very close to her.

"My dears, it is time for us to consider the stars," she said. "The movements of the planets and the mysterious portents they reveal only to those who understand the steps of the celestial dance. Human destiny may be deciphered by the planetary rays, which intermingle..."

But Phoebe's thoughts had drifted. She couldn't help thinking about what Professor Trelawney had just said to her. _"I fear the thing you dread will indeed come to pass..."_

_**So what am I dreading?**_ Phoebe wondered curiously as she turned her attention to the window, automatically her eyes scanned the swirling colours of the sky for any signs of Athena returning to the castle, hopefully with a letter attached to either her leg or in her beak. Why hadn't her grandmother written back yet? What was the hold up? And more to the point - where was Serefina?

Serefina Blackheart had been at the Welcome back feast the previous night but she hadn't been in her first class that morning and she hadn't been at Lunch either. _**Come to think of it**_ Phoebe added as an afterthought_** I didn't see her at Breakfast either.**_

A small frown slid onto Phoebe's face as her thoughts became wild was Professor Trelawney onto something when she had said that Phoebe was preoccupied? OK, the elemental would give the Professor that one; she was preoccupied but that didn't mean that she was worried about anything in particular, was she?

_**Other than the fact that Serefina seems to be MIA**_ Phoebe thought as she tore her gaze away from the window. But what if something was seriously wrong? What if Serefina was hurt or something? What if Elena had written back to her about the dream that Harry had had during the summer, but something had happened to Athena on the journey back?

What if Professor Trelawney wasn't as much of a quack as everyone thought she was? What if she knew more about Phoebe's current situation? More than she was letting on?

_"Phoebe!"_ James had reached across the table and swatted his friend's shoulder.

"What?"

Phoebe looked around; the whole class was staring in her direction. She sat up straight, she had been so lost in her thoughts that she had missed have the lesson. Professor Trelawney was looking down at her with concern on her features, but concern that could have easily been mistaken for tragic conclusions. "Sorry," she muttered, reaching up brush her hair from her eyes.

Trelawney sniffed irritably and returned to what she was doing before Phoebe's distraction had interrupted her.

"As I was saying," the Professor said turning to Harry, "you were clearly born under the baleful influence of Saturn. I was saying that Saturn was surely in a position of power in the heavens at the moment of your birth...your dark hair...your mean stature...tragic losses so young in life...I think I am right in saying, my dear that you were born in mid-winter?"

"No," said Harry, "I was born in July."

Ron hastily turned his laugh into a hacking cough.

Half an hour later, each of them had been given a complicated circular chart, and was attempting to fill in the positions of the planets at their moment of birth. It was dull work, requiring much consultation of timetables and calculations of angles.

"I've got two Neptune's here," said James after a while, frowning down at his piece of parchment, "that can't be right, can it?"

"Aaaah," said Phoebe, imitating Professor Trelawney's mystical whisper, "when two Neptune's appear in the sky, it is a sure sign that a midget with mummy issues is being born, James..."

Harry and Ron, who were sitting in front of Phoebe and James, sniggered loudly, though not loudly enough to mask the excited squeals from Lavender Brown - "Oh, Professor, look! I think I've got a unaspected planet! Ooooh, which one's that, Professor?"

"It is Uranus, my dear," said Professor Trelawney, peering down at the chart.

"Can I have a look at Uranus, too, Lavender?" said Ron.

Most unfortunately, Professor Trelawney heard him, and it was this, perhaps, which made her give them so much homework at the end of the class.

"A detailed analysis of the way the planetary movements in the coming month will affect you, with reference to your personal chart," she snapped, sounding much more like Professor McGonagall than her usual airy-fairy self. "I want it ready to hand in next Monday, and no excuses!"

Phoebe frowned, "If our homework has got to include a whole month's analysis, how come she is only giving us until Monday?"

"Because she is a miserable old bat!" said Ron bitterly, as they joined the crowds descending the staircase back to the Great Hall and dinner.

"Lots of homework?" said Hermione brightly, catching up with them. "Professor Vector didn't give us any at all!"

"Well, bully for Professor Vector," said Ron moodily.

Phoebe pointed at Ron and shook her head at Hermione, indicating for her not to press the matter further.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They reached the Entrance Hall, which was packed with people queuing for dinner. They had just joined the end of the line, when a loud voice rang out behind them.

"Weasley! Hey, Weasley!"

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and James turned. Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were standing there, each looking thoroughly pleased about something.

"What?" said Ron shortly.

"Your dads in the paper, Weasley!" said Malfoy, brandishing a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ at them.

Phoebe snatched the paper away from her brother. "Give me that!" she snapped, glancing down at the article in which Draco was talking about.

**FURTHER MISTAKES AT THE MINISTRY OF MAGIC**

_It seems as though the Ministry of Magic's troubles are not yet at an end,_ writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent._ Recently under fire for its poor crowd control at the Quidditch World Cup, and still unable to account for the disappearance of one of its witches, the Ministry was plunged into fresh embarrassment yesterday by the antics of Arnold Weasley, of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office._

Phoebe looked up and glared at Draco.

"Imagine them not even getting his name right, Weasley," Draco drawled. "It's almost as though he's a complete nonentity, isn't it?"

Everyone in the Entrance Hall was listening now. Malfoy turned to his sister. "Continue reading, there is a lot more."

Looking around at her friends, Phoebe hesitated and then turned back to the article. She didn't want to continue reading if it meant embarrassing Ron further; she and he may not have gotten on, but he was still her friend.

_Arnold Weasley, who was charged with possession of flying car two years ago, was yesterday involved with a tussle with several Muggle law-keepers ('Policemen') over a number of highly aggressive dustbins. Mr. Weasley appears to have rushed to the aid of 'Mad-Eye' Moody, the aged ex-Auror who retired from the Ministry when no longer able to tell the difference between a handshake and attempted murder. Unsurprisingly, Mr. Weasley found, upon arrival at Mr. Moody's heavily guarded house, that Mr. Moody had once again raised a false alarm. Mrs. -_

Phoebe cut off as she reached the end of her sentence; she glanced up at Draco who was smirking nastily.

"Oh, did I forget to mention your precious boyfriend's mother was mentioned too?" he asked.

"Phoebe?" Hermione asked as James peered over the Elemental's shoulder.

"Terence's mum went to help Moody too," Phoebe answered. "It only says that she had to modify a few memories before Mr. Weasley could escape. But he refused to answer any questions about why he had involved the Ministry in the first place."

Draco smirked. "At least that's the cliff-notes version," he pointed out.

Phoebe glared. "Shut up, Malfoy!"

"And there's a picture," said Draco, ignoring his sister. "A picture of your parents outside their house - if you can call it a house! Your mother could do with losing a bit of weight, couldn't she?"

Ron was shaking with fury. Everyone was staring at him.

"Get stuffed, Malfoy," said Harry. "C'mon, Ron..."

"Oh, yeah, you were staying with them this summer, weren't you, Potter?" sneered Malfoy. "So tell me, is his mother really that porky, or is it just the picture?"

"You know _your_ mother, Malfoy?" said Harry - both he and Hermione had grabbed the back of Ron's robes to stop him launching himself at Malfoy - "That expression she's got, like she's got dung under her nose? Has she always looked like that, or was it just because you were with her?"

Malfoy's pale face went slightly pink before his gaze hardened. "Why don't you ask my sister?" he asked. "Oi! Phoebe! Does mother have that haughty expression when she is around you?"

Phoebe glared at her brother as every one of her friends turned in her direction, clearly waiting for her to deny it. "That was uncalled for, Draco!" she said, causing a gasp to ripple around the entire Hall.

"You're a Malfoy?" asked Terence as he appeared behind Phoebe.

Phoebe turned. "Ter -"

"You've been lying all this time!" Terence accused her.

"Yes, but I -"

"You know, I should be used to people lying to me by now," Terence interrupted her again.

Phoebe shook her head. "I wasn't lying -"

"You're a Malfoy!" Terence interrupted once more. "I really thought you were different! But you're just like everyone else..."

"Would you please just listen to me?" Phoebe yelled.

Terence shook his head. "Why? So you can feed me more lies! No, Phoebe, I'm done listening to you..."

Phoebe's eyes glazed over with tears. "Terence...please..."

"It's over! We're over!"

He turned away, pushed his way through the crowd of students and disappeared down towards the dungeons.

"Ter..." Phoebe choked, as tears started to leak from the corner of her eyes.

Ashlyn touched her friend's shoulder and shook her head. "Not here you don't," she whispered, herding her through the crowd of stunned students towards the marble staircase.

Sarah and Amelia followed, while James remained glaring at Malfoy. "You fucking bastard, Malfoy!" James hissed, as he raised his fist and smashed it directly into Draco's face. There was a sickening crunch, followed by a gasp from the rest of the crowd. "You absolute fucking bastard!"

And with that, James raced after his friends, in an attempt to find and comfort the elemental.

Meanwhile, outside the school, storm clouds began to build as Phoebe sobbed her heart out in an empty classroom on the second floor corridor.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted<strong>

**Thank you to **_**KingdomHeartsNerd**_** for the help in the last scene of this chapter.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated ****Monday, January 02, 2012 at 5:06am**


	61. Chapter 61

**Author's Note: **Apologies for the break up between everyone's favourite couple, but never fear they will be reunited. I promise.

**Shout outs: **Big shout out to **ElladoraBlackMalfoy** for adding this story to their **Favourite Story** alerts and to **MahoganyFelicis66** for adding me to their **Favourite Story, Author Alert** and** Favourite Author** alerts.

**Dedications:** Following chapter goes out to:** KingdomHeartsNerd, SkyLibraBelle, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Murder-Winter-Cullen** and anonymous reviewer **Soccercatmice.**

**In responses:** First to: **SkyLibraBelle:** To be honest I am thinking the same thing. How could I? I absolutely love Terence/Phoebe which is why I am working double time in looking for a suitable place to reunite them, and I _think_ I may have found the place, but alas it won't be until around Christmas time :(

Secondly to: **SoccercatMice: **Why would Terence cheat on Phoebe?

Thirdly to: **Fan of Fics: **I know fourth year is not starting out well for Phoebe, and I can honestly say that it is not going to be one of her best years. It may very well be her worst. :(

Fourthly to: **10th Squad 3rd Seat:** No. Terence knew Phoebe's elemental secret. Draco was the only person who was meant to find out, Blake and Jackson know that Phoebe is a Malfoy by birth, but there are reasons that Phoebe didn't want her Hogwarts friends to know her true heritage, you will find out why in this chapter.

Fifthly to: **Murder-Winter-Cullen: **Yeah. Camp Rock rules. No, don't die, please? I'm begging you! I will get Terence and Phoebe back together, I promise.

**Warning:** This year will _**NOT**_ be a happy year in the Phoebe saga. There will be a combination of genres used this year, they are as follows: Angst. Drama. Hurt/Comfort. Tragedy. Romance. Family and Friendship.

* * *

><p>The revelation that Phoebe Blackheart and Terence Higgs were no longer a couple spread rapidly through the Hogwarts castle, and by the next morning Terence had received several different invitations from several different girls to attend the first trip to Hogsmeade with them.<p>

"Word gets out that you're free and they keep buzzing around," Faye Conant grinned as she watched Terence, once again, turn down an invitation this time from a 7th year Ravenclaw.

"Shut up, Faye," Terence responded in a semi-dejected voice, as his gaze flittered towards the Gryffindor table in hopes of catching a glimpse of Phoebe.

However, Phoebe didn't seem to be present at the Gryffindor table at all.

Terence sighed in rejection and turned his gaze back to his breakfast.

When Phoebe _did_ entered the Great Hall that morning, everyone fell silent and turned to stare at her, the young elemental lowered her gaze and walked towards the Gryffindor table; she tossed her backpack to the floor, took a seat at the very end away from her fellow lions and buried her head in her arms as she worked hard to still her tears.

News of her being a Malfoy had hit the school hard and it seemed everyone had been affected by her betrayal in not telling them the truth from the very beginning.

"Aw," Faye cooed. "Poor thing almost makes me feel sorry for her - _almost_."

Ashlyn glared at the older girl. "We all know you're the Ice Queen of Hogwarts, Conant! We know you don't care!"

"Well, if you asked me, Black, I'd say she deserves this."

"No one deserves this,"

"She lied," Faye pointed out. "Now she has to pay for her betrayal!"

Ashlyn shook her head and scoffed. "Why don't you actually take the time to understand why she never told anyone of her true heritage?" she asked. "Phoebe was born a Malfoy, yes, she doesnt deny that; but she was raised a Blackheart. Phoebe was never registered a Malfoy, exactly an hour after she was born she was given away."

"Why wasn't she registered the moment she was born?" Miles Bletchley asked.

"A baby must be registered within 42 days of the birth," Ashlyn answered. "June 5th 1980, Phoebe was born and within 60 minutes she was living in Portugal. Narcissa Malfoy didn't even know what had happened to her daughter, all she knew was that Phoebe was alive and being looked after somewhere else."

Terence looked down at his plate. "How do you know this?"

"After you made her cry yesterday," Ashlyn answered him. "She told us everything. She told me to tell you that she is sorry for not telling you, but given the way everyone has reacted to her secret, I can honestly see why she didn't want anyone to know."

"What do you mean?"

Ashlyn glared. "Even the Gryffindor's are ignoring her! Phoebe knew that everyone would turn against her if they knew the truth, guess she was right!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next two passed without great incident, unless you counted Neville melting his sixth cauldron in Potions. Professor Snape, who seemed to have attained new levels of vindictiveness over the summer, gave Neville detention, and Neville returned from it in a state of nervous collapse, having been made to disembowel a barrelful of horned toads.

"You know why Snape's in such a foul mood, don't you?" said Ron to Harry, as they watched Hermione teaching Neville a Scouring Charm to remove the frog guts from under his fingernails.

"Yeah," said Harry. "Moody."

It was common knowledge that Snape really wanted the Dark Arts job, and he had now failed to get it for the fourth year running. Snape had disliked all of their previous Dark Arts teachers, and shown it - but he seemed strangely wary of displaying over animosity to Mad-Eye Moody. Indeed, whenever the two were together - at mealtimes or when they passed in the corridors - Snape gave the distinct impression that he was avoiding Moody's eye, whether magical or normal.

"I reckon Snape's a bit scared of him, you know," Harry said thoughtfully.

"Imagine if Moody turned Snape into a horned toad," said Ron, his eyes misting over, "and bounce him all around his dungeon..."

The portrait opened and Phoebe slid through into the common room, instantly several students turned their attention away from her, but Phoebe ignored them and approached Harry and Ron near the fire. "Hey," she smiled weakly.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Ron asked.

"Harry," Phoebe said ignoring the jibe Ron had sent her way. "You haven't seen Hermione, have you?"

"She's just gone upstairs," Harry answered. "She's been helping Neville."

Phoebe smiled. "How is Neville?"

"Why don't you ask him?"

"I'd rather not," Phoebe answered. "I can do without the looks and dark glares."

Harry's smile fell slightly. "Phoebe..."

"I'm going to go see Hermione; there is something I need to show her!"

"Phoebe," Harry called. "Are you sure you're OK?"

The elemental paused. "We haven't even been here a week and my friends won't talk to me -" she shot Ron a look, "- my own house has kicked me out of the tower; my grandparents are still not answering my letters; my godmother is still missing, and no one - not even Dumbledore - knows where she is," tears filled her silvery gaze, "and my boyfriend just broke up with me. Yeah! I'm perfect!"

And she disappeared up into the girl's dormitory in search of Hermione.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Gryffindor fourth-years were looking forward to Moody's first lesson so much that they arrived early after lunch on Thursday and queued up outside his classroom before the bell had even run.

The only people missing were Hermione and Phoebe, who turned up just in time for the lesson.

"Been in the -"

"- library," Harry finished Hermione's sentence for her. "C'mon, quick, or we won't get decent seats."

As the Golden Trio occupied three chairs right in front of the teacher's desk, Phoebe slipped in between Ashlyn and James on the left hand side of the room, under the window.

They were just in the middle of taking out their copies of _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_ when they heard Moody's distinctive clunking footsteps coming down the corridor, and he entered the room, looking as strange and frightening as ever. They could just see his clawed, wooden foot protruding from underneath his robes.

"You can put those away," he growled, stumping over to his desk and sitting down, "those books. You won't need them."

They returned the books to their bags, Ron looking excited.

Moody took out a register, shook his long mane of grizzled grey hair out of his twisted and scarred face and began to call out names, his normal eye moving steadily down the list while his magical eye swiveled around, fixing upon each student as he or she answered.

"Right then," he said, when the last person had declared themselves present. "I've had a letter from Professor Lupin about this class. Seems you've had a pretty thorough grounding in tackling Dark creatures - you've covered Boggarts, Red Caps, Hinkypunks, Grindylows, Kappas and werewolves, is that right?"

There was a general murmur of assent.

"But you're behind - very behind - on dealing with curses," said Moody. "So I'm here to bring you up to scratch on what wizards can do to each other. I've got one year to teach you how to deal with Dark -"

"What, aren't you staying?" Ron blurted out.

Moody's magical eye spun around to stare at Ron; Ron looked extremely apprehensive, but after a moment Moody smiled - for the first time. The effect was to make his heavily scarred face look more twisted and contorted than ever, but it was nevertheless a relief to know that he ever did anything as friendly as smile. Ron looked deeply relieved.

"You'll be Arthur Weasley's son, eh?" Moody said. "Your father got me out of a very tight corner a few days ago...yeah, I'm staying just the one year. Special favour to Dumbledore...one year, and then back to my quiet retirement."

He gave a harsh laugh, and then clapped his gnarled hands together.

"So - straight into it. Curses. They come in many strengths and forms. Now, according to the Ministry of Magic, I'm supposed to teach you counter-curse and leave it at that. I'm not supposed to show you what illegal Dark curses look like until you're in the sixth year. You're not supposed to be old enough to deal with it 'til then. But Professor Dumbledore's got a higher opinion of your nerves, he reckons you can cope, and I say, the sooner you know what you're up against, the better. How are you supposed to defend yourself against something you've never seen? A wizard who's about to put an illegal curse on you isn't going to tell you what he's about to do. He's not going to do it nice and polite to your face. You need to be prepared. You need to be alert and watchful. You need to put that away, Miss. Brown, when I'm talking."

Lavender jumped and blushed. She had been showing Parvati her completed horoscope under the desk. Apparently Moody's magical eye could see through solid wood, as well as out of the back of his head.

"So...do any of you know which curses are most heavily punished by Wizarding law?"

Several hands rose tentatively into the air, including Ron's and Hermione's. Moody pointed at Ron, though his magical eye was still on Lavender.

"Er," said Ron, "my dad told me about one...is it called the Imperius curse, or something?"

"Ah, yes," said Moody appreciatively. "Your father _would_ know that one. Give the Ministry a lot of trouble at one time, the Imperius Curse."

Moody got heavily to his mismatched feet, opened his desk drawer, and took out a glass jar. Three large, black spiders were scuttling around inside it. Phoebe felt Ashlyn recoil slightly next to her - Ashlyn hated spiders.

Moody reached into the jar, caught one of the spiders and held it in the palm of his hand so that they could all see it. He then pointed his wand at it, and muttered, _"Imperio!"_

The spider leapt from Moody's hand on a fine thread of silk, and began to swing backwards and forwards as though on a trapeze. It stretched out its legs rigidly, and then did a backflip, breaking the thread and landing on the desk, where it began to cartwheel in circles. Moody jerked his wand, and the spider rose onto two if its hind legs went into what was unmistakably a tap dance.

Everyone was laughing - everyone except Phoebe and Moody.

"Think it is funny, do you?" Moody growled. "You'd like it, would you, if I did it to you?"

The laughing died away almost instantly.

"Total control," said Moody quietly, as the spider balled itself up and began to roll over and over. "I could make it jump out of the window, drown itself, throw itself down one of your throats..."

Ashlyn gave an involuntary shudder.

"Years back, there were a lot of witches and wizards being controlled by the Imperius Curse," said Moody. "Some job for the Ministry, trying to work out who was being forced to act, and who was acting on their own free will. The Imperius Curse can be fought, and I'll be teaching you how, but it takes real strength of character, and not everyone's got it. Better avoid being hit with it if you can. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" he barked, and everyone jumped.

Moody picked up the somersaulting spider and threw it back into the jar. "Anyone else know one? Another illegal curse?"

Hermione's hand hit the air and so, to Phoebe's slight surprise, did Neville's. The only class in which Neville usually volunteered information was Herbology, which was easily his best subject. Neville looked surprise at his own daring.

"Yes?" said Moody, his magical eye rolling right over to fix on Neville.

"There's one - the Cruciatus curse," said Neville, in a small but distinct voice.

Moody was looking very intently at Neville, this time with both eyes.

"Your name's Longbottom?" he said.

Neville nodded nervously, but Moody made no further enquires. Turning back to the class at large, he reached into the jar for the next spider and placed it upon the desktop, where it remained motionless, apparently too scared to move.

"The Cruciatus curse," said Moody. "Needs to be a bit bigger for you get the idea," he said, pointing his wand at the spider. "_Engorgio!"_

Both Ashlyn and Ron pushed their chairs backwards, as the spider swelled. It was now larger than a tarantula.

Moody raised his wand again, pointed it at the spider and muttered:_ "Crucio!"_

At once, the spider's legs bent in upon its body; it rolled over and began to twitch horribly, rocking from side to side. No sound came from it, but Phoebe was sure that if it could have given voice, it would have been screaming. Moody did not remove his wand, and the spider started to shudder and jerk more violently.

Phoebe felt sick, and seconds later, as her gaze fell on Neville, she flew to her feet. "STOP IT!" she yelled shrilly, causing both James and Ashlyn to jump almost a foot in the air.

Neville's hands were clenched upon the desk in front of him, his knuckles white, and his eyes wide and horrified.

"Stop it!" Phoebe screamed again. "Can't you see it's bothering him! Stop it!"

Moody raised his wand. The spiders legs relaxed, but it continued to twitch.

"_Reducio,"_ Moody muttered, and the spider shrank back to its proper size. He put it back into the jar. "Pain. You don't need thumbscrews or knives to torture someone if you can perform the Cruciatus curse...that one was very popular once, too."

James and Ashlyn tugged Phoebe back into her seat.

"Right...anyone know any others?"

No one raised his or her hand, it seemed every single person within the class was wondering what was going to happen to the last spider. Hermione's hand shook slightly as, for the third time; she raised it into the air.

"Yes?" said Moody, looking at her.

"_Avada Kedavra,_" Hermione whispered.

Several people looked uneasily, around at her, including Ashlyn, James and Phoebe.

"Ah," said Moody, another slight smile twisting his lop-sided mouth. "Yes, the last and worst. _Avada Kedavra..._the Killing Curse."

He put his hand into the glass jar, and almost as though it knew what was coming, the third spider scuttled frantically around the bottom of the jar, trying to evade Moody's fingers, but he trapped it, and placed it upon the desktop. It started to scuttle frantically across the wooden surface.

Moody raised his wand, and Phoebe felt a sudden thrill of foreboding.

_"Avada Kedavra!"_ Moody roared.

There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air - instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead.

Several of the girls stiffed cries; Ron had thrown himself backwards and almost toppled off his seat as the spider skidded towards him. Ashlyn grabbed Phoebe's arm painfully hard, as the elemental closed her eyes and turned away from the horrible scene.

Moody swept the dead spider off the desk onto the floor. "Not nice," he said calmly. "Not pleasant. And there's no counter-curse. There's no blocking it. Only one known person has ever survived it, and he's sitting right in front of me."

Both of Moody's eyes settled on Harry, as the rest of the class turned their attention in his direction also. Harry, meanwhile, pretended to be interested on what was written on the blackboard, instead of looks of his classmates.

"Avada Kedavra's a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it - you could all get your wands out now and point them at me and say the words, and I doubt I'd get so much as a nose-bleed -" Phoebe grinned slightly as James and Ashlyn shot her identical looks. Moody would have had more than a nosebleed if she had used that spell on him, unlike the rest of her classmates; she actually _had_ powerful magic behind her.

"- but that doesnt matter. I'm not here to teach you how to do it. Now, if there's no counter-curse, why am I showing you? _Because you've got to know._ You've got to appreciate what the worst is. You don't want to find yourself in a situation where you're facing it. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" he roared, and the whole class jumped again.

"Now...those three curses - Avada Kedavra, Imperius and Cruciatus - are known as the Unforgivable Curses. The use of any one of them on a fellow human being is enough to earn you a life sentence in Azkaban. That's what you're up against. That's what I've got to teach you to fight. You need preparing. You need arming. But most of all, you need to practice _constant, never-ceasing vigilance_. Get out you quills...copy this down..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

They spent the rest of the lesson taking notes on each of the Unforgivable Curses. No one spoke until the bell rang - but when Moody had dismissed them and they had left the classroom, a torrent of talk burst forth. Most people were discussing the curses in awed voices - "Did you see it twitch?" - "and when he killed it?" - "just like that!"

"They are talking about the lesson as though it was some spectacular show!" Phoebe hissed as she, James and Ashlyn caught up with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"It was!" Ron grinned. "Did you see him? He's brilliant!"

"He's insane!" Ashlyn argued.

James looked around and stopped short. "Oh, no..." he murmured.

"What?" Hermione and Phoebe asked.

"Neville," James answered, pointing at a prone figure at the end of the hallway.

Neville was standing alone, staring at the stone wall opposite him with the same horrified, wide-eyed look he had worn when Moody had demonstrated the Cruciatus Curse.

"Neville?" Phoebe said gently.

Neville looked around.

"Oh, hello," he said, his voice much higher than normal. "Interesting lesson, wasn't it? I wonder what's for dinner. I'm - I'm starving, aren't you?"

"Neville, are you all right?" said Hermione.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine," Neville gabbled. "Very interesting dinner - I mean lesson - what's for eating?"

James and Ashlyn, Ron and Harry, and Phoebe and Hermione exchanged startled looks.

"Neville, what -?"

But an odd clunking noise sounded behind them, and they turned to see Professor Moody limping towards them. All seven of them fell silent, watching him apprehensively, but when he spoke, it was in a much lower and gentler growl than they had yet heard.

"It's all right, sonny," he said to Neville. "Why don't you come up to my office? Come on...we can have a cup of tea..."

Neville looked even more frightened at the prospect of tea with Moody. He neither moved nor spoke.

Moody turned his magical eye upon Harry. "You all right, are you, Potter?"

"Yes," said Harry, almost defiantly.

Moody's blue eye quivered slightly in its socket as it surveyed Harry.

Then he said, "You've got to know. It seems harsh, maybe, _but you've got to know_. No point pretending...well...come on, Longbottom, I've got some books that might interest you."

Neville looked pleadingly at his friends.

"Um...actually Professor," said Phoebe, intervening. "Maybe it would be better for Neville to go see Madam Pomfrey? She can give him a calming draught."

Moody's magical eye landed on her. "You are Serefina Blackheart's goddaughter, are you not?"

"Yes, sir," Phoebe nodded.

"Yes, Phoebe..." Moody nodded.

Phoebe nodded. "Blackhe -" she started.

"Phoebe Malfoy!" Moody cut her off. "Yes, I know your father, an old friend. You tell him that Moody is keeping an eye on his son and daughter...you tell him that from me..."

"I -"

"What?" Moody growled. "You - what?"

"I won't," Phoebe said, in a low voice.

Moody glared at her with both his eyes, before turning and motioning for Neville to follow him. Neville did so reluctantly.

"I'll see you at Dinner," Ashlyn said as she broke away from them as they reach the Grand Staircase.

Phoebe waved and continued to follow her Gryffindor friends up to the seventh floor.

"Some lesson, though, eh?" said Ron to Harry. "Fred and George were right, weren't they? He really knows his stuff, Moody, doesn't he? When he did Avada Kedavra, the way that spider just _died_, just snuffed it right -"

Ron fell silent at the look on Harry's face, and didn't speak again until they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

Giving the password James followed Harry, Ron and Hermione through the portrait hole, only to stop and turn to Phoebe who was staring at him from the other side. "Come on, Pheebs," he said.

Phoebe gave him a sad smile, raised her hand out in front of her and pushed it against what appeared to be an invisible barrier blocking her way.

"That's impossible," James protested sliding back through. "Go on, go before me."

Phoebe tried again, but the barrier was still there. However, it seemed to disappear when James tried. "I don't understand..."

"Don't worry," Phoebe murmured sadly. "I'll see you at Dinner."

But Phoebe did not appear for Dinner. And when James pushed the matter further with the rest of his friends, each of them admitted to not seeing Phoebe since the end of their Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson that afternoon.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted <strong>

_Blake, Jackson and Esmee Higgs arrive at Hogwarts next chapter. Will they be able to help Phoebe and Terence?_

_Also, yes, if you didn't get it at first, the Gryffindor's __**have**__ kicked Phoebe out of Gryffindor tower. Just goes to show that even Gryffindor's can be evil._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, January 04, 2012 at 02:37am**


	62. Chapter 62

**Author's Note:** Eeeee! I'm going to run and hide because there is a scene in this chapter that is quite sad, and I don't want to be around when you guys read it. (Look out for Terence)

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Angel JJK** and **Vivi Fontaine.**

**In responses:** Firstly to: **KingdomHeartsNerd:** Yeah. Faye is a bitch.

Secondly to: **Vivi Fontaine:** Aw. That will make Phoebe's day, knowing that there are some people behind her. Somehow I kinda had a feeling that **SkyLibraBelle** was you; it is hard to explain but the way you reacted to Phoebe/Terence break up, it seemed so **you**. (If you understand that then you are amazing, because it is difficult to explain)

Thirdly to: **10th Squad 3rd Seat:** I think that is all Phoebe really needs right now, is a hug.

Fourthly to: **Fan of Fics:** Yeah. I guess fourth year for Phoebe is like fifth year for Harry, without the whole getting kicked out of the tower. Can't wait for Blake and Jackson to arrive, Phoebe will finally have someone to turn too.

Fifthly to: **Angel JJK: **Phoebe's family will be explained in this chapter. Promise.

**Shout out: **Thank you too **Ashu711** for adding me to her **Author Alert, Favourite Author, Story Alert** and **Favourite Story** alerts.

* * *

><p>"<em>Dear Grandma and Grandpa,<em>

_I hope everything is well in Portugal. You have me worried because this is the fourth letter that I have sent you since term started. Have you received any of my previous letters? If you have, why have you not written back? Did I do something wrong?_

_I'm scared! Nothing is going right this year; I haven't seen Serefina since the Welcome Back Feast and Draco has told the whole school that I am his sister! I have been kicked out of my tower and a barrier has been put in place to stop me from getting through. Terence broke up with me because I lied to him about who I was...Grandma...there are some nights that I lay in bed - I am sleeping in Serefina's office - and wish that I could come home._

_..._

_If either of you get this...please..._please_...write back._

_I need answers._

_Love_

_Phoebe xXx"_

Early next morning, Phoebe woke, got up and dressed in the pale dawn light, left her godmother's quarters and made her way through the silent castle and arrived at the Owlery, which was situated at the top of the West Tower.

The Owlery was a circular stone room; rather cold and draughty, because none of the windows had glass in them. The floor was entirely covered in straw, owl droppings and the regurgitated skeletons of mice and voles. Hundreds upon hundreds of owls of every breed imaginable were nestled here on perches that rose right up to the top of the tower, nearly all of them asleep, though here and there a round amber eye glared at Phoebe.

Finally picking a smallish black owl from the middle perch, Phoebe tied the letter to its let and watched it soar out through the open window. She hated using school owls to make her deliveries and was starting to miss Athena.

It was strange not hearing Athena's screech at Breakfast, knowing that she had a letter from home waiting for her to read. Phoebe found it incredibly difficult to depend on a mere night owl to deliver her letter safely, whereas she knew Athena would have done it without fail.

Watching as the owl disappeared into morning light, Phoebe turned to leave, only to stop as the door opened and Harry walked in carrying a letter of his own.

"Phoebe," he smiled upon seeing her. "Where were you last night? You missed dinner?"

"I had dinner in my room," Phoebe answered.

"James said that you couldn't get into Gryffindor tower,"

Phoebe nodded. "Someone has put a Blocking Charm on it," she confirmed. "It's supposed to repel people away. It would seem our fellow Gryffindor's have done it to prevent me from gaining access to the common room."

Harry frowned. "But that's not fair; you're as much of a Gryffindor as the rest of us!"

Phoebe smiled. "People don't see it like that anymore, Harry. Not since it has been revealed that I am a Malfoy, people think that I am a spy, a traitor that I am going to sell us out to Slytherin."

"But you would have done that before now,"

"I know," Phoebe agreed. "Don't worry about me, Harry, OK?"

Harry, who was now trying to coax Hedwig down to him, paused and turned to his friend. "I have a right to worry about you, Pheebs. You're my friend and so far nothing has gone right for you this year. Can't we talk to Professor McGonagall and tell her what is going on?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, please don't," she said, sounding almost scared. "I don't want to involve the Professors...not unless I have too." she paused, before saying; "Who you sending the letter too?"

"Sirius."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"That was a _lie_, Harry," said Hermione sharply over breakfast, when Harry told her and Ron what he had done. "You _didn't_ imagine your scar hurting and you know it!"

"So what?" said Harry. "He's not going back to Azkaban because of me."

"Drop it," said Ron sharply to Hermione, as she opened her mouth to argue some more, and for once, Hermione heeded him, and fell silent.

"I also saw Phoebe," said Harry.

Hermione perked up. "You did? Where? Is she OK?"

"Yeah, she was in the Owlery, sending a letter to her grandparents," Harry answered. "She's a little upset that she has been kicked out of the Tower and someone has put a Blocking Charm up to stop her from getting back in; but other than that I think she is just worried about Professor Blackheart and why her grandparents aren't answering her letters."

"Maybe they too are unhappy with her heritage," said Seamus Finnigan from down the table.

Hermione glared at him. "Well, they've never had a problem with it before," she stated. "Why should they have a problem with it now?"

"Everyone has their limits," Seamus answered. "Her grandparents - if you can call them that - finally reached theirs."

"And Professor Blackheart?" Harry questioned.

Seamus shrugged. "Simply couldn't deal with facing Phoebe anymore," he answered. "Probably resigned and left Phoebe here...I would."

Harry and Hermione chose to ignore the Irish boy and returned to their breakfast; meanwhile, Ron chose not to get involved with the entire conversation all together.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Unfortunately, Phoebe had more than just her reputation at Hogwarts, her grandparents and her godmother to worry about. Professor Moody had announced that he would be putting the Imperius curse on each of them in turn, to demonstrate its power and to see whether they could resist its effects.

"But - but you said its illegal, Professor," said Hermione uncertainly, as Moody cleared away the desks with a sweep of his wand, leaving a large clear space in the middle of the room. "You said - to use it against another human was -"

"Dumbledore wants you taught what it feels like," said Moody. "If you'd rather learn the hard way - when someone's putting it on you so they can control you completely - fine by me. You're excused. Off you go."

He pointed one gnarled finger towards the door. Hermione went very pink, and muttered something about not meaning that she wanted to leave. Harry and Ron grinned at one another.

Moody began to beckon student's forwards in turn and put the Imperius curse upon them. Phoebe watched as, one by one, her classmates did the most extraordinary things under its influence. Dean Thomas hopped three times around the room, singing the national anthem. Lavender Brown imitated a squirrel. Neville performed a series of astonishing gymnastics he would certainly not have been capable of in his normal state.

Not one of them seemed to be able to fight the curse off, and each of them only recovered only when Moody had removed it.

"Blackheart," Moody growled, "you next."

Phoebe moved forward into the middle of the classroom, into the space that Moody had cleared of desks. Moody raised his wand, pointed it at Phoebe and said, "_Imperio_!"

Phoebe cringed as the familiar feeling she had experienced the time she had 'died' swept through her entire body. She was floating. Every thought and worry in her head was wiped away, leaving nothing but a vague, untraceable happiness. She stood there feeling relaxed, only dimly aware of everyone watching her.

And then she heard Mad-Eye Moody's voice, echoing in some distant chamber of her empty brain: _You will tell us your deepest, darkest secret._

The elemental opened her mouth -

**Phoebe? What are you doing?**

A voice - this time familiar - had awoken in the back of her brain.

**Are you trying to get yourself killed?**

_Your deepest, darkest secret._

**No. You don't want to listen to him Phoebe **said another familiar voice from the back of her mind.

**Rowena is right, Little One, you must fight this...**

_**Salazar?**_

**Yes, Phoebe, fight it!**

_What is your deepest, darkest secret?_

"The whole school knows my deepest, darkest secret," Phoebe answered Moody. "Why would admitting it now make matters any better than they actually are? Everyone hates me as it is..."

Moody paused, lifted his wand and Phoebe felt the feeling of 'death' slip away. "Now _that's_ more like it!" he growled. "Look at that, you lot...Blackheart fought it! She fought it, and she beat it! Well done, Blackheart, well done! They'll have trouble controlling _you_!"

The only other person - other than Phoebe - who was able to _nearly_ fight off the Imperius curse, had been Harry, who had been ordered to jump onto the desk and instead had collided with the object instead.

**~*Phoebe*~**

All the fourth years had noticed a definite increase in the amount of work they were required to do this term. Professor McGonagall explained why, when the class gave a particularly loud groan at the amount of Transfiguration homework she had set.

"You are now entering a most important phase of your magical education!" she told them, her eyes glinting dangerously behind her square spectacles. "Your Ordinary Wizarding Levels are drawing closer -"

"We don't take OWLs 'til fifth year!" said Dean Thomas.

"Maybe not, Thomas, but believe me, you need all the preparation you can get! Miss. Granger and Miss. Blackheart remains to be the only people in this class who have managed to turn a hedgehog into a satisfactory pincushion. I might remind you that _you_ pincushion, Thomas, still curls up in fright if anyone approaches it with a pin!"

Phoebe cast her gaze downwards as everyone - save for her friends - glared in her direction.

Meanwhile, Professor Binns, the ghost who taught History of Magic, had them writing weekly essays on the Goblin Rebellions of the eighteenth century. Professor Snape was forcing them to research antidotes. They took this seriously, as he had hinted that he might be poisoning one of them before Christmas to see if their antidote worked. Professor Flitwick had asked them to read three extra books in preparation for their lesson on Summoning Charms.

Even Hagrid was adding to their workload. The Blast-Ended Skrewts were growing at a remarkable pace, given that nobody had yet discovered what they ate. Hagrid was delighted and, as part of their 'project', suggested that they come down to his hut on alternate evenings to observe the Skrewts and make notes on their extraordinary behavior.

"I will not," said Draco Malfoy, when Hagrid had suggested the idea. "I see enough of these foul things during lessons thanks."

Hagrid's smile faded from his face.

"Yeh'll do wha' yer told," he growled. "Yeh'll be partnered with Phe - Miss. Blackheart, and yer will com' down here this evenin' with 'er. Understand?"

Phoebe's smile dropped from her face and she groaned loudly. "Oh, Hagrid, do I have to partners with him? Can't you partner me with Ashlyn?"

"I'm sorry, Phoebe, got me orders from Professor Blackheart herself," Hagrid answered. "She believes you and Malfoy need a lesson in working together"

"You've heard from Serefina?" Phoebe asked, looking happy. "Where is she? Is she OK? When is she coming back?"

"I'm sorry, Phoebe, she's given me strict orders not to tell yer."

Phoebe deflated and an unhappy expression replaced her joyous one.

Hagrid felt his heart break a little as the young Gryffindor turned away and returned to her friends, plopped herself back down on the grass and tossed a handful of ant eggs into the box that contained her Skrewt.

"What's the matter, sis?" Draco asked catching up with Phoebe as she walked back to the castle with James and Ashlyn at the end of the lesson. "You look like someone's just taken away your favourite toy?"

"Maybe it's the thought of spending the entire evening with you, Malfoy!" snapped James. "Why can't you just leave Phoebe alone?"

"She happens to be my sister," Draco answered. "I'll talk to her if I wish."

Phoebe glared. "If you were truly my brother," she answered. "You would have heeded my wishes and kept it a secret! Now not only will the whole school know who I am, but who's to say people outside won't as well? You may have put me in danger, Draco, and not just me, but yourself as well!"

For once, Draco looked scared.

"See you later, _brother_!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they reached the Entrance Hall, Phoebe, Ashlyn and James found themselves unable to precede owing to the large crowd of students congregated there, all milling around a large sign which had been erected at the foot of the marble staircase. They approached Harry, Ron and Hermione, and listened to Ron, who the tallest of them all was read the sign from over the heads of those in front.

_TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT_

_The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving at 6 o'clock on Friday 30th October. Lessons will end half an hour early -_

"Brilliant!" said Harry. "It's Potions last on Friday! Snape won't have time to poison us all!"

_- Students will return their bags and books to their dormitories -_

"Or quarters..." Phoebe mumbled.

_- And assemble in front of the castle to greet our guests before the Welcoming Feast._

"Only a week away!" said Amelia as she, Sarah and Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff emerged from the crowd. "Better go tell Cedric..."

Sarah grinned. "Are you sure Ernie should tell Ced?" she asked. "Don't you want too?"

"Shut up!" Amelia groaned, swatting her friends' shoulder. "See you later, Ernie."

"Bye girls," Ernie waved as he run off.

Phoebe smiled as Amelia and Sarah hugged her the moment they saw her. "Hello stranger," Sarah grinned. "Feels like forever since we last saw you, where have you been hiding?"

"In my Godmother's quarters," Phoebe answered. "I usually only come out for lessons. I have food brought there for me by the House-elves - don't start Hermione - and Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall see problem in me using it as long as I am getting my work done."

"They know you've been kicked out of the Tower?" Ashlyn asked. "And they aren't doing anything?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, they don't know," she answered. "I haven't told them. They just think I am really worried about my godmother and I want to be there when she comes back, and therefore that is the reason that I am using her quarters."

"What are you going to do when they find out?"

"Take my punishment like a good little girl," Phoebe answered. "On the off chance I won't get in too much trouble, I do, however, feel sorry for the person - or persons - that put that Blocking Charm up against me, now _they_ are going to be in trouble."

Her friends nodded in agreement and then pushed their way through the chattering crowd towards the staircase.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they went down to breakfast on the morning of the thirtieth of October, - Ashlyn and James had managed to convince Phoebe to come down - they noticed that the Great Hall had been decorated overnight.

Enormous silk banners hung from the walls, each of them representing a Hogwarts house - red with a gold lion for Gryffindor, blue with a bronze eagle for Ravenclaw, yellow with a black badger for Hufflepuff, and green with a silver serpent for Slytherin. Behind the teachers' table, the largest banner of all bore the Hogwarts coat of arms; lion, eagle, badger and snake united around a large letter 'H'.

Phoebe hadn't even stepped into the Great Hall when someone appeared in her path.

"Oof!" she squeaked as she walked directly into them and stumbled backwards into James and Ashlyn who caught her before she could fall. "Hey, what's the big -" she cut off as she realized that it had been Terence she had walked into. "Oh...Hi," she said awkwardly.

Terence didn't respond, simply cast his gaze away from her and approached the Slytherin table without looking back.

Phoebe bit her lower lip as she choked back a sob, turned toe and attempted to leave the Great Hall.

"Oh no you don't," James said, catching her around the waist and pulling her back inside.

The revelation of her being a Malfoy had started to wear off now, and although she was still not welcome in her own tower, people had started to - at least - talk to her again...well...almost everyone, Terence still avoided her like the plague, and his avoidance seemed to the hardest one of all for Phoebe to come to grips with.

"Let me go, James!" Phoebe protested. "You can't force me to stay here!"

"And you can't let him control your life either!" Ashlyn stated. "Come on Pheebs, it's been two months nearly! You've got to move on! I noticed Warrington has been paying some attention to you; why not see where that leads? He's not really that bad of a guy once you get to know him."

Phoebe shook her head. "I can't," she mumbled.

"Can't or won't?"

"Can't," Phoebe repeated. "It hurts - it hurts too much to think of myself with someone other than Terence. I can't just throw away two years of -"

Ashlyn and James exchanged looks as Sarah and Amelia joined them.

"I love him," Phoebe finished. "I completely and uncontrollably love him..."

There was a heavy silence - a silence that was broken by the sudden whooshing noise from overhead which announced the arrival of the post owls. Phoebe looked up at the sound of a loud screech - there, with her golden wings spread wide - her clawed talons curled inwards, and her amber eyes locked onto a single person within the whole Hall - was Athena.

The Golden Eagle fluttered down onto Phoebe's shoulder, folded her wings and held out her leg on which dangled three letters.

Phoebe pulled off the three letters and pulled her friends out of the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Who are they from?" Amelia asked once she, Phoebe and the others were safely locked inside Serefina Blackheart's office.

Athena was now perched on the back of her mistress's chair behind the desk, as Phoebe sat cross-legged near the burning fireplace, the three letters in her hands were all addressed to her. Quickly opening the letters, the elemental glanced through them and then answered Amelia's question.

"One is from my grandparents," she answered. "They are simply stating that I have done nothing wrong to upset them, and that they apologize for neglecting my messages but they have been extremely busy at the Ministry; the incident at the World Cup has thrown everyone into chaos, and the Portuguese government are afraid that they are going to have an uprising on their hands if they don't figure something out."

"Well, at least you now know that they weren't ignoring you on purpose," suggested Sarah.

Phoebe nodded. "They are also sorry to hear about me and Terence," she went on, "and Grandpa said he will be writing to Lucius, something about keeping his son under control. That the Ministry of Magic here in England does not need to know who I am because it could cause catastrophic events."

"Well, that doesnt sound good," Amelia pointed out.

"It's not good," Phoebe answered. "Have you ever wondered why I was giving up in first place?"

James nodded. "Dean Thomas asked me the same question the other night," he answered. "He's actually one of the very few Gryffindor's who are willing to let you back into the Tower, but he is being overruled by older students."

"Truth be told," Phoebe said, "My grandmother - Elena Blackheart - had a vision a few months before I was born about a strong witch being born to the richest Wizarding family in England -"

"The Malfoy's," Ashlyn answered.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. From the moment I was born, Elena knew that I would be targeted. Now you have to understand that during the time of my birth, Voldemort was still around, he was still gaining power and he was still targeting families and looking for ways to obtain great power; if he had caught wind that I had been born and heard about my extraordinary powers to control the elements, then he would have had everything he would have needed to rule this world..."

"I didn't realize you were that powerful,"

"I'm not," Phoebe answered. "At least not at the moment. When I was born I was only a one core elemental. As I grew older I started showing signs of controlling two, my grandmother already knew that I would be able to control all four, what she didn't realize was that I needed to be attacked in order for my elemental core to split and my control over the four elements to take full control."

James frowned. "Does that mean she would have attacked you if she knew?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "It had to be dark magic that split my elemental core; it takes a great force of magic to split a magical core, and it takes even more to split an elemental core. Voldemort is an extraordinary wizard - only a fool would say otherwise - he had the power to break my elemental core in four separate pieces and give me the power I needed to become either his downfall or his secret weapon."

After Phoebe had finished explaining, James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia sat silently. Not once, had they ever thought they would hear something so...so...powerful?

"So, that's why you were given away?" Ashlyn asked.

"Yeah," Phoebe answered. "That is why I was adopted into the Blackheart family. That is why I am unhappy with Draco for revealing my secret. I thought that with him knowing I was his sister, I would be able to have a relationship with him..." she sighed heavily. "I guess I was wrong."

Ashlyn touched her shoulder. "Truth be told, Draco's not as evil as he seems," she said. "You should see him in the common room during the evenings; he's not half a loathsome evil little cockroach he is during school hours. Just give him some time, he'll realize his mistake, and you not talking to him - his twin, no doubt - is sure to drive him up the wall."

Phoebe smiled around at her friends. "Thanks guys, but you have to promise me you won't tell anyone what I have just told you?"

"Promise," the four others agreed.

Phoebe grinned and went back to her letters. They were off Serefina - who had confirmed that she would be returning to Hogwarts later that evening, she would be present at the Welcoming Feast and would later await Phoebe in her quarters so that they could talk; and the last one had been off Blake and Jackson, who were just announcing that they couldn't wait to see her.

Suddenly, the net of gloom that had seemingly fallen over Phoebe in the last two months was finally lifting.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There was a pleasant feeling of anticipation in the air that day.

When the bell rang early at the end of the day, Phoebe returned to her Godmother's quarters to deposit her bag and books like she had been instructed, pulled on her cloak and rushed back downstairs into the Entrance Hall.

The Heads of Houses were ordering students into lines.

"Weasley, straighten your hat," Professor McGonagall snapped at Ron. "Miss. Patil, take that ridiculous thing out of your hair."

Parvati scowled and removed a large ornamental butterfly from the end of her plait.

"Follow me please," said Professor McGonagall, "first years in front...no pushing..."

They filed down the front steps and lined up in front of the castle. It was a cold, clear evening; dusk was falling and a pale transparent-looking moon was already shining over the Forbidden Forest. Phoebe, standing between Harry and James in the fourth row from the front, saw Melissa Black positively shivering with anticipation among the other third years.

"Nearly six," said Ron, checking his watch and then staring down the drive which lead to the front gates. "How'd you reckon they're coming? The train?"

"I doubt it," said Hermione.

"How, then? Broomsticks?" Harry suggested, looking up at the starry sky.

Phoebe giggled and shook her head. "Durmstrang is so far North, Harry that they would freeze by the time they get here. And the Beauxbatons girls wouldn't enjoy a journey from France on a broomstick - at least - not all of them," she added her mind drifting to Esmee.

"A Portkey?" Ron suggested. "Or they could Apparate -"

"You can't Apparate inside the Hogwarts grounds, how often do I have to tell you?" Hermione said impatiently.

They scanned the darkening grounds excitedly, but nothing was moving; everything was still, silent and quite as usual. Phoebe was starting to feel cold, and she wished that Blake, Jackson, Esmee and the others would at least hurry up.

And then Dumbledore called out from the back row, where he stood with the other teachers - "Aha! Unless I am very much mistaken, the delegation from Beauxbatons approaches!"

"Where?" said many students eagerly, all looking in different directions.

"_There_!" yelled a sixth-year, pointing over the Forest.

Something large, much larger than a broomstick - or, indeed, a hundred broomsticks - was hurtling across the deep blue sky towards the castle, growing larger all the time.

"It's a dragon!" shrieked one of the first years, losing her head completely.

Phoebe snickered as she gripped Harry's arm and leaned herself closer to him. "It's not a Dragon," she whispered.

"Don't be stupid...it's a flying house!" said Dennis Creevy.

Dennis's guess was closer...as the gigantic black shape skimmed over the treetops of the Forbidden Forest, and the lights shining from the castle windows hit it, they saw a gigantic, powder-blue, horse-drawn carriage, the size of a large house, soaring towards them, pulled through the air by a dozen winged horses, all palominos, and each the size of an elephant.

The front three rows of students drew backwards as the carriage hurtled ever lower, coming in to land at a tremendous speed - then, with an almighty crash that made Neville jump backwards - the horses' hooves, larger than dinner plates, hit the ground. A second later, the carriage landed too, bouncing upon its vast wheels, while the golden horses tossed their enormous heads and rolled large, fiery eyes.

Phoebe's eyes widened at the sight of the horses, and had to resist the urge to dart out of the crowd and pet them.

Suddenly the door to the carriage sprang open and a boy in pale blue robes jumped down from inside, he bent forwards, fumbled from a moment with something on the carriage floor and then unfolded a set of golden steps. He sprang back respectfully, as a shining, high-heeled black shoe emerged from the inside of the carriage - a shoe the size of a child's sled - followed, almost immediately, by the largest woman anyone had ever seen. The size of the carriage and of the horses was immediately explained. A few people gasped.

As she stepped into the light flooding from the Entrance Hall, she was revealed to have a handsome, olive-skinned face, large, black, liquid-looking eyes and a rather beaky nose. Her hear was drawn back in a shining knob at the base of her neck. She was dressed from head to foot in black satin, and many magnificent opals gleamed at her throat and on her thick fingers.

Dumbledore started to clap; the students, following his lead, broke into applause too, many of them standing on tiptoe, the better to look at this woman.

Her face relaxed in a gracious smile, and she walked towards Dumbledore, extending a glittering hand. Dumbledore, though tall himself, had barely to bend to kiss it.

"My dear Madame Maxime," he said. "Welcome to Hogwarts."

"Dumbly-dorr," said Madame Maxime, in a deep voice. "I 'ope I find you well?"

"On excellent form, I thank you," said Dumbledore.

"My pupils," said Madame Maxime, waving one of her hands carelessly over her shoulder.

Phoebe grinned as she scanned the small cluster of girls - all, by the look of them, in their late teens - that had emerged from the carriage and were now standing behind Madame Maxime. They were shivering, which was unsurprising, given that the robes seemed to be made of silk, and none of them were wearing cloaks. A few of them had wrapped scarves and shawls around their heads.

The Elemental spotted Esmee amongst the group; she was clutching hands with a rather tall blonde-haired girl, who was clutching the hand of smaller blonde-haired girl. However, the small girl was only a child, no older than eleven.

"Esmee," Phoebe smiled catching the girl's eye.

Esmee grinned, slid through the crowd of Beauxbatons students and made a break for Phoebe. The Gryffindor did the same and met the girl halfway. Esmee hugged Phoebe in way that made the elemental feel like she was more than just a friend. "Phoebe! I've missed you!"

"I missed you too!" Phoebe answered, pulling out of the hug. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better," Esmee admitted. "Although I can't complain. So, where is my loving brother?"

Phoebe cast her gaze downwards. "I'll take you too him, but I warn you, Esmee, your brother and I -"

"Ez!" Terence's voice cut across Phoebe as he pushed his way through the Slytherin students towards his sister.

Esmee frowned at Phoebe, who had withdrawn, and when the French student had pulled away from her brother she realized Phoebe and retreated into the throng of Gryffindor students. "Ter, what's going on? Why has Phoebe gone?"

"I'll explain later," Terence answered. "It's a long and complicated story."

Esmee opened her mouth to argue, but was cut off by someone calling to her in French. She turned back to brother, before hurrying after her friends as they were lead into the Hogwarts castle by their Headmistress.

Meanwhile, as Terence re-joined the Slytherin's, Ron and Harry were pestering Phoebe to tell them how the Durmstrang students would be arriving.

"Come on, Pheebs," Harry groaned. "We know you know! You don't go having two best friends who go to Durmstrang and not know how they get there! Please tell us!"

"I don't know," Phoebe stressed. "Blake and Jackson use the Floo network to get to school; their Headmaster collects them from Blackheart Manor and escorts them personally through the Floo Network. I don't know how the rest get to school."

Ron opened his mouth to start whining, when Phoebe pointed towards the lake. "That direction!" she was all she said.

Satisfied with the answer, Ron and Harry turned towards the lake, as did the rest of the Hogwarts students.

From their position at the top of the lawns overlooking the grounds, they had a clear view of the smooth black surface of the water - except that the surface was suddenly not smooth at all. Some disturbance was taking place deep in the centre; great bubbles were forming on the surface, waves were now washing over the muddy banks - and then, out in the very middle of the lake, a whirlpool appeared, as if a giant plug had just been pulled out of the lake's floor...

What seemed to be a long, black pole began to rise slowly out of the heart of the whirlpool...and then Phoebe saw the rigging - she grinned.

"It's a mast!" Harry said.

Slowly, magnificently, the ship rose out of the water, gleaming in the moonlight. It had a strangely skeletal look about it, as though it was a resurrected wreck, and the dim, misty lights shimmering at its portholes looked like ghostly eyes. Finally, with a great sloshing noise, the ship emerged entirely, bobbing on the turbulent water, and began to glide towards the bank.

A few moments later, they heard the splashing of an anchor being thrown down in the shallows, and the thud of a plank being lowered onto the bank.

People were disembarking; they could see their silhouettes passing the lights in the ships portholes. All of them were wearing cloaks of some king of shaggy, mattered fur. But the man who was leading them up to the castle was wearing furs of a different sort; sleek and silver, like his hair.

"Dumbledore!" he called heartily, as he walked up the slope. "How are you, my dear fellow, how are you?"

"Blooming, thank you, Professor Karkaroff," Dumbledore replied.

Karkaroff had a fruity, unctuous voice; when he stepped into the light pouring from the front doors of the castle, they saw he was tall and thin like Dumbledore, but his white hair was short, and his goatee (finishing in a small curl) did not entirely hide his rather weak chin. When he reached Dumbledore he shook hands with both of his own.

"Dear old Hogwarts," he said, looking up at the castle and smiling. "How good it is to be here. Although, I am sure there will be time for it later, but two of my students are expecting a certain young lady to be present here tonight..."

A ripple of whispers spread throughout the whole of the Hogwarts students, as each and every one - that didn't know of Phoebe, Blake and Jackson's friendship - wondered exactly who the 'young lady' that Karkaroff was speaking of, was.

"Of course," Dumbledore smiled pleasantly, holding his hand out towards the Gryffindor students. "Miss. Blackheart, if you please,"

Aware of the looks she was receiving, Phoebe stepped out of the crowd of students and approached Dumbledore. Then, out of the crowd of Durmstrang students, - wearing the traditional Durmstrang robes - stepped Blake Brooks and Jackson Stream.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Well...I couldn't sleep last night due to the fact that I am full of cold, and couldn't stop coughing, so I thought I would get started on the next chapter of Phoebe. Never actually thought I would finish a whole chapter mind you._

_So Blake and Jackson have arrived at Hogwarts, and so has Esmee...so I guess, it's time to "Let the fun - begin!"_

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, January 05, 2012 at 12:38am**


	63. Chapter 63

**Author's Note:** Whoo! 302 reviews. Oh, My God! Never _ever_ has a story of mine ever got past 300 reviews. I am so excited. You guys are awesome.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics, Murder-Winter-Cullen, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Angel JJK, Kankananime123** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**In Responses: **_**10th Squad 3rd Seat:**_Aw. Yup, Jackson and Blake have arrived. Yay.

_**Vivi Fontaine:**_ Yes, it is a compliment. But I am afraid to report that not everyone shares your views on Blake and Jackson. I do know of one reader that completely hate's Blake.

_**Murder-Winter-Cullen: **_Aw, I know that feeling, I have been full of cold since the 30th December, and haven't been able to speak since then either. It's gutting, especially with a three year old running around, and my 4 week old nephew. Anyway, I hope you feel better soon.

_**Kankananime123:**_Oh, that sounds like a plan, but sadly that would risk exposure and that's not planned for fourth year. The Champions will be selected next chapter. You will see then if Phoebe makes it or not.

_**Fan of Fics: **_Yes, it is a good thing that Phoebe can fight the Imperious Curse, that was shown into year one when Quirrell tried using it on her, but I completely agree Phoebe would be banished from Hogwarts if she had revealed her elemental secret. It is one thing that the whole school knows that she is a Malfoy; it is another thing all together for them to know about her being an elemental. Good thing she is a strong, stubborn little witch.

_**Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn:**_ In all honestly, I thought Portugal was in the USA. If it's not then I apologize for any confusion. But no, Phoebe has never lived in the USA. She lived in the UK for about an hour after she was born and then was sent to live in Portugal for the rest of her life. As for Terence, I have also noticed a few kinks and flaws in that storyline but there will be explanations as to why he is acting this way. I promise. And they will get back together. You would be correct to assume that Blake and Jackson will want to kill Terence for what they have done, but for the sake of Phoebe they won't, but they will be unhappy with him. (Poor bloke, because I wouldn't want Blake and Jackson mad at me, would you?) I'm glad you are enjoying it, and I hope you enjoy it from here on out.

**Shout Outs: **Thank you too **Kankananime123** to adding this story to their **Story Alerts** and too **Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn** for adding this story to their **Story Alert **and **Favourite Story**.

I would also like to give a shout out to my 300th reviewer: **Angel JJK**.

Onto the next chapter:

* * *

><p>"I don't believe it!" Ron said, in a stunned voice; as the Hogwarts students filed back up the steps behind the party from Durmstrang. Phoebe was walking ahead of her schoolmates, her arms linked with Blake and Jackson's, but they weren't the only two Russian students she was talking with. "Krum, Harry! <em>Viktor Krum!<em> I didn't know Phoebe knew him?"

Harry looked around at his friend. "I did," he nodded. "She mentioned him to me before..."

Ron looked even more stunned, as he watched Phoebe talk to Krum in rapid Russian. "She speaks Russian?"

"Her grandmother is Russian," Harry answered. "It is her second language."

"But - But - I had no idea that Krum was still in school," Ron stuttered. "I mean, he's eighteen, how old do you have to be to graduate Durmstrang?"

"Why don't you ask Phoebe?" Hermione shrugged. "She would know."

The red head nodded and made a mental note to ask the elemental later that evening, he knew that she would answer his questions, they were friends after all.

_**Wrong!**_ Whispered a voice inside his head. _**You and Phoebe are more enemies than you are friends, after all, you agreed for her to be locked out of Gryffindor Tower, remember?**_

Ron's smile slipped from his face as he remembered that he had too agreed for Phoebe to be locked out of the Tower. He groaned inwardly as he sulked into a seat at the Gryffindor table, and glanced up at the doorway to where the Durmstrang students and Phoebe were gathered.

The Beauxbatons students had chosen seats at the Ravenclaw table, except for one that was sat at the Slytherin table.

"Is she insane?" Dean Thomas whispered, pointing the girls out to the others. "Why would a pretty girl like her choose to sit with the Snakes?"

"Because she is a Higgs," Hermione answered.

Dean frowned. "Come again?"

"That's Esmee Higgs," Hermione explained. "She is Terence's sister."

"Oh," Dean mumbled and withdrew as Phoebe approached her friends, Blake, Jackson - and much to Ron's surprise and delight - Krum following behind her.

Phoebe smiled. "Hey, guys, can we -"

"Yes!" Ron agreed instantly, not bothering for Phoebe to finish her sentence.

"Thanks," Phoebe smiled swinging her legs over the bench. Blake and Jackson slid onto the bench either side of her, and Krum took a seat beside Blake. This meant that Jackson was sat between Phoebe and Neville; while Blake and Krum were sat between Phoebe and Hermione, and opposite Ron and Harry.

Blake nodded at Harry. "Hullo, Harry," he greeted pulling off his heavy fur coat.

"Hullo," Harry replied. "Jackson."

"Harry,"

Krum, however, wasn't paying attention; he was pulling off his heavy fur coat and looking up at the enchanted ceiling with a keen interest.

"_It's enchanted,"_ Phoebe explained in a language that Krum would understand. "_It is charmed to look like the sky outside. I'm sure Hermione would be happy to explain it all to you..."_

"Hermy-own?" Krum repeated.

Phoebe giggled. "Her - my - oh - nee," she spelt out.

"Herm - own - ninny,"

The Muggleborn in question blushed as her name - well almost her name - rolled off of Krum's tongue. She shot Phoebe a dark look. The elemental grinned and winked in response.

Up at the staff table, Filch, the caretaker, was adding chairs. He was wearing his moldy old tail coat in honour of the occasion. Harry was surprised to see that he was adding four chairs, three on either side of Dumbledore and one at the end near to where Serefina Blackheart sat.

"But there are only two extra people," Harry said. "Why's Filch putting out four chairs? Who else is coming?"

"Eh?" said Ron vaguely. He was still staring at Phoebe and Krum as they conversed in rapid Russian opposite him.

When all the students had entered the Hall and settled down at their house tables, the staff entered, filing up to the top table and taking their seats. Last in line were Professor Dumbledore, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime. When their Headmistress appeared, the pupils from Beauxbatons leapt to their feet.

A few of the Hogwarts students laughed. The Beauxbatons party appeared quite unembarrassed, and did not resume their seats until Madame Maxime had sat down on Dumbledore's left-hand side. Dumbledore, however, remained standing, and a silence fell over the Great Hall.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, ghost and - most particularly - guests," said Dumbledore, beaming around at the foreign students. "I have great pleasure in welcoming you all to Hogwarts. I hope and trust that your stay here will be both comfortable and enjoyable."

One of the Beauxbatons girls still clutching a muffler around her head gave what was unmistakably a derisive laugh.

"No one's making you stay!" Hermione whispered, bristling at her.

"The Tournament will be officially opened at the end of the feast," said Dumbledore. "I now invite you to eat, drink, and make yourselves at home."

He sat down, and Phoebe watched as Karkaroff leaned forward at once and engaged him in conversation.

The dishes in front of them filled with food as usual. The house-elves in the kitchen seemed to have pulled out all the stops; there was a greater variety of dishes in front of them that normal, including several that were definitely foreign.

"What's _that_?" said Ron, pointing at a large dish of some sort of shellfish stew that stood beside a large steak-and-kidney pudding.

"Bouillabaisse," said Hermione.

"Bless you," said Ron.

"It's _French_," said Phoebe.

Hermione nodded. "I had it on holiday, summer before last, it's very nice."

"I'll take your word for it," said Ron, helping himself to black pudding.

The Great Hall seemed somehow much more crowded than usual, even though there were barely twenty additional students there, perhaps it was because their differently coloured uniforms stood out so clearly against the black of Hogwarts. Now that they had removed their furs, the Durmstrang students were revealed to be wearing robes of a deep, blood red.

At that moment, a voice said, "Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?"

It was the girl from Beauxbatons who had laughed during Dumbledore's speech. She had finally removed her muffler. A long sheet of silvery blonde hair fell almost to her waist. She had large, deep blue eyes, and very white, even teeth.

Ron went purple. He stared up at her, opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out except a faint gurgling noise.

"Yeah, have it," said Harry, pushing the dish towards the girl.

"You 'ave finished wiz it?"

"We wouldn't be offering it if we weren't," Phoebe muttered, without looking up at the girl.

Ron nodded numbly. "Yeah, it was excellent."

The girl picked up the dish and carried it carefully off to the Ravenclaw table. Ron was still goggling at the girl as though he had never seen one before. Jackson started to laugh. The sound seemed to jog Ron back to his senses.

"She's a _Veela!"_ he said hoarsely to Harry.

"A what?" Harry frowned.

"They are a race of semi-human, semi-magical hominids," Phoebe answered. "Significant to the Sirens of Greek mythology. They appear as young, beautiful human females, but their appearance and especially their dance is magically seductive to almost all male beings..." she paused. "You remember the Quidditch World Cup? When Ron, Adrian and Ter -"

Phoebe cut off.

Harry nodded to save her from saying '_his_' name. "I remember when they started acting strange?"

"Yeah, well they were Veela," Phoebe finished going back to her dinner.

Blake and Jackson exchanged looks over their friend's head. Something was wrong, they could see, feel and sense it.

"- I don't see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot!" said Hermione tartly.

But she wasn't entirely right about that. As the girl crossed the Hall, many boys' heads turned, and some of them seemed to have become temporarily speechless, just like Ron.

"I'm telling you, that's not a normal girl!" said Ron, leaning sideways so he could keep a clear view of her. "They don't make them like that at Hogwarts!"

"Way to build the self-esteem, Ronald!" Hermione said. "Once you have put your eyes back in you'll be able to see who's just arrived."

She was pointing up at the staff table. Three of the four remaining empty seats had just been filled. Ludo Bagman was now sitting on Professor Karkaroff's other side, with Mrs. Josephine Higgs on his right, while Mr. Crouch, Percy's boss, was next to Madame Maxime.

"What are they doing here?" said James in surprise.

"They organized the Triwizard Tournament," said Phoebe. "They are here to see it start."

With the second course Serefina arrived, and Phoebe sighed in relief at the sight of her Godmother, but Serefina wasn't alone. A young boy, no older than fourteen was with her; Phoebe frowned as the boy looked vaguely recognizable, but she couldn't place where she had seen him before.

"Who's that?" Jackson asked looking around at Phoebe.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "Does he look familiar to you?"

"He looks like another Malfoy," said Ron.

Phoebe scowled. "No, he doesn't!" she snapped. "There will never be another evil little cockroach!"

Gryffindor's up and down the table glanced up at Phoebe's outburst.

"Sorry," Ron held his hands up in defence.

Krum turned to Phoebe. "_Problem?"_ he asked.

"_Maybe a little one,"_ Phoebe answered. "_But it's a long and complicated story that I would rather not talk about."_

_"I understand,"_ Krum nodded.

Ron stared in fascination once more. He still couldn't get over the fact that Phoebe had such a close relationship with Krum and could converse with him in his own language, which seemed to make it easier for Krum because he could speak very little English.

Once the golden plates had been wiped clean, Dumbledore stood up again. A pleasant sort of tension seemed to fill the Hall now.

"The moment has come," said Dumbledore, smiling around at the sea of upturned faces. "The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words in explanation before we bring in the casket -"

"The what?" Harry muttered.

Ron and James shrugged.

"- just to clarify the procedure which we will be following this year. But firstly, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Co-operation" - there was a smattering of polite applause, while Phoebe merely scowled at the Ministry official - "Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports," - there was a much louder round of applause for Bagman than for Crouch, perhaps because of his fame as a Beater, or simply because he looked so much more likeable - "and Mrs. Josephine Higgs executive co-worker of the Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports."

Phoebe applauded Josephine, who acknowledged the Hall with a small wave and a smile.

"Mr. Bagman, Mr. Crouch and Mrs. Higgs have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime on the panel which will judge the champions efforts."

At the mention of the word 'champion', the attentiveness of the listening students seemed to sharpen.

Perhaps Dumbledore had noticed their sudden stillness, for he smiled as he sad, "The casket, then, if you please, Mr. Filch."

Filch, who had been lurking unnoticed in a far corner of the Hall, now approached Dumbledore, carrying a great wooden chest, encrusted with jewels. It looked extremely old. A murmur of excited interest rose from the watching students, Dennis Creevey actually stood on his chair to see it properly, but, being so tiny, his head hardly rose above anyone else's.

"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr. Crouch, Mr. Bagman and Mrs. Higgs," said Dumbledore, as Filch placed the chest carefully on the table before him, "and they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be there tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways...their magical prowess - their daring - their powers of deduction - and, of course, their ability to cope with danger."

At the last word, the Hall was filled with a silence so absolute that nobody seemed to be breathing.

"As you know, three champions compete in the Tournament," Dumbledore went on calmly, "one from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector...the Goblet of Fire."

Dumbledore now took out his wand, and tapped three times upon the top of the casket. The lid creaked slowly open. Dumbledore reached inside it, and pulled out a large, roughly hewn wooden cup. It would have been entirely remarkable, had it not been full to the brim with dancing, blue-white flames.

Dumbledore closed the casket and placed the Goblet carefully on top of it, where it would be clearly visible to everyone in the Hall.

"Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment, and drop into the Goblet," said Dumbledore. "Aspiring champions have twenty-four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night, Halloween, the Goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The Goblet will be placed in the Entrance Hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete. To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation, I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet once it has been placed. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line."

Phoebe glanced down at Fred and George who were whispering amongst themselves.

"Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this Tournament is not to be entered into lightly," said Dumbledore. "Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the Tournament though to the end. The placing of your name into the Goblet constitutes a binding magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are whole heartedly prepared to play, before you drop your name into the Goblet. Now, I think it is time for bed. Goodnight all."

"An Age Line?" Fred Weasley said, his eyes glinting, as they all made their way across the Hall to the doors into the Entrance Hall. "Well, that should be fooled by an Ageing Potion, shouldn't it? And once your name is in that Goblet, you're laughing - it can't tell whether you're seventeen or not!"

"But I don't think anyone under seventeen will stand a chance," said Hermione, "we just haven't learnt enough -"

"Speak for yourself," said George shortly.

Phoebe touched Hermione's shoulder. "Don't worry about it Hermione, even if they do manage to get past Dumbledore's Age Line, there is no guarantee that they will be chosen as Hogwarts Champion anyway, and even if they did, it would either be Fred Weasley: Hogwarts Champion or George Weasley: Hogwarts Champion."

Fred and George stopped and stared at the Elemental, they hadn't actually thought of it like that.

"Are you both willing to push the other aside on your conquest to fame and glory?" Phoebe questioned them.

The twins exchanged looks. They did _everything_ together; it was what twins - who had been brought up together. Unlike Phoebe and Draco - did. "Um..."

Phoebe grinned. "I didn't think so," she nodded. "So go ahead, put your names in the Goblet, but don't be disappointed if one of you his chosen and the other is left on the side lines," and she pushed her way through them in her haste to get at the Durmstrang students. She wanted to say goodnight to Blake and Jackson before they headed down to the ship.

"Viktor," Karkaroff was saying as Phoebe approached. "How are you feeling? Did you eat enough? Should I send for some mulled wine from the kitchen?"

Krum shook his head as he pulled his furs back on, and turned to Phoebe as she popped up beside him. _"Goodnight, Phoebe,"_

_"Goodnight, Viktor,"_ Phoebe smiled.

"Professor, I vood like some vine," said one of the other Durmstrang boys hopefully.

"I wasn't offering it to _you_, Poliakoff," snapped Karkaroff, his warmly paternal air vanishing in an instant. "I notice you have dribbled food all down your front of your robes again, disgusting boy -"

Karkaroff turned and led his students towards the doors, reaching them at exactly the same time as Harry, Ron, James and Hermione.

Phoebe - who was perched on Blake's back - grinned at her friends. "Hi, guys!"

"Hi, Phoebe," James waved.

"Be polite and let our guests go first," Phoebe said to Ron, who was trying to leave.

"Thank you," Karkaroff said, glancing at the elemental. He froze, however, when he turned back and his gaze landed on Harry.

Out of the corner of her eye, Phoebe spotted Poliakoff - the boy who had dribbled food all down his front - point openly at Harry's forehead. Clutching Blake's robes, Phoebe reached over and swatted Poliakoff's hand out of the air. _"Pointing is rude!"_ she scolded.

The boy scowled at her.

"Yeah, that's Harry Potter," said a growling voice from behind them.

Professor Karkaroff spun around. Mad-Eye Moody was standing there, leaning heavily on his staff, his magical eye glaring unblinkingly at the Durmstrang Headmaster.

The colour drained from Karkaroff's face as Phoebe watched. A terrible look of mingled fury and fear had come over his face.

"You!" he said, staring at Moody as though unsure he really seeing him.

"Me," said Moody grimly. "And unless you've got anything to say to Potter, Karkaroff, you might want to move. You're blocking the doorway."

It was true; half the students in the Hall were now waiting behind them, looking over each other's shoulders to see what was causing the hold-up.

Without another word, Professor Karkaroff swept his students away with him, while Phoebe climbed the Marble staircase with her friends and then hurried off to Serefina's office where she was hoping her Godmother was waiting for her.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated** **Friday, January 06, 2012 at 4:25am**


	64. Chapter 64

**Author's Note: **Sad to say that updates after today will go back to whenever I can snag a few spare minutes, University starts back up and it is back to early nights and early mornings =( But I will try and update on a regular basis, I won't leave you hanging. Promise.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squard 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine, Kankananime123** and **Fan of Fics.**

**In Responses:** First too **KingdomHeartsNerd:** Yes, Phoebe scolding people in Russian get used to it.

**10th Squad 3rd Seat: **Yeah, Blake and Jackson always make her smile. Who do you think the boy was?

**Vivi Fontaine:** Yes. Someone hates Blake. Thinks he is evil because he attacked Terence in 2nd year, when he thought that Terence was stalking Phoebe. (Simple misunderstanding) Yes. Aiden and Josephine will be at Hogwarts this year.

**Kankananime123: **Ron is and always will be a pig head, that boy will never learn. And his and Phoebe's friendship isn't exactly brilliant anyway, so what did people except when he found out that she was a Malfoy?

**Fan of Fics: **Yeah, I guess he does. =)

**Shouts outs: **Thank you too **Setsuna Hime** for adding this story their favourites. Also thank you too **R. Jeanette** for adding this story to their favourites and Story alert, and lastly to **Naty Fofy** who added this story to their Story alert. Glad to know you are enjoying it.

Oh, word of warning? Some changes this year...especially in the champion selections. Please don't hate me...there is a reason for it.

* * *

><p>As the next morning was a Saturday, most students would normally have breakfasted late. Harry, Ron and Hermione, however, were not alone in rising much earlier than they usually did at weekends. When they went down into the Entrance Hall, they saw about twenty people milling around it, some of them eating toast, all examining the Goblet of Fire. It had been placed in the centre of the Hall on the stool that normally bore the Sorting Hat. A thin golden line had been traced on the floor, forming a circle ten feet around it in every direction.<p>

"Anyone put their name in yet?" Ron asked a third year girl eagerly.

"All the Durmstrang lot," she replied. "But I haven't seen anyone from Hogwarts yet."

"Bet some of them put in last night after we'd all gone to bed," said Harry. "I would've done if it had been me...wouldn't have wanted everyone watching. What if the Goblet just gobbled you right back out again?"

Someone laughed behind Harry. Turning, he saw Fred, George and Lee Jordan hurrying down the staircase, all three of them looking extremely excited.

"Done it," said Fred in a triumphant whisper. "Just taken it."

"What?" said Ron.

"The Ageing Potion, dungbrains," said Fred.

"One drop each," said George, rubbing his hands together with glee. "We only need to be a few months older."

"We agreed that we're going to split the thousand Galleons between the three of us if one of us wins," said Lee, grinning broadly.

"I'm not sure this is going to work, you know," said Hermione. "I'm sure Dumbledore will have thought of this."

Fred, George and Lee ignored her.

"Ready?" Fred said to the other two, quivering with excitement. "C'mon, then - I'll go first -"

Harry watched, fascinated as Fred pulled a slip of parchment out of his pocket, bearing the words 'Fred Weasley - Hogwarts." Fred walked right up to the edge of the line, and stood there, rocking on his toes like a diver preparing for a fifty-foot drop. Then, with the eyes of every person in the Entrance Hall upon him, he took a great breath and stepped over the line.

For a split second it seemed everything had gone to plan - George certainly seemed to thinks so, for he let out a yell of triumph and leapt after Fred - but next moment, there was a loud sizzling sound, and both twins were hurled out of the golden circle as though they had been thrown by an invisible shot-putter.

They landed painfully, ten feet away on the cold stone floor, and to add insult to injury, there was a loud popping noise, and both of them sprouted identical, long white beards.

The Entrance Hall rang with laugher. Even Fred and George joined in, once they had got to their feet, and taken a good look at each other's beards.

"I did warn you," said a deep, amused voice, and everyone turned to see Professor Dumbledore, Phoebe and Serefina Blackheart and the unrecognizable boy from the night before coming out of the Great Hall. Dumbledore surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling. "I suggest you both go up to Madam Pomfrey. She is already tending to Miss. Fawcett, of Ravenclaw and Mr. Summers, of Hufflepuff, both of whom decided to age themselves up a little, too. Though I must say, neither of their beards is anything like as fine as yours."

Fred and George set off for the Hospital wing, accompanied by Lee, who was howling with laughter, and Harry, Ron and Hermione, also chortling, went in to breakfast. Phoebe and the new boy joining them.

"Guys, this is Aiden," Phoebe introduced. "He's going to be a student here at Hogwarts. He's transferring from the Salem Institute for Magic it's where Serefina has been for the last few weeks; she has been sorting things out between the Institute and Hogwarts."

Hermione smiled. "She's like Hogwarts's personal Liaison for foreign students,"

Phoebe and Aiden laughed. "Yeah, I guess you could say that," the elemental nodded. "Aiden, these are my friends: Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter."

"Pleasure to meet you," Aiden smiled, shaking hands with Harry and Ron, and kissing the back of Hermione's hand when he came to her. The trio frowned at the gesture.

"It's proper etiquette," Phoebe explained. "A gentleman always greets a lady with a kiss to the back of her hand,"

"Oh," the trio nodded.

"Huh, Welcome to Hogwarts, Aiden," Harry nodded, before leading the way to Dean and Seamus, who were discussing those Hogwarts students of seventeen or over who might be entering.

"There's a rumor going round, Warrington got up early and put his name in," Dean told Harry.

Aiden turned to Phoebe. "Isn't Warrington the one who has taken a fancy to you?" he questioned.

Phoebe's eyes widened at Aiden as her friends turned their attention to her. "What?" they asked at the same time.

"Uh..." Phoebe chuckled nervously. "Ashlyn reckons that Warrington has taken an interest in me."

"When did this happen?" Harry asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "I guess after Terence and I broke up," she answered.

"I'm thinking rebound," Seamus suggested.

"Nah, Warrington doesn't strike me as the type to be the 'rebound' guy," Phoebe pointed out. "Maybe he liked me when I was with Terence, and now's his chance to do something, or...I don't know."

The Gryffindor's shook their heads and returned to the previous conversation.

"We can't have a Slytherin champion," Harry pointed out, remembering the time he had played Warrington at Quidditch.

"Your friends Ashlyn and Sarah," Seamus said, nodding at Phoebe. "The Hufflepuff's -"

"You mean Amelia and Sarah," Phoebe corrected. "Ashlyn is a Slytherin."

Seamus waved her off. "Yeah, I knew it began with an 'A'," he nodded. "Anyway, they just came in talking about Diggory. But I wouldn't have thought he'd have wanted to risk his good looks."

"Listen!" said Hermione suddenly.

People were cheering out in the Entrance Hall. They all swiveled around in their seats, and saw Angelina Johnson coming into the Hall, grinning in an embarrassed sort of way. A tall black girl who played Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Angelina came over to them, sat down and said, "Well, I've done it! Just put my name in!"

"You're kidding!" said Ron, looking impressed.

"You're seventeen, then?" said Harry.

"'Course she is. Can't see a beard, can you?" said Ron.

"I had my birthday last week," said Angelina turning to Phoebe. "I see that Higgs entered."

"He did?" Phoebe asked, looking up.

Angelina nodded. "Yeah, just before me," she answered. "Him and his sister. The rest of Beauxbatons are putting their names in now."

"Thanks for letting me know," Phoebe nodded, glancing over her shoulder to where Terence and Esmee sat at the Slytherin table. She smiled as Esmee looked up and caught her eye, but looked away as Terence looked her way.

Hermione sighed heavily and patted Phoebe's shoulder. "He'll come back," she promised. "Just give him time."

"How much time, Hermione?" Phoebe asked. "It's already Halloween, and my secret has been out since the beginning of September! Am I stupid for believing that he'll want me back at all?"

Harry, Ron, Seamus and Dean hesitated in answering, but Hermione wrapped her arms around Phoebe and Angelina reached across to wipe the tears from the Elemental's face.

"It's not stupid," Angelina soothed. "It was just a low blow, and I think it is effecting Higgs more because he didn't find out by you, he found out because Malfoy was pissed off at these lot -" she nodded at Ron and Harry. "Don't worry so much, Phoebe, he is crazy about you! It is because he is crazy about you, is why Oliver is so jealous of him."

Phoebe smiled as she remembered Oliver's jealousy. "Thanks Angie," she said.

Angelina gave her a one-armed hug. "Don't worry about it," she smiled. "Oh, and by the way, I cornered Derek Wild and the other Gryffindor's that are responsible for you being locked out of the Tower, gave them a good talking too."

"And?"

"You can come back when you like," Angelina smiled.

Phoebe grinned. "Oh, that's brilliant!" she yelped, jumping from her seat and hugging Angelina. "Angie, you're the best! I got to go tell Blake and Jackson before they find the poor beasts that kicked me out in the first place. See ya later!"

And she sprinted from the Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe giggled as she darted for the paddock containing the elephantine flying horses that pulled the Beauxbatons carriage, Blake and Jackson had been chasing her since she had used a gust of wind to push them into the lake, the door to the carriage had just closed as the Beauxbatons students climbed back inside, none of them saw Phoebe draw closer.

Looking up the horses shook out their manes and pawed the ground, but the elemental paid very little notice to them. Reaching the paddock, Phoebe vaulted over the top and disappeared among the throng of golden horses.

Blake and Jackson stopped outside the paddock and exchanged looks. _"Trust Phoebe to take comfort among animals,"_ Jackson commented.

"_She does have an uncanny empathy with them,"_ Blake pointed out.

Jackson nodded and turned back to the herd, Phoebe was standing in the middle of the horses petting the mane of creamy hair, the smile on her face was one of utter joy, and the horse did not seem put off by the intrusion or surprise appearance of the Hogwarts student.

"Oi, what you doing? Get away from there!" boomed a voice.

Blake and Jackson spun around just as the back door to Hagrid's hut burst open and the half-giant thundered down the wooden steps into the vegetable patch. "Go on!" he thundered at them.

The horses pawed the ground nervously at the sound of the shouting Gameskeeper.

"Hagrid," Phoebe called stepping out of the throng of horses. "It's OK, they're with me."

"Phoebe," Hagrid frowned. "What you doing in there?"

"Having fun," Phoebe answered, as one of the horses nudged her with its snout. "It's OK, they trust me," she smiled petting the one that had nudged her.

The door to the Beauxbatons carriage opened and a little girl with silvery hair hurried down the steps and approached the paddock, behind her came the girl that Ron had been drooling over the previous night.

"_Oh_," the seventeen year old stopped short when she saw Phoebe amongst the horses. "_What is it you are doing?"_

Phoebe smiled sweetly at the girl. It was at times like this that she loved the fact that her family were from different parts of Europe, making it easier to understand different languages. Like for example: Her grandmother was Russian and her grandfather Portuguese. Her French, however, came from Jackson and his parents. When she was younger Jackson's mother insisted on teaching her French, because there was once a time that Jackson couldn't speak anything other than his native tongue.

"_Sorry, didn't mean to intrude_," she said. "_I just love horses, and couldn't help myself. I have been wanting to do this since you arrived last night."_

The girl nodded. "_Who are you?"_

"_Phoebe," _the Gryffindor answered. "_Phoebe Blackheart."_

"_Fleur Delacour_," the Beauxbatons student answered. "_This is my sister Gabrielle_."

Phoebe pointed at Blake and Jackson. "_My best friends - or Bodyguards as many call them - Blake Brooks and Jackson Stream_."

Fleur nodded in politeness at the Durmstrang students, who merely waved in greeting.

"_And this is Hagrid_," Phoebe added, pointing at the half-giant. "_He is the Gameskeeper and Professor here at Hogwarts_."

"_Pleasure to meet you, Mister Hagrid_," Fleur nodded.

Hagrid smiled as he returned to his hut, and Phoebe clambered back over the paddock fence to join Fleur, Gabrielle, Blake and Jackson on the other side.

"_You're a friend of Esmee Higgs, aren't you?" _Phoebe asked.

Fleur nodded. "_Esmee is a good friend, yes_," she confirmed. "_But she is very sick_."

Phoebe frowned. "_Sick? Do you know what is wrong with her?"_

"_No,_"

Phoebe nodded. "_She didn't look completely fine when she returned to school," _she confirmed.

"_How do you know her?_"

"_I was dating her brother," _Phoebe answered. "_Terence? Yeah, he and I are..." _she paused. "_To be honest, I am not even sure what we are at the moment. I know we are not together, but I am not even sure if we are friends."_

"_You like him?_" Fleur asked.

Phoebe nodded. "_Yeah. I like him. I like him a lot."_

"_You should tell him,_"

"_That is easier said than done at the moment," _Phoebe smiled sadly.

The door to the Beauxbatons carriage opened again and another girl stepped out, she motioned for Fleur to return and Fleur turned back to Phoebe. "_I must go. I will tell Esmee that you are asking about her brother, yes?"_

Phoebe opened her mouth to say 'no' but Fleur was already making her way back to the carriage.

"_It was nice meeting you, Phoebe," _Fleur nodded, before disappearing inside with her sister.

"_So,_" Blake started slowly, wrapping his arm around Phoebe's shoulder. "_You and Higgs?"_

Phoebe sighed. "_Please..._" she silently begged, shaking her head, "_don't._"

"_I'm sorry,_" Blake apologized, hugging her and leading her around Hagrid's hut, to the point where they could see the Golden Trio coming closer.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The rest of the day Phoebe spent with Blake and Jackson, she showed them around Hogwarts, and introduced them to her all her friends - they were thankful that she had more Gryffindor friends than Slytherin - a small game of Quidditch was started between Angelina and Blake as they initiated a minor battle of the sexes on the Quidditch field.

Phoebe noticed that more than just Gryffindor's showed up for this mini game, a few Slytherin's, Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws had also appeared, making the game a lot more bigger than Angelina and Blake had intended.

But each time they played Phoebe found herself playing Seeker instead of Chaser - which proved difficult when it came to playing Slytherin, because it seemed Adrian and Warrington had dragged Terence into the game, and his position was, of course, Seeker.

"That looked awkward," said Amelia as she followed Phoebe, Blake Jackson and the rest of her friends up the slope leading to the castle. She was referring to the last game against Slytherin where Phoebe had played against Terence.

Phoebe nodded. "Just a bit," she replied. "But it may be because I'm not completely over him yet,"

"I don't think he is completely over you, either," Sarah pointed out. "That looks just as awkward for him as it did for you. Why can't you just apologize to him?"

"Because he's avoiding me," Phoebe answered. "How can you apologize to someone when they won't even stay in the same room as you?"

Sarah sighed, Phoebe made a valid point. It was rather difficult to apologize to someone when they refused to even acknowledge you.

"So what are you going to do?" Ashlyn asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe shrugged. "If he still wants me, then, he knows where I am."

Ashlyn paused. "You shoul know," she said. "Esmee gave him a good talking too today at Breakfast made him realize that he'll never find another you, and he did say that he wasn't looking for someone else."

"Isn't that a clear sign?" Amelia asked.

"Of what?" James frowned.

The girls rolled their eyes. "That he still want's Phoebe," they said in unison.

Phoebe giggled.

"So, you're saying he is just too prideful to say he made a mistake?" said James.

"No, because that would make him sound like a Gryffindor," Ashlyn defended.

"Hey!" Phoebe and James exclaimed. "What's wrong with being a Gryffindor?"

Amelia and Sarah snickered.

"What's wrong with it?" Ashlyn teased. "What's right about it? Lions are such prideful creatures,"

"Damn right we are!" James agreed.

"With such huge egos," Ashlyn added.

Phoebe giggled and turned to James. "We can't deny that one," she said, ruffling his hair.

James swatted her hand away. "How can you agree with her?"

"How can you not?"

"Because Gryffindor's do not have huge egos,"

"We do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

The banter continued the rest of the distance from the courtyard to the Entrance Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When she entered the Great Hall that evening, Phoebe first saw that it was almost full. The Goblet of Fire had been moved; it was now standing in front of Dumbledore's empty chair at the teachers' table. Fred and George - clean shaven again - seemed to have taken their disappointment fairly well.

"Hope its Angelina," said Fred, as Phoebe, Aiden, Blake and Jackson sat down.

"Well, we'll soon find out," said Phoebe with a subtle glance in the direction of the Slytherin table. Terence was in a deep conversation with Adrian, but Esmee was watching the elemental with a grim smile, she looked almost sick.

Phoebe offered her a reassuring smile and turned back to the Gryffindor's.

The Halloween feast seemed to take much longer than usual. Perhaps because it was their second feast in two days. As she ate, Phoebe noticed that not many people seemed that into the extravagantly prepared food as much as normal, and were more interested in whether or not Dumbledore had finished eating.

At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming, Josephine Higgs was looking excited, Mr. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested and almost bored.

"Well, the Goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber," - he indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."

He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them all into a state of semi-darkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey-whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes.

Everyone watched, waiting...a few people kept checking their watches...

"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered, from two seats away.

The flames inside the Goblet turned suddenly red again. Sparks began to fly from it. Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it - the whole room gasped.

Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue white.

"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Blake Brooks!"

Blake almost fell off the bench as Phoebe pounced onto his back and hugged him from behind, and there was a storm of applause and cheering from all over the Hall.

Jackson had punched his friend in the shoulder in victory, while the rest of Durmstrang cheered Blake onwards as he approached Dumbledore - with Phoebe still perched on his back - he turned right, walked along the staff table, deposited Phoebe off beside Serefina and then disappeared through the door into the next chamber.

"Bravo, Blake!" boomed Karkaroff, so loudly that everyone could hear him, even over the applause.

The clapping and chattering died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the Goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.

"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore "is Fleur Delacour!"

From the staff table, Phoebe watched as the silvery-haired girl from that morning got gracefully to her feet, shook back her sheet of silvery blonde hair and swept up between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables.

"_Well done, Fleur," _Phoebe congratulated the French student as she reached the end of the staff table.

"_Thank you, Phoebe," _Fleur nodded, and then she too, vanished into the next chamber.

Silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion was next...

And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.

"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"

Phoebe giggled at the uproar from the Hufflepuff table, she spotted Amelia and Sarah screaming and cheering, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly as he made his way towards the chamber behind the staff's table.

Cedric caught Phoebe's eye and she offered him a nod of congratulations, as he disappeared. The Hufflepuff's rarely got the chance to be champions, so this was the perfect opportunity for both himself and his house.

Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on for so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily, as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"

But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him.

The fire in the Goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment. Phoebe turned around to look at Serefina, as the Earth elemental wrapped her arm comfortingly around her Goddaughter's shoulders.

Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore. And them Dumbledore cleared his throat, and read out -

"_Harry Potter._"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Yes. Blake is champion - there is a reason for this, but you must wait until the end of fourth year to find out why._

_Also, I find it rather difficult to write Fleur's accent when I don't have the book to copy from, so when there is an original scene between her and Phoebe, the conversation will be in italics. I hope this doesn't confuse anyone._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated January 09, 2012 at 01:09am**


	65. Chapter 65

**Author's Note:** Another pre-written chapter.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Kankananime123**, **Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn** and **Jojia.**

**In Responses: **Firstly too: **Fan of Fics -** Nope, not this time, there will only be four champions. Esmee's condition will be explained later down the line. As for who dies? I can't say much on the subject but there will be a death this year.

**KingdomHeartsNerd: **But Phoebe made the first move last time! It is time for Terence to do some groveling.

**Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**: Esmee's condition will come into light soon. Hehe, Ron is always jealous of Phoebe. It's a part of the nature of their friendship.

**Shout Outs: **Thank you to **Jojia** for adding this story their Favourite stories.

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><p><em>"Harry Potter."<em>

There was no applause. A buzzing, as though of angry bees was starting to fill the Hall; some students were standing up to get a better look at the Gryffindor table and where Harry was sat, frozen, in his seat.

Unable to believe her own ears, Phoebe pulled away from Serefina and swept around the table towards the Headmaster. She took the parchment from him and read the name that was scrawled upon it, it wasn't Harry's handwriting, but for the life of her she could not figure out whom it belonged too.

_**I have seen this writing before...**_ she mused as Professor McGonagall appeared beside Dumbledore and she, herself, hurried back down the aisle towards Harry.

"Phoebe..." Hermione murmured looking up at the Elemental.

Phoebe passed the parchment to Harry, who stared confusedly at his own name.

"I didn't put my name in," Harry said blankly.

"I know," Phoebe nodded, "and that isn't your handwriting."

Harry frowned at the parchment again as up at the top table, Professor Dumbledore straightened up, nodded to Professor McGonagall and called out, "Harry Potter! Harry! Up here, if you please!"

"Come on," Phoebe whispered, taking Harry's hand and pulling him from his seat. She walked him up the gap between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables as the buzzing grew louder and louder around them, and soon they were standing in front of Dumbledore.

"Well...through the door, Harry," said Dumbledore. He wasn't smiling. _"Miss. Blackheart, may I ask you to keep Harry company?"_

Phoebe nodded. "_Of course, Professor,"_ she agreed.

Phoebe and Harry moved off along the teachers' table. Hagrid was sat just before the end; he did not wink at Harry, or wave, or give any of his usual signs of greeting. He looked completely astonished, and stared at Harry as he passed, like everyone else.

Harry followed Phoebe through the door out of the Great Hall, and found himself in a smaller room, lined with paintings of witches and wizards.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A handsome fire was roaring in the fireplace opposite him.

The faces in the portraits turned to look at them as they entered.

Blake Brooks, Fleur Delacour and Cedric Diggory were grouped around the fire. They looked strangely impressive, silhouetted against the flames. Blake, leaning against the mantelpiece, slightly apart from the other two. Cedric was standing with his hands behind his back, staring into the fire. Fleur looked around when Harry and Phoebe walked in.

"_Phoebe, what is it?" _Fleur said. "_Do zey want us back in ze Hall_?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, um, there has been..." she paused; she didn't know how to explain what had just happened.

"Phoebe?" said Blake moving closer to his friend. "There's been what?"

But before Phoebe could answer there was a sound of scurrying feet behind her, and Ludo Bagman entered the room. He took Harry by the arm, and led him forwards, knocking Phoebe off balance as he did so.

"Extraordinary!" Ludo muttered as Blake set Phoebe back on her feet. "Absolutely extraordinary! Gentleman...lady," he added, approaching the fireside and addressing the other three. "May I introduced - incredible though it may seem - the _fourth_ Triwizard champion?"

Blake frowned and looked around at Phoebe, who nodded in confirmation. Cedric looked nonplussed. He looked from Bagman to Harry and back again as though sure he must have misheard what Bagman had said. Fleur, however, tossed her hair, smiling, and said, "Oh, vairy funny joke, Meester Bagman."

"Joke?" Bagman repeated, bewildered. "No, no, not at all! Harry's name just came out of the Goblet of Fire!"

Blake's eyebrows contracted slightly. Cedric was still looking politely bewildered.

Fleur frowned. "But evidently zair 'as been a mistake," she said contemptuously to Bagman. "'E cannot compete. 'E is too young."

"Well...it is amazing," said Bagman, rubbing his smooth chin and smiling down at Harry. "But, as you know, the age restriction was only imposed this year as an extra safety measure. And as his name's come out of the Goblet...I mean, I don't think there can be any ducking out at this stage...it's down in the rules, you're obligated...Harry will just have to do the best he -"

The door behind them opened again, and a large group of people came in: Professor Dumbledore followed closely by Mr. Crouch and Josephine Higgs, Professor Karkaroff, Madame Maxime, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape and Serefina Blackheart. Phoebe heard the buzzing of the hundreds of students on the other side of the wall, before her godmother closed the door.

"Madame Maxime!" said Fleur at once, striding over to her Headmistress. "Zey are saying zat zis little boy is to compete also!"

_**Little boy?**_ Phoebe mused. _**Oh, sweetheart, if only you know what this **_**little boy**_** has done**_.

Madame Maxime had drawn herself up to her full, and considerable, height. The top of her handsome head brushed the candle-filled chandelier, and her gigantic black satin bosom swelled.

"What is ze meaning of zis, Dumbly-dorr?" she said imperiously.

"I'd rather like to know that myself, Dumbledore," said Professor Karkaroff. He was wearing a steely smile, and his blue eyes were like chips of eye. "_Two_ Hogwarts champions? I don't remember anyone telling me the host school is allowed two champions - or have I not read the rules carefully?"

He gave a short and nasty laugh.

"_C'est impossible_," said Madame Maxime, whose enormous hand with its many superb opals was resting upon Fleur's shoulder. "'Ogwarts _cannot_ 'ave two champions. It is most injust."

"We were under the impression that your Age Line would keep out younger contestants, Dumbledore," said Karkaroff, his steely smile still in place, though his eyes were colder than ever. "Otherwise, we would, of course, have brought along a wider selection of candidates from our own schools."

"It is no one's fault but Potter's, Karkaroff," said Snape softly. His black eyes were alight with malice. "Don't go blaming Dumbledore for Potter's determination to break the rules."

Phoebe glared at the Potions master. "Don't blame Harry," she said. "He didn't enter this competition willingly! I know he didn't!"

"And you," Snape sneered. "Have been helping him since you both arrived at this school, or do you not remember, Miss. Blackheart?"

"I remember just fine, thank you!" Phoebe snapped. "And we have not been breaking rules; last I checked we were saving the school!"

Snape's black gaze dropped to Phoebe. "By breaking the rules..."

Phoebe opened her mouth to retort, but was cut off as Serefina grabbed her shoulders and turned her away from Snape. "Thank you, Severus," the Earth elemental said firmly, and Snape went quiet, though his eyes still glinted malevolently through his curtain of greasy black hair.

Professor Dumbledore was now looking down at Harry, who looked right back at him, trying to discern the expression of the eyes behind the half-moon spectacles.

"Did you put your name into the Goblet of Fire, Harry?" Dumbledore asked calmly.

"No," said Harry.

Snape made a soft noise of impatient disbelief in the shadows, and Harry watched as Phoebe's eyes darkened at the noise.

"Did you ask one of the older students to put your name into the Goblet of Fire for you?" said Professor Dumbledore, ignoring Snape.

"No," said Harry vehemently.

"Ah, but of course 'e is lying!" cried Madame Maxime.

"He could not have crossed the Age Line," said Professor McGonagall sharply. "I am sure we are all agreed on that -"

"Dumbly-dorr must 'ave made a mistake wiz ze line," said Madame Maxime, shrugging,

"It is possible, of course," said Dumbledore politely.

"Headmaster, you know perfectly well you did not make a mistake," said Serefina, angrily. "Really, no what nonsense! Fred and George, both of whom do not turn seventeen for another few months tried getting past the Age Line, and they themselves were cast out! I do not recall seeing Harry with a beard, and Madam Pomfrey has no recollection or information of Harry ever going up to the Hospital wing to be de-beard!"

Phoebe grinned at Harry at Serefina's defence.

Professor McGonagall seemed to be on Serefina's side. "If the Weasley twins could not have crossed the Age Line, then there is no possible way that Harry could have done it! And as Professor Dumbledore believes, Harry did not persuade an older student to do it for him, I'm sure that should be good enough for everybody else!"

She shot a very angry look at Professor Snape.

"Mr. Crouch, Mr. Bagman...Mrs. Higgs," said Karkaroff, his voice unctuous once more, "you are our - er - objective judges. Surely you will agree that this is most irregular?"

Bagman wiped his round, boyish face with his handkerchief and looked at Mr. Crouch and Josephine. Crouch was standing outside the circle of the firelight, and Josephine was standing alongside Serefina and Phoebe.

"We must follow the rules," said Crouch, "and the rules state clearly that those people whose names come out of the Goblet of Fire are bound to compete in the Tournament."

"Well, Barty knows the rulebook back to front," said Josephine, turning back to Karkaroff and Madame Maxime as though the matter was now closed.

"I insist upon resubmitting the names of the rest of my students," said Karkaroff. He had dropped his unctuous tone and his smile now. His face wore a very ugly look indeed. "You will set up the Goblet of Fire once more, and we will continue adding names until each school has two champions. It's only fair, Dumbledore."

"It doesn't work like that, Igor," said Serefina. "The Goblet of Fire's just gone out - it won't re-ignite until the start of the next Tournament -"

"- in which Durmstrang will most certainly not be competing!" exploded Karkaroff. "After all our meetings and negotiations and compromises, I little expected something of this nature to occur! I have half a mind to leave now!"

"Empty threat, Karkaroff," growled a voice from near the door. "You can't leave you champion now. He's got to compete. They've all got to compete. Binding magical contract, like Dumbledore said. Convenient, eh?"

Moody had just entered the room. He limped towards the fire, and with every right step he took, there was a loud _clunk_.

"Convenient?" said Karkaroff. "I'm afraid I don't understand you, Moody."

Phoebe could tell he was trying to sound disdainful, as though what Moody was saying was barely worth his notice, but his hands gave away; they had balled themselves into fists.

Seeing as she knew of Karkaroff's history as a Death Eater, Phoebe found it rather surprising that Karkaroff was acting so oddly in front of Moody, she may have known Karkaroff's history but that didn't mean she knew every little in between detail. _**There is definitely something hidden beneath the surface with these two.**_

"Don't you?" said Moody quietly. "It's very simple, Karkaroff. Someone put Potter's name in that Goblet knowing he'd have to compete if it came out."

"Evidently someone 'oo wished to give 'Ogwarts two bites at ze apple!" said Madame Maxime.

"I quite agree, Madame Maxime," said Karkaroff, bowing to her. "I shall be lodging complaints with the Ministry of Magic and the International Confederation of Wizards -"

"If anyone's got reason to complain, it's Potter," growled Moody, "but...funny thing...I don't hear _him_ saying a word..."

"Why should 'e complain?" burst out Fleur, stamping her foot. "'E 'as ze chance to compete, 'asn't 'e? We 'ave all been 'oping to be chosen for weeks and weeks! Ze honour for our schools! A thousand Galleons in prize money - zis is a chance many would die for!"

Phoebe tensed slightly, causing Blake to look round at her. "What is it?" he whispered.

"I think that is the intention," Phoebe answered.

"What was that, Miss. Blackheart?" Moody growled.

Phoebe swallowed. "I merely said that I think the whole intention was for Harry to win this tournament," she answered, "and die trying, if necessary."

An extremely tense silence followed these words.

Ludo Bagman, who was looking very anxious indeed, bounced nervously up and down on his feet and said, "Miss. Blackheart...what a thing to say!"

"No, seriously," Phoebe said. "Think about it; think about everything that Harry has done since he arrived at Hogwarts? He has risked his life to save mine, twice! Once when we were first years and again the following year! I actually believe that it is possible that someone has entered Harry into the Triwizard Tournament, in hopes that he will die trying to finish," she looked nervously across at her friend.

Moody turned away from Phoebe. "It was a skilled witch or wizard who put the boy's name in that Goblet..." he growled.

"Ah, what evidence is zere of zat?" said Madame Maxime.

"Because they hoodwinked a very powerful magical object!" said Moody. "It would have needed an exceptionally strong Confundus Charm to bamboozle that Goblet into forgetting that only three schools compete in the Tournament...I'm guessing they submitted Potter's name under a fourth school, to make sure he was the only one in his category..."

Phoebe's eyes narrowed at her Professor.

"You seem to have given this a great deal of thought, Moody," said Karkaroff coldly.

_**My thoughts exactly**_ Phoebe agreed silently.

"And a very ingenious theory it is - though, of course, I heard you recently got it into your head that one of your birthday presents contained a cunningly disguised basilisk egg, and smashed it to pieces before realizing it was a carriage clock. So you'll understand if we don't take you entirely seriously..."

"There are those who'll turn innocent occasions to their advantage," Moody retorted in a menacing voice. "It's my job to think the way Dark wizards do, Karkaroff - as you ought to remember..."

"Alastor!" said Dumbledore warningly.

Harry and Phoebe exchanged glances from across the room; all this arguing was becoming tedious. Couldn't they just settle on an agreement and let them leave?

"How this situation arose, we do not know," said Dumbledore, speaking to everyone gathered in the room. "It seems to me, however, that we have no choice but to accept it. Both Cedric and Harry have been chosen to compete in the Tournament. This, therefore, they will do..."

"Ah, but Dumbly-dorr -"

"My dear Madame Maxime, if you have an alternative, I would be delighted to hear it."

Dumbledore waited, but Madame Maxime did not speak, she merely glared. She wasn't the only one, either. Snape looked furious; Karkaroff lived. Bagman, however, looked rather excited.

"Well, shall we crack on, then?" he said, rubbing his hands together and smiling around the room. "Got to give our champions their instructions, haven't we? Barty, want to do the honours?"

Mr. Crouch seemed to come out of a deep reverie.

"Yes," he said, "instructions. Yes...the first task..."

He moved forwards into the firelight. Phoebe surveyed him in the dim light and thought he looked terribly ill. There were dark shadows beneath his eyes, and a thin, papery look about his wrinkled skin that had not been there at the Quidditch World Cup.

"The first task is designed to test your daring," he told Harry, Cedric, Fleur and Blake, "so we are not going to be telling you what it is. Courage in the face of the unknown is an important quality in a wizard...very important. The first task will take place on November the twenty-fourth, in front of the other students and the panel of judges. The champions are not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from their teachers to compete the tasks in the Tournament. The champions will face the first challenge armed only with their wands. They will receive information about the second task when the first is over. Owing to the demanding and time-consuming nature of the Tournament, the champions are exempted from end-of-year tests."

Mr. Crouch turned to Dumbledore. "I think that's all is it, Albus?"

"I think so," said Dumbledore, who was looking at Mr. Crouch with mild concern. "Are you sure you wouldn't like to stay at Hogwarts tonight, Barty?"

"No, Dumbledore, I must get back to the Ministry," said Mr. Crouch. "It is very busy, very difficult time at the moment...I've left young Weatherby in charge...very enthusiastic...a little over-enthusiastic, if truth be told..."

"You'll come and have a drink before you go, at least?" said Dumbledore.

"Come on, Barty, I'm staying!" said Bagman brightly. "It's all happening at Hogwarts now, you know, much more exciting here than at the office!"

"I think not, Ludo," said Crouch, with a touch of his old impatience. "Josephine, when you are ready."

Bagman gave a yelp of surprise. "Not you too, Joey! You must stay!"

"Sadly, I cannot," said Josephine. "Whilst I have two children here at Hogwarts, I also have two children at home that need my care. Dumbledore," she nodded at the Headmaster. "Ludo," she turned to Phoebe, and leaning down kissed her cheek in a motherly fashion. "Goodnight, Phoebe."

Phoebe smiled. "Goodnight, Joey," she replied.

Josephine smiled and left with Crouch.

"Professor Karkaroff - Madame Maxime - a nightcap?" said Dumbledore, once the two Ministry officials had left.

But Madame Maxime had already put her arm around Fleur's shoulders, and was leading her swiftly out of the room; Phoebe could hear them talking in rapid French and looked around at Blake in confusion. She may have understood French but there was no way she could keep up with their speed. "What did they say?"

"I have no idea," said Blake.

"Blake!" Karkaroff boomed, beckoning Blake to him. "From this moment - until the end of the Tournament, she is the competition!"

Phoebe gaped at Karkaroff. "What?" she exclaimed. "You cannot do that!"

"I can," Karkaroff answered, "and I have! Come Blake, now!"

"Serefina," Phoebe moaned, tugging at her Godmother's hand. "He can't do that!"

"Really now, Igor," said Serefina, "be reasonable! Phoebe and Blake have been friends for years; you cannot forbid them from seeing one another because of a slight misunderstanding."

Karkaroff glowered in Serefina's direction. _"He is my student, Serefina! He is a Durmstrang champion! And while it is still the school term, and he is under my authority, I will make the rules, not you! Do we understand each other?"_

Phoebe and Blake stared anxiously at the Professors, before Karkaroff removed Blake from the room in silence.

_"Serefina!"_ Phoebe cried.

_"Do not fret, Phoebe,"_ Serefina soothed. "_Hogwarts is a big school. I am sure you, Blake and Jackson can be together in a place that Igor cannot find you. I know you will find a way."_

Phoebe sighed sadly and looked across at Harry and Cedric.

"Harry, Cedric, I suggest you go up to bed," said Dumbledore, smiling at both of them. "I am sure Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are waiting to celebrate with you, and it would be a shame to deprive them of this excellent excuse to make a great deal of mess and noise."

Harry glanced at Cedric, who nodded, and they left together.

_"May I?"_ Phoebe asked her Godmother.

_"You have been welcomed back, have you not?"_

Phoebe nodded.

_"Then I see no reason why you cannot return tonight,"_

Phoebe smiled and hurried off after Harry and Cedric.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe found Harry and Cedric conversing in the Entrance Hall. Obviously they had been talking about what had just happened, because there was a look on disbelief on Cedric's face.

"Goodnight, Phoebe," Cedric nodded at the elemental as she approached.

"Night," Phoebe waved as Cedric headed for a door to the right of marble staircase. Harry and Phoebe stood listening to him going down the stone steps beyond it, and then, slowly started to climb the marble staircase.

They walked in silence for a while, before Phoebe found that she couldn't stick it anymore, grabbed his arm and pulled him into a deserted classroom on the third floor.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked.

"We need to talk," Phoebe answered. "I know you're worried about what other people are going to say, but don't be, they're not your concern right now. Your main concern is the first task -"

"And finding out who put my name in the Goblet," Harry interrupted.

Phoebe shook her head. "Leave that to me," she said. "I'll figure out who set you up, and you worry about the Tournament, no matter what happens you cannot let your guard down! Promise me, Harry, promise me you will stay focused?"

"I promise," Harry nodded. "But what are you going to do?"

"Do you still have the parchment with your name on it?"

Harry nodded and pulled the piece of parchment out from his pocket; Phoebe took it from him and looked at it closely. "I can't make anything out at this minute; I'll take another look when we get back to the Tower."

"What are you looking for?"

"I'm sure I have seen this handwriting before," Phoebe explained. "I just can't for the life of me figure out where! Writing style is similar to fingerprints, everyone's is different. It depends on the way you handle the Quill. If you apply to much pressure the writing tends to be heavier and slanted, if you don't apply enough pressure then the handwriting is fine and sloped. Whoever wrote this was in a hurry, they rushed it, like they couldn't be bothered or were on a time limit..."

Harry frowned. "That's not much to go on,"

"I know it's not," Phoebe nodded. "But it's a start."

Harry sighed, she had a valid point. "Do you honestly think that someone entered me into this Tournament to get me killed? Who would want me dead?"

They had now left the classroom on the third floor and were making their way back towards the Fat Lady, and the Gryffindor common room.

Phoebe paused and looked up at him. "Are you seriously asking me that?" she asked.

"Other than Voldemort," Harry pointed out.

"Well no one," said Phoebe. "But at the moment we can't rule anyone out, and now that you mention it, this does seem a little strange. You have a dream about Voldemort, your scar starts hurting, Death Eaters turn up at the Quidditch World Cup and then your name has come out of the Goblet of Fire..." she paused to think, "that is too much of a coincidence, Harry."

While they had been talking, their feet had still been moving, meaning they had a shock when they looked up to find the Portrait of the Fat Lady standing directly in front of them. It was also a surprise to see that the Fat Lady wasn't alone in her frame. A wizened witch was sitting smugly beside her. Both she and the Fat Lady were looking down at the two Gryffindor's with the keenest interest.

"Well, well, well," said the Fat Lady. "Violet's just told me everything. Who's just been chosen as school champion, then?"

"Balderdash," said Harry dully.

"It most certainly isn't!" said the pale witch indignantly.

"No, no, Vi, it's the password," said the Fat Lady soothingly, and she swung forwards on her hinges to let Harry and Phoebe into the common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The blast of noise that met Phoebe's ears when the portrait opened almost knocked her backwards. Next thing she knew Harry was being wrenched inside the common room by about a dozen pair of hands, and was facing the whole Gryffindor house, all of whom were screaming, applauding and whistling.

Sliding through behind her friend, Phoebe gripped his arm and rested her chin on his shoulder.

"You should've told us you'd entered!" bellowed Fred, he looked half annoyed, half deeply amused.

"How did you do it without getting a beard? Brilliant!" roared George.

"I didn't," Harry said. "I don't know how -"

But Angelina had now swooped down upon him. "Oh, if it couldn't be me, at least it's a Gryffindor -"

"You'll be able to pay back Diggory for that last Quidditch match, Harry!" shrieked Alicia Spinnet, another of the Gryffindor Chasers.

"We've got food, Harry, come and have some -"

"I'm not hungry; I had enough at the feast -"

But nobody wanted to hear that he wasn't hungry; nobody wanted to hear that he hadn't put his name in the Goblet; not one single person seemed to have noticed that he wasn't at all in the mood to celebrate - save for Phoebe, who kept trying to pull him towards the stairs leading to the Dormitories...Lee Jordan had unearthed a Gryffindor banner from somewhere, and he insisted on draping it around Harry like a cloak.

Harry couldn't get away; whenever he tried to sidle over to the staircase, where he could see Phoebe standing, the crowd around him closed ranks, forcing another Butterbeer on him, stuffing crisps and peanuts into his hands...everyone wanted to know how he had done it, how he had tricked Dumbledore's Age Line, and managed to get his name into the Goblet.

"I didn't," he said, over and over again, "I don't know how it happened."

But for all the notice anyone took, he might just as well not have answered at all.

"Harry!" Phoebe yelled over the noise, pushing her way through the crowd in another attempt to pull her friend towards the stairs. "Come on, Harry."

This time, however, as Harry was pulled back by the crowd, George grabbed Phoebe around the waist and pulled her up onto his shoulder. "Come on, Pheebs, don't be such a sour puss!"

"I'm not George," Phoebe shouted. "But it's been a long day and an even longer night, Harry needs to sleep!"

She jumped down from George's shoulder, grabbed Harry's hand and tugged him towards the stairs. They quickly bypassed the little Creevey brothers as they attempted to stop them at the foot of the stairs. "Not tonight, Colin! Bedtime!"

Finally managing to shake the other Gryffindor's off, Phoebe and Harry climbed the stairs to the fourth floor as fast as they could.

"What about you, now?" Harry asked. "You have to go back down into that lot?"

"Don't worry about me," Phoebe told him. "I don't really have to stay here tonight, I can just tell them that I came back with you and now Serefina is waiting for me in her office, so I have to go."

Harry smirked. "Always one step ahead, aren't you?"

"Is there any other way to be?" Phoebe asked. "Life is like a chess game, Harry, always be one step ahead of your opponent."

Harry smiled.

Phoebe smiled back.

Then, Phoebe did something that took Harry by surprise; she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. It wasn't the fact that she had hugged him was what had surprised him; it was the fact that he hadn't been expecting it, at all.

"For the record," Phoebe whispered to him. "I believe you."

And she pulled away.

"Goodnight, Harry," Phoebe smiled, descending the stairs back to the common room. "Sweet dreams."

And she disappeared.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

****_I would have had this up earlier - but I couldn't log in. Anyway, I am off to bed now. Night all._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, January 09, 2012 at 02:50am**


	66. Chapter 66

**Author's Note: **Slight heart-breaking scene at the end of this.

**Dedications: **Following chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine** and **Fan of Fics.**

**Shout Outs: **Thank you too **Blood-of-Silver** for adding this story to their Favourite story alert.

**In responses: **It is too late for In Responses. Hopefully next time.

Night all.

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><p>Next morning, Phoebe found herself sitting alongside Esmee Higgs at the Gryffindor table eating breakfast. They had been discussing the previous night's Champion's selection and Harry was the main topic.<p>

"How is Potter?" Esmee asked.

"Confused," Phoebe answered. "No one seems to believe that he didn't put his name in the Goblet of Fire - which I know for a fact that he didn't - I mean, how can anyone think that? He'll be facing competitors who have three years' more magical education than he has - he's facing tasks that not only sound dangerous, but which will be performed in front of hundreds of people."

Esmee smiled. "So, you're saying that he wouldn't have entered, even if he could?"

"No," Phoebe shook her head. "I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying that he'd never really, _seriously_ consider entering."

"But someone else considered entering him," said Esmee. "Someone else wants him in the Tournament, and they made sure that he had entered. Any idea's as to why?"

"Several," Phoebe answered. "A treat? No. To see him make a fool of himself? Possibly. To kill him? Definitely."

Esmee paused in eating her breakfast. "To _kill_ him?" she repeated. "Phoebe, don't you think you're being a little overdramatic? I mean, who would want to kill a fourteen year old boy wizard?"

"Has Terence ever told you the stories of what has happened here at Hogwarts since Harry started, three years ago?"

"Not in complete detail," Esmee answered. "Why?"

"For the last three years," Phoebe explained. "Everything that has happened at this school has, in some way, been connected with the Dark Lord Voldemort. First year, he possessed our Professor Quirrell and ordered him to steal the Philosopher's stone - kidnapped me in the process - Second year, he possessed Ginny Weasley and set a Basilisk loose on the Muggleborns of Hogwarts, he then ordered Ginny to kidnap me in order to lure Harry into the Chamber of Secrets."

Esmee stared at Phoebe. "And last year?"

"Last year," Phoebe sighed. "Voldemort's servant, Wormtail, escaped capture and returned to him."

"But I thought the Dark Lord was history?" Esmee asked. "Gone. Destroyed."

"There has always been fear that he would one day return," Phoebe answered. "And I fear that day is coming closer and no one actually realizes it."

Esmee breathed out silently. "Wow, now I can see why you think someone entered Potter in order to kill him, what better way than to let it happen in the course of three dangerous task, better than doing it yourself, eh? At least this way, they can make it look like an accident gone wrong."

Phoebe nodded. "Exactly."

The two fell silent and ate the remainder of their breakfast in silence, when they had finished, Phoebe scooped up a stack of toast, wrapped them in a napkin and left the Great Hall with Esmee.

"You know? It's nice to be able to talk to someone about all this." Phoebe smiled.

Esmee frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Don't you trust your friends?"

"Oh, no, I do," Phoebe nodded feverishly. "It's just Ron and Hermione can be a little slightly over-bearing. Ron doesn't like talking about Voldemort and Hermione will just think I am paranoid. There is only one other person who I could turn to, and not have them think I was crazy."

"Oh, yeah?" Esmee asked. "Who?"

Phoebe frowned sadly. "Your brother," she answered. "I miss him, Ez! I never actually thought I would miss someone as much as I miss him!"

"Don't worry, Phoebe," Esmee soothed. "Terence is just being an idiot. I know that he realizes his mistake in breaking up with you, but apologizing is just not in a man's nature."

"Well, you got that right," Phoebe giggled.

Esmee smiled. "So, where you going now? You want to go for a walk?"

"I'm actually going to meet Harry," Phoebe replied. "You want to come?"

"No thanks," Esmee smiled. "I'm going to meet Fleur; I'll see you later, Phoebe."

"Bye, Ez," Phoebe waved as she headed up the Marble staircase and Esmee disappeared out into the grounds.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe stopped outside of the portrait of the Fat Lady and was just about to give the password when it swung forward and Harry climbed out.

"Hello," she said, holding up the stack of toast. "I brought you this...want to go for a walk?"

"Good idea," said Harry gratefully.

They went downstairs, crossed the Entrance Hall quickly without looking in at the Great Hall, and were soon striding across the lawn towards the lake, where the Durmstrang ship was moored, reflected blackly in the water. It was a chilly morning, and they kept moving, munching their toast.

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry asked.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. He was at breakfast," she said.

"Does he still think I entered myself?"

"Well, I don't think so," said Phoebe. "But don't worry about him, Harry, he's just jealous."

"_Jealous_?" Harry said incredulously. "Jealous of what? He wants to make a prat of himself in front of the whole school, does he?"

"Look," said Phoebe patiently, "it's always you who gets all the attentions, you know it is. I know it's not your fault," she added quickly, seeing Harry open his mouth furiously. "I know you don't ask for it...but - well - you know, Ron's got all those brothers to compete against at home, and you're his best friend, and you're really famous - he's always shunted to one side whenever people see you, and he puts up with it, and he never mentions it, but I suppose this is just one time to many..."

"Great," said Harry bitterly. "Really great. Tell him from me I'll swap any time he wants. Tell him from me he's welcome to it...people gawking at my forehead everywhere I go..."

"I'm not telling him anything!" Phoebe interrupted. "Tell him yourself, it's the only way to sort this out."

"I'm not running around after him trying to make him grow up!" Harry said, so loudly that several owls in a nearby tree took flight in alarm. "Maybe he'll believe I'm not enjoying myself once I've got my neck broken or -"

Phoebe turned wildly in his direction and shoved him back a few steps. "That's not funny," she said anxiously. "That's not funny at all!"

Harry sighed, run his hand through his hair and turned back to the elemental. "Sorry," he apologized, realizing too late how much of a sore subject 'death' was for her, seeing as she had almost died three times in the past - once from breaking her neck.

"Harry, I've been thinking - you know what we've got to do, don't you? Straight away, the moment we get back to the castle?"

"Yeah, give Ron a good kick up the -"

Again, Phoebe shoved him back a few steps.

"Quit pushing me!" Harry whined.

"Then stop being such an ass!" Phoebe retorted. "I was referring to you writing to Sirius. You've got to tell him what's happened. Didn't he ask you to keep him posted on everything that's going on at Hogwarts?"

Harry frowned in confusion.

"Hermione told me," Phoebe answered. "Besides, it sounded almost like he expected something like this to happen."

"Come off it," said Harry, looking around to check that they couldn't be overheard; but the grounds were quite deserted. "He came back to the country just because my scar twinged. He'll probably come bursting right into the castle if I tell him someone's entered me for the Triwizard Tournament -"

"Well, that would make James happy," Phoebe said, before her tone turned stern. "He'd want you to tell him, Harry. He's going to find out anyway -"

"How?"

"Harry, this isn't going to be kept quiet," said Phoebe, very seriously. "This Tournament's famous, and you're famous. I'll be really surprised if there isn't anything in the _Daily Prophet_ about you competing...you're already in half the books about Voldemort, you know...and Sirius would rather hear it from you, I know he would..." she paused. "Trust me...i'm speaking from experience here."

Harry sighed. "This isn't about you and Higgs is it?" he asked.

Phoebe glared at him. "Yes, it is! If I had only told him the truth _myself_, then maybe, just maybe I'd still be with him, but no he had to go and find out from Draco because I was too scared to say anything! Trust me, Harry, either you tell Sirius, or I will!"

"You wouldn't..."

"Try me," Phoebe challenged.

"OK, OK, I'll write to him," said Harry, throwing his last piece of toast into the lake. They both stood and watched it floating there for a moment, before a large tentacle rose out of the water and scooped it beneath the surface. Then they returned to the castle.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Whose owl am I going to use?" Harry said, as they climbed the stairs. "He told me not to use Hedwig again."

"You can use Athena," Phoebe said, as she pushed open the door to the Owlery and stepped inside. She gave him a piece of parchment, a quill and a bottle of ink, then strolled around the long lines of perches looking for the familiar glint of gold amongst the brown and grey feathers.

Athena spotted her mistress first, screeched and swooped down to rest on Phoebe's shoulder.

Harry smiled from the window as he wrote his letter:

_Dear Sirius,_

_You told me to keep you posted on what's happening at Hogwarts, so here goes - I don't know if you've heard, but the Triwizard Tournament's happening this year and Saturday night I got picked as fourth champion. I don't know who put my name in the Goblet of Fire, because I didn't. The other Hogwarts champion is Cedric Diggory, from Hufflepuff._

He paused.

Phoebe appeared behind him and started to read the letter over his shoulder.

Dripping the quill back into the ink bottle, he finished the note by saying:

_Hope you're OK, and Buckbeak - Harry._

_PS. This is Athena. She is Phoebe's messenger Eagle. The Blackheart's don't use Owls._

"Finished," he said, glancing back at Phoebe and almost jumping out the window at the close proximity she was to him. "Phoebe! Don't do that!"

"Do what?" Phoebe asked innocently.

"Stand so close,"

Phoebe frowned, looked down and gasped softly. "Oh," she apologized, shuffling backwards. "Sorry."

At that moment, Hedwig fluttered down onto Harry's shoulder, and held out her leg.

"I can't use you," Harry told her. "I've got to use Athena..."

Hedwig gave a very loud hoot, and took off so suddenly that her talons cut his shoulder. She kept her back to Harry all the time he was tying his letter to the Eagle's leg.

"Be careful," Phoebe told her messenger bird, and then watched as she soared out into the open air.

Harry turned to Hedwig and reached out to stroke her feathers, but she clicked her beat furiously and soared up into the rafters out of reach.

"First Ron, then you," said Harry angrily. "_This isn't my fault!"_

**~*Phoebe*~**

If Harry had thought that matters would improve once everyone got used to the idea of him being champion, the following day showed him how mistaken he was. He could no longer avoid the rest of the school once he was back at lessons - and it was clear that the rest of the school, just like the Gryffindor's, thought Harry had entered himself into the Tournament. Unlike the Gryffindor's, however, they did not seem impressed.

The Hufflepuff's, who were usually on excellent terms with the Gryffindor's, had turned remarkably cold towards the whole lot of them. One Herbology lesson was enough to demonstrate this. It was plain that the Hufflepuff's felt that Harry had stolen their champion's glory; a feeling exacerbated, perhaps, by the fact that Hufflepuff house very rarely got any glory, and that Cedric was one of the few who had ever given them any, having beaten Gryffindor once at Quidditch.

Amelia and Sarah, with whom Phoebe and James were good friends, did not talk to either of the two Gryffindor's during their Herbology lessons even though they were re-potting Bouncing Bulbs at the same tray - although they did laugh rather unpleasantly when one of the Bouncing Bulbs wriggled free of James's grip and tried to hit him hard in the face.

"Girls," Phoebe whispered. "This isn't our fault!"

"You stole Cedric's thunder," Sarah pointed out. "This was supposed to be Hufflepuff's year, but Gryffindor obviously can't stand being upstaged by no one!"

Phoebe frowned at the normally quiet Sarah. "When did she get so outspoken?" she asked turning back to James.

"I don't know," James answered. "But I hate not talking to her - them - urgh, you know what I mean."

Phoebe smirked. "Don't worry, Jamie, we'll get your little girlfriend back!"

"She is not my girlfriend!"

"Maybe not," Phoebe grinned teasingly. "But you wish she was."

James turned a deep shade of scarlet, and Phoebe giggled harder.

Ron wasn't talking to Harry either. Hermione sat between them, on the other side of the table, she kept trying to make conversation, but though both answered her normally, they avoided making eye contact with each other.

It seemed even Professor Sprout had turned cold against the Gryffindor's - but then, she was Head of Hufflepuff house.

**~*Phoebe*~**

And if Gryffindor's thought that Herbology was bad - Care of Magical Creatures? Yeah, that was worse. Normally, Phoebe and Harry would have looked forward to seeing Serefina and Hagrid, but the only downside to this lesson was that it was with the Slytherin's - it was the first time they would come face to face with them since the champion selection.

Predictably, Malfoy arrived at Hagrid's cabin with his familiar sneer firmly in place.

"Ah, look, boys, it's the champion," he said to Crabbe and Goyle, the moment he got within earshot of Harry. "Got your autograph books? Better get a signature now, because I doubt he's going to be around much longer...half the Triwizard champions have died...how long d'you reckon you're going to last, Potter? Ten minutes into the first task's my bet."

Crabbe and Goyle guffawed sycophantically, but Malfoy had to stop there, because Serefina emerged from the front of Hagrid's hut, whilst the half-giant lumbered around from back, holding a teetering tower of crates, each containing a very large Blast-Ended Skrewt.

To the class's horror, Serefina proceeded to explain that the reason the Skrewts had been killing each other was an excess of pent-up energy, and that the solution would be for each of the class to fix a leash on a Skrewt and take it for a walk. The only good thing about this plan was that it distracted Malfoy completely.

"Take this thing for a walk?" he repeated in disgust, staring into one of the boxes. "And where exactly are we supposed to fix the leash? Around the sting, the blasting end or the sucker?"

"How about your neck?" Phoebe whispered feverishly to Harry, who smirked in response.

"Round the middle," said Serefina. "Phoebe if you would like to come here and help myself, Harry could you help Hagrid? Oh, and you might want to wear your dragon-hide gloves, just as an extra precaution."

Exchanging looks, Harry and Phoebe hurried forward as the rest of their friends disbanded and paired up with other friends to fix the leash around their Skrewts and started taking them for walks.

"Have you spoken with Blake or Jackson?" Serefina asked, as she and Phoebe knelt down to fix the leash around the Skrewt.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, I have been busy trying to figure out who enter Harry into the Goblet of Fire, why?"

"I received a message from Blake this morning," Serefina explained. "He and Jackson are willing to meet with you, but it will have to be outside of where Igor can see you."

"But they are on school grounds," Phoebe replied. "How are we supposed to sneak around when they are at Hogwarts for the year? Durmstrang very rarely leave the ship, either."

"Hogsmeade," Serefina said.

"But the first trip isn't for another few weeks," Phoebe protested. "I thought I was going to be spending all year with them! Why is Karkaroff being like this? Blake and Jackson are my best friends!"

"Igor always was competitive," Serefina said. "He is exactly like Uncle Volkov, and he never lets anyone get in his way of winning."

"What does he think I am going to do?" Phoebe protested. "Distract Blake from the Tournament? Good luck in figuring out how that is possible, when he puts his mind to something Blake is as determined as an alpha male during breeding season!"

Serefina looked repulsed at the metaphor, before shaking her head and looking down at the Skrewt. "At the moment, Hogsmeade is the only option I can give you."

Phoebe sighed. "Well, it's better than nothing," she stated. "Thanks Serefina."

"No problem, Little Star."

The two of them looked out over the lawn; the class was widely scattered now, and all in great difficulty. The Skrewts were now over three feet long, and extremely powerful. No longer shell-less and colorless, they had developed a kind of thick, greyish shiny armour, and looking more like a cross between a giant scorpion and elongated crabs - but still without recognizable heads or eyes. They had become insanely strong and very hard to control.

"Look like they're havin' fun, don' they?" Hagrid said, causing Phoebe to look around at him and Harry, she assumed that he was talking about the Skrewts, because her classmates certainly weren't; every now and then, with an alarming _bang_, one of the Skrewts' ends would explode, and more than one person was being dragged along on their stomach, trying desperately to get back on their feet.

"Ah, I don' know, Harry," Hagrid sighed, suddenly looking worried. "School champion...everythin' seems ter happen ter you, doesn' it?"

Harry didn't answer, merely looked at Phoebe who was giggling as she watched James and Ashlyn attempt to restrain their Skrewts. Yes, everything did seem to happen to him...that was more or less what Phoebe had said as they had walked around the lake, and that was the reason, according to her, that Ron was no longer talking to him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Life at Hogwarts seemed to get worse for Harry over the next few days, he no longer had Ron by his side to help make him feel better about the whole champion's selection ceremony, but he did have Phoebe and Hermione, and that was better than nothing.

But it wasn't the same without Ron, he thought he could have coped with the rest of the school's behavior if he could just have had Ron back as a friend, but he wasn't going to try and persuade Ron to talk to him if Ron didn't want to.

It was understandable why the Hufflepuff's' had an attitude, even if it was uncalled for; they had their own champion to support. Nothing less than vicious insults were expected from the Slytherin's, but no one expected the Ravenclaws to turn against the Gryffindor house, but they were wrong.

Most Ravenclaws seemed to think that Harry had been desperate to earn himself a bit more fame by tricking the Goblet into accepting his name.

"I thought Champions were exempt from school work," Harry complained, after one bad Charms lesson. He was leaving the classroom with Phoebe, who was fiddling around with the strap on her backpack.

"No, you're exempt from end-of-year exams," the Elemental answered. "Not classwork or homework. Besides, I don't really see how you can fail Charms, it's not even that difficult," she, just like Hermione, had been making different objects zoom across the room to her all lesson, as though she was some sort of weird magnet for board dusters, wastepaper baskets and Lunascopes. "You just weren't concentrating properly -"

"Wonder why that was?" said Harry darkly, as Cedric Diggory walked past, surrounded by a large group of simpering girls, all of whom looked at Harry as though he was a particularly large Blast-Ended Skrewt. "Still - never mind, eh? Double Potions to look forward to this afternoon -"

Phoebe stopped in the middle of the hallway, zipped up her backpack, slung it over her shoulder and threaded her left arm through the left loop, and then turned back to her friend. "You only get an hour's worth," she told him. "There is a Weighing of the Wands this afternoon; all the champions have to attend."

"You sure know quite a bit about this Tournament," Harry pointed out.

"I," Phoebe emphasized, pointing at herself. "Read. I have already read about the Triwizard Tournament, and dipped into its History quite a bit. It's rather interesting."

Harry nodded and started walking again. "I take it you will be staying in Potions?" he asked.

"Why? Do you want me to hold your hand?" Phoebe teased.

"No," Harry scowled. "It is just you seem to have a better perception about this whole thing, a lot more than I do, that's for sure."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you'll be fine," she reassured him. "Serefina will be there, so no fuss."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Double Potions was always a horrible experience, but these days it was nothing short of torture. Being shut in a dungeon for an hour and a half with Snape and the Slytherin's, all of whom seemed determined to punish Harry as much as possible for daring to become school champion, was about the most unpleasant thing Harry could imagine. He had already struggled through one Friday's worth, with Hermione sitting next to him, intoning "Ignore them, ignore the, ignore them" under her breath, and he couldn't see why today should be any better.

When Harry, James, Hermione and Phoebe arrived outside Snape's dungeon after lunch, they found the Slytherin's waiting outside, each and every one of them wearing a large badge on the front of his or her robes. For one wild moment Phoebe through they were SPEW badges - then she saw that they all bore the same message, in luminous red letters that burnt brightly in the dimly lit underground passage:

_Support CEDRIC DIGGOY -_

_the REAL Hogwarts Champion!_

"Like them, Potter?" said Malfoy loudly, as Harry approached. "And this isn't all they do - look!"

He pressed his badge into his chest, and the message upon it vanished, to be replaced by another one, which glowed green.

_POTTER STINKS_

The Slytherin's howled with laughter. Each of them pressed their badges, too, until the message _POTTER STINKS_ was shining brightly around Harry.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, very funny," she said sarcastically to Pansy Parkinson and her gang of Slytherin girls, who were laughing harder than anyone, "really _witty_."

"Want one, Granger?" said Malfoy, holding out a badge to Hermione. "I've got loads. But don't touch my hand, now. I've just washed it, you see; don't want a Mudblood sliming it up."

Phoebe felt Harry shaking in anger, and before she could do anything to calm him down, he had plunged his hand into his pocket and withdrawn his wand. People all around them scrambled out of the way, backing down the corridor.

"Harry!" Hermione said warningly.

"Go on, then, Potter," Malfoy said quietly, drawing out his own wand.

For a split second, they looked into each other's eyes, then, at exactly the same time, both acted.

"DOWN!" Phoebe yelled, grabbing Hermione's shoulders and forcing her onto the floor.

"_Furnunculus!"_ Harry yelled.

"_Densaugeo!"_ screamed Malfoy

Jets of light shot from both wands hit each other in mid-air and ricocheted off at angles - Harry's hit Goyle in the face, and Malfoy's hit Phoebe - who had got to her feet and drawn her wand. Goyle bellowed and put his hands to his nose, where great ugly boils were springing up - Phoebe, whimpering in panic, was clutching her mouth.

"Phoebe!" James turned quickly to his friend to see what was wrong with her.

Harry turned and saw James dragging Phoebe's hand away from her face. It wasn't a pretty sight. Phoebe's whole hand was covered in blood, as blood filled her mouth. "What happened?" he asked anxiously.

James shook his head. "I don't know," he turned quickly to Malfoy. "What spell did you use?"

"I-I -" Malfoy hesitated as he stared at Phoebe with wide eyes, her face had gone abnormally pale and the blood was oozing from her lips. What had he done?

"And what is all this noise about?" said a soft, deadly voice. Snape had arrived.

The Slytherin's clamored to give their explanations. Snape pointed a long yellow finger at Malfoy. "Explain."

"Potter attacked me, sir -"

"We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry shouted.

"- and he hit Goyle - look -"

Snape examined Goyle, whose face now resembled something that would have been at home in a book on poisonous things.

"Hospital wing, Goyle," Snape said calmly.

"Malfoy got Phoebe!" James said. "_Look!"_

He forced Phoebe to show Snape her mouth - she was doing her best to stop the blood with her hands, though this was difficult as she was bleeding so badly that her entire face looked like a ghost.

Snape looked coldly at Phoebe. "Normally, I do not permit students missing my lessons," he said snidely.

"Professor," Draco interrupted. "She needs to be seen by Madam Pomfrey! She is my sister, I will take her!"

"You'll do no such thing!" James snapped. "She's my friend, I'll take her!"

Snape glared at James. "You will stay where you are, Black! Mr. Malfoy, please escort Miss. Blackheart to the Hospital wing."

Draco nodded, shoved his backpack into Crabbe's arms and hurried across the Dungeon towards Phoebe. Ignoring James, he wrapped his arm around his sister's waist and -practically carrying her against him - helped her out of the Dungeons and up to the seventh floor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe spat out the excess blood from her mouth and then wiped her lips on the back of her sleeve. Madam Pomfrey had just finished fixing up the muscle in her jaw, apparently the spell that Draco had cast, and intended to hit Harry with, had ruptured the muscle in her jaw and caused enough blood that would have filled a small pool to spill from her mouth.

_**That would explain why all I could do is whimper**_ the elemental thought, as she wiped the remaining blood from her face.

"Have you finished?" Madam Pomfrey asked, returning to the bed. "Good. Now, you must take at least one every four hours -" she was holding a small box of blood replenishing potions. "You lost a considerable amount of blood and it needs to be replaced. I wouldn't recommend hard foods for a while, something soft; you need to get the feeling and movement back into your jaw before you try anything solid..."

Phoebe nodded in understanding. "What about drink? Soft drinks?"

"Orange juice or Pumpkin juice," Madam Pomfrey stated. "Milk or water. No Butterbeer."

"I rarely drink Butterbeer," Phoebe answered. "But I understand..."

"Good girl," Madam Pomfrey nodded and handed over the box of potions. "Remember, one every four hours. You can leave them during the night, but make sure you take one as soon as you awaken in the morning, and you take one before bed in the evening."

Phoebe nodded. "You have my word, Madam Pomfrey. I promise."

"OK. Now that I have explained everything, I would like you to come back at the end of the Sunday so that we can check the stability of your jaw muscles, and the rate they are taking to heal. Other than that, you may leave."

"I will be here," Phoebe smiled, sliding from the bed. She picked up the box from the bed, pulled back the curtains around her bed and stopped short as she saw Terence standing outside. "Huh...Hi," she said awkwardly.

Terence paused and stared at her for a few minutes. "Hi," he finally answered. "Why are you in here?"

"Draco hit me with a spell," Phoebe answered. "Ruptured the muscle in my jaw."

"What is that?"

He was pointing at the box under her arm.

"Blood replenishing potions," Phoebe answered. "I lost a lot of blood."

Terence seemed to become agitated at her news.

"What are you doing up here?" Phoebe asked, trying to get off the subject.

"Huh...Esmee was just brought in," Terence answered. "She fainted and Madame Maxime wanted to know what was wrong with her."

"And...?"

"They are bringing a Healer in from St. Mungo's,"

Phoebe's eyes widened. "That's not good," she murmured. "Does your mother and brother know?"

"No," Terence shook his head. "I haven't had a chance to message them."

"Do you want me too?" Phoebe asked. "I could send Athena, I mean, if you want me too? It would take a lot of pressure of you, and Esmee is my friend..."

Terence seemed to hesitate; this was the first time that he had been in Phoebe's presence since her secret had been revealed. "Uh...yeah, please...that'd be a big help."

"No problem," Phoebe smiled.

Silence fell. A tense sort of silence.

"Um..." Phoebe said, grasping at straws as she tried to think of something to say. "Well, I'll write to your mum as soon as I get back..."

Terence nodded. "Thanks."

Phoebe gave a small smile. "Well, I better go..." she motioned awkwardly to the doors. "Uh...see you around school..."

She turned and hurried for the doors.

"Phoebe," Terence called, turning to face her.

Phoebe felt her heart skip a beat and turned back. "Yeah?"

"Uh..." Terence paused. What could he say? He wanted to say he was sorry. He wanted to say that he wanted her back. But he couldn't seem to find the right words, he was still a little sore about the way the whole secret had been brought about, sore that he had to find out from Draco Malfoy rather than his own girlfriend. "Never mind. I'll let you know how Esmee is once the Healer as been."

"Thanks," Phoebe said, her voice quivering slightly. "Yeah. Keep me posted. Bye."

And she left the Hospital wing, her heart shuddered as a shaky sigh escaped her lips. "I miss you..." she whispered, as the doors closed behind her.

Meanwhile, inside the Hospital wing, Terence was staring at the closed doors, his heart hammering painfully. "I love you..." he whispered.

_That _is what he had planned to say.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 11 January 2012 at 3:00am**


	67. Chapter 67

**Author's Note:** Sex-implied dream coming up. Rated 'T' for safety.

**Dedications:** Following chapter goes out to the following people: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Twilightgirl00000001, Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine** and anonymous reviewer** Allie.**

**In Responses:** **KingdomHeartsNerd:** Of course they are still in love. Who else would they be in love with?

**Twilightgirl00000001:** My apologies. They will be getting back together soon.

**Fan of Fics: **I couldn't agree more. That is what Terence and Phoebe need to do: Kiss and make up.

**Allie:** I couldn't avoid them not talking anymore. But things have to get worse in order to get better. Sadly.

**Vivi Fontaine:** Esmee's problem will come into light very soon. Yeah, I guess Blake is a little uptight. A girlfriend? Um...I don't think that is much of an option. You will find out why.

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** Esmee's condition is coming to light very soon. Working out a few kinks.

* * *

><p>"Athena returned last night," Phoebe said to Harry the following morning during Breakfast. "She didn't come back until late, so I figured I'd give you this now," she handed over a letter that she assumed was from Sirius.<p>

Harry swallowed his toast, and then proceeded to opening the letter. "Thanks," he said.

Phoebe nodded. "No problem. When do you have detention?" she asked.

"How do you -?" Harry paused. "You know what? Never mind."

Phoebe giggled. "James told me that Snape gave you detention for attacking Draco," she told him. "If it means anything, I hardly think you should be punished, you didn't do anything wrong."

Harry smiled and went back to his letter, as Phoebe returned to her porridge. Normally she avoided the porridge (it wasn't one of her favourites) but she wasn't permitted to eat toast or anything until Madam Pomfrey was completely happy with her jaw muscles.

"He wants to meet me face to face," Harry said quietly, so that Phoebe could hear.

The elemental glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "What?" she asked, swallowing her porridge.

"Look," Harry passed her the letter.

_Harry -_

_I can't say everything I would like to in a letter, it's took risky in case this bird is intercepted -_

Phoebe smirked. "Good luck trying to intercept Athena," she said. "She's a bird of prey. I'd hate to be on the receiving end of her talons."

_- We need to talk, face to face. Can you ensure that you are alone by the fire in the Gryffindor Tower at one o'clock in the morning on the 22nd of November?_

_I know better than anyone that you can look after yourself, and while you're around Dumbledore and Moody - and Blackheart - I don't think anyone will be able to hurt you. However, someone seems to be having a good try. Entering you in that Tournament would have been very risk, especially right under Dumbledore's nose._

_Be on the watch, Harry. I still want to hear about anything unusual. Let me know about the 22nd November as quickly as you can._

_Sirius._

"Mhmm," Phoebe murmured as she read through the letter a second time, before turning to Harry. "Well, I don't see any problem in meeting with him."

Harry nodded. "You'll be there?" he asked.

"Only if you want me too," Phoebe answered.

"Yes, please,"

Phoebe smiled and nodded.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The prospect of talking face to face with Sirius was all that sustained Harry over the next fortnight, the only bright spot on a horizon that had never looked darker. The shock of finding him as school champion had worn off slightly now, and the fear of what he was facing was starting to sink in.

Harry wrote back to Sirius, saying that he would be beside the common-room fire at the time Sirius had suggested, and he, Phoebe and Hermione spent a long time going over plans for forcing any stragglers out of the common room on the night in question.

If the worst came to the worst, they were going to drop a bag of Dungbombs, but they hoped they wouldn't have to resort to that - Filch would skin them alive.

In the meantime, life became worse for Harry within the confines of the castle, for Rita Skeeter had published her piece about the Triwizard Tournament, and it had turned out to be not so much of a report on the Tournament, as a highly coloured life history of Harry.

Much of the front page had been given over to a picture of Harry, the article (continuing on pages two, six and seven) had been all about Harry, Fleur and Blake had been mentioned, squashed into the last line of the article, and Cedric hadn't been mentioned at all.

The article had appeared ten days ago, and Harry still got a sick, burning feeling of shame in his stomach every time he thought about it. Rita had reported him saying an awful lot of things that he couldn't remember ever saying in his life, let alone in that broom cupboard.

"_I suppose I get my strength from my parents, I know they'd be very proud of me if they could see me now...yes, sometimes at night I still cry about them, I'm not ashamed to admit it...I know nothing will hurt me during the Tournament, because they're watching over me..."_

But Rita had gone even further than transforming his 'er's into long sickly sentences: she had interviewed other people about him too.

_Harry has at last found love at Hogwarts. His close friend, Colin Creevey, says that Harry is rarely seen out of the company of one Phoebe Blackheart (also known as Phoebe Malfoy)_ -

"She's just ruined my life outside of Hogwarts!" Phoebe complained. "I guess it's a good thing I am not a British citizen, isn't it?"

_- A stunningly pretty pureblood girl, who, like Harry, is one of the top students in the school._

But from the moment the article had appeared, Phoebe and Harry had to endure people - Slytherin, mainly - quoting it at them as they passed them, and making sneering comments.

"Want a hanky, Potter, in case you start crying in Transfiguration?"

"Since when have you been one of the top students in the school, Potter? Or is this a school you and Longbottom have set up together?"

However, Phoebe, found that not only had Rita ruined her life outside of Hogwarts, she had caused more damage within the castle. After reading the _Daily Prophet_, Terence had resorted to ignoring her again, and even refused to stay in the same room as her, he refused to talk to her - not that they were back on talking terms - but he even refused to tell her how Esmee was doing.

Josephine, Philip and Bambi Higgs had rushed to the castle the evening following Phoebe's letter to them explaining that Esmee had been taken ill, and she had to resort to messaging Philip for information on his sister (he wasn't aware that she and Terence were no longer together, let alone not talking.)

And as if Terence wasn't enough trouble for the elemental, she still had to endure her fair share of unpleasantness, but had refrained herself from yelling at innocent bystanders - like Harry had done to Cho Chang. -

"_Stunningly pretty? Her?"_ Pansy Parkinson shrieked the first time she had come face to face with Phoebe after Rita's article had appeared.

"At least I have good looks from both of sides of my family," Phoebe retorted. "You're just a...I want to call you a pug, but that would be offensive to pugs."

Ron was still refusing to talk to Harry, and Rita's article only confirmed Ron's belief that Harry was really enjoying the attention.

Hermione was furious with the pair of them; she went from one to the other, trying to force them to talk to each other, but Harry was adamant: he would talk to Ron again only if Ron admitted that Harry hadn't put his name in the Goblet of Fire, and apologized for calling him a liar.

"I didn't start this," Harry said stubbornly. "It's his problem."

"You miss him!" Hermione said impatiently. "And I _know_ he misses you -"

"_Miss him?_" said Harry. "I don't _miss_ him..."

Phoebe shook her head and rolled her eyes. "'Course you don't," she commented. "That is why you can't go two minutes without mentioning his name, right?"

Harry glared at her and then stalked off, leaving Hermione and Phoebe alone together in the library, looking over the Summoning Charm's theory. Harry had seemingly developed something of a block towards it, and Hermione insisted that learning the theory would help him master it quickly.

Blake and Jackson were in the library an awful lot, too, mostly because it was the only place that they could hang out with Phoebe without being reprimanded by Karkaroff and hauled back down to the Durmstrang ship. But wherever Blake and Jackson seemed to be, Viktor Krum was always with them, bring with him, his usual giggling group of girls.

"He's not even good-looking!" Hermione muttered angrily, glaring at the group of girls that had followed Blake, Jackson and Krum into the library. "They only like him because he is famous! They wouldn't look twice at him if he couldn't do that Wonky Faint thing."

Phoebe giggled. "OK. First off: it's Wronksi Feint," she said. "And secondly; you're not jealous are you?"

"_Jealous?_" Hermione cried. "Jealous of what?"

"That Viktor is getting loads of attention."

"Why would I be jealous?"

Phoebe looked thoughtful. "Um, maybe because you like him?"

"I do not!"

"Then stop worrying about the guy,"

"I'm not worried about _him_," Hermione stated. "I just don't like his fan girls. Don't tell me they don't annoy you."

Phoebe shrugged. "I guess, because I hang out with Blake, Jackson and Viktor quite often I am used to the annoying fan girls. Besides, I get a few evil glares from them because I am on a personal level with him, something they will never have."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah, you do seem to have a more friendly relationship with him. Do you have something for Quidditch players?"

"Shut up," Phoebe muttered.

"I'm just asking," Hermione giggled. "Think about it: Oliver, Flint, Terence, Harry and now Krum. All Quidditch players, I might add."

"Do you want me to hit you?"

The bookworm giggled into her hand.

"Now, who is a giggling fan girl?" Phoebe teased.

Hermione sobered up quickly and glared at the elemental. "You're cruel,"

"You started it,"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The days before the first task seemed to slip by as though someone had fixed the clocks to work at double speed. The feeling of barely controlled panic seemed to be with Harry wherever he went, as ever present as the snide comments about the _Daily Prophet_ article.

One the Saturday before the first task, all students in the third year and above were permitted to visit the village of Hogsmeade. Phoebe told Harry that it would do him good to get away from the castle for a bit, and Harry didn't need much persuasion.

"You'll be going with Hermione," Phoebe said. "I'm going with Ashlyn and Adrian."

"What about Ron, though?" Harry said.

"What about him?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, wouldn't Hermione want to go with him?"

"Uh...well..." Phoebe said awkwardly. "Hermione thought that you could both meet up with him in the Three Broomsticks -"

"No," said Harry flatly.

"Oh, Harry, this is so stupid..."

"I'll go to the village, but I'm not meeting Ron; and I am wearing my Invisibility Cloak."

"Fine!" Phoebe snapped. "But don't expect Hermione to talk much to you if you're going to wear that thing! I'm going to meet Ashlyn, I'll see you later!"

And she hurried off into the crowd of Slytherin students.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ashlyn grinned as she walked arm-in-arm with Phoebe through the busy street of Hogsmeade.

"So, how come this is your first visit to the village?" Adrian asked, as he and Cassius Warrington followed the two fourteen year olds towards Honeydukes.

"Serefina wouldn't let me come last year," Phoebe answered "You know, with the whole 'Sirius Black' thing."

"But what would Sirius Black want with you?" Warrington asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "That's a good question," she replied. "Why don't you ask my Godmother?"

"No thank you, I value my life,"

Ashlyn giggled. "Professor Blackheart is not that bad," she defended.

"Maybe not," Warrington replied. "But a lot of strange things usually happen around her."

"What kind of strange things?" Phoebe asked.

Warrington shrugged. "As weird as it sounds," he said. "It is like a mini Earthquake whenever she seems to lose her temper,"

Phoebe exchanged a subtle glance with Ashlyn before replying. "My godmother can be a bit of a hot head," she defended. "But I hardly doubt there would be an earthquake in Britain - don't hold me to that because I could easily be wrong."

"You? Wrong? When the world ends maybe," Ashlyn teased.

Phoebe giggled and allowed Ashlyn to pull her into Honeydukes.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Half an hour later, the two fourteen year olds were leaving the sweetshop, eating large cream-filled chocolates. "Was Granger just talking to herself?" Warrington asked curiously, as the door to the shop swung shut behind him.

"No," Phoebe answered. "She was talking to Harry."

"But I didn't _see_ Potter,"

"I did." Phoebe lied, she knew that Harry was there because it had been set up by her and Hermione that he would go, it was Harry that refused to go without his Invisibility Cloak, but the three Slytherin's present didn't know that. "It happens to everyone, one minute you're talking to someone and they have just walked away. Trust me; Blake and Jackson do it to be all the time."

"Hey, that reminds me," Ashlyn jumped in. "How come they aren't here? I thought you could only hang out with them in Hogsmeade?"

"Karkaroff caught us in the library yesterday," Phoebe answered. "He refuses to leave them off the ship because he knows that they will come looking for me."

Ashlyn frowned. "I thought the whole point of them being here was to see you?"

"It was," Phoebe nodded. "But Blake is one of the champion's now, and I'm from the opposing school. Like Karkaroff said: I am the enemy until this competition is over."

"Well, that sucks,"

Phoebe nodded. "It does a bit, especially when you consider the fact that Jackson was only permitted to come all the way from Durmstrang to hang out with me for the whole year that is the only downside to Blake being chosen as Champion...circumstances change. - Oh, quick! Hide me!" she bemoaned, ducking behind Warrington as the door to the Three Broomsticks opened and Rita Skeeter walked out.

Skeeter walked straight past the three Slytherin's without so much as a backwards glance, and Phoebe watched her go as she pulled herself closer to Warrington to avoid detection.

"The last thing I need is her ruining my life any more than she already has!" Phoebe stated peeking over her shoulder as Rita Skeeter disappeared up the High Street. "Her and her stupid article has not only made things impossible for me and Harry at school, but she's also ruined my life outside of Hogwarts! The last thing I wanted was the entire world knowing I was a Malfoy, it is bad enough the entire school knows!"

Ashlyn frowned. "I take it Terence still isn't talking to you?"

"Well, he was starting to talk to me," Phoebe answered, following Ashlyn into the Three Broomsticks, "and then her article came out, and now he is ignoring me again!"

"Why don't you just apologize?"

"What do you think I have been trying to do for the last three months?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, you haven't tried very hard, have you?"

"He is the one that refuses to be in the same room as me!"

"Then ask him to meet you somewhere so that you can talk," Ashlyn said. "There is no point trying to talk between classes. I mean, didn't you guys ever have a secret place that you used to meet? Slytherin/Gryffindor relationship isn't exactly something you'd want to make public unless you were ready."

Phoebe bit her lower lip. "Well, yeah, we had a place where we would meet up, you know, when we were just friends. We had two places, actually."

"Oh, yeah?" Ashlyn teased as Adrian and Warrington returned with four Butterbeers.

"Change the subject,"

Ashlyn grinned. "Oh, why, Pheebs? This is getting interesting."

"I am not talking about what Terence and I used to get up too," Phoebe replied. "Even if you are, my best friend!"

"Oh, you're no fun," Ashlyn pouted.

Phoebe grinned and shook her head, the heat that had started to rise in her cheeks, started to subside and she was pulled into the conversation that Warrington and Adrian had started about the school champions.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, after Phoebe had returned to the castle, she bumped into Aiden on her return to the Gryffindor tower.

"How was your date?" he asked.

"Date?" Phoebe frowned. "What date?"

Aiden looked confused. "The one to Hogsmeade with Warrington," he answered. "I saw you leaving with him and two other Slytherin's this morning."

"Adrian and Ashlyn?" Phoebe asked.

"Ah, double date, then?"

Phoebe shook her head. "It wasn't a date," she protested. "Or a double date. It was just a day out with...friends."

"You hesitated,"

"Did you want something, Aiden?" Phoebe asked. "Or did you just want to torment me?"

Aiden chuckled. "As much as tormenting you is fun," he teased. "I do actually have a message from Serefina for you."

"Oh...?"

"Yes, she wants you to tell Potter that he should be down at Hagrid's at midnight," Aiden explained. "There is something he needs to see."

Phoebe frowned. "Is this to do with the Tournament?" she asked.

"Dunno," Aiden shrugged. "Didn't ask."

"Mhmm," Phoebe pondered. "I wonder why he has to be down there at Midnight?"

Aiden shrugged again. "So, about this -"

"If you say 'date' then I am going to hit you," Phoebe warned.

"You're no fun," Aiden pouted, as they stepped outside of the Fat Lady. "I have to go. Don't forget -"

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "Harry. Hagrid's hut. Midnight."

Aiden smiled and walked away, leaving Phoebe to enter the Gryffindor common room alone.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, half past eleven to be exact, Harry, who had received a message from both Phoebe and Hagrid, had pretended to go up to bed early, pulled the Invisibility Cloak back over himself and crept back downstairs through the common room.

Quite a few people were still in there. The Creevey brothers had managed to get hold of a stack of _Support CEDRIC DIGGORY_ badges, and were trying to bewitch them to make them say _Support HARRY POTTER_ instead. So far, however, all they had managed to do was get the badges stuck on _POTTER STINKS_.

Phoebe was curled up beside the fireplace with James, reading through his Charms essay and correcting any errors that she came across. Harry watched her for a few minutes, and silently wished that she was coming down to Hagrid's with him.

Tearing his gaze away from the elemental, Harry continued onwards towards the portrait hole and waited for a minute or so, keeping an eye on his watch. Then Hermione opened the Fat Lady for him from outside as they had planned. He slipped past her with a whispered "Thanks!" and set off through the castle.

Hermione, on the other hand, slipped through into the common room and quickly located Phoebe and James. She joined them near the heat of the blaze and sat in silence for a few moments while Phoebe corrected more of James's essay.

"You got the theory backwards," Phoebe said after a while, as she handed James back his essay. "Other than that everything is fine. If you can learn the theory then the Summoning Charm will come easy."

"OK," James nodded, stuffing the essay back into his backpack. "Thanks Phe,"

"Don't call me that," said Phoebe.

James paused. "Why not? Blake and Jackson do and Higgs used too."

"That is because it is their name," Phoebe answered. "Blake and Jackson gave me the name when we were kids, mostly because we were too young to pronounce my name properly. I only extended it to Terence because..."

She paused.

James and Hermione exchanged looks. "Because...?"

"I loved him," Phoebe whispered.

"As in past tense?" James asked. "As in you don't love him anymore?"

Hermione glared. "What kind of question is that?" she asked. "Of course she loves him! Right, Pheebs?"

"Yeah, of course," Phoebe nodded, looking far away. "I love him more than anything,"

"Even more than your elemental magic?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. If there was a rule that said that I couldn't be an elemental and be with Terence, I would happily give up my magic. Terence means the world to me, and..." she paused again. "There is nothing more important than that."

"You've seriously got to talk to him," Hermione pointed out. "You miss him...almost as much as Harry misses Ron."

"I do miss him," Phoebe admitted. "But he doesnt want to talk to me, and I can't force him."

"I can," James said, getting carefully to his feet. "This lovey-dovey chick isn't your style! And the longer you go without talking to Higgs, the longer I have to endure it. So either kiss and make up already, or move on!"

Phoebe and Hermione paused, turning to stare at James in surprise.

"Don't look at me like that," James said. "You know it's the truth. Now, on that note, i'm going to bed. Goodnight."

He grabbed his backpack from the floor and walked across the common room, before disappearing upstairs to bed.

Phoebe turned to Hermione. "What is happening with my friends? First Sarah becomes outspoken and now James? Who next? Amelia? Ashlyn?"

"Ashlyn was already outspoken," Hermione pointed out. "But James provides a good point. You aren't the lovey-dovey chick. Yes, you are in love, but you're not the mushy sort of person, Pheebs, tell Terence you're sorry and make sure he understands how you feel, if he doesnt respond then it is his loss, you have every right to move on if he rejects you."

Phoebe sighed. She didn't want to move on. She wanted Terence.

"I'm going to bed," Hermione said. "Good luck."

"Goodnight 'Mione," Phoebe responded, and the bookworm left her friend alone in front of the fireplace, to ponder her thoughts.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Leaning in he captured her lips with his own._

_At first it was short, gentle and sweet. But being who she was - she wanted more._

_As he started to pull away, Phoebe wound her hands around the back of his neck and pulled his lips back to hers._

_Seemingly getting the hint, he lifted her into the air and carried her towards the bed._

_Grabbing her around the waist, he threw her roughly onto the mattress, grabbed her hips and pulled her down towards him. Phoebe proceeded to wrap her legs around his waist as he settled between them, and their lips met once more._

_Phoebe groaned impatiently as she fumbled with his shit, and his hands disappeared beneath her own. She mentally cursed him for having the upper hand._

_Finally managing to remove his clothes, Phoebe sighed as his lips left hers and started to work their way down her neck, to her chest, and even further to her stomach._

_"Terence!" she groaned out loud this felt so good. She felt him caress his crimson conquest, when she suddenly heard someone calling her name._

"_Phoebe..."_

Phoebe twitched in her sleep, pushing away the hand that was shaking her shoulder.

"Phoebe! Wake up!"

"Wh-what's going on?"

"That is a good question," Harry said, he was kneeling beside her. "Are you OK? You were groaning in your sleep."

Sitting up, Phoebe run a hand through her hair, and looked around the deserted common room. "Yeah. I'm fine. Must have fallen asleep. What time is it?"

"Nearly one o'clock," Harry answered. "I just got back. The first task it is -"

"Harry!"

Harry and Phoebe jumped as a new, familiar, voice joined the conversation. Looking around they were surprised to find Sirius's head sitting in the fireplace, Harry's face broke into a smile and he fell to his knees on the hearth.

"Sirius - how're you doing?" Harry asked.

Sirius looked different. When they had said goodbye at the end of last year, Sirius' face had been gaunt and sunken, surrounded by a quantity of long, black, matted hair - but the hair was short and clean now. Sirius' face was fuller, and he looked younger, much more like the old photograph Harry had of him, which had been taken at the Potter's wedding.

"Never mind me, how are you?" said Sirius seriously.

"I'm -"

"Nervous," Phoebe interrupted. "A lot has gone on at Hogwarts in the last few months, but we don't have time for all that now. Harry was just about to tell me what the first task was when you arrived, Sirius, you mind?"

Sirius shook his head. "Carry on."

"Dragons." Harry answered. "The first task is dragons. I'm a goner,"

Sirius looked at his godson with eyes full of concern, eyes which had not yet lost the look that Azkaban had given them - that deadened, haunted look.

There was a long silence, which was broken by Phoebe. "What am I? Invisible? Or have you forgotten that I know quite as much as Charlie Weasley when it comes to Dragons? Well, technically he may know a bit more, but you get the picture. Don't worry about the Dragons, Harry, we can handle them."

"She is right," Sirius agreed. "But we must move onto other things...I don't have long, I have broken into a Wizarding house to use the fire, but they could be back any time. There are things I need to warn you about."

"What?" said Harry.

"Karkaroff," said Sirius. "Harry, he was a -"

"Death Eater," Harry and Phoebe answered. Sirius looked shock.

"He's family," Phoebe answered. "Karkaroff is Serefina's uncle. My grandmother is his sister."

Sirius stared at her. "Well, you're a part of a pretty large family, aren't you?"

"You would know," Phoebe replied. "Or haven't you read the paper?"

"I know your secret," Sirius nodded. "I knew from the first time I met you. You had Narcissa's spark."

"But you didn't say anything?"

"Because I wasn't sure if the others knew the truth," Sirius answered. "I didn't want to see you get hurt,"

Phoebe smiled and nodded. "Thanks."

Sirius nodded. "We outcasts got to look after one another. A Malfoy in Gryffindor? Almost as worse as A Black." he grinned. "So you know all about Karkaroff's history? How he did a deal with the Ministry?"

"Yeah. He handed over names of Death Eaters in return for a shorter sentence in Azkaban," Phoebe explained.

"Yes."

"Wait a minute," Harry interrupted. "Are you trying to say that Karkaroff put my name in the Goblet of Fire? Because if he did, he's a really good actor. He was furious about it. He wanted to stop me competing."

"We know he's a good actor," said Sirius, "because he convinced the Ministry of Magic to set him free, didn't he? Now, I've been keeping an eye on the _Daily Prophet_, Harry -"

"You and the rest of the world," Harry said bitterly.

Phoebe squeezed his shoulder comfortingly.

"- and reading between the lines of that Skeeter woman's article last month. Moody was attacked the night before he started at Hogwarts. Yes, I know she says it was another false alarm but I don't think so, somehow. I think someone tried to stop him getting to Hogwarts. I think someone knew their job would be a lot more difficult with him around. Mad-Eye's heard intruders a bit too often. But that doesn't mean he can't still spot the real thing. Moody was the best Auror the Ministry ever had."

"So...what are you saying?" Harry asked. "Karkaroff's trying to kill me? But - why?"

Sirius hesitated.

"I've been hearing some strange things," he said slowly. "The Death Eaters seem to be a bit more active than usual lately. They showed themselves at the Quidditch World Cup, can't they? Someone set off the Dark Mark...and then - did you hear about the Ministry witch?"

"The one who's gone missing?" Phoebe asked.

"Bertha Jorkins," Harry stated.

"Exactly...she disappeared in Albania, and that's where Voldemort was rumored to be last...and she would have known about the Triwizard Tournament, wouldn't she?" said Sirius.

"Yeah, but...it's not very likely she'd have walked straight into Voldemort, is it?" said Harry.

"Listen, I know Bertha Jorkins," said Sirius grimly. "She was at Hogwarts when I was, a few years above your dad and me. And she was an idiot. Very nosy, but no brains, none at all. It's not a good combination. I'd say she'd be very easy to lure into a trap."

"So...so Voldemort could have found out about the Tournament?" said Harry. "Is that what you mean? You think Karkaroff might be here on his orders?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, I don't buy it," she said. "If he sold Death Eaters out to the Ministry, why would Voldemort take him back? He is as much of a rat as Wormtail. Whoever put your name in the Goblet of Fire did it for a reason, and I have already stated that the Tournament would be a very good way to attack you, and make it look like an accident. Esmee Higgs also agrees."

"You talked to Higg's sister about all this?" Harry asked. "Why?"

"Because I needed a second opinion," Phoebe answered. "And usually that is Terence, but I can't go to him now, can I?"

Harry sighed. "Good point."

"Look you two," said Sirius. "I know you have your hands full this year, but you have to be careful! There is dark magic at work here, and it seems you two are always at the centre when it all comes crashing down! You have to be careful! Phoebe, I get that your godmother is at Hogwarts, but if this is a plot by Voldemort, she won't be able to help you, you know that, yes?"

Phoebe nodded. "Don't worry, Sirius, I got a plan," she promised. "One that will ensure the safety of both me and Harry."

Sirius nodded, opened his mouth to speak, but cut off as the sound of shuffling footsteps sounded from the boy's dorms.

"Someone's coming," Harry whispered. "Go! _Go!_"

Phoebe scrambled to her feet, hiding the fire - if someone saw Sirius' face within the walls of Hogwarts, they would raise an almighty uproar - the Ministry would get dragged in - they, Harry and Phoebe, would be questioned about Sirius' whereabouts -

There was a tiny _pop_ in the fire behind her, and she knew that Sirius had gone - Harry scrambled up beside her and together they watched the bottom of the spiral staircase - who had decided to go for a stroll at one o'clock in the morning, and stopped the conversation between them and Sirius about the first task?

It was Ron. Dressed in his maroon paisley pyjamas. Ron stopped dead facing Harry and Phoebe across the room, and looked around.

"Who were you talking to?" he said.

"What's that got to do with you?" Harry snarled. "What are you doing down here at this time of the night?"

"I just wondered where you -" Ron broke off, shrugging. "Nothing. I'm going back to bed."

"Thought you'd come nosing around, did you?" Harry shouted.

Phoebe grabbed his hand. "Harry, keep your voice down, you'll wake the others."

"Sorry about that," said Ron, his face reddening with anger. "Should've realized you didn't want to be disturbed. I should have realized you two would be down here. No wonder Higgs broke up with you, Blackheart! Not only are you a compulsive liar, you're a cheat!"

Phoebe glared. "Go to bed, Ron."

"The whole of Hogwarts can see that there is something between the two of you," Ron went on, now that he had started, he found that he couldn't stop, no matter how hard he tried. "Skeeter just wasn't afraid to publish it. Well, I guess you can stop hiding it now, since the whole Wizarding world knows!"

"Shut up, Weasley!" Phoebe hissed. "Before you say something you will regret!"

"As for you, Harry," Ron went on. "I'll leave you get on practicing for your next interview in peace."

Harry seized one of the _POTTER REALLY STINKS_ badges off the table and chucked it, as hard as he could, across the room. It hit Ron on the forehead and bounced off.

"There you go," Harry said. "Something for you to wear on Tuesday. You might even have a scar now, if you're lucky...that's what you want, isn't it?"

He strode across the room towards the stairs; half expecting Ron to stop him, but Ron just stood there in his too small pyjamas, and left Harry storm upstairs to bed. Phoebe, on the other hand, slumped onto the couch, pulled her legs up and hugged them close to her chest as she buried her head in her arms and - before she even realized it - she was crying, and finding it rather difficult to stop.

Oh yeah...this year was turning out to be a brilliant year...just as she expected it.

**Copyrighted ©**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 13 January 2012 at 2:45am**


	68. Chapter 68

**Author's Note:** It's the ever waited First Task.

**Dedications:** Following chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Kankananime123, Vivi Fontaine, Ashu711** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.** I would also like to dedicate this chapter too **Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**, mostly because I didn't realize that she had reviewed Chapter 66 until after I had updated Chapter 67.

**In Responses:** First too: **Fan of Fics: **A normal life? Isn't that what everyone wants? And I agree Phoebe needs one right now. I can't take credit for the come back to Pansy, my friend helped me because I had a complete mind blank, but I am glad you found it funny. I also agree that Phoebe getting through the upcoming war without her elemental secret being revealed will be lucky, but I have a plan in the works for that.

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** Hormones? They have kicked into overdrive it would seem. Peer pressure and being an outcast is hard, I agree, especially with everything that is happening this year.

**Kankananime123**: Yup. A very rough time. This year just seems too much for her to handle, and it is crushing her underneath all the worry and stress. Never actually considered who Terence would take to the Yule Ball other than Phoebe :/ you have given me something else to think about now.

**Vivi Fontaine:** Ron is just being Ron. Once he opens his mouth, he can never control what is released; and he and Phoebe do not have a solid friendship has it is. Boy, is going to have to work extra hard to regain her trust and friendship after last chapter. Haha, yeah, they are fighting over your nickname.

**Ashu711**: I completely agree. How dare he. What was he thinking saying those things?

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** Fourth year was never a good year for Friendship; it was the beginning of all things nasty.

**Shout out: **Thank you to **Blood-of-Silver** for adding this me to their Favourite Author's alert.

* * *

><p>"Phoebe!" Blake called as he entered the Great Hall on Sunday morning and hurried towards the Gryffindor table where the elemental was sitting with James eating Jam on toast. "I need your help..."<p>

Phoebe giggled as she looked up and took in Blake's ragged appearance. "Yeah, I would say you do," she agreed, patting the bench beside her. Blake sat down and allowed Phoebe to fuss over his bed-ridden hair and messy clothes. "What did you do? Dress in the dark?"

"Something like that," Blake answered. "I needed to see you,"

"Aw," James cooed.

Phoebe glared and kicked him from under the table.

"Ow!" James cried, rubbing his shin and glaring at his friend. "What did you do that for?"

"You were asking for it," Phoebe answered as she finished messing up Blake's hair so it looked rough rather than bedridden. "Now, what did you need to see me about?"

Blake glanced across at James, before saying; "Dragons."

Phoebe choked on her toast. "Excuse me?"

"That's the first task," Blake explained. "Dragons."

"How do you know that?"

"Professor Karkaroff told me last night," Blake answered. "I have been up half the night trying to figure out ways of distracting or defeating them. Then I remembered you are like a walking encyclopedia of Dragons."

Phoebe inclined her head slightly to the left. "What do you need to know?"

She knew that she was helping Harry's competition, but Blake had been her friend longer than Harry and, well, she couldn't very well leave him in the cold. He meant too much for her to turn her back on him in a time of need. Screw the rules of the competition, friends came first.

"How do you defeat a dragon?"

Phoebe snorted. "With great difficulty," she answered.

Blake sighed.

"Oi, I said it was difficult," Phoebe said, prodding Blake with her index finger. "I didn't say there wasn't a way."

"So, there is a way?" Blake asked.

"Of course!" Phoebe exclaimed. "First off, you can't be tempted to try a Stunning spell - dragons are strong and too powerfully magical to be knocked out by a single Stunner. You need about half-a-dozen wizards at a time to overcome a dragon.

Blake nodded.

"But you can do it alone," said Phoebe. "There is a way, and a simple spell's all you need."

"What's the spell?" James asked.

"There are several thousand spells you can use," Phoebe said. "I can't give an accurate one because all Dragons are different."

Blake sighed. "So, what am I supposed to do?" he asked.

"Research," Phoebe answered. "Or you could just play to your strengths."

"My strengths," Blake nodded in agreement. "Good idea. But...what are my strengths?"

"Being protective,"

Blake frowned. "Name one time that I have been protective?"

"When you found out what Flint did to me in first year," Phoebe supplied. "Second year, when you thought Terence was following me. When you found out that Terence and I had broken up, you got defensive and protective because you thought that I was hurt."

"Wow, getting the feeling that you don't appreciate me,"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and finished off her breakfast. "Now, that's not true," she responded. "I do appreciate you. It's just being protective is one of your strengths."

"I still don't see how that is going to help me past a Dragon on Tuesday,"

"Well, you will figure something out," Phoebe smiled. "You're a big boy"

"What about Transfiguration?" said James, who had been quiet for most of the conversation. "Can't you transfigure a dragon?"

Phoebe nodded. "You can, but something that big, on your own? It's impossible! I doubt even Professor McGonagall could Transfigure a dragon. But then there is the Switching spell, but what would you switch? Its fangs for...whatever are less dangerous. You could possibly cast a spell on yourself, you know? Give yourself extra powers or something, but they aren't simple spells, I mean, it's worth a try for you, considering you are in seventh year, but when you think about it, it would take epic concentration to cast a spell on yourself, and when you're facing a Dragon, concentration time limit isn't going to be much."

James frowned and turned to Blake. "She's rambling..."

"She does when she is talking about Dragons," Blake nodded. "She'll snap out of it in a minute or two."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Monday morning dawned bright and early, and Phoebe dressed quickly before making her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast where she joined Harry at the Gryffindor table.

"You wouldn't actually run away, would you?" she asked when Harry voiced his concerns. "Come on, Harry, don't be like that, you're going to be fine."

Harry sighed. "You don't know how I feel, Pheebs."

"You're right," Phoebe agreed. "I don't know how you feel. I don't get nervous! But would you rather be here at Hogwarts facing a Dragon or back at Privet Drive with your cousin Dudley?"

Harry fell silent. Somehow, the knowledge that he would rather be here and facing a dragon than back in Privet Drive with Dudley was good to know; it made him feel slightly calmer.

"I thought so," Phoebe nodded, going back to her bacon and eggs. She finished it in record time and then got to her feet along with Harry, at the same time that Cedric Diggory rose from the Hufflepuff table. "Does Cedric know about the First task?" she asked.

Harry shook his head. "I don't think so," he answered.

"You should tell him,"

"Why should I tell him?"

"Because he'll think it a bit suspicious if I tell him,"

"How?"

"Oh, maybe because my Godmother is a Professor here at Hogwarts," Phoebe answered. "He might think that I have been told ahead of time to help you or something. Just got tell him, he may repay the favour in some way."

Harry sighed. "But I'll miss the bell,"

"I'll let Professor Sprout know that you have been delayed," Phoebe answered. "Something to do with the Tournament. Now go," she placed her hand on his shoulder and shoved him in the direction that Cedric had disappeared.

Ten minutes after Herbology had started, Harry arrived. He muttered a hurried apology to Professor Sprout as he passed her, and skidded to a stop beside Phoebe and Sarah. "Phoebe - I need you to help me."

"With what?"

"The First task," Harry answered. "I need you to help me prefect the Summoning Charm."

"By tomorrow?" Phoebe whispered anxiously. "Are you out of your mind?"

Harry sighed. "I need to Phoebe! I need to learn it properly by tomorrow afternoon, or I am dead."

**~*Phoebe*~**

And so they practiced. They didn't have lunch, but headed for a free classroom, where Harry tried with all his might to make various objects fly across the room to him. He was still having problems. The books and quills kept losing heart halfway across the room and dropping like stones to the floor.

"Concentrate, Harry, _concentrate_..."

"What d'you think I'm trying to do?" said Harry angrily. "A filthy great dragon keeps popping up in my head, for some reason...OK, try again."

"We have Divination in half an hour," Phoebe pointed out; she was sat cross-legged on a desk in the corner. "Maybe we should call it for now and come back after Dinner?"

"No," Harry shook his head feverishly. "Why can't we just skip this lesson? It's not like we need Divination, anyway."

Phoebe looked up from the book she was reading. "Maybe because I happen to be a top-student?" she answered. "And I refuse to miss a lesson, especially one that is completely stupid!"

"Oh, come on, Pheebs..." Harry begged. "Please? Just this once! What harm could it do? Other than me being totally annihilated tomorrow because I failed the Summoning Charm."

The elemental considered him for a moment, not once, in her entire life had she considered ditching a lesson. _**But Harry's life is more important at this moment...**_ she reminded herself. Finally, she caved, and they worked through Double Divinations up to the point that Phoebe refused to miss Dinner, and led the way out of the room.

Harry forced down some dinner, and then returned to the empty classroom with Phoebe, using the Invisibility Cloak to avoid the teachers. They kept practicing until past midnight. They would have stayed longer, but Peeves turned up and, pretending to think Harry wanted things thrown at him, started chucking chairs across the room.

Harry and Phoebe left in a hurry before the noise attracted Filch, and went back to the Gryffindor common room, which was no mercifully empty.

At two o'clock in the morning, Phoebe was curled up on the sofa in front of the fireplace, as Harry stood in front of her, surrounded by heaps of objects - books, quills, several upturned chairs, an old set of Gobstones and Neville's toad, Trevor. Only in the last hour had Harry really got the hang of the Summoning Charm.

"That's better, Harry, that's loads better," Phoebe yawned, she was exhausted, but very pleased.

"Well, now we know what to do next time I can't manage a spell," said Harry, "threaten me with a dragon. Right..." he raised his wand once more. "_Accio Pillow_!"

The pillow, in which Phoebe was resting on, zoomed out from under her head, flew across the room, and into Harry's hands.

Phoebe groaned as her head hit the seat beneath her. "Do you mind?" she asked. "Summoning something else."

_"Accio Phoebe!"_

A squeal escaped the elemental's lips as she was pulled off the couch by an invisible force, flew across the room and collided with Harry, who was knocked to the floor by the momentum of having his friend hit him. "Ha ha," Phoebe laughed sarcastically, as she rolled off of him and lay beside him on the heath. It was unbelievably comfortable on the floor. "Very funny."

"I didn't actually think it would work," Harry admitted. "But you told me to Summon something else."

"I didn't mean _me_!" she cried silently. "I am not an object!"

"I know," Harry nodded. "You're a girl."

"Wow," Phoebe teased. "At least you know your differences."

Harry turned his head to the side and scowled at the elemental. She was lying so close. Her head was resting on his shoulder, and she was staring straight at him. At this closeness he could see small flecks of cobalt blue in her silvery eyes, the same colour her eyes changed when she was using her powers.

"Harry..." Phoebe murmured, drawing in a shaky breath.

And then - his lips were against hers. She breathed in sharply. Then, slowly, giving a little at a time, her lips pushed back against his. He pressed harder and she returned the pressure.

They weren't supposed to have kissed, but it was supposed to have been a short one. But this was longer than either had anticipated; it was a little deep and a little too powerful. When they finally separated, he was breathless and so was she.

They stared at one another for a brief second before Phoebe pushed Harry off of her and got back to her feet. "Good night, Harry!" she said quickly, before hurrying across the common room towards the stairs leading to the girls' dormitories.

Harry stared after her numbly. What the hell had just happened?

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next morning, Phoebe lay in bed for a while contemplating what had transpired between Harry and herself the previous evening, and how she was going to face it - and him - this morning. It was obvious that there was some sort of tension between herself and Harry, Ron had been telling the truth when he had commented on it the other night, but she was just too ignorant to admit it.

_**I love Terence**_ she kept on reminding herself. _**I love Terence and no one else. There can't be anything between me and Harry...**_

But just because she loved Terence didn't mean that there couldn't be anything between her and Harry, they had, after all, been friends for three years, and there had obviously been something beneath the surface of their friendship that hadn't come to light until now.

Phoebe groaned as she rolled over and buried her face into her pillow. What was she going to do? She couldn't lie here in bed indefinitely, she had to get up. Today was the First Task, and not only did she have to go down to cheer for Blake, she had promised Harry that she would be in the stands cheering him on.

_**Hiding from him is not the answer,**_ Phoebe thought. Hiding from the fact that she and Harry had kissed was not going to make the matter go away, they had kissed, so what? It was just a little kiss; nothing was going to come of it, right? It wasn't like Harry was hoping for something more than a friendship. Besides, it was in the past now, all she had to do was face him, apologize and then they could move on.

With that in mind, Phoebe sat up and pulled back the curtains surrounding her bed, she slipped out and shuffled into the bathroom with her clothes and prepared herself for the school day ahead. She would go about her day as normal, so that people didn't think that there was something wrong, the last thing she wanted was for other people to know that she had kissed one of her best friends.

After her shower, Phoebe dressed and proceeded to packing her backpack for her morning's lessons.

Lessons were to stop at midday, giving all the students time to get down to the dragon's enclosure - though of course, they didn't yet know what they would find there.

Phoebe felt oddly separate from everyone around her. Time was behaving in a more peculiar fashion than ever, rushing past in great dollops, she had yet to get Harry alone so that she could apologize for the previous night, but for some reason she was feeling fine about not seeing him at all.

Wouldn't it have been easier to just to say 'Sorry' when there were others around? And avoid mass humiliation of facing him the morning after she had kissed him?

_**You mean the morning after he kissed you?**_ A voice in the back of her head questioned._**Why should you apologize? You didn't do anything wrong. He kissed you. Let him apologize!**_

But this did not make matters any better. Yes, Harry may have kissed her, but she responded, so that made her as equally as guilty. She should have pushed him away. Turned away - something! She should not have let him kiss her in the first place, and she should definitely not have responded to it in any way, shape or form.

History of Magic flew past, Phoebe's head was not in the lesson at all, and therefore she took no notes at all. James and Ashlyn - who sat either side of the elemental during Slytherin/Gryffindor lessons - exchanged looks at Phoebe's refusal to co-operate in lessons, and tried to persuade the elemental to tell them what was wrong. But Phoebe wouldn't breathe a word. They couldn't know.

Soon it was midday, and Lunch had arrived.

Phoebe joined James at the Gryffindor table and was halfway through her Corn beef pie when Professor McGonagall was hurrying over to Harry - who was sat a few seats away with Hermione -

"Potter, the champions have to come down into the grounds now...you have to get ready for your first task."

"OK," said Harry, standing up, his fork falling onto his plate with a clatter.

"Good luck, Harry," Hermione whispered. "You'll be fine!"

Harry nodded and looked around, he caught Phoebe's gaze as she offered him a small smile. He nodded, last night still fresh in his mind, and then he was walking away with Professor McGonagall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After lunch the rest of the school started to make their way down to stadium that had been set up. Phoebe walked arm-in-arm with Hermione, and filed into the front row of the stadium with her, James, Jackson, Aiden and Krum.

"How's Blake?" Phoebe asked, swapping seats with Hermione and Aiden, so that she could sit beside Jackson.

"Nervous," Jackson answered. "How's Harry?"

"Same,"

Jackson nodded. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah," Phoebe answered, quickly. "W-Why do you ask?"

"Because James and Ashlyn mentioned that you weren't acting like yourself," Jackson answered, his eyes narrowing at her. "And you are acting awfully jumpy right now. So, what is it? What's going on?"

"Nothing," Phoebe answered, shaking her head. "I promise."

Jackson leaned in closer. "Phoebe, I'm your best friend," he told her. "I have known you longer than even Blake, he may be the big protector, but you are like my sister, so tell me, what is wrong!"

Phoebe sighed. He had a point. He had known her longer than any of her friends, including Blake. "_I kissed Harry last night,"_ she said in her native tongue. "_But I didn't mean too! One minute we were practicing the Summoning Charm, and the next we were both laying on the floor and his lips were on mine."_

_"Did you kiss him back?"_

_"Yes."_

Jackson sighed, glanced around and then leaned in closer, so that he was practically whispering in her ear. "_What did you do?"_

"_He kissed me. I kissed him. When we broke away I pushed him off and went straight to bed - I have been avoiding him all day! I don't know what to say! This isn't like the time I kissed Terence, Jacks, this is different! Harry is my friend, nothing more and nothing less. What am I going to do?"_

_"Does he know that you only feel for him as a friend?"_

Phoebe shrugged. "_I think so, but I can't be certain."_

_"You have to make sure he understands this, Phe,"_ Jackson told her. "_You can't ignore him indefinitely. If he does have feelings for you, ignoring him may only make him like you more."_

_"I know,"_ Phoebe whispered, dropping her head onto his shoulder. "_I have screwed up big time, Jacks. I lost Terence because of a lie, and now I have kissed Harry and could easily lose his friendship because I will never be able to look at him in the same light I used to before we kissed. Why does life have to be so complicated?"_

Jackson smiled sadly, wrapped his arm around his best friend and kissed the side of her head. "_It's a part of growing up, Phe. But it will get easier. You're not going to lose Potter as a friend; I think your friendship means more to him than anything at all. And besides, everyone knows how much you love Higgs, even if some of us don't like it."_

Phoebe knew that he was referring to himself and Blake when he said that some didn't like the fact that she loved Terence. But at least he was being the best friend that he was, and accepting the possibility that she wasn't the little girl that she used to be, she was growing up and she was no longer the little girl that he remembered her to be. _"Thanks Jackson,"_ she murmured.

"_No problem."_

Suddenly there was a terrifying roar as a dragon was brought out and changed in the middle of the enclosure, beneath it - Phoebe noticed - were a nest of eggs. "Female dragons..." she murmured.

"What?" Aiden asked, hearing her clearly,

"The dragons," Phoebe spoke up louder. "They are females, and they are breeding..."

"And that's a bad thing?"

Phoebe nodded. "It is a very bad thing! Female dragons are bad on the best of times," she explained. "But when you add female _breeding_ dragons and a clutch of eggs? Everything becomes a whole lot worse. It doesn't matter what species you are, a female will fight to the death to protect its young."

Aiden exchanged a look with Jackson as Phoebe leaned forward over the side and watched as the Dragon keepers hurried out of the enclosure, and the sound of a cannon exploded from the opposite side of the stands, signaling the beginning of the First Task.

Cedric emerged from the champion's tent on the other side of the enclosure, and Phoebe sat up a little straighter as the Swedish Short-Snout turned its beady eyes in the direction of the Hufflepuff student, immediately Cedric slipped behind some rocks, obstructing himself from view.

When he re-emerged he looked determined and defiant to get this task over and done with.

Phoebe and the rest of the students watched as Cedric attempted to sneak up behind the Swedish Short-Snout and edged towards the nest.

"Why is he going for the nest?" Jackson questioned. "I thought they had to get past a Dragon?"

"They do," Phoebe nodded, narrowing her eyes at the nest. One of the eggs, she noticed, was golden in colour and looked bigger than the others. "They have to grab an egg," she stated. "Look! One of the eggs isn't a natural dragon egg. The dragon doesnt know that, all she knows is that is her clutch of young and Cedric is a predator!"

A sudden gasp fell across the stands as Cedric ducked behind a rock to avoid a stream of flames that the dragon had just shot at him.

"Ooooh, narrow miss there, very narrow," Bagman's voice echoed over the stands. He was watching and commentating what was happening.

Phoebe bit her lower lip as she waited patiently for Cedric to reappear - he didn't - at least, not for a while, when he did reappear, however, the rock in which he had been hiding behind shifted and then started to grow smaller and smaller until a small yapping sound echoed.

A small Jack Russell bounded across the enclosure, the Dragon fixed its eyes on the dog and followed its every movement, giving Cedric all the time he needed to make a break for the nest, scoop up the Golden egg and head for the exit.

The Dragon roared in anger at the trick as the dog disappeared, and bellowed in Cedric's direction. A horde of flames skimmed the Hufflepuff, leaving behind - what Phoebe knew - would be a 3rd degree burn.

"That had to hurt," the elemental commented as Cedric was headed out of the enclosure, as Dragon keepers shot forward to subdue the Swedish Short-Snout.

"At least he got by with only a burn," Jackson said, as the Hogwarts students cheered in respect for Cedric's victory.

Phoebe nodded. "Madam Pomfrey will fix him up in no time," she smiled.

"Very good indeed!" Bagman shouted. And now the marks from the judges!"

But Phoebe didn't pay attention to the marks; she was too focused on the champion's tent and wonder when Harry or Blake would be coming out of it.

"One down, three to go!" Bagman shouted after the marks had been given. "Miss. Delacour, if you please."

Fleur appeared.

She was shaking from head to foot and looking around as if the Dragon was going to jump out at her from behind the stones, Phoebe chewed her lower lip nervously as Fleur ducked behind a near-by rock as her Dragon - a Welsh Green - shot flames in her direction; waving her wand the French champion mimicked Cedric's attempts at a distraction and started to Transfigure several rock formations into animals.

Soon the entire enclosure was littered with a variety of different animals, their unusual noises blending together and causing the Dragon to roar and growl in annoyance. Once or twice the dragon bellowed fire at several animals causing them to turn to ash (just like rocks did under immense heat).

Finally, ten minutes later, Fleur was hurrying out of the enclosure clutching her Golden egg and the Welsh Green was being subdued with stunning spells from every direction.

The crowds cheered as Fleur was left victorious and made her way out of the enclosure.

Phoebe clapped for her new friend, and turned slightly in her seat as she searched the stands behind her for any visual of Esmee. She spotted her friend sitting amongst the Slytherin's three rows behind where Phoebe was sitting.

Esmee smiled and nodded at Phoebe, as she nudged Terence beside her.

Terence caught Phoebe's gaze, held it for a second, and then turned back to the enclosure.

Phoebe licked her lips and turned back to the enclosure also, as the cannon exploded once more and Blake made his way out to face his dragon. She grinned. "Come on Blake!" she yelled, cheering and clapping along with the Durmstrang students as Blake's dragon - the Chinese Fireball - raised his head lazily and watched Blake's movement closely.

As discussed on Sunday morning, Blake used the Conjunctivitis curse on the dragon - and for a while it seemed to work. The dragon was blinded and unable to see exactly where Blake was, however, the dragon opened its mouth and blindly allowed its fiery breath to rip around the stadium, destroying half of its nest with flames and crushing the remainder of its clutch of eggs with its stamping feet.

"That's not good..." Jackson whispered, pointing at the destroyed nest. "He's going to lose points for that."

Phoebe nodded. "Yup."

She sucked in a breath and clutched Jackson's arm as a breath of fire soared directly towards Blake, who ducked out of the way with mere seconds to spare.

"Blake!" Phoebe yelled. "Just get the egg and get out!"

"Listen to her, Blake!" Jackson yelled.

Blake looked up at his two best friends from behind the rock he had taken cover. The dragon was still blindly tearing the enclosure to pieces, and was mere seconds away from crushing the Golden Egg and - if he wasn't careful - Blake beneath its colossal sized feet.

Phoebe bit her finger nails nervously as she watched her best friend duck under the thrashing tail of the rampaging dragon, reach for the golden egg, and -

"NO!" Phoebe screamed in fear, as Blake flew backwards and hit the dragon's enclosure. The dragon must have sensed an intruder near-by, thrashed its tail around and caught Blake across the chest sending him flying backwards. "Blake!"

Jackson jumped to his feet and grabbed Phoebe around the middle, he knew her all too well, and knew that she would have gone racing out of the crowds of students and into the enclosure to make sure that Blake was OK. He was nervous too, but he also knew that it was dangerous to go running into an enclosure with a rampaging Dragon.

The teachers weren't going to let anything remotely deadly happen to a student.

"He's OK, Phe," Jackson said, pointing into the enclosure. "Look!"

Blake had managed to get back to his feet and was stumbling forward towards the destroyed nest. The Dragon had stumbled away from it, and it was in clear sight of the exit. Scooping up his egg, Blake hurried through the exit as the Dragon keepers hurried out to subdue the Chinese Fireball.

When Blake's points had been awarded - they weren't that good - the final cannon exploded and seconds later, Harry was making his way into the enclosure where a Hungarian Horntail was waiting for him. She was crouched low over her clutch of eggs, her wings half furled, her evil, yellow eyes upon Harry, a monstrous, scaly black lizard, thrashing her spiked tail, leaving yard-long gouge marks in the hard ground.

The crowd was making a great deal of noise, but Harry paid very little attention to it, instead he made his way carefully into the enclosure, narrowly missing two bursts of fire that the Dragon sent his way.

"Harry!" Hermione screamed, as Harry ducked behind a rock for safety.

Leaning forward over the stands, Phoebe yelled down into the enclosure; "Your wand, Harry! Your wand!"

_"Accio Firebolt!"_

Harry's voice carried across the enclosure, and several moments later the Firebolt was speeding through the air behind the stands. It hurtled towards Harry, around the enclosure, and stopping dead in mid-air beside him, waiting for him to mount.

Phoebe watched as Harry swung his leg over the broom and kicked off from the ground, while a second later he was soaring upwards, the entire stands looked up, and so did the Dragon, but she refused to leave her eggs.

"Come on Harry," Phoebe whispered as she watched the Seeker hover in the air for a few minutes, tempting the dragon. "Diversionary tactics..."

As if he could hear her, Harry dived. The Horntails head followed him; and Phoebe knew what it was going to do, just in time Harry pulled out of the dive as a jet of fire had been released exactly where Harry would have been had he not swerved away.

"Great Scott, he can fly!" yelled Bagman, as the crowd shrieked and gasped. "Are you watching this, Mr. Krum?"

Phoebe glanced at Viktor and offered him a small smile. One that he returned.

Harry soared higher in a circle; the Horntail was still following his progress; its head revolving on its long neck - if he kept this up, it would be dizzy - but he had better not have pushed it, or the dragon would be breathing fire again. - Harry plummeted just as the Horntail opened its mouth, but this time he was less lucky - he missed the flames, but the tail came whipping up to meet him instead, and as he swerved to the left, one of the long spikes grazed his shoulders, ripping his robes -

Hermione screamed.

And Phoebe clutched Jackson's arm tightly as she buried her face into his shoulder.

"He's alright," Jackson reassured the elemental. "But that Horntail doesn't want to leave her eggs."

It was true. The Horntail didn't seem to want to take off; she was too protective of her eggs. Though she writhed and twisted, furling and unfurling her wings and keeping those fearsome yellow eyes on Harry, she was afraid to move too far from them...but she needed to be persuaded to move, or Harry would never get close to the eggs.

And then it happened -

Something hit Phoebe square in the back and propelled her forwards, over the stands, and into the enclosure below.

"Phoebe!" Jackson yelled, as he reached out to grab her, but he was too late. Phoebe's jacket slipped through his fingers like water and the elemental landed hard on the hard rocky surface of the enclosure.

The Horntail growled as its head turned in the direction of the disturbance; as Phoebe lay unmoving on the rock behind her. A growl subsided in the throat of the dragon as she leaned forward with her snout and sniffed at Phoebe's body.

In the stands Jackson held his breath.

The dragon tilted its head upwards and looked directly into the stands where Phoebe had been sitting with her friends, she opened her jaws and a snarl escaped, before she latched onto the back of Phoebe's clothes with her teeth and picked her up like a rag doll.

"What is she doing?" Esmee asked, as she arrived at the edge of the front row with Terence. "Is Phoebe OK?"

Hermione nodded and watched as the dragon placed Phoebe between the clutches of eggs at her feet. "It's protecting her," she whispered in astonishment. "The dragon is protecting Phoebe from Harry!"

"That's a new one," Esmee muttered.

"Not really," Jackson answered. "Phoebe has an uncanny sympathy with animals. She can get them to do what she wants, when she wants, and they never hurt her. Why should a dragon be any different? Besides, a dragon is supposed to be a giant serpent anyway."

Esmee frowned. "What as that got to do with anything?"

"I'm just stating a fact," Jackson said, his gaze connecting with Terence's.

Esmee Higgs may not know of what Jackson was talking about, but Hermione and Terence most definitely did. Phoebe was a water elemental, which meant that water creatures - including Snakes - usually did her bidding because she was a part of their world, just by controlling their element.

"Look!" Aiden pointed, as Harry swayed from side to side in order to tempt the dragon to leave Phoebe and the clutch of eggs. But the dragon wasn't having any of it, she kept her eyes trained of him, her head moving from side to side, watching him out of her vertical pupils, her fangs bared...

Harry flew higher. The Horntail's head rose with him, her neck now stretched to its fullest extent, still swaying, like a snake before its charmer...

Harry rose a few feet higher, and the dragon let out an exasperated roar. He was like a fly to her, a fly she was looking to swat, her tail thrashed again, but he was too high to reach now...she shot fire into the air, which he dodged...her jaws opened wide.

"Come on," Harry hissed, swerving tantalizingly above her, "come on, come and get me...up you get, now..."

And then she reared, spreading her great black leathery wings at last, as wide as those of a small aeroplane - and Harry dived. Before the dragon knew what he had done, or where he had disappeared to, he was speeding towards the ground as fast as he could go, towards the eggs and the unconscious Phoebe now unprotected by her clawed, front legs - he had taken his hands off his Firebolt - he had seized the golden egg, and was about to grab Phoebe when the Dragon dipped its head, and chased him away.

Harry rose with a huge spurt of speed, he was off, soaring out over the stands, the heavy egg safely under his uninjured arm, and it was as though somebody had just turned the volume back up - for the first time, he became properly aware of the noise of the crowd, which was screaming and applauding.

"Look at that!" Bagman yelled. "Will you look at that? Our youngest champion is quickest to get his egg! Well, this is going to shorten the odds on Mr. Potter!"

From the stands, Jackson watched as Dragon keepers came rushing forwards to subdue the Horntail, and rescue Phoebe from its clutches.

Charlie Weasley reached the unconscious elemental and lifted her into his arms. The Horntail spotted him and roared in protest, before several Stunning spells hit its hide and it slouched heavily onto the enclosure floor.

"Protective mother," said another keeper. "Even of a human."

"Never seen that before," said another keeper.

Charlie nodded. "I better get her out of here," he said. "Before her friends have a fit."

The keepers nodded and Charlie carried Phoebe to the entrance of the enclosure where Professor McGonagall and Serefina Blackheart were waiting for him. Harry was also there.

"That was excellent, Potter!" cried Professor McGonagall as Harry dismounted his Firebolt. "But you will need to see Madam Pomfrey about that shoulder, go on now, before the judges give out your score."

Serefina turned to Charlie. "Thank you," she said, as he appeared with Phoebe.

"No problem," Charlie smiled. "I'll just take her to Madam Pomfrey; she should be waking up soon."

"How did she come to fall?" McGonagall questioned.

"Why don't you ask her friends?" Charlie asked, nodding towards Jackson, Aiden, Esmee, Terence and Hermione who were making their way out of the stands.

Serefina nodded and turned to Jackson and the others, they would be able to see Phoebe after she had gotten the answers to the questions that she had.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Saturday, 14 January 2012 at 6:03am**


	69. Chapter 69

**Author's Note:** Sorry it is a late update. I didn't think I would get this out tonight...today...oh; it all depends on where you are in the world.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **10th Squad 3rd Seat, Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, Kankananime123** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**In responses:** Too late to do them individually, I but I will say this to all: I know some of you are finding it hard to decide on who to choose between: Phoebe/Harry or Phoebe/Terence - but I would just like to point out, whoever you choose, the pairing will remain Phoebe/Terence...and they will return very shortly.

* * *

><p>Blake and Jackson went up to the Hospital wing after the First Task had ended, Phoebe had awoken while she had been in the champion's tent but Madam Pomfrey wanted to make sure that she was completely healed from not only the spell to the back, but also the fall into the Dragon's enclosure.<p>

"Why is it always you, Miss. Blackheart?" Madam Pomfrey sighed as she waved her wand over the elemental.

Phoebe sighed. "Trust me, Madam Pomfrey, I have been asking myself the same question since second year," she answered.

Madam Pomfrey huffed in annoyance, waved her wand once more and waited patiently. After several minutes a clear puff of smoke emerged from Phoebe's chest and the matron nodded in approval. "There is no internal or lasting damages, you may leave."

"Thank you," Phoebe nodded, jumping down from the bed and hurrying through the drawn curtains. She smiled as she linked arms with Blake and Jackson and the three of them left the Hospital wing.

"So, what happened?" Blake asked once they were two floors down from the Hospital wing.

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know, one minute I was in the stands yelling at Harry, and the next I felt something hit my back and push me forwards, I lost consciousness after that -"

"And woke up in the champion's tent," Blake finished.

"Yeah." Phoebe nodded, turning to Jackson. "What did happen?"

"Like you said, you were fine one minute," Jackson answered. "And next you were falling through the air into the enclosure. I tried to grab you, but my reaction timing was too slow, mostly because none of us in the stands expected it to happen - but you're fine, that is all that matters. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't have released you if there was anything wrong."

Phoebe nodded. That was true.

"So, now what?" Blake asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Krum told me that there is a party on the Durmstrang ship," Jackson informed them. "Are you coming?"

Phoebe smiled sadly. "Sorry boys, as much as I would love too, I have my own party to attend."

"Oh?"

"The Gryffindor's usually host a party every time Harry is victorious," Phoebe explained. "Quidditch mostly, but this task isn't going to be any different. I'll see you both tomorrow. Good night."

Blake and Jackson nodded, hugged her once and watched her disappear up the Grand staircase.

"_Stay out of empty classrooms with Potter,"_ Jackson called after her.

Phoebe turned around and scowled. "Not funny, Jackson!"

Jackson snickered as Phoebe disappeared, and Blake looked confused.

"What was that?" he asked, wanting to know why Phoebe wasn't permitted into empty classrooms with Harry Potter.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe smiled as she rounded the corner and fell into step alongside Hermione, Harry and Ron who had been returning from the direction of the Owlery. "Hey," she smiled. "Been writing to Sirius?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded, glancing down at her. "What did Madam Pomfrey say?"

"She wondered why it is always me," Phoebe answered. "And like I told her, I'm wondering that too."

"So, she has no clue what happened out there?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "Nope. Blake thinks it may have been a Stunning spell, it is the only thing that is capable of knocking me out cold, and it came from behind so that there explains the momentum that pushed me into the enclosure."

Hermione nodded. "It was strange," she said. "The dragon seemed to be protecting you, and then Jackson said about how a Dragon is a giant serpent and everything just sort of fell into place."

"I hope it did," Phoebe smiled. "But seriously, guys, i'm fine. So, when is the next task, Harry?"

"February 24th," Harry answered, trying to catch Phoebe's eye. They had to talk about what had happened the night before, but it seemed that at this moment she was avoiding him. "Half 9 in the morning."

Phoebe nodded. "So you got a while then,"

"Yeah."

By now they had reached the Fat Lady, and given the password. Cheers and yells exploded from inside as the four of them slid through into the over-crowded common room where the rest of the house was waiting for their champion.

There were mountains of cakes and flagons of pumpkin juice and Butterbeer on every surface; Lee Jordan had let off some Wet-Start Fireworks, so that the air was thick with stars and sparks; and Dean Thomas, who was very good at drawing, had put up some impressive new banners, most of which depicted Harry zooming around the Horntail's head on his Firebolt, though a couple showed Cedric with his head on fire.

Phoebe watched as Harry helped himself to food, and she followed Hermione towards a table under the window, James was already there and he looked mighty happy to see that Phoebe was awake. "Welcome back," he grinned as she sat down.

"Thanks," Phoebe smiled, nicking his bottle of pumpkin juice and taking a sip.

"Hey, I was drinking that!"

Phoebe shrugged. "I've just been hit in the back with a Stunner," she defended. "Share!"

"If I shared something with you every time you were attacked, I'd have nothing left!"

"True," Phoebe nodded, but still refusing to let go of the bottle. James sighed and went off to get another drink, while Harry and Ron joined Hermione and Phoebe at the table.

Sliding into the seat beside Phoebe, Harry leaned closer to her. "Can we talk?" he asked.

Phoebe tensed slightly and glanced at her friend out of the corner of her eye. "Can we just forget about last night?" she asked.

"Phoebe..."

"Please," Phoebe practically begged. "Look, Harry, I love Terence...and - I don't want to screw up any chances I might have of getting him back."

Harry's stare hardened. "That's why you're dating Warrington, yeah?" he asked in a low whisper.

"I'm not dating Warrington!" Phoebe snapped, "And I'm not dating you! You, of all people know how I feel about what has happened between me and Terence, and should know by now how much I want him back! I'm sorry, Harry, but I just don't see you as anything more than a friend."

Harry opened his mouth to retort, but cut off as Lee Jordan joined them, carrying the Golden Egg dragon's egg. "Blimey, this heavy," he said. "Open it, Harry, go on! Let's just see what's inside it!"

"He's supposed to work out the clue on his own," Phoebe said swiftly. "It's in the Tournament rules..."

"I was supposed to work out how to get past the dragon on my own, too," Harry muttered, so only Phoebe could hear him, and she grinned guiltily.

"Yeah, go on, Harry, open it!" several people echoed.

Lee passed Harry the egg, and Harry dug his fingernails into the groove that ran all the way around it, and pried it open.

It was hollow and completely empty - but the moment Harry opened it, the most horrible noise, a loud and screechy wailing, filled the room. The nearest thing to it Phoebe had ever heard was the ghost orchestra at Nearly Headless Nick's Death day Party, who had all been playing the musical saw.

"Shut it!" Fred bellowed his hands over his ears.

"What was that?" said Seamus Finnigan, staring at the egg as Harry slammed it shut again. "Sounded like a banshee...maybe you've got to get past one of those next, Harry!"

"It was someone being tortured!" said Neville, who had gone very white, and spilled sausage rolls all over the floor. "You're going to have to fight the Cruciatus curse!"

"Don't be a prat, Neville, that's illegal," said George. "They wouldn't use the Cruciatus curse on the champions. I thought it sounded a bit like Percy singing...maybe you've got to attack him while he's in the shower, Harry."

"Want a jam tart, Hermione?" said Fred

Hermione looked doubtfully at the plate he was offering her. Fred grinned.

"It's all right," he said. "I haven't done anything to them. It's the custard creams you've got to watch -"

James, who had just bitten into a custard cream, choked and spat it out.

Fred laughed. "Just my little joke, James..."

Hermione took a jam tart.

Then she said. "Did you get all this from the kitchens, Fred?"

"Yep," said Fred, grinning at her. He put on a high-pitched squeak and imitated a house-elf "'Anything we can get you, sir, anything at all!' They're dead helpful...get me a roast ox if I said I was peckish."

"How do you get in there?" Hermione said, in an innocently casual sort of voice.

"Easy," said Fred, "concealed door behind a painting of a bowl of fruit. Just tickle the pear, and it giggles and -" he stopped, and looked suspiciously at her. "Why?"

"Nothing," said Hermione quickly.

Phoebe grinned behind her bottle of Pumpkin Juice.

"Going to try and lead the house-elves out on strike now, are you?" said George. "Going to give up all the leaflet stuff and try and stir them up into rebellion?"

Several people chortled. Hermione didn't answer.

"Don't you go upsetting them and telling them they've got to take clothes and salaries!" said Fred warningly. "You'll just put them off their cooking!"

Just then, James caused a slight diversion by turning into a large canary.

"Oh - sorry, James!" Fred shouted, over all the laughter. "I forgot - it was the custard creams we hexed -"

Within a minute, however, James had molted, and once his feathers had fallen off, he reappeared looking entirely normal. He even joined in laughing.

"Canary Creams!" Fred shouted to the excitable crowd. "George and I invented them - seven Sickles each, bargain!"

It was nearly one in the morning when Phoebe finally went up to her dormitory with Hermione, and barely had enough energy to say goodnight, before she was out like a light.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The start of December brought wind and sleet to Hogwarts. Draughty though the castle always was in winter, Phoebe was glad of its fires and thick walls every time she passed the Durmstrang ship on the lake, which was pitching in the high winds, its black sails billowing against the dark sides.

Hagrid was keeping Madame Maxime's horses well provided with their preferred drink of single-malt whisky; the fumes wafting from the trough in the corner of their paddock were enough to make the entire Care of Magical Creatures class light headed. This was unhelpful, as they were still tending the horrible Skrewts, and needed their wits about them.

"I'm not sure whether they hibernate or not," Hagrid told the shivering class in the windy pumpkin patch next lesson. "Thought we'd jus' try an' see if they fancied a kip...We'll jus' settle 'em down in these boxes..."

There were now only ten Skrewts left; apparently their desire to kill each other had not been exercised out of them. Each of them was now approaching six feet in length. Their thick grey armors, their powerful, scuttling legs, their fire-blasting ends, their stings and their suckers, combined to make the Skrewts the most repulsive things James had ever seen.

The class looked dispiritedly at the enormous boxes Hagrid had brought out, all lined with pillows and fluffy blankets.

"We'll jus' lead 'em in here," Hagrid said, "an' put the lids on, and we'll see what happens."

"This is not going to end well," Phoebe muttered to Ashlyn and James.

And Phoebe couldn't have been more right, the Skrewts, it transpired, did _not_ hibernate, and did not appreciate being forced into pillow-lined boxes and nailed in. Hagrid was soon yelling "Don' panic, don' panic!" while the Skrewts rampaged around the pumpkin patch, now strewn with smoldering wreckage of the boxes.

Most of the class - Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle in the lead - had fled into Hagrid's cabin though the back door and barricaded themselves in; Phoebe, James, Ashlyn, however, were among those who remained outside trying to help Hagrid. Together they managed to restrain and tie up nine of the Skrewts, though at the cost of numerous burns and cuts; finally, only one Skrewt was left.

"Don' frighten him, now!" Hagrid shouted, as Ron, Harry and James used their wands to shoot jets of fiery sparks at the Skrewt, which was advancing menacingly on them, its sting arched, quivering over its back. "Jus' try an' slip the rope around his sting, so he won' hurt any o' the others!"

"Yeah, we wouldn't want that!" James shouted angrily, as he, Harry and Ron backed into the wall of Hagrid's cabin, still holding the Skrewt off with their sparks.

"Well, well, well...this _does_ look fun."

Rita Skeeter was leaning on Hagrid's garden fence, looking in at the mayhem. She was wearing a thick magenta cloak with a furry purple collar, and carrying a crocodile-skin handbag over her arm.

Hagrid launched himself forward on top of the Skrewt that was cornering Harry, Ron and James and flattened it; a blast of fire shot out of its end, withering the pumpkin plants nearby.

"Who're you?" Hagrid asked Rita Skeeter, as he slipped a loop of rope around the Skrewts sting and tightened it.

"Rita Skeeter, _Daily Prophet_ reporter," Rita replied.

"You're not allowed on school grounds anymore," said Phoebe. "Dumbledore's orders!"

Rita acted as though she hadn't heard what Phoebe had said. "What are these fascinating creatures called?" she asked, beaming.

"Blast-Ended Skrewts," grunted Hagrid.

"Really?" said Rita, apparently full of lively interest. "I've never heard of them before...where do they come from?"

Phoebe noticed a dull red flush rising up out of Hagrid's wild black beard, and her heart sank. Where _had_ Hagrid got the Skrewts from?

Hermione, who seemed to be thinking along the same lines, said quickly, "They're very interesting, aren't they? Aren't they, Harry?"

"What? Oh, yeah...ouch...interesting," said Harry, as she stepped on his foot.

"Ah, _you're_ here, Harry!" said Rita Skeeter as she looked around. "So you like Care of Magical Creatures, do you? One of your favourite lessons?"

"Yes," said Harry stoutly. Hagrid beamed at him.

"Lovely," said Rita. "Really lovely. Been teaching long?" she added to Hagrid.

Phoebe noticed her eyes travel over Dean (who had a nasty cut across one cheek), Ashlyn (whose robes were badly singed), Seamus (who was nursing several burnt fingers), and then to the cabin windows, where most of the class stood, their noses pressed against the glass, waiting to see if the coast was clear.

"This is on'y me second year," said Hagrid. "Full-time assistant to Professor Blackheart!"

"Lovely...I don't suppose you'd like to give an interview, would you? Share some of your experience of magical creatures? The _Prophet_ does a zoological column every Wednesday, as I'm sure you know. We could feature these - er - Bang-Ended Scoots."

"Blast-Ended Skrewts," Hagrid said eagerly. "Er - yeah, why not?"

Phoebe had sinking feeling about this; no good could come of this interview. But there was way of communicating with Hagrid, who was already setting up a date and time to meet with the reporter.

Then the bell rang up at the castle, signaling the end of the lesson.

"Until Friday night, then, Hagrid!" Skeeter said as she hurried off.

"She'll twist everything her says," Harry said under his breath.

"Just as long as he didn't import those Skrewts illegally or anything," said Phoebe desperately. She exchanged a look with Hermione - it was exactly the sort of thing Hagrid might do.

"Hagrid's been in loads of trouble before, and Dumbledore's never sacked him," said Ron consolingly. "Worst that can happen is Hagrid'll have to get rid of the Skrewts. Sorry, did I say worst? I meant best."

Phoebe, James, Harry, Ashlyn and Hermione laughed, and, feeling slightly more cheerful, went off to lunch.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe did _not_ enjoy double Divination that afternoon, and spent most of her time writing enchanted notes to Ashlyn who sat on the other side of the room with Draco.

Most of the lesson was spent working on star charts and predictions, but the enchanted notes seemed much more amusing seeing as both girls were finding it rather difficult to contain their giggles as they criticized not only Trelawney's teaching techniques but also her dress sense.

"_Did she dress in the dark?"_ Ashlyn asked.

_"I don't know,"_ Phoebe scribbled. "_But it looks like her role model is a giant bug or something."_

Professor Trelawney, who had been so pleased with the pair of them when they had been predicating horrific disasters, quickly became irritated as they sniggered through her explanation of the various ways in which Pluto could disrupt everyday life.

"I would _think_," said Professor Trelawney, in a mystic whisper that did not conceal her obvious annoyance, "that _some_ of us might be a little less _frivolous_ had they seen what I have seen, during my crystal-gazing last night. As I sat here, absorbed in my needlework, the urge to consult the orb overpowered me. I arose, I settled myself before it, and I gazed into its crystalline depths...and what do you think I saw gazing back at me?"

_"An ugly old bat in outsize specs?"_ Ashlyn scribbled to Phoebe.

The elemental fought hard to keep her face straight.

"_Death_, my dears,"

Parvati and Lavender both put their hands over their mouths, looking horrified.

"Yes," said Professor Trelawney, nodding impressively. "It comes, ever closer, it circles overheard like a vulture, ever lower...ever lower over the castle..."

She stared pointedly at Phoebe, who looked indifferent. "I'm going to die?" she asked. "Given my track record, anyone could have predicted that."

James sniggered from beside her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe rolled her eyes as she perched herself on the banister of the Marble staircase. "It would be a bit more impressive if she hadn't already done it so many times in the past," she protested, as James and Ashlyn sat on the stairs in front of her. "And besides, I'm a poor target to choose! I have _nearly_ died three times in the last few years! I have a track record for that sort of thing!"

Ashlyn and James nodded in agreement. "That is true," they murmured.

"What's true?" Esmee asked, as she entered through the main doors with both her older and younger brothers.

"My track record," Phoebe answered.

"What about it?" Philip asked.

Phoebe smiled. "We've just come from Divination," she answered, "and Trelawney reckons she has seen Death in her crystal ball, a death that includes me."

"Well, that doesnt necessarily mean it will be your death," Esmee pointed out. "Maybe someone you are related too? Or someone you are particularly close too."

"Mhmm," Phoebe looked thoughtful. "Considering that the Triwizard Tournament is on, i'm going to say either Blake or Harry. More specifically; Harry!"

"Why, more specifically, Potter?" Ashlyn asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "Because he gets into more dangerous situations than Blake does," she answered. "I mean, don't get me wrong Blake has had his fair share of dangerous situations, but nothing like Harry."

"As Brooks ever faced You-Know-Who?" Philip asked,

Phoebe shook her head.

"A Basilisk?"

Again, Phoebe shook her head.

"A mass-murderer?"

Phoebe giggled. "Nope."

"Then he has nothing on, Potter," Ashlyn pointed out. "What exactly has Blake done? You know, besides beating up Flint and threatening all Slytherin's that come in contact with you?"

Phoebe looked thoughtful. "Well, there is that time when I was a kid..." she said, "and I started that stampede -"

"A stampede?" James and Ashlyn exclaimed, earning some looks from around the Entrance Hall.

"Yeah, uncontrollable magic,"

Ashlyn quickly scribbled something onto a piece of parchment in her hand. _Uncontrollable Wizarding magic or Uncontrollable elemental magic?_

Phoebe looked down at the enchanted parchment in her hand, and then back up at Ashlyn, she blinked twice to answer the question. It had been uncontrollable elemental magic that had caused the stampede, but she had been at the centre of it all, and resulted in Blake having to have to save her!

"What happened?" Esmee asked, settling down beside the Gryffindor.

"It's a long story," Phoebe answered.

"Shorten it," Philip said. "We've got nothing better to do; you don't have lessons do you?"

Phoebe shook her head. Divination was the last lesson, and she couldn't think of a reasonable explanation on how to get out of this. "OK, um...well, where do I start? It was the summer of 1988, Blake, Jackson and I were out on the plains behind Blackheart Manor; I was eight, Jackson had just turned nine and Blake was eleven...he had just come home from his second year at Durmstrang -"

"Whoa, wait a minute?" James interrupted. "_Second_ year? They start when they are ten?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "It is how Krum is eighteen and still in school. At Durmstrang you start school earlier and finish later. It is like the reverse of Hogwarts."

Her friends nodded in understanding, and Philip motioned for Phoebe to continue.

"Well, like I said, we were out on the plains, and as you all know I have a thing for purebred horses -" they all nodded "- well I wanted to go riding. Jackson and Blake didn't think it would be a good idea for me to go into the stables alone, without supervision and tried to stop me, but I didn't listen. I had a..." she paused, as she searched for a better word to explain her situation, "power outage in the middle of the stable, and caused a stampede!"

"Why didn't you listen?" Terence asked, speaking to Phoebe for the first time since Skeeter's article a few months previous.

"I was a spoilt eight-year-old who had just found out that she was going to be the heiress to the Blackheart fortune, I thought I could do what I wanted," Phoebe answered. "I was wrong. It was then I realized that I couldn't let my status rule me, because people were going to get hurt otherwise."

"Did Blake get hurt?" James asked.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, it was Blake getting hurt that snapped me out of the spoilt little rich kid demeanor I had fallen into," she explained. "It is because of Blake, that I am the way I am today. If he hadn't saved my life when I was a kid, I wouldn't have realized that life isn't all about me and the world doesnt stop just because I am hurt or upset. That's what I used to think as a child, I used to think if I cried I would get my own way - which I usually did - but I guess that is the number one downside to being an only child."

Her friends found that they couldn't agree with that, because neither one of them understood the concept of being an only child. Nearly all of them had siblings - even Ashlyn, who had been raised by the Pucey's rather than her real parents.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I think this is the best thing that could have happened to those elves, you know," said Hermione, as she, Harry and Ron climbed the steps into the Entrance Hall. "Dobby coming to work here, I mean. The other elves will see how happy he is, being free, and slowly it'll dawn on them that they want that, too!"

"Let's hope they don't look too closely at Winky," said Harry.

"Oh, she'll cheer up," said Hermione. "Though she seems a whole lot better than she did at the World Cup, I wonder what Phoebe said to see her realize that she is better off without that Crouch man?"

Ron shrugged. "She still seems to love him," he said thickly (he had just started on a cream cake)

"Doesn't think much of Bagman, though, does she?" said Harry. "Wonder what Crouch says at home about him?"

"Probably says he's not a very good Head of Department," said Hermione, "and let's face it...he's got a point, hasn't he?"

By now the Golden Trio had reached the Entrance Hall, and stopped at the foot of the marble staircase where Phoebe and the others were sitting.

"Who's got a point?" Phoebe asked, butting into the Golden Trio's conversation, "and where have you been?"

"We've been in the kitchens," Hermione answered. "With the House-elves -"

Phoebe perked up. "Oh, yeah, did you see Winky?"

The Bookworm nodded. "She still seems upset over the whole Crouch incident, doesn't she?"

"She's getting better," Phoebe smiled. "She did start drinking. It was horrible to watch, and I hated seeing some of the things she did to herself under the influence, so I told her that I didn't like it, and she stopped."

"You mean you 'ordered' her to stop?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, does Winky look like my house-elf to you?" she asked. "I don't own house-elves, Hermione. I simply told Winky that drinking was only a short way of prolonging the feelings of betrayal that she felt from Crouch, and the faster way of killing oneself. I also told her that she didn't deserve to punish herself because she hadn't done anything wrong that night of the World Cup that I believed her when she said she hadn't cast the spell - simply because House-elves do not need a wand to use magic - and she stopped drinking..."

"So, you basically became her friend," Ashlyn said. "Rather than her Master."

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Anyway, what was you saying about Bagman?" she added to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

Harry shook his head. "Nothing much, only Winky doesn't seem to like him very much, we were just wondering what Crouch could have said about him at home that made Winky detest him so much."

"I simple said that Crouch probably complained about the way Bagman run his Department at the Ministry," Hermione said.

"Mum, complains about him too," she agreed. "So, I agree with her -" she pointed at Hermione, "Crouch probably does complain about Bagman to his servants."

"Hermione," Phoebe supplied her friend. "Her name is Hermione."

Esmee nodded. "I agree with Hermione."

The bookworm smiled smugly.

"I'd still rather work for Bagman than old Crouch," said Ron. "At least he's got a sense of humor."

"Don't let Percy hear you saying that," Phoebe said, smiling slightly.

"Yeah, well, Percy wouldn't want to work for anyone with a sense of humor, would he?" said Ron, frowning as Phoebe nicked his chocolate éclair. "Percy wouldn't recognize a joke if it danced naked in front of him wearing Dobby's tea-cozy."

"If it was wearing Dobby's tea-cozy," James added. "Then it wouldn't be naked."

Ron scowled. "Shut up, Black!"

The others laughed.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, January 16, 2012 at 6:31am**


	70. Chapter 70

**Author's Note: **Preparations for the Yule Ball...who will be whose date? What will happen? Mhmm...Find out soon.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you too: **Xawa, MiraclesHappen94** and** Dragon0328** for adding this story to their Favourite Story alerts. Very much appreciated.

**In Responses: **First too **Fan of Fics: **Harry is just going to have to deal with rejection like every lad that Phoebe has been close to and let down. It's not her fault is she is in love and he can't handle it. I figured that we needed some comedy after everything that has happened? Yes. No. Well, I thought so =) - Yay. Winky. I love that House-elf. I figured that because Harry has Dobby, Phoebe needs someone fun to be around when the world looks bleak, hopefully things will start to brighten up after Christmas (fingers crossed)

**10th Squad 3rd Seat:** Haha. She is like a boy magnet, isn't she? Yup. Phoebe realized the consequences of being spoiled at a young age, good thing too or she would have turned out like her Brother, and we don't need another one of them running around, do we?

**Vivi Fontaine: **Yay. Someone who wants Phoebe/Terence. Lol. Thought I had lost you all after the Phoebe/Harry kiss.

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** Glad you enjoyed the *awesome* lines. Lol. Jackson tease Phoebe? It is what best friends do, as stated; he has known her longer than everyone - even Blake.

* * *

><p>"Potter! Weasley! <em>Will you pay attention!"<em>

Professor McGonagall's irritated voice cracked like a whip through the Transfiguration class on Thursday, and Harry and Ron both jumped and looked up.

It was the end of the lesson; they had finished their work, the guinea-fowl they had been changing into a guniea-pig had been shut away in a large cage on Professor McGonagall's desk; they had copied down their homework from the blackboard ('Describe, with examples, the ways in which Transfiguring Spells must be adapted when performing Cross-Species Switches').

The bell was due to ring at any moment, and Harry and Ron, who had been having a sword fight with a couple of Fred and George's fake wands at the back of the class, looked up, Ron now holding a tin parrot, and Harry, a rubber haddock.

"Now Potter and Weasley have been kind enough to act their age," said Professor McGonagall, with an angry look at the pair of them as the head of Harry's haddock drooped and fell silently to the floor - Ron's parrot's beak had severed it moments before - "I have something to say to you all."

She looked around at the class, all of which were - now - listening patiently for her to continue.

"The Yule Ball is approaching - a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests. Now, the ball will be open only to fourth-years and above - although you may invite a younger student if you wish -"

Lavender Brown let out a shrill giggle. Parvati Patil nudged her hard in the ribs, her face working furiously as she, too, fought not to giggle. They both looked around at Harry.

Professor McGonagall ignored them.

"Dress robes will be worn," Professor McGonagall continued, "and the ball will start at eight o'clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight, in the Great Hall. Now then -"

Professor McGonagall stared deliberately around the class.

"The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to - er - let our hair down," she said, in a disapproving voice.

Lavender giggled harder than ever, with her hand pressed hard against her mouth to stifle the sound. Phoebe glared at her room-mate, although she could see what was funny this time; Professor McGonagall, with her hair in a tight bun, looked as though she had never let her hair down in any sense.

"But that does _not_ mean," Professor McGonagall went on, "that we will be relaxing the standards of behavior we expect from Hogwarts students. I will be most seriously displeased if a Gryffindor student embarrasses the school in any way."

The bell rang, and there was the usual scuffle of activity as everyone packed their bags and swung them onto their shoulders.

Professor McGonagall called above the noise. "Potter - a word, if you please."

Phoebe, Hermione and Ron paused and turned to Harry, assuming that he was being held back because of the headless rubber haddock; they wished him luck and filed out of the room with the rest of the class.

Once outside, Phoebe broke away from Hermione and Ron, and hurried off down the corridor with James and Ashlyn.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe giggled as she reached instinctively for her sweatshirt as Ashlyn's screams echoed from outside of the dance studio. "Cold?" she asked, knowing full well that was the reason why Ashlyn was now cursing furiously.

"No," the Slytherin bit out, rubbing her hands up and down her forearms and shivering. "Freezing!"

The elemental grinned and rolled her eyes, picked up her friends' sweatshirt and threw it across the studio at her.

"Thanks," Ashlyn smiled. "So, are you going to the Yule Ball?"

"If someone asks me," Phoebe answered. "You?"

Ashlyn shrugged. "If someone asks me," she repeated.

"Anyone particular in mind that you want to go with?"

"No," Ashlyn answered. "Although I am going to guess that you want Terence to take you, am I right?"

Phoebe smiled guiltily. "Why don't you ask Adrian?"

"Uh...because he is my friend?"

"So?"

"It would be awkward,"

Phoebe blinked. "You have been friends with this guy your whole life," she pointed out. "I think I would rather go with Blake or Jackson, rather than someone I don't know..."

"Why don't you then?"

"Because neither of them have asked me!"

Ashlyn rolled her eyes. "You ask them!"

"I will," Phoebe nodded.

"Really?" Ashlyn asked

"Yeah. When you ask Adrian,"

Ashlyn groaned. "You are insufferable!" she exclaimed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The last week of term became increasingly boisterous as it progressed. Rumors about the Yule Ball were flying everywhere, though Phoebe didn't believe half of them - for instance, that Dumbledore had bought eight hundred barrels of mulled mead from Madam Rosemerta. It seemed to be a fact, however, that he had booked the Weird Sisters for the night.

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that they are called the 'Weird Sisters'," Phoebe said, "and they are a group of men!"

Ashlyn giggled. "Yeah, when Adrian first told me about them, I automatically assumed that they were all female."

"Well, you tend too," Phoebe pointed out. "I mean 'sister' is a title for a female."

They were sitting at their usual table in Charms, some of the teachers, like Professor Flitwick, gave up trying to teach them much when their minds were so clearly elsewhere; instead he allowed them to play games, and spent most of the time talking with Harry about the perfect Summoning Charm he had used during the first task.

Other teachers were not so generous. Nothing would ever deflect Professor Binns, for example, from ploughing on through his notes on goblin rebellions - as Binns hadn't let his own death stand in the way of continuing to teach, they supposed a small thing like Christmas wasn't going to put him off. It was amazing how he could make even bloody and vicious goblin riots sound as boring.

Professor McGonagall and Moody kept them working until the very last second of their classes too, and Snape, of course, would no sooner let them play games in their class than adopt Harry. Staring nastily around at them all, he informed then that he would be testing them on poison antidotes during the last lesson of term.

"Evil, he is," James said bitterly that night in the Gryffindor common room. "Springing a test on us on the last day. Ruining the last bit of term with a whole load of revision."

"Mmm...You're not exactly straining yourself, though, are you?" said Phoebe, looking at him over the top of her Potions notes. James was busy building a card castle out of his Exploding Snap pack - a much more interesting past-time than with Muggle cards, because of the chance that the whole thing would blow up at any second.

"It's Christmas, Phoebe," said Blake lazily; he was reading _Flying with the Salem Warriors_ in an armchair near the fire.

Phoebe looked severely over at him, too. "Don't encourage him! And I'd have thought you'd be doing something constructive, Blake!"

"Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know," Phoebe said sarcastically. "How about that Egg? You know, sometimes you're as bad as Harry!"

Blake rolled his eyes. "Come on, Phe, we've got 'til February the twenty-fourth," he said.

He had hidden the Golden Egg under his bed in the Durmstrang ship, and hadn't opened it since the celebration party after the first task. There were still two and a half months to go until he needed to know what all the screechy wailing meant, after all.

"But it might take weeks to work it out!" said Phoebe. "You're going to look a real idiot if everyone else knows what the next task is and you don't!"

"That won't happen,"

"How do you know?"

"Because I know as soon as you and Potter figure it," Blake answered. "You will tell me!"

Phoebe glared. "Oh, I will, will I?" she asked.

Blake nodded. "We are best friends, aren't we?"

"You are supposed to figure these clues out by yourself!"

"Yeah, like you are able to restraint yourself from helping," Jackson sniggered.

Phoebe glared harder. "What if I decide not to help Harry? What are you going to do then?"

Blake shrugged. "Haven't thought about that," he answered. "Besides, we all know that will never happen. You wouldn't watch two of your friends go headfirst into a task that they know nothing about, would you?"

"Considering it,"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Hogwarts staff, demonstrating a continued desire to impress the visitors from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, seemed determined to show the castle at its best this Christmas. When the decorations went up, Phoebe noticed that they were the most stunning she had yet seen inside the school.

Everlasting icicles had been attached to the banisters of the marble staircase; the usual twelve Christmas trees in the Great Hall were bedecked with everything from luminous holly berries to real, hooting, golden owls, and the suits of armour had all been bewitched to sing carols whenever anyone passed them.

It was quite something to hear 'Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful' sung from an empty helmet that only knew half the words. Several times, Filch the caretaker had to extract Peeves from inside the armour, where he had taken to hiding, filling in the gaps in the song with lyrics of his own invention, all of which were very rude.

And still Phoebe didn't have a date for the ball, but she wasn't anywhere as nervous as Harry and Ron, who were still looking for the 'perfect-girl' to take to the ball.

"Phoebe," Warrington smirked as he caught up with her, he had seen her leaving the Gryffindor table a few minutes ago without her friends, and figured this would be the perfect time to ask her something he had been trying to ask for a week now. "Do you have a date to the ball?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "Ashlyn and I were planning on going together if we couldn't get dates."

"Didn't realize you swung that way,"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Any reason you followed me up here, Warrington?" she asked.

"Uh, actually, there is a reason," Warrington nodded.

"And...?"

Warrington narrowed his eyes slightly, before shaking himself and starting again. "So, want to come to the ball with me?"

Phoebe gave Warrington an appraising sort of look, she had waited this long for Terence to ask her, but it seemed that that was not going to happen anytime soon, plus she and Ashlyn didn't really have a plan to go to the dance together, both were still waiting patiently for someone to ask them. "The ball? With you?"

"Yeah,"

A small grin slid onto her face as she agreed, "All right, then,"

"Goodnight, Phoebe," Warrington said as he swooped down and kissed her cheek.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When Phoebe finally returned to the Gryffindor common room that evening - after a little detour to her godmother's office - she was surprised to find a small crowd of people sitting around Ron murmuring in low whispers. "What's happened?" she asked, joining them and taking in Ron's ashen-faced look.

"He just as Fleur Delacour out," Ginny answered. She looked as though she was fighting back a smile, but she kept patting Ron's arm sympathetically.

"You _what_?" said Phoebe.

"I don't know what made me do it!" Ron gasped again. "What was I playing at? There were people - all around - I've gone mad - everyone watching! I was just walking past her in the Entrance Hall - she was standing there talking to Diggory - and it sort of came over me - and I asked her!"

Ron moaned and put his face in his hands. He kept talking, though the words were barely distinguishable. "She looked at me like I was a sea slug or something. Didn't even answer. And then - I dunno - I just sort of came to my senses and ran for it."

"She's part Veela," said Harry. "You were right - her grandmother was one. It wasn't your fault. I bet you just walked past when she was turning on the old charm for Diggory and got a blast of it - but she was wasting her time. He's going with Cho Chang."

Ron looked up.

"I asked her to go with me just now," said Harry dully, "and she told me."

Ginny had suddenly stopped smiling.

"This is mad," said Ron, "we're the only ones left who haven't got anyone - well, except Neville. Hey - guess who he asked? _Hermione_!"

"_What?_" said Harry, completely distracted by this startling news.

"Yeah, I know!" said Ron, some of the colour coming back into his face as he started to laugh. "He told me after Potions! Said she'd always been really nice, helping him out with work and stuff - but she told him that she was already going with someone. Ha! As if! She just didn't want to go with Neville...I mean, who would?"

"Don't," said Ginny, annoyed. "Don't laugh -"

Just then Hermione climbed in through the portrait hole. "Why weren't you two at dinner?" she said, coming over to join them.

"Because - oh shut up laughing, you two - because they've both just been rejected by girls they asked to the ball!" said Phoebe.

That shut Harry and Ron up.

"Thanks a bunch, Pheebs," said Ron sourly.

"All the good-looking ones taken, Ron?" said Hermione loftily. "Eloise Midgen starting to look quite pretty now, is she? Well, I'm sure you'll find someone _somewhere_ who'll have you."

But Ron was staring at Hermione as though suddenly seeing her in a whole new light. "Hermione, Neville's right - you _are_ a girl!"

"Oh, well spotted!" she said acidly.

"Well - you can come with one of us!"

"No, I can't," snapped Hermione.

"Oh, come on," he said impatiently, "we need partners, we're going to look really stupid if we haven't got any, everyone else has..."

"I can't come with you," said Hermione, now blushing, "because I'm already going with someone."

"No, you're not!" said Ron. "You just said that to get rid of Neville!"

"Oh, _did I_?" said Hermione, her eyes flashed dangerously. "Just because it has taken _you_ three years to notice, Ron, doesn't mean no one _else_ has spotted I'm a girl!"

Ron stared at her. Then he grinned again.

"OK, OK, we know you're a girl," he said. "That do? Will you come now?"

"I've already told you!" Hermione said, very angrily. "I'm going with someone else!"

And she stormed off towards the girls' dormitories again.

"She's lying," said Ron flatly, watching her go.

"She's not," said Phoebe.

"Who is it, then?" said Ron sharply.

"I'm not telling you, it's her business," said Phoebe.

"Right," said Ron, who looked extremely put out, "this is getting stupid. Ginny, _you_ can go with Harry, and you can come with me, Phe -"

Phoebe glared at Ron. "Hold your horses, Weasley, we're not going anywhere with you! Ginny and I already have dates!"

"Who?" Harry and Ron asked.

"I'm going with - with Aiden," said Ginny. "He asked me earlier, and I thought...well...I'm not going to be able to go otherwise, I'm not in fourth year." She looked extremely miserable. "I think I'll go and have dinner," she said, and she got up and walked off to the portrait hole, her head bowed.

Ron and Harry turned on Phoebe.

"So, who are you going with, then?" Harry asked.

"Give me one good reason why I should tell you?" Phoebe asked. "You'll only blow a hole in the roof!"

Ron glared. "It's not a Gryffindor, is it?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "For your information, it's not. But I hardly see how that has anything to do with it!"

"A Slytherin?"

Phoebe glared. "It's Warrington, if you must know!"

"Warrington?" Ron snapped. "Why on earth would you go with him?"

"Because he asked me," Phoebe answered.

"Why would you say, yes? He's a Slytherin!"

Phoebe shrugged. "I'm very well aware of that Ron,"

"So, you're saying that you'd rather go with a Slytherin," Ron said, "than me or Harry?"

"That is _exactly_ what I am saying,"

Ron paused for a second, before saying; "He's probably using you!"

Phoebe bristled angrily. "How dare you!" she hissed. "Besides, I can take care of myself!"

"Doubt it. He's way too old, and a Slytherin to boot! You're fraternizing with the enemy!"

"What? Is that what you think?"

"Yeah," Ron nodded; oblivious to the lengths he was pushing Phoebe. "That's what I think."

"Well, if you don't like it, you know what the solution is, don't you?"

"Oh, yeah?" Ron asked. "What's that?"

"Next time there's a ball, realize that you actually have female friends and ask them before someone else does, and not as a last resort!"

"Well," he spluttered, looking thunderstruck, "well - that just proves - completely off the point -"

Phoebe glared. "I know what the _point_ is, Ronald Weasley! You're just jealous that Hermione, Ginny and I have people - from other houses and countries - that are interested in us! Like Hermione said, it's not our fault that it has taken _you _three years to realize that we are females!"

Ron mouth soundlessly like a goldfish out of water as Phoebe turned on her heel and stormed up the girls' staircase. Ron turned to look at Harry.

"What's got into them?" he demanded.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated**** Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 4:39am**


	71. Chapter 71

**Author's Note: **This is Part 1 of the Yule Ball chapter. Part 2 will be posted tomorrow evening.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, KanKananime123, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine **and **Fan of Fics.**

There will be no **in responses** tonight.

* * *

><p>Despite the heavy load of homework that the fourth-years had been given for the holidays, Phoebe was in no mood to work when term ended, and spent the week leading up to Christmas enjoying herself as fully as possible along with everyone else.<p>

Gryffindor Tower was hardly less crowded now than during term-time; it seemed to have shrunk slightly, too, as its inhabitants were being so much rowdier than usual. Fred and George had had a great success with their Canary Creams, and for the first couple of days of the holidays, people kept bursting into feathers all over the place.

Before long, however, all the Gryffindor's had learnt to treat food anyone else offered them with extreme caution, in case it had Canary Cream concealed in the centre, and George confided in Phoebe that he and Fred were working on developing something else. This made her remember never to accept as much as a crisp from the twins in future.

Snow was falling thickly upon the castle and its grounds now. The pale blue Beauxbatons carriage looked like a large, chilly, frosted pumpkin next to the iced gingerbread house that was Hagrid's cabin, while the Durmstrang ship's portholes were glazed with ice, the rigging white with frost.

The house-elves down in the kitchen were outdoing themselves with a series of rich, warming stews and savory puddings, and only Fleur Delacour seemed to be able to find anything to complain about.

"It is too 'eavy all zis 'Ogwarts food," She said grumpily, as they left the Great Hall one evening.

"Come on, Fleur," said Esmee Higgs. "It's not that bad. So, it's not as light as what we have at Beauxbatons, but it is rather warm and filling, especially during these cold nights."

Fleur shook her head. "At zis rate," she replied. "I will not fit into my dress robes."

Phoebe grinned as she saw Esmee roll her eyes and follow Fleur out into the cold atmosphere outside of the castle.

"She really thinks a lot of herself, that one, doesn't she?" Hermione asked, linking arms with Phoebe and starting up the marble staircase.

"She's OK," Phoebe answered. "When she wants to be. It could be worse; she could be suffering from Bulimia or some other sort of eating disorder..."

Hermione inclined her head. "True. Very true."

"Hermione - who are you going to the ball with?" said Ron.

He kept springing this question on her, hoping to startle her into a response by asking it when she least expected it. However, Hermione merely frowned and said, "I'm not telling you, you'll just make fun of me."

"No, he won't," said Phoebe. "Because I will knock him senseless if he says anything!"

"You are joking, Weasley?" said Malfoy, behind them. "You're not telling me someone's asked _that_ to the ball? Not the long-molared Mudblood?"

Harry and Ron both whipped around, but Phoebe merely rolled her eyes turned around and said, "Don't be jealous, Draco," she smiled. "Just because you are stuck with Parkinson, doesn't mean the rest of us have to stoop to such a low level."

James sniggered as Parkinson shrieked in insult.

"Who are you going with then?" she demanded.

"Why should I tell you?" Phoebe asked. "Just because you and _Dragon_ make an obvious date choice, does not mean that the rest of us will be open-mouthed about our date choices! Some of us actually like privacy!"

Parkinson grinned. "Is that your way of telling us your dateless, Blackheart?"

Ashlyn snorted. "Phoebe? Dateless? Good one." she nodded.

"So, you do have a date?"

"Of course I have a date!"

"Then who is it?" Draco demanded.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Calm down, Dragon. You don't get to play the 'over-protective' brother gig; you don't know me well enough to do so!"

"And if you must know who her date is," James piped up. "It is Warrington, he asked her - Ouch!"

James yelped and jumped backwards at the throbbing sensation in his foot. Phoebe had trodden on his foot in hopes of shutting him up, but the damage had already been done. Draco's face had twisted into something indescribable, and Terence - who had passed at that exact moment - paused, stared at Phoebe with a mixture of hurt and jealousy, before moving on into the Entrance Hall.

"Thanks a lot, James," said Phoebe snappily. "Just help Draco ruin my life any more than _he_ already has!"

"Sorry," James said sheepishly, but Phoebe had already turned toe and left the Great Hall, her head hung low, as for no one to notice the tears that had appeared. Terence's rejection and refusal to acknowledge her still hurt.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe awoke very suddenly on Christmas Day. Wondering what had caused her abrupt return to consciousness; she opened her eyes, and saw something very large, round, brown eyes staring back at her in the darkness, so close to were almost nose to nose.

"_Winky!_" Phoebe yelled, scrambling away from the elf so fast that she almost fell out of bed. "Don't do that!"

"Winky is sorry, miss!" squeaked Winky, anxiously, jumping backwards with her long fingers over her mouth. "Winky is only wanting to wish Phoebe Blackheart 'Merry Christmas' and bring her a present, miss. Phoebe Blackheart has been a kind and generous friend to Winky. Winky only wanted to say thank you."

Phoebe smiled, her breathing was still rather rapid, but she couldn't help but coo at the innocent nature of the house-elf in front of her. "Aw, thank you, Winky," she smiled. "I'm touched. I actually have something for you - it's not clothes -" she added quickly, seeing the tears well instantly in Winky's eyes. "It's actually a pendent."

Phoebe pulled back the hangings around her four-poster. Her yell had awoken Hermione, Lavender and Parvati. All of them were peering through the gaps in their own hangings, heavy eyed and tousle haired.

"Someone attacking you, Phoebe?" Parvati asked sleepily.

"No, it's just Winky," Phoebe muttered. "Go back to sleep."

"Nah...Presents!" said Parvati, spotting the large pile at the foot of her bed. Lavender and Hermione decided that now they were awake they might as well get down to some present-opening too. Phoebe turned back to Winky, who was now standing nervously next to Phoebe's bed, still looking worried that she had upset Phoebe.

"Can Winky give Phoebe Blackheart her present?" she squeaked tentatively.

"'Course you can," said Phoebe. "Just let me get yours and we can exchange,"

She hurried around to the bedside table she shared with Hermione, pulled open the single drawer in the top and removed a horizontal shaped box from the depths. It was wrapped in bright blue wrapping paper, with a deep purple bow on the top. There was a card attached to the bow, which read:

_To Winky,_

_Merry Christmas._

_Love, Phoebe._

"Here," the elemental smiled hopping back up onto the bed and patting the space in front of her for the house-elf.

Tentatively, Winky hopped back up onto the bed, took the present and stared at Phoebe with wide eyes.

"Go on," Phoebe smiled. "Open it."

Winky did as instructed, pulled the bow between her long fingers and watched as it slithered through there air like water, landing on the floor beneath her feet. She then carefully unwrapped the present as Phoebe watched with a persistent smile, it was like watching someone who had never received a present in her life, - and because Winky was a House-elf, that statement was probably true. -

Finally the present was unwrapped, the box was open and Winky was staring at the contents with a shocked expression. "Phoebe Blackheart shouldn't have..." she squeaked.

"You are my friend, Winky," said Phoebe. "And my friends deserve the best. Here, let me put it on you,"

Phoebe reached over and removed the silver chain from the box. At the end of the chain hung a beautifully crafted, flower-shaped, Artisian Pink Topaz Sterling silver pendant. Unclipping the chain, Phoebe carefully placed it around Winky's neck - it was a perfect fit - and then re-clipped it behind the House-elf's neck. "There! Perfect!"

"Thank you, Phoebe Blackheart!" Winky squeaked in delight, her eyes leaking with happiness. "Thank you!"

Hermione, who was opening her presents, looked up at smiled at the house-elf.

Winky now handed Phoebe two packages. One was rather large, the other small. Phoebe opened the small one first, and gasped as she recognized the charm bracelet instantly. It was a 9ct White gold Cubic Zirconia heart bracelet. "Winky!" she gasped. "It's beautiful!"

"Phoebe Blackheart has been terribly kind to Winky," the house-elf squeaked. "Winky believes that Phoebe Blackheart only deserves the best!"

Phoebe smiled as she closed the box. "I will wear it to the Yule Ball tonight," she said. "It will look beautiful next to my dress robes. What is this?" she added, picking up the second present. "Another from you?"

"Phoebe Blackheart has been awfully kind," Winky repeated.

"Oh, Winky," Phoebe smiled, opening the second present to reveal a red embroidered, short sleeve, gypsy top. "Thank you, Winky. I love them. Both of them. They are simply amazing."

A dull blush rose in Winky's cheeks. "Winky must go now, miss, we is already making Christmas dinner in the kitchens!" she said, and she hurried out of the dormitory, waving goodbye to the others as she passed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After opening presents, Phoebe and Hermione dressed and met up with James, Harry and Ron in the common room, and they went down to breakfast together.

Phoebe was wearing her gypsy top that Winky had given her for Christmas, along with her new denim super skinny jeans, that she had received from Blake, a silver foil edge to edge cardigan from Jackson and white ballerina pumps from Serefina.

They spent most of the morning in Gryffindor Tower, where everyone was enjoying their presents, then returned to the Great Hall for a magnificent lunch, which included at least a hundred turkeys and Christmas puddings, and large piles of Cribbage's Wizarding Crackers.

After Christmas dinner, Phoebe joined Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia - who were talking to Phoebe again - in the Entrance Hall, as they watched Harry, Ron, James, Blake, Jackson, Aiden and the Weasley twins snowball fight, and at five o'clock the four girls were calling for Hermione to join them as they prepared themselves to go get ready for the ball.

"Come on, Cinderella!" Phoebe grinned, linking arms with Hermione, when the bookworm got close. "Let's go get ready for the ball!"

Hermione and Amelia giggled, while Ashlyn and Sarah looked confused at the reference.

"What, you need three hours?" said James, looking at the girls incredulously, and paying for his lapse in concentration when a large snowball, thrown by Blake, hit him hard on the side of the head.

"Who're you going with?" Ron yelled after Hermione, but she merely waved, and disappeared with Phoebe back to the Gryffindor common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"As anyone seen my shoes?"

"Zip me up, will you?"

"Hurry up in there!"

"Where are my earrings?"

"Your shoes are under your bed!"

"Come on! I need to use the bathroom!"

It was chaos in the girls' dormitories, which was saying a lot considering there was only four girls occupying it. But all four girls were now hurrying to prepare themselves for the night of a lifetime that was starting in less than hour.

"Lavender!" Phoebe yelled, banging on the bathroom door. "How long does it take you to put a little eye-shadow on? You're going to look like a clown!"

The door swung open and Lavender brown stepped out in her dress robes, in her hands she was clutching her make-up bag. "Excuse me for wanting to look presentable!"

"Presentable?" Phoebe asked. "You don't need make-up, Lav, you have natural beauty!"

"Oh, thank you," Lavender smiled, stepping around Phoebe and allowing her access to the bathroom.

Phoebe nodded, and scurried inside before anyone else beat her too it.

"Phoebe!" Hermione shouted from outside the door. "Can you help me with my hair?"

"Just a sec,"

"OK!"

Phoebe smiled as she quickly showered, wrapped her hair in a towel and wrapped a rather large fluffy one around her body. She then dried and dressed quickly into a pair of shorts and t-shirt, and left the bathroom to help Hermione. "Elegant bun, yes?"

"Yes,"

The elemental nodded, took out her wand and waved it several times over Hermione. The bookworm was sat with her back to the mirror as not to ruin the surprise. After what felt like hours, Phoebe announced she was finished and Hermione turned to look at her new hair-do.

"Oh...my..." Hermione breathed. "Phoebe...it's gorgeous!"

Lavender and Parvati were speechless.

"Could you do mine, Phoebe?" Parvati asked. "I'm only having a plait."

"Sure," Phoebe nodded. "Hop on..."

After Phoebe had done Parvati's hair, a long braid that stopped around her mid-back, with tressels hanging down the sides, she moved onto Lavender who had opted to leaving her's in hanging curls, Phoebe was left to dress and do her own hair. She had decided to put her hair up in a high ponytail and curl it so that it was a mass of wavy curls descending all around her face.

In Hermione's opinion she looked like the women from Greek Mythology.

"That is actually where I got the idea," Phoebe admitted sheepishly, as the Bookworm zipped up her dress robes from behind.

Once they were ready, the four Gryffindor girls left the comfort and safety of their dorm room, and went off to meet their dates.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Entrance Hall was packed with students too, all milling around waiting for eight o'clock, when the doors to the Great Hall would be thrown open. Those people who were meeting partners from different houses were edging through the crowd, trying to find each other. Parvati found her sister Padma, bid goodbye to her room-mates, and made her way down the marble staircase and over to where Harry and Ron were waiting.

Lavender smiled at Hermione and Phoebe, and then descended the marble staircase when she spotted Seamus in the throng of students with Dean Thomas and his date -Amanda Jones, of Hufflepuff.

"Oh, there's Viktor," Hermione murmured spotting the Seeker in the throng of students; he was accompanied by Blake and Jackson, both of whom had dates on their arms. "Is that...Esmee Higgs with Blake?"

"Where?" Phoebe asked, looking around the corner and soughing out her friends. "Oh, My God! It is! He didn't tell me that he had asked Esmee!"

Hermione smiled. "They look rather beautiful together," she said.

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed. "Perfect match. Oh! Here comes Fleur and -" her jaw dropped. "Roger Davis?"

"Who?" Hermione asked in confusion.

"Ravenclaw student," Phoebe answered. "He is captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Last I heard he was dating Chang."

"Where is Chang?"

"Over near the doors," Phoebe pointed. "With..."

Hermione frowned at her best friend as she fell silent. "Phoebe?"

Phoebe swallowed hard as she willed herself not to cry. _**Phoebe! Control yourself! You will spoil you make-up!**_ She thought furiously, blinking back the tears.

"Pheebs, I can't see from here," said Hermione. "Who is Chang with?"

"Terence..."

The Bookworm gasped and strained to see the doors from her place on top of the marble staircase, she could make out Cho Chang in her dress robes, hanging off the arm of her date, but for the life of her she could not make out Terence Higgs from where she stood. Deciding to take Phoebe's word for it, Hermione touched her best friends shoulder and neatly rested her head against hers. "I'm sorry, Phoebe..."

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Me too."

**~*Phoebe*~**

A group of Slytherin's came up the steps from their dungeon common room. Malfoy was in front; he was wearing dress robes of black velvet with a high collar. Pansy Parkinson was clutching Malfoy's arm, in very frilly robes of pale pink. Crabbe and Goyle were both wearing green; they resembled moss-coloured boulders, and neither of them, James was pleased to see, had managed to find a partner.

_**And here I was worrying about not having a date myself,**_ he thought with a sigh of relief.

"What are you so relieved about?" Ashlyn asked as she approached her cousin. She had come up from the dungeons after Malfoy, she was wearing a gorgeous green taffeta ball gown with pickups to the skirt, a beaded detail to the bodice and a sweetheart neckline; and her arm was looped through - much to James's surprise - Adrian Pucey.

James shook his head. "Nothing. You look lovely," he complimented.

"Thank you," Ashlyn smiled. "Have you seen Phoebe and the others?"

"Not yet," James answered. "Sarah is meeting me right here. But she hasn't come up from the Hufflepuff common room yet. Amelia is already here, though."

"Where?" Ashlyn asked.

James pointed in the direction of one of their Hufflepuff friends.

"Is that -" Ashlyn started, a grin coming to her face as she saw who Amelia's date was.

"Yeah," James nodded. "Diggory."

Ashlyn giggled into her hand as she took in the sight of her friend. Amelia was wearing a beautiful funky short dress in lightweight satin with a single strap over her shoulder, with beading and organza trim, she looked amazingly beautiful.

"Lucky guy," Adrian commented. "Diggory."

James rolled his eyes and scanned the surrounding crowd for any signs of Phoebe or his date. A glimpse of orange caught his attention, and his throat caught in his throat as he realized that it was moving in his general direction. _**Oh, My God...**_ he thought as he realized that the person was in fact Sarah.

Sarah was wearing a beautiful quinceanera style dress with beading to the bodice and skirt, the gown was orange in colour and had a lace up corset in the back.

"Wow..." was all James could say as Sarah came to a stop in front of him. "You - er - look -"

Ashlyn giggled behind James's back, as Sarah smiled pleasantly at her date. "Thanks," she said, knowing full well what he was trying to say.

"Smooth," Ashlyn teased. "Real smooth."

"Shut up," James mumbled, his face burning with embarrassment.

The oak front doors opened, and everyone turned to look as the Durmstrang students entered with Professor Karkaroff. Krum, Blake and Jackson looked around as their headmaster entered with the rest of their school-mates and their dates, behind them came the Beauxbatons students and their dates.

Behind them, James could just make out the front lawn and saw that it had been magically transformed into a sort of grotto full of fairy lights - meaning hundreds of actual living fairies were sitting in the rose bushes that had been conjured there, and fluttering over the statues of what seemed to be Father Christmas and his reindeer.

"They look beautiful," Sarah whispered her gaze transfixed upon the two figures on top of the stairs.

Ashlyn, James and Adrian looked around and paused as Phoebe and Hermione stood on top of the staircase, nervously clutching one another's hands as they descended into the Hall.

Hermione was wearing dress robes made of floaty, periwinkle-blue material.

While Phoebe's dress was a pretty tulle gown with beaded full skirt, satin sash around her waist and a beaded bodice.

The whole hall had seemingly stopped to watch the two Gryffindor's arrive, all staring at them in unflattering disbelief.

It could have been down to the fact that none of them had expected to see Hermione looking as anything other than a bookworm, and the excess of the twenty or so books that she usually had slung over her back, and the basic black robes everyone was used to seeing really made a difference to her appearance.

However, they were used to the flashy dress style that Phoebe adorned, but no one had ever seen her in a dress before.

Krum and Warrington both looked speechless as Phoebe and Hermione reached the bottom step of the Marble Staircase, let one another go and approached their dates, consciously aware of the looks they were receiving from the rest of the Hall.

Then Professor McGonagall's voice called, "Champions over here please!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Professor McGonagall, who was wearing dress robes of red tartan, and had arranged a rather ugly wreath of thistles around the brim of her hat, told the champions to wait on one side of the doors while everyone else went inside; they were to enter the Great Hall in procession when the rest of the students had sat down.

Phoebe caught Blake's eye and offered him a smile as she and Warrington passed the four champions on their way into the Great Hall, once the doors were opened.

The first thing Phoebe noticed when she entered the Great Hall was that it had been covered in sparkling silver frost, with hundreds of garlands of mistletoe and ivy crossing the starry black ceiling. The house tables had vanished; instead, there were about a hundred smaller, lantern-lit ones, each seating about a dozen people.

When the Champions and their dates entered, the whole Hall applauded as they past, making their way up to the top table where the judges were sitting.

Dumbledore smiled happily as the champions approached the top table. Ludo Bagman, tonight in robes of bright purple with large yellow stars, was clapping as enthusiastically as any of the students; Madame Maxime, who had changed her usual uniform of black stain for a flowing gown of lavender silk, was applauding them politely.

Josephine Higgs, wore a beautiful sea blue dress and was smiling as she spotted her daughter with Blake, she applauded the champions politely as they drew nearer. But Crouch, Phoebe suddenly realized, was not there. The sixth seat at the table was occupied by Percy Weasley.

When the champions and their partners reached the table, Percy drew out the empty chair beside him, staring pointedly at Harry. Harry took the hint and sat down next to Percy, who was wearing brand-new, navy-blue dress robes, and an expression of great smugness.

"Wonder what he is grinning about?" Phoebe asked, turning to James.

James shrugged and pulled out Sarah's chair for her, before sitting down himself.

Warrington mimicked James's actions and Phoebe sat down, adjusted the seat to her liking as her date took a seat beside her. It was proper Etiquette for the women to sit first, and their 'escorts' or dates to sit second - but of course the host or hostess would sit first and that was Dumbledore.

There was no food as yet on the glittering golden plates, but small menus lying in front of each of them.

"Are we being waited on?" Amelia asked, looking uncertain.

"No," Phoebe answered.

"But then, how -"

The elemental smiled. "Just watch, Puffer,"

Amelia nodded and looked towards Dumbledore who was looking carefully at his own menu, and then said very clearly to his plate. "Pork chops!"

And pork chops appeared.

"Oh," Amelia said, as realization set in. "Cool!"

James, Phoebe, Sarah and Ashlyn exchanged smiles at their little Puffer Muggleborn.

Getting the idea, the rest of the Hall placed their orders with their plates, too. Phoebe glanced up at Hermione to see how she felt about this new and more complicated method of dining - surely it meant plenty of extra work for the house-elves? - But, for once, Hermione didn't seem to be thinking about SPEW. She was deep in talk with Krum, and hardly seemed to notice what she was eating.

"Vell, ve have a castle also, not as big as this, nor as comfortable, I am thinking," Krum was saying, and Phoebe realized that it was the first time that she had heard him speak in English - or at least attempted English - "Ve have just four floors, and the fires are lit only for magical purposes. But ve have grounds larger than these - though in vinter, ve have very little daylight, so ve are not enjoying them. But in summer ve are flying every day, over the lakes and the mountains!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

When all the food had been consumed, Dumbledore stood up and asked the students to do the same. Then, at a wave of his wand, the tables zoomed back along the walls, leaving the floor clear, and then he conjured a raised platform into existence along the right-hand wall. A set of drums, several guitars, a lute, a cello and some bagpipes were set upon it.

The Weird Sisters now trooped up onto the stage to wildly enthusiastic applause; they were all extremely hairy and dressed in black robes that had been artfully ripped and torn. They picked up their instruments, instantly struck up a slow, mournful tune; as the champions walked onto the brightly lit dance floor.

Harry carefully avoided catching anyone's eye (he could see Seamus and Dean waving at him, and spotted Phoebe and James sniggering out of view of the teachers), and next moment, Parvati had seized his hands, placed one around her waist, and was holding the other tightly in hers.

It wasn't as bad as it could have been, Harry thought, revolving slowly on the spot. He kept his eyes fixed over the heads of the watching people, and very soon many of them, too, had come onto the dance floor, so that the champions were no longer the centre of attention.

Warrington and Phoebe were waltzing nearby - and it was the first time, Harry realized, that he had actually seen Phoebe at home in her element. She moved, gracefully and fluidly like water across the dance floor, as Warrington twirled her effortlessly.

Harry heard the final, quavering note from the bagpipe with relief. The Weird Sisters stopped playing, applause filled the Hall once more, and Harry let go of Parvati at once. "Let's sit down, shall we?"

"Oh - but - this is a really good one!" Parvati said, as the Weird Sisters struck up a new song, which was faster.

"No, I don't like it," Harry lied, and he led her away from the dance floor.

When the song ended, Phoebe excused herself from Warrington and approached Harry and Ron at the same time as Hermione, both were pink in the face from dancing.

"Hi," said Phoebe.

"Hi," said Harry. Ron didn't say anything.

"It's hot, isn't it?" said Hermione, fanning herself with her hand. "Viktor's just gone to get drinks."

Ron gave her a withering look.

"_Viktor_?" he said. "Hasn't he asked you to call him _Vicky_ yet?"

Hermione looked at him in surprise.

"What's up with you?" she said.

"If you don't know," said Ron scathingly. "I'm not going to tell you."

Phoebe stared at him. "Oh, that's mature!" she commented. "How old are we again? Five?"

"He's a Durmstrang!" spat Ron. "He's from a competing school! Competing against Hogwarts! You - you're -"

"Choose your words carefully, Ronald!" Phoebe warned. "Wouldn't want to cause a scene right here in the Great Hall now, would you?"

Ron glared at her. "You're _both_ fraternizing with the enemy!"

"We already cleared that last night," Phoebe nodded, "and this reason, right now, is why Hermione and I went looking for dates outside of you and Harry! You see Ron, you are simply too - oh, what's the word - oh yeah - you're simply too _childish_ for us! Come along, Hermione, wouldn't want to keep our _mature_ dates waiting!"

And taking Hermione by the arm, Phoebe led her away.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Yeah, well - that's his story!" said Ron nastily. He had seemingly abandoned Harry and was now following Hermione all over the Great Hall, trying to provoke a reaction out of her.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" said Hermione.

"Obvious, isn't it? He's Karkaroff's student, isn't he? And he is Brook's friend! He knows who you hang around with...he's just trying to get closer to Harry - get inside information on him for Blake - or better yet, get near enough to jinx him -"

Hermione looked as though Ron had slapped her.

Phoebe, who had been alerted to the minor argument by Ashlyn, appeared behind Hermione and said, "For your information, Viktor hasn't asked Hermione _one single thing_ about Harry..."

Ron changed tack at the speed of light. "Then he's hoping she'll help him find out what the egg means!"

"Why would he care?" Phoebe asked. "It's Blake who is the champion! Viktor has no reason to worry about the egg!"

"How could you say something like that?" Hermione asked. "I want Harry to win the Tournament. Harry knows that!"

"You've got a funny way of showing it," sneered Ron.

"This whole Tournament's supposed to be about getting to know foreign wizards and making friends with them!" said Hermione.

"No, it isn't!" shouted Ron. "It's about winning!"

People were starting to stare at them.

Placing herself between Hermione and Ron, Phoebe gave Ron a shove backwards and watched as he tripped over his dress robes, hitting the ground with a thud.

"That's enough, Ronald! You've already ruined the night for Padma because you're jealous about Hermione being here with Krum!" Phoebe said. "You have no right to try and ruin the night for Hermione, too! Do yourself a favour, and quit while you are ahead!"

But Ron glared up at Phoebe, flew to his feet and raised his hand, but before he could strike the elemental someone grabbed his hand from behind, twisted his wrist behind his back and restrained him from any physical injury he may have caused.

"Phoebe," Aiden said. He had been the one to restrain Ron from hitting her. "Take Hermione and go! Now!"

Phoebe looked shocked; never before had Ron actually attempted to hit her.

She'd have to remember this...

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_I'm not completely sure what I make of this chapter...it may need re-editing...but I will leave that decision to you._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 3:24am**


	72. Chapter 72

**Author's Note: **The Yule Ball Part 2

**Dedications: **This chapter goes out to the following: **Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics** and **Ashu711**. Brilliant. Dependable and Loyal. Love you to bits.

**In responses:** Firstly to _**Vivi Fontaine:**_ I know! Right?

Secondly to: _**Fan of Fics**_: Amelia and Cedric are safe. No bother. But there will be a death. Ron? Yeah, maybe in the actual series he wouldn't go as far as hitting anyone, but he never trusted or liked Phoebe and since her revelation he has all forms of respect for her too. I mean, you can hate someone but still hold respect for them, and that is the type of relationship Ron and Phoebe had.

Thirdly to: _**Ashu711**_: Different story. Different themes. It probably is in Draco's area to hit a girl, but Phoebe is Draco's sister and he isn't about to turn around and hit her. Ron, however, is a different story because this has been bubbling up for some time.

**Shout outs:** Massive thank you too: **Kittymitten** for adding me to their Favourite Author alert.

**Kikila** for adding me to their Favourite Author and this story to their Favourite Story Alerts

**Ellabell** for adding me to their Favourite Author and this story to their Story Alert.

I am bringing you this chapter early, because I am up before the crack of dawn tomorrow morning and I am wrecked this evening. So I bid you all a goodnight and sweet dreams...and I will see you sometime Friday night or Saturday morning with the next chapter.

Byeeeeeee

=)

* * *

><p>After she had calmed Hermione down and walked her back up to the Gryffindor Tower, Phoebe returned to the Great Hall where the dance had started back up, Aiden was missing and so were Harry and Ron. Phoebe quickly located her friends and joined them at a table near the stage where the Weird Sisters were playing; they were conversing in low voices.<p>

"Phoebe," Ashlyn said quickly spotting her friend. "Where did you go?"

"I had to clean Hermione up," Phoebe answered. "She's a wreck."

"Where is she now?" Sarah asked.

"Bed."

Amelia nodded. "Best place for her," she commented. "Especially after what Weasley said."

"What was that all about?" James asked.

"Because Hermione is here with Krum,"

Ashlyn rolled her eyes. "You'd think she was Weasley's girlfriend or something! Where does he get off telling her who she can and can't date?"

Phoebe shrugged. "He accused me last night of fraternizing with the enemy,"

"_The enemy?"_ Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah exclaimed.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "Because I agreed to be Warrington's date! You'd think Ron was our father or something!"

James looked thoughtful. "What did he mean when he said 'It's all about winning'?"

"The Tournament. He reckons Viktor is getting close to Hermione, in hopes of finding out how far Harry has got with the Egg!"

"But Krum's not champion...?"

"That is what I said," Phoebe nodded. "And Hermione told him that this whole Tournament was about making friends and learning about other Wizarding world customs, and he went off the rails, saying it was all about winning! That's all Ron cares about if i'm truly honest."

Her friends fell silent. They couldn't believe Ron's actions and the reasons behind them.

"So, why did he go to strike you?" Adrian asked.

"Because I shoved him," Phoebe answered, "and told him to stop trying to ruin Hermione's night, like he ruined Padma's. Speaking of Weasley, where are he and Aiden?"

Ashlyn nodded towards the door leading off the Hall. "Dumbledore took them back there," she answered. "I think he is giving Ron a talking too, something about disorder and attempted physical injury to another student. I don't know why Aiden is back there, he was only helping."

"Probably needed to restrain, Weasley!"

"No, once the object of his rage his out of the room, Ron tends to calm down," Phoebe explains. "He just can't control himself when he opens his trap! Normally his rage is aimed at me, but because Hermione has shown an interest in Viktor and vice versa, he has taken it out on her! And he knows I won't stand for it!"

Her friends smiled and nodded in agreement.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At least an hour after the argument between Ron, Hermione and Phoebe; the elemental was pulled aside by her date.

"Walk with me," Warrington murmured to Phoebe, his hand falling carelessly to her waist.

Phoebe nodded and allowed him to lead her from the Hall.

Once outside in the courtyard, Warrington led Phoebe across the lawn towards the lake. The elemental frowned as she glanced over her shoulder, something was wrong. "Why are we out here?" she asked.

"I wanted to be somewhere that no one can hear us,"

"Hear us?" Phoebe asked.

Warrington nodded. "I'll explain everything, just keep walking."

With a small twinge of fear, Phoebe continued to allow him to push her in the direction of the Black Lake, although she couldn't help the glances over her shoulder as the castle started to disappear the further they went.

"Warrington..." she said, looking up at him. "Tell me now..."

"Not yet,"

"Now!"

Warrington ignored her and pushed her forward, past the lake.

Digging the heels of her feet into the bank, Phoebe ground to a halt and felt Warrington walk into the back of her.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"I'm not going any further," Phoebe stated. "Until you tell me what the hell it is we are doing out here!"

"I told you! I want to be somewhere that they can't hear us!"

"Who?"

"Your bloody bodyguards!"

Phoebe took an involuntary step backwards at the fierce look on her date's face. "Blake and Jackson?"

"Yes! Now follow me!"

He grabbed her wrist and tugged her along with him as he started walking again.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Taking a moment to glance around the Hall, Terence realized the reason behind his panic and worry was that Phoebe and Warrington had disappeared. _**Holy Salazar, where are they?**_ He found himself wondering as his mind flashed back to the conversation he had overheard between Warrington's friends.

_"Is Warrington getting anywhere with Blackheart?" Derrick nudging Bole as they descended the steps into the Dungeons._

_Bole shrugged. "He says it's all about patience."_

_"He has been dating her for the last two months," Derrick exclaimed. "How much longer is he going to have to wait before he can get her into bed?"_

_"Well, he can't just rush her! Blackheart is too smart to be fooled."_

_"But we both know he _wants_ to rush her,"_

_Bole chuckled. "I still say he is lucky that she gave him a chance," he stated. "Last I heard she was still beaten up over Higgs."_

_"Why he never took advantage of her is beyond me," Derrick pointed out._

_Bole nodded. "I heard that Warrington was aiming for tonight to be the perfect setting," he explained. "He just needs to get her alone, probably during the Yule Ball, when everyone is too busy in the Great Hall, he'll take her down to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and she'll have to submit herself."_

_"Lucky git," Derrick grumbled. "Blackheart is quite the looker, for a Gryffindor."_

_"I completely agree. And from the way Higgs and Black talk about her, sounds like she is a real sweetheart too, makes you wonder if she was miss-sorted, she has the nature of a Hufflepuff, naive, soft-hearted, easy manipulated..."_

_They both began to laugh._

Terence felt his blood boil at the description his former Quidditch team-mates had given Phoebe; there was no way she was naive or easy manipulated, soft-hearted and a total sweetheart, yes she was both of them and she probably would have fitted right in within Hufflepuff, but Phoebe was so much more than they would ever understand.

She may have had the nature of a Hufflepuff, but she had the bravery of a Lion, and that was why she had been placed in Gryffindor in the first place.

He had to find her. But who would have been willing to help?

_"Flint took quite a beating from Blake,"_

_"Serves him right."_

_"I agree,"_

_"He deserved that beating, especially after what he did to you."_

Terence's eyes widened as a conversation between Phoebe, James and Ashlyn surfaced in the back of his mind. _**Brooks.**_ That was who he needed to find, that was who he needed to help him find Phoebe and Warrington; but he also knew of the consequences of having Brooks and Stream help him, Warrington may or may not walk out of this alive once they found him.

_**It's a risk we'll have to take**_ he reminded himself. _**It is, after all for, Phoebe.**_

With a determined nod, Terence looked around the hall in search of the two Durmstrang students. He found them on the opposite side of the hall. Taking a deep breath, the Slytherin ventured closer, until he was close enough to hear their conversation.

"Where is Phoebe?" Jackson was saying. "It is not like her to just disappear."

"Did Harry and Weasley say anything?"

Jackson shook his head. "The last Harry saw of her, she was dancing with that Slytherin boy...what's his name?"

"Warrington," Terence supplied the answer.

Blake and Jackson looked around. "What do you want, Higgs?"

"I was looking for Phoebe,"

"Why? Want to hurt her more than you already have?" Blake snapped.

Terence shook his head. "No. I never meant to hurt her," he answered. "It just - it just took me by surprise."

Blake opened his mouth to argue, but Jackson cut him off. "So, why are you looking for Phoebe now? Is it because she is hanging out with that Warrington?"

Terence sighed in aggravation. "Yes," he answered. "But not in the misguided jealousy way that you have going on in your head."

"So, which way is it then?" Blake asked.

"Look, I know Warrington," Terence explained, "and I am telling you him spending all his time with Phoebe is not normal. Warrington doesn't do the whole 'interested' part of a relationship, him not caring is what makes him, _him!_"

Blake and Jackson exchanged looks. "So, what are you saying?"

"He's after something," Terence answered. "And after overhearing a conversation between Bole and Derrick, I think I know what."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"This whole thing has been planned from start to finish," Warrington was saying as he pulled her towards the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. "Spent too much time over the summer planning this, to allow two Durmstrang idiots to ruin it now! I knew it would have been difficult getting you alone, especially since you were dating Higgs, but after Malfoy spilled your little secret I knew it was only a matter of time..." a grin came over his face, a grin that made Phoebe's blood turn to ice water.

"What are you talking about?" Phoebe squeaked.

"It was rather tedious, you know," Warrington continued. "Dating you. I had to control myself every fucking day! I don't understand how Higgs managed to control himself around you, you're worse than a Veela! But now..." he chuckled darkly, "now I have you all alone, and there is nothing no one can do to stop me..."

Phoebe trembled slightly as he stopped. "Stop you?"

"From taking what I want," Warrington answered, his grip tightening on her wrist so she couldn't try and run away. "Don't you get it, Blackheart? Haven't you figured it out yet?"

Phoebe's heart dropped like a stone. "No..." she whispered, tears glistening in her eyes. "Please...you can't..."

"Don't worry," Warrington murmured, coming closer and pressing his lips to her hairline. Phoebe breathed in sharply. "It won't hurt..." he slid his hand over her shoulder, down her arm and to her waist. "You'll enjoy it..."

"I don't want it," Phoebe answered, her voice shaking.

A stinging sensation spread rapidly across her face. Warrington had just hit her. "I don't care if you don't want it!" he snarled. "I have waited too long for this moment, and you are going to be a good little Gryffindor and do exactly as you are told! Understand?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After explaining Warrington's ulterior motives for dating Phoebe, Terence, Blake and Jackson set off in search of the Elemental.

"Are you sure they said the Forbidden Forest?" Jackson asked, as he hurried across the grounds.

"I'm positive," Terence answered.

"Well, this Forest is huge!" Jackson complained. "They could be anywhere!"

Blake shook his head. "From the look of him, Warrington isn't that bright," he answered. "Something tells me that this whole plan was orchestrated by someone, and that someone wasn't Warrington!"

"He's just a puppet?" Jackson asked.

"Yes. A puppet in this sick and twisted plan to get Phoebe alone,"

"But where would he have taken her?"

Blake turned to Terence. "What exactly is in these trees? Anything dangerous?"

"It's the _Forbidden Forest_," Terence answered.

"Point taken,"

Jackson frowned in confusion. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"If Warrington may not be smart enough to think of this plan himself," Blake was saying as he led them towards the Lake and past it. "But he is smart enough to know _not_ to go into the forest. He wouldn't have taken her too far in, maybe just around the outskirts."

"That is still a lot of ground to cover,"

Blake shook his head and pointed ahead of them, there was a little light from the full moon overhead and he could vaguely make out the moving silhouettes of two or more people.

"That could be anyone,"

"No, mostly the rest of the students will stick to the courtyard," Blake answered, "or the castle. Warrington would have taken Phoebe somewhere no one could hear her scream. If anyone heard a scream coming from the Forbidden forest then they wouldn't abandon everything to go investigate, especially from what you have just told me." He nodded at Terence. "That's them!"

Exchanging a look with Terence, Jackson followed Blake towards the moving figures. As he drew closer, he heard the panicked voice of Phoebe and despite the current situation, he sighed in relief.

_"Stupefy,"_ Jackson muttered, flourishing his wand.

There was a flash of red, but the spell missed its mark by a few inches and disappeared as it struck the trunk of the tree. Although it hadn't done as it was intended to do, it did distract Warrington enough for Phoebe to wriggle free and Blake to catch hold of the other boy.

"Get your hands off my girl!" Blake growled, pulling Warrington around his shoulder and smashing his fist into his face.

Phoebe squeaked and pushed herself backwards away from the two boys, her dress was torn, her hair was a mess and there were tear streaks on her face. She was visibly shaken, and it took a great resistance of Terence to not pull her close there and then.

Racing forward, Jackson pulled Phoebe to her feet and led her to were Terence was standing. "I need you to take Phoebe back up the castle," he said. "I'd do it myself, but Blake will kill Warrington if I leave now."

"Jackson," Phoebe whimpered.

"You'll be OK," Jackson promised. "Tell Professor Dumbledore what happened, and where he can find Warrington, I'll take Blake back to the ship and calm him down. We'll see you tomorrow. OK?"

Phoebe hesitated, but nodded all the same. "Don't let Blake do anything stupid. I expect you both to be there at home when this year is over. I don't want to visit you both in prison."

"I shudder at the thought," Jackson joked.

Despite the current situation, Phoebe smiled, and when she felt Terence's hand on the small of her back, she allowed him to lead her away.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe shivered as she walked back along the path she and Warrington had taken, this time though she was with Terence and was returning to the castle. She was shivering - not from the cold - but from the fact that she had nearly been forced to commit to something that she was not completely ready for.

Noticing the shiver, Terence shrugged off his cloak and wrapped them around her shoulders. "Better?" he asked.

"Thanks," Phoebe muttered, offering him a small smile. This had been the first time that they had been alone together since their break-up, for a while now Phoebe had thought that them being alone together after everything had happened would be awkward, but she wasn't feeling awkward in the slightest - if anything it felt...well...normal.

The shouts from Blake, Jackson and Warrington had died out long ago and Phoebe wondered what exactly had happened. It took a lot of restraint to keep herself from turning around and going back to investigate the damage that Blake had done; instead she kept her gaze on the path in front of her and sighed when they reached the courtyard.

"He didn't..." Terence started, before stopping and swallowing. "Um...He didn't...you know..."

"Touch me?" Phoebe asked.

Terence nodded.

"No," Phoebe answered. "But that were his intentions..."

"But he didn't,"

Phoebe shook her head.

Terence sighed in relief. "That's good..." he murmured. "Because I don't think I could -"

"Could what?" Phoebe asked.

There was a heavy silence, before Terence turned to her and said, "I don't think I would be able to live with myself if anything happened to you."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Terence nodded, this is the longest he had gone without talking to her, and if he was honest with himself, he couldn't help but feel miserable without her. "Pheebs, I -"

"Mistletoe," Phoebe murmured her gaze no longer on Terence but on the doorway above them.

Terence looked up and then back at Phoebe. If this was enchanted Mistletoe then he would have had to kiss her so that they could both get back into the castle, but even if it wasn't, he still wanted to kiss her - not because it was the traditional thing to do while under Mistletoe - but because he really, _really_ wanted to kiss her.

"Phe..." Terence murmured, spreading his hand out over her cheek - covering the red mark that Warrington had left her - he then leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.

Now _this_ was a kiss.

It was nothing like Warrington's. Warrington was just too rough.

Terence's kisses made her feel breathless, like she was drowning in pure bliss.

Phoebe locked her hands behind his neck, as his other hand moved from her shoulder to the back of her neck. His lips were soft - just like she remembered them - and they moved against her's with a sort of soft tension. She shuddered as tingles ran up and down her spine.

The clock struck midnight, signalling not only the end of the Yule Ball, but also the end of Christmas.

Both Terence and Phoebe broke apart; but neither moved from one another.

Terence's hands were now around her waist, holding her close, and Phoebe's hands were locked behind his neck. Their foreheads were still touching.

"Happy Christmas, Phoebe," Terence whispered.

Phoebe smiled. "Happy Christmas..."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Believe it or not, I wrote this chapter on 06/01/2012._

_Because I couldn't think of anything other than getting Terence and Phoebe back together._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, 19 January 2012 at 11:16pm**


	73. Chapter 73

**Author's Note:** Reputation means nothing...that is the theme for this chapter. Not much of the Golden Trio...but they are mentioned here and there. I hope you like it.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Kankananime123, Vivi Fontaine, Fan of Fics** and **10th Squad 3rd Seat.**

**In Responses: **Yay! Glad you all are happy that Phoebe and Terence are back together...I did promise...and I followed through. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on this chapter. =)

* * *

><p>Everybody got up late on Boxing Day.<p>

The Gryffindor common room was much quieter than it had been lately, many yawns punctuating the lazy conversations. Hermione's hair was bushy again, she confessed that Phoebe had used liberal amounts of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion on it for the ball, but it took too much effort to use in everyday life.

Phoebe had awoken in the Gryffindor Tower, with Terence's arm around her waist, and a smile on her face as she remembered the previous night...the kiss...and the relationship status that had been reformed. Yes, it was official; Phoebe and Terence was once again an item.

Ron and Hermione seemed to have reached an unspoken agreement not to discuss their argument. They were being quite friendly to each other, though oddly formal. However, Ron and Phoebe refused to even acknowledge one another, as the elemental remembered that he had raised a hand to her the previous night.

In other news, Harry wasted no time in telling Hermione and Phoebe about the conversation he had overheard between Madame Maxime and Hagrid, but neither of the girls seemed to find the news that Hagrid was a half-giant nearly as shocking as Ron had.

"Well, I thought he must be," said Hermione, shrugging. "I knew he couldn't be pure giant, because they're about twenty feet tall. But honestly, all this hysteria about giants. They can't all be horrible...it's the same sort of prejudice that people have towards werewolves...it's just bigotry, isn't it?"

Ron looked as though he would have liked to have argued, but one look from Phoebe told him not too. He wasn't in the mood to fight, and neither was she.

It was time now to think of the homework that had been neglected during the first week of the holidays. Everybody seemed to be feeling rather flat, now that Christmas was over - everybody except Harry that is who was starting (once again) to feel slightly nervous.

The trouble was that February the twenty-fourth looked a lot closer from this side of Christmas, and he still hadn't done anything about working out the clue inside the golden egg.

"Has Blake had any luck?" Harry asked Phoebe one evening in the common room, she was working on her Potions essay in front of the fireplace.

"No," the elemental answered. "But I've told him that I am not helping either of you with this task...the Dragons were one thing, I had prior knowledge in that task. I have no clue what the shrieking and wailing of the egg means."

Harry sighed. That was no help, although he had not forgotten the hint that Cedric had given him, but his less-than-friendly feelings towards Cedric just now meant that he was keen not to accept his help if he could avoid it. In any case, it seemed to him that Cedric had really wanted to give Harry a hand; he would have been a lot more explicit.

After Harry had shared this piece of information with Phoebe, she had answered in the exact same way that he figured she would.

"Well, you did tell him about the dragons," she had said. "He's giving you something in return. It may not be exactly what you had expected, but Cedric is playing by the rules, he's not going to tell you what the clue is."

"So you think I should believe him?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. Take him up on his offer. Use the Prefects bathroom on the fifth floor if you have too, just work out that clue before it's too late!"

And she left him to dwell on his thoughts as she went up to bed, the next day would be the start of the new term.

**~*Phoebe*~**

And so the first day of the new term arrived, and Phoebe set off to lessons, weighed down with books, parchment and quills as usual.

Snow was still thick upon the grounds, and the greenhouse windows were covered in condensation so thick that they couldn't see out of them in Herbology. Nobody was looking forward to Care of Magical Creatures much in this weather, though, as Ron said, the Skrewts would probably warm them up nicely, either by chasing them or by blasting off so forcefully that Hagrid's cabin caught fire.

When they arrived at Hagrid's cabin, however, they found an elderly witch with closely cropped grey hair and a very prominent chin standing before his front door.

"Hurry up, now, the bell rang five minutes ago," she barked at them, as they struggled towards her through the snow.

"Who're you?" said Ron, staring at her.

"My name is Professor Grubbly-Plank," the woman said briskly. "I am your temporary Care of Magical Creatures teacher."

Phoebe stopped dead. "Where's Serefina?"

"That is Professor Blackheart to you, Miss -?"

"Blackheart," Phoebe answered. "Phoebe Blackheart."

Grubbly-Plank paused for a moment. "Ah, yes, the Goddaughter. You're Godmother is currently out of the country."

"Well, where is Hagrid?" Harry asked. "He is Professor Blackheart's assistant. He should be taking us if Professor Blackheart cannot."

"He is indisposed," said Professor Grubbly-Plank shortly.

Soft and unpleasant laughter reached the Gryffindor's, and they turned to see Draco Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherin's joining them. All of them looked delighted about something, and none of them looked surprised to see Professor Grubbly-Plank.

"This way, please," said Grubbly-Plank, and she strode off around the paddock where the huge Beauxbatons horses were shivering. Phoebe and Harry followed her, looking over their shoulders at Hagrid's cabin. All the curtains were closed. Was Hagrid in there, alone and ill?

"What's wrong with Hagrid?" Phoebe asked, hurrying to catch up with Grubbly-Plank.

"Never you mind," she said.

Phoebe glared. "I do mind!" she said hotly. "Hagrid is my friend! And he would never skip out on teaching us! He loves this job! What is wrong with him?"

Professor Grubbly-Plank acted as though she couldn't hear the elemental. She led them past the paddock where the Beauxbatons horses were standing, huddled against the cold and towards a tree on the edge of the Forest, where a large and beautiful unicorn was tethered.

Many of the girls 'oooooohed!' at the sight of the unicorn.

"Oh, it's so beautiful!" whispered Lavender Brown. "How did she get it? They're supposed to be really hard to catch!"

The unicorn was so brightly white that it made the snow all around look grey. It was pawing the ground nervously with its golden hooves, and throwing back its horned head.

"Boys keep back!" barked Professor Grubbly-Plank, throwing out an arm and catching Harry in the chest. "They prefer the woman's touch, unicorns. Girls to the front, and approach with care. Come on, easy does it..."

As her class-mates approached the Unicorn, Phoebe hung back with the boys. She had already taken her OWLs and NEWTs in Care of Magical Creatures, and figured that she would stay with Harry and James, rather than participate in an activity that she had already done as a child.

But Professor Grubbly-Plank was determined to have all girls around the Unicorn.

"Miss. Blackheart," she called. "Unless you have an excellent excuse as to why you are not up front with the rest of the girls, I would like you to join us!"

"I have already got my qualifications in Care of Magical Creatures, Professor," Phoebe answered. "I simply do not see the point in re-doing activities I have already done and passed in, with flying colours, I might add."

Grubbly-Plank paused for a moment, before saying, "If you have already acquired the qualifications for this class, then why did you decide to retake it?"

"Support. Hagrid was learning to be my Godmother's assistant last year, and I wanted to show my support."

"And this year?"

"Because I do not do the whole 'loner' deal," Phoebe answered. "So, I will stay here and keep the boys happy...and prevent them from killing themselves. OK?"

She smiled sweetly.

Grubbly-Plank huffed, in what appeared to be annoyance, before returning to the rest of the girls.

James turned to his friend. "You have to be the only person I know who can get out of doing something she doesn't want to do," he grinned.

"Eh, it's a skill," Phoebe shrugged.

The moment Professor Grubbly-Plank was out of earshot, Harry turned to Ron. "What d'you reckons wrong with him? You don't think a Skrewt -?"

"Oh, he hasn't been attacked, Potter, if that's what you're thinking," said Malfoy, softly. "No, he's just too ashamed to show his big ugly face."

"What d'you mean?" said Harry sharply.

Malfoy put his hand inside the pocket of his robes, and pulled out a folded page of newsprint.

"There you go," he said. "Hate to break it to you, Potter..."

He smirked as Harry snatched the page, unfolded it, and read it, with Ron, James, Neville, Seamus and Dean looking over his shoulder, as Phoebe popped up beside him. It was an article topped with a picture of Hagrid looking extremely shifty.

_DUMBLEDORE'S __**GIANT**__ MISTAKE_

"_Albus Dumbledore, eccentric Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has never been afraid to make controversial staff appointments, _writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent..." Phoebe murmured, before cutting off and reading the rest in silence.

_In September of this year, he hired Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, the notoriously jinx-happy ex-Auror, to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, a decision that caused many raised eyebrows at the Ministry of Magic, given Moody's well-known habit of attacking anybody who makes a sudden movement in his presence. Mad-Eye Moody, however, looks responsible and kindly, when set beside the part-human Dumbledore employs to teach Care of Magical Creatures._

_Rebeus Hagrid, who admits to being expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, has enjoyed the position of Gamekeeper at the school ever since, a job secured for him by Dumbledore. Last year, however, Hagrid used his mysterious influence over the Headmaster to secure the additional part of assistant to the Care of Magical Creatures teacher: Serefina Elena Blackheart._

_An alarmingly large and ferocious-looking man, Hagrid has been using his new-found authority to terrify the students in his care with a succession of horrific creatures. While Dumbledore turns a blind eye, Hagrid has maimed several pupils during a series of lessons which many admit to be 'very frightening'_

_"I was attacked by a Hippogriff, and my friend Vincent Crabbe got a bad bite off a Flobberworm," says Draco Malfoy, a fourth-year student. "We all hate Hagrid, but we're just too scared to say anything."_

_Hagrid has no intention of ceasing his campaign of intimidation, however. In conversation with a _Daily Prophet_ reporter last month, he admitted breeding creatures he has dubbed 'Blast-Ended Skrewts', highly dangerous crosses between Manticores and fire crabs._

_The creation of new breeds of magical creature is, of course, an activity usually closely observed by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Hagrid, it seems, considers himself to be above such petty restrictions._

_"I was just having some fun," he says, before hastily changing the subject._

_As if this were not enough, the _Daily Prophet_ has now unearthed evidence that Hagrid is not - as he has always pretended - a pureblood wizard. He is not, in fact, even pure human. His mother, we can exclusively reveal, is none other than the giantess Fridwulfa, whose whereabouts are currently unknown._

_Bloodthirsty and brutal, the giants brought themselves to the point of extinction by warring among themselves during the last century. The handful that remained joined the ranks of He Who Must Not Be Named, and was responsible for some of the worst mass Muggle-killings of his reign of terror._

_While many of the giants who served He Who Must Not Be Named were killed by Aurors working against the Dark side, Fridwulfa was not among them. It is possible she escaped to one of the giant communities still existing in foreign mountain ranges._

_If his antics during Care of Magical Creatures lessons are any guide, however, Fridwulfa's son appears to have inherited her brutal nature._

_In a bizarre twist, Hagrid is reputed to have developed a close friendship with the boy who brought about You-Know-Who's fall from power - thereby driving Hagrid's own mother, like the rest of You-Know-Who's supporters, into hiding._

_Perhaps Harry Potter is unaware of the unpleasant truth about his large friend - but Albus Dumbledore surely has a duty to ensure that Harry Potter, along with his fellow students, is warned about the dangers of associating with part-giants._

Phoebe finished reading and looked up at Draco. "What d'you mean, "We all hate Hagrid"?" she demanded. "And _him -_" she pointed at Crabbe. "- getting a bite off a Flobberworm? They don't even have teeth!"

Crabbe sniggered, apparently very pleased with himself.

"Well, I think this should put an end to the oaf's teaching career," said Draco, his eyes glinting. "Half-giant...and there was me thinking he'd just swallowed a bottle of Skele-Gro when he was young...none of the mummies and daddies are going to like this at all...they'll be worried he'll eat their kids, ha, ha..."

"You -"

"Are you paying attention over there?"

Professor Grubbly-Plank's voice carried over to the boys and Phoebe; the girls were all clustered around the unicorn now, stroking it. Harry was so angry that the _Daily Prophet_ article shook in his hands as he turned to stare at the Unicorn, the rest of the Gryffindor boys mimicked his actions, while Phoebe merely glared at her brother.

"This is low, Dragon," she whispered. "Even for you!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After Dinner that evening, Phoebe and Terence left the castle and hurried down the front lawn towards Hagrid's hut. "I'll settle for knowing how she heard him telling Madame Maxime the night of the Yule Ball," Phoebe was saying. "She's not supposed to come inside the grounds; Dumbledore banned her after her article at the Weighing of the Wands!"

"Maybe she was in hiding?" Terence suggested. "Sort of thing she'd do, isn't it? Hide in the bushes listening to people."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. But Harry would have seen her if she had been in the grounds...that is how he heard Hagrid telling Madame Maxime that he was a half-giant."

"So he pretty much walked into it then?" Terence asked. "He shouldn't talk about something like that in public...especially around Hogwarts."

"I know," Phoebe sighed. "But this is Hagrid! He is harmless!"

"Many people don't know him like you do, Phe," said Terence. "They don't know how harmless he is, and when the word 'Giant' is added to things, everything is blown out of proportion."

The elemental nodded, and then climbed the three steps outside of Hagrid's hut. She raised her fist and knocked.

Fang boomed from the inside.

"Hagrid! It's me!" Phoebe shouted, pounding the door. "Open up!"

He didn't answer. They could hear Fang scratching at the door, whining, but it didn't open. Phoebe hammered on it for ten more minutes, before Terence pulled her away from the door and insisted that they return to the castle - it was getting dark.

"What's he avoiding _us_ for?" Phoebe asked, as she pulled her cloak closer to her freezing body, and was walking back to the school. "He surely doesnt think we'd care about him being half-giant?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

But it seemed that Hagrid did care. They didn't see a sign of him all week. He didn't appear at the staff table at meal-times, they didn't see him going about his gamekeeper duties in the grounds, and Grubbly-Plank continued to take the Care of Magical Creatures classes, until Serefina returned at the end of the week.

There was a Hogsmeade visit halfway through January. Phoebe was very surprised to hear that Harry was planning on going.

"I just thought you'd want to take advantage of the common room being empty and quiet," she said. "Really get to work on that egg."

"Oh, I - I reckon I've got a pretty good idea what it's about now," Harry nodded.

"Really?" Phoebe asked, sounding impressed. "And what's that?"

"I thought you didn't want to know?" Harry asked. "Because you know that if I tell you, you will want to help."

Phoebe nodded. "True. OK, well, good luck, Harry! I'll probably see you around the village."

"Aren't you coming with us?"

"No," Phoebe smiled. "First Hogsmeade trip with Terence...I'll see you later. Maybe we could meet in the Three Broomsticks or something..."

"Yeah," Harry nodded, slightly distant. "Yeah...OK...bye, Phoebe."

The Elemental waved and hurried across the frozen courtyard towards the carriages, and into the carriage that Terence had secured for them both.

Harry watched as a slight wave of jealousy washed over him - He had been one of the students who had taken Phoebe and Terence's re-newed relationship rather unpleasantly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After a quick tour of the village, Phoebe and Terence retired to the Three Broomsticks where it was sure to be warmer than outside on the High Street.

Phoebe kept her eyes skinned for a sign of Hagrid all the way down the slushy High Street, and skimmed the crowded pub for any signs of him the moment she had walked through the front door, but her heart sank when she realized that there was no signs of her friend at any of the tables.

"Butterbeer?" Terence asked, lowering his lips to her ear so that she could hear him over the noise.

"Please," Phoebe nodded, looking around for an empty table.

After finding an empty booth at the back of the pub, Phoebe sank into the plush chair and looked around as she waited for Terence to return. She was in the middle of removing her gloves and scarf when her gaze caught sight of Ludo Bagman sitting in a shadowy corner with a cluster of goblins.

Bagman was talking very fast in a low voice to the goblins, all of whom had their arms crossed, and were looking rather menacing.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Terence asked, as he returned and slid into the booth alongside his girlfriend.

Phoebe jumped in surprise. "Nothing," she answered. "I was just wondering if Bagman _ever_ goes into the office."

"Not according to Mum," Terence answered. "Bagman may be taking credit for this whole Tournament, but he has hardly done any of the work."

"That's not fair!" Phoebe exclaimed. "He shouldn't be allowed to take credit for something he hasn't had a hand in!"

Terence nodded. "But that is how the system works, Phe..." he paused.

"Uh-oh," said Phoebe, staring at the door.

Rita Skeeter had just entered. She was wearing banana-yellow robes today; her long nails were painted shocking pink and she was accompanied by her paunchy photographer. She bought drinks, and she had the photographer made their way through the crowds to a table nearby, Phoebe glared at her as she approached. She was talking fast and looking very satisfied about something.

"Phoebe..." Terence warned, as he felt his girlfriend slip from his grasp, and approach the table where Rita was sitting.

"...didn't seem very keen to talk to us, did he, Bozo? Now, why would that be, do you think? And what's he doing with a pack of goblins in row anyway? Showing them the sights...what nonsense...he was always a bad liar. Reckon something's up? Think we should do a bit of digging? _Disgraced Ex-Head of Magical Sports, Ludo Bagman..._snappy start to a sentence Bozo - we just need to find a story to fit it -"

Phoebe had now become level with the blonde-haired reporter. "A story that will ruin another's life?" she spat.

A few people looked around. Rita Skeeter's eyes widened behind her jeweled spectacles as she saw who had spoken.

"Miss. Malfoy!" she said beaming. "How lovely! Why don't you come and join -"

"I wouldn't join you even if you begged me!" Phoebe retorted. "What did you do that to Hagrid for, eh?"

"Our readers have the right to know the truth, Miss. Malfoy, I am merely doing my -"

"Job? Your job is to report the truth!" Phoebe snapped. "Not make up lies about people and their lives! So what if Hagrid is a half-giant? He is harmless!"

The whole pub had gone very quiet. Madam Rosemerta was staring over from behind the bar, apparently oblivious to the fact that the flagon she was filling with mead was overflowing.

Rita Skeeter's smile flickered very slightly, but she hitched it back almost at once; she snapped open her crocodile-skin hand-bag, pulled out her Quick-Quotes Quill and said, "How about giving me an interview about the Hagrid _you_ know? The man behind the muscles? Your unlikely friendship and the reasons behind it?"

"You're a horrible woman," Phoebe said, through gritted teeth, "you don't care, do you, anything for a story, and anyone will do, won't they? Even Ludo Bagman -"

"I wouldn't recommend you talking about things that you don't understand!" Rita said coldly, her eyes hardening. "I know things about Ludo Bagman that would make your hair curl..."

Appearing behind Phoebe, Terence wrapped his arm around her waist and said, "C'mon, let's go."

"Oh, who is this?" Rita asked, her eyes sparkling. "And does young Harry know of his girlfriend's other interests?"

"There you go again!" Phoebe yelled. "Making false accusations! There is nothing between me and Harry, except a close-friendship! I am not his girlfriend! Never have been and never will be!"

Terence placed his hand on the small of Phoebe's back, and pushed her towards the door. "Just walk away," he muttered.

They left; many people were staring at them as they went. Terence glanced back as they reached the door. Rita Skeeter's Quick-Quotes Quill was out; it was zooming backwards and forwards over a piece of parchment on the table.

"She'll be after you next, Pheebs," said Terence, as they walked back up the High Street. He wrapped Phoebe's scarf around her neck, as she pulled on her gloves and buttoned up her coat, and pulled her hat on over her ears.

"She's already blown my secret," Phoebe answered. "The whole world knows that I am a Malfoy...what else can she say about me?"

Terence shrugged.

"Silly little girl, am I? Oh, I'll get her back for this, first Harry, and then Hagrid..."

"You don't want to go upsetting, Rita Skeeter," said Terence nervously. "I'm serious, Phoebe, she'll dig up something on you. And if she can't target you specifically, she'll target those around you. She could target the Malfoy family...Lucius Malfoy won't like that!"

Phoebe turned to her boyfriend. "I don't particularly care what he lies or not!" she answered. "He is in the paper enough. She's not going to scare me into hiding..." she ground to a halt. "And Hagrid isn't going to hide anymore! He should _never_ have let that excuse for a human being upset him! C'mon!"

She broke into a run and led Terence all the way back up the road, through the gates flanked by winged boars, and up through the grounds to Hagrid's cabin.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Hagrid!" Phoebe shouted, pounding on his front door. "Hagrid, that's enough! We know you're in there! Nobody cares if your mum was a giantess, Hagrid! You can't let that foul Skeeter woman do this to you! Hagrid, get out here, you're just -"

The door opened.

Phoebe stopped talking rather abruptly, because she found herself face to face not with Hagrid, but with Albus Dumbledore.

"Good afternoon," he said pleasantly, smiling down at Phoebe.

"Um...I wanted to see Hagrid," said Phoebe, in a rather small voice.

"Yes, I surmised as much," said Dumbledore, his eyes-twinkling. "Why don't you come in?"

"Oh...um...OK,"

She and Terence went into the cabin; Fang launched himself upon Phoebe the moment she entered, barking madly and trying to lick her ears. Phoebe fended Fang off and looked around. Serefina was sitting on the two seated sofa, and Aiden was leaning against the wall behind it, looking out of the window every few seconds.

Hagrid was sitting at his table, where there were three large mugs of tea. He looked a real mess. His face was blotchy, his eyes swollen, and he had gone to the other extreme where his hair was concerned, far from trying to make it behave, and it now looked like a wig of tangled wire.

"Hi, Hagrid," said Phoebe.

Hagrid looked up.

"'Lo," he said, in a very hoarse voice.

"More tea, I think," said Dumbledore, closing the door behind his two students, drawing out his wand and twiddling it; a revolving tea-tray appeared in mid-air, along with a plate of cakes. Dumbledore magicked the tray onto the table, and everybody sat down. There was a slight pause, and then Dumbledore said, "Did you by any chance hear what Miss. Blackheart was shouting, Hagrid?"

Phoebe went slightly pink, but Dumbledore smiled at her and continued. "Phoebe and Terence still seem to want to know you, judging by the way they were attempting to break down the door."

"Of course we still want to know you!" Phoebe said, staring at Hagrid. "You don't think anything that Skeeter cow - sorry Professor," she added quickly, looking at Dumbledore.

"I have gone temporarily deaf and haven't any idea what you said, Phoebe," said Dumbledore, twiddling his thumbs and staring at the ceiling.

Phoebe frowned and looked around at Terence, who shrugged.

"Right..." Phoebe said sheepishly. "I just meant - Hagrid, how could you think we'd care what that - woman - wrote about you?"

Two fat tears leaked out of Hagrid's beetle-black eyes and fell slowly tangled beard.

"Living proof of what I've been telling you, Hagrid," said Dumbledore, still looking carefully up at the ceiling. "I have shown you the letters from the countless of parents who remember you from when they were at school here! All telling me in uncertain terms that, if I sacked you, they would have something to say about it -"

"Not all of 'em," said Hagrid hoarsely. "Not all of 'em wan' me ter stay."

"Really, Hagrid, if you are holding out for universal popularity, I'm afraid you will be in this cabin for a very long time," said Serefina. "Not a week has passed, since I became Care of Magical Teachers professor at Hogwarts, when I haven't received a letter complaining about me being a foreign professor teaching on British soil! And now...people are complaining that I am bringing foreign children into the country to be taught!"

She looked at both Aiden and Phoebe.

"When there are perfectly good Wizarding schools in Portugal and Salem," Serefina finished. "But what should I do? Barricade myself in my office and refuse to talk to anybody?"

"Yeh - Yeh're not half-giant!" said Hagrid croakily.

"Hagrid, look what I've got family!" Phoebe said furiously. "Look at the Malfoy's!"

"An excellent point," said Professor Dumbledore. "My own brother, Aberforth, was prosecuted for practicing inappropriate charms on a goat. It was all over the papers, but did Aberforth hide? No, he did not! He held his head high and went about his business as usual! Of course, I'm not entirely sure he can read, so that may not have been bravery..."

Aiden smirked, as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Come back and teach, Hagrid," said Phoebe, "please come back, we really miss you."

Hagrid gulped. More tears leaked out down his cheeks and into his tangled beard. Dumbledore stood up.

"I refuse to accept your resignation, Hagrid," he said. "You are to return to work on Monday, and you will join me for breakfast at eight thirty in the Great Hall. No excuses. Good afternoon to you all."

Dumbledore left the cabin, pausing only to scratch Fang's ears. When the door shut behind him, Hagrid began to sob into his dustbin-lid-size hands. Phoebe kept patting his arm, and at last Hagrid looked up, his eyes were red indeed, and said, "Great man, Dumbledore...great man..."

"Yeah, he is," Aiden agreed. "Can I have one of these cakes?"

"Help yourself," said Hagrid, wiping his eyes on the back of his hand. "Ar, he's righ', o' course - Yeh're all righ'...I bin stupid...my ol' dad woulda bin ashamed o' the way I've bin behavin'..." More tears leaked out, but he wiped them away more forcefully, and said, "Never shown you a picture of my old dad, have I? Here"

Hagrid got up, went over to his dresses, opened a drawer and pulled out a picture of a short wizard with Hagrid's crinkled black eyes, beaming as he sat on top of Hagrid's shoulder. Hagrid was a good seven or eight feet tall, judging by the apple tree beside him, but his face was beardless, young, round and smooth - he looked hardly older then eleven.

"Tha' was taken jus' after I got inter Hogwarts," said Hagrid croakily. "Dad as dead chuffed...thought I migh' not be a wizard, see, 'cos me mum...well, anyway. 'Course, I never was great shakes at magic, really...but at least he never saw me expelled. Died, see, in me second year..."

Phoebe frowned sadly. "Oh, i'm sorry, Hagrid."

"Dumbledore was the one who stuck up for me after Dad went. Got me the gamekeeper job...trusts people, he does. Gives 'em second chance...that's what sets him apart from the other Heads, see. He'll accept anyone at Hogwarts, s'long as they've got the talent. Knows people can turn out OK eve if their families weren'...well...all tha' respectable. But some don' understand that. There's some who'd always hold it against yeh...there's some who'd even pretend they just had big bones rather than stand up an' say - I am what I am, and' I'm not ashamed - 'Never be ashamed,' my ol' dad used ter say, 'there's some who'll hold it against you, but they're not worth botherin' with.' An he was right, I've been an idiot. I'm not botherin' with _her_ no more, I promise yeh that. Big bones...I'll give her big bones."

Phoebe, Aiden and Terence looked at each other nervously.

And Hagrid was still talking; apparently unaware that he had said anything out loud.

"Yeh know wha', Phoebe?" he said, looking up from the photograph of his father, his eye's very bright. "When I firs' met you, you reminded me o' me a bit. No mum an' dad to speak off...at least not in the good way...an' now look at yeh, Phoebe!"

"What? Little Miss. Popularity?" Aiden teased.

Phoebe stuck her tongue out. "Don't be jealous," she smiled. "But I am only just getting my reputation back!"

"Reputation meant nothing to you," said Serefina. "It was your friends that you were beat up over the most...when Draco revealed your secret...you thought you had lost everything, but you merely lost the one thing that held you together -" she looked pointedly at Terence, who wrapped his arms around Phoebe's waist and pulled her onto his lap, and rested his chin on her shoulder. "- and now you have that back!

"You didn't really lose me," Terence answered. "I still loved you...it just took me a while to realize it..."

Phoebe smiled as she looked around at her Godmother, at Aiden, Hagrid and Terence; it was then that she realized what they were saying.

Reputation was nothing - as long as you had friends...then you had everything!

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 22 January 2012 at 04:08am**


	74. Chapter 74

**Author's Note:** I would have had this updated last night, but I fell asleep. Sorry. Haven't been sleeping well, it finally caught up with me last night. Anyway, here is The Second Task chapter.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Kankananime123, Fan of Fics, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **Vivi Fontaine.**

**In responses: **First too _**Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**_: Nooo! I have not forgotten about Esmee, but where her illness was supposed to be revealed this year, it has been pushed forwards and will now be revealed during the summer before fifth year.

Second too _**Fan of Fics:**_ Harry's less-than-friendly-feelings towards Cedric has nothing to do with who Cedric is dating. In the main series it was because of Cho; in this series it is because Cedric is everything that Harry is not - and mostly because everyone was quick to defend Cedric as the true Hogwarts Champion. Stupid reasons I know.

Thirdly too _**Vivi Fontaine:**_ Haha. I didn't throw the spear. I am on Team Terence. Harry is just going to have to deal with Phoebe/Terence - especially after Christmas in fifth year when things change completely. I'm not going to say anymore.

**Shout outs:** Thank you too **Nairn1572** for adding this story to their Favourite Story alerts.

Most of you have been asking for the Second Task, and I just have one thing to do say: Do I really need to confirm your questions?

* * *

><p>"You said you'd already worked out that egg clue!" said Phoebe indignantly.<p>

"Keep your voice down!" said Harry crossly. "I just need to - sort of fine-tune it, all right?"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes at her friend, she was sat across from him at the very back table of the Charms class.

On either side of Harry sat Ron and Hermione, and the latter looked just as unimpressed as Phoebe was.

"You lied, Harry! You told us that you had worked out the clue to get us off your back! You're going to look a right fool on the twenty-fourth when Blake, Cedric and Fleur have figured out the clue and you haven't."

"You are not helping!" Harry said.

"Good," Phoebe nodded, flourishing her wand and sending her pillow across the classroom into the box that they were all supposed to be aiming for.

They were supposed to be practicing the opposite of the Summoning Charm today - the Banishing Charm, but so far only she and Hermione had managed to control it, everyone else was having trouble.

"Just forget the egg for a minute, all right?" Harry hissed, as Professor Flitwick went whizzing resignedly past them, landing on top of a large cabinet. "I'm trying to tell you about Snape and Moody..."

This class was the ideal cove for a private conversation, as everyone was having far too much fun to pay them any attention.

Harry had been recounting his adventures of the previous night in whispered installments for the last half an hour.

"Snape said Moody's searched his office as well?" Ron whispered his eyes alight with interest as he Banished a cushion with a sweep of his wand (it soared into the air and knocked Parvati's hat off). "What...d'you reckon Moody's here to keep an eye on Snape as well as Karkaroff?"

"Well, I dunno if that's what Dumbledore asked him to do, but he's definitely doing it," said Harry, waving his wand without paying much attention, so that his cushion did an odd sort of belly flop off the desk. "Moody said Dumbledore only lets Snape stay here because he's giving him a second chance or something..."

"What?" said Ron, his eyes widening, his next cushion spinning high into the air, ricocheting off the chandelier and dropping heavily onto Flitwick's desk. "Harry...maybe Moody thinks _Snape_ put your name in the Goblet of Fire!"

"Oh, Ron," said Hermione, shaking her head skeptically, "we thought Snape was trying to kill Harry before, and it turned out he was saving Harry's life, remember?"

She Banished a cushion and it flew across the room and landed in the box on top of Phoebe's.

Harry looked at Hermione, thinking...it was true that Snape had saved his life once, but the odd thing was Snape definitely loathed him, just as he'd loathed Harry's father when they had been at school together.

Snape loved taking points from Harry, and had certainly never missed an opportunity to give him punishments, or even to suggest that he should be suspended from the school.

"Hermione provides a good point," Phoebe agreed. "There is also the fact that the hand that scrawled Harry's name on the parchment that came out of the Goblet, does not match Snape's in the slightest,"

"How do you know?" Ron demanded.

"Because I already checked it, idiot!" Phoebe retorted. "And I don't care what Moody says, Dumbledore's not stupid. He was right to trust Hagrid and Professor Lupin, even though loads of people wouldn't have given them jobs, so why shouldn't he be right about Snape, even if Snape is a bit -"

"- evil," said Ron promptly. "Seriously, why are all these Dark Wizard catches searching his office, then?"

"Why has Mr. Crouch been pretending to be ill?" said Hermione, as Phoebe ignored Ron. "It's a bit funny, isn't it, that he can't manage to come to the Yule Ball, but he can get up here in the middle of the night when he wants to?"

"You two just don't like Crouch because of that elf, Winky," said Ron, sending a cushion soaring into the window.

"_You_ just want to think Snape's up to something," said Phoebe, sending her fourth cushion zooming neatly into the box.

"I just want to know what Snape did with his first chance, if he's on his second one," said Harry grimly, and his cushion, to his very great surprise, flew straight across the room, and landed neatly on top of Phoebe's.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe groaned as she dropped her head down onto the thick tomb that she had been reading from, she was sitting in the back of the library with Blake, Jackson, Terence, Esmee and Ashlyn, each of them flicking through books that could help in anyway complete the second task.

"Harry would kill me if he knew that I was in here helping you," she told Blake, picking her head up to look at her best friend and then dropping it back onto the book. "I already told him that I refused to help either of you with the second task, that the first task was a one-time deal, mostly because I had prior knowledge to it."

"I highly doubt Potter would care," Blake answered. "Doesn't he have Granger and Weasley helping him?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "But the point is, I helped him on the first task, and now I have abandoned him and am helping you...that's '_consorting with the enemy_', as Weasley would say."

"I'm your best friend," Blake exclaimed. "How is it consorting with the enemy?"

"Because you're a Durmstrang," Phoebe answered. "And I'm a Hogwartarian. We're rivals in this Tournament."

Esmee paused in her reading and looked up. "So what does that make me?" she asked. "I'm neither a Durmstrang nor a Hogwartarian."

"You're a Frenchie," Phoebe teased, ducking under a paper ball that Esmee had tossed in her direction.

"You're not a Champion, so you don't count," Terence assured his sister.

Phoebe shook her head. "Actually, she is friends with a Champion," she pointed out. "Weasley accused Viktor of using Hermione to get close to Harry, in hopes of helping Blake win this Tournament -" she pointed at Esmee and grinned. "She could be doing the same for Fleur..."

"I resent that," Esmee gasped. "I do not even talk about the Tournament with Fleur. She's all tight-lipped about the Egg; I do not even know if she has figured out the clue yet, all I do know is that the other girls are happy that she is not opening that egg in the dorm anymore."

Jackson nodded in agreement. "Yes. I thought the guys were going to murder Blake for that egg, especially after the time he fell asleep with it in his bed, rolled over and the thing hit the floor and opened..."

"That was an accident," Blake defended. "How was I supposed to know?"

"You take your egg to bed with you?" Phoebe teased. "That's cute...but also slightly sad."

Blake glared at his childhood friend. "Oh, shut up and keep searching!"

Phoebe grinned and looked down at the worn pages of the book in front of her. "Well, you could always transfigure yourself," she suggested. "There is also the Bubble-head Charm. Gillyweed..." she was now running her finger down a list of items one could use to breathe underwater for an hour.

"I am not using Gillyweed! It tastes foul!"

"Then the Bubble-head Charm," Phoebe said, rolling her eyes. "Or you transfigure yourself! Choose!"

Blake shrugged. "The Bubble-head Charm seems like an unlikely target, so I guess I'll transfigure myself."

"You are better at Transfiguration than Charms, anyway," Jackson nodded.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was the evening before the second task and Phoebe was curled up beside Terence watching the sunset over Hogwarts, the sky darkened as the last rays of the dying sun disappeared, and the velvety goodness of night over took the chain of command.

"Are you OK?" Phoebe asked, tilting her head slightly to look up at Terence. "You've been quiet all night, it's not like you."

Terence smiled. "I'm fine, Phe, everything's fine."

"OK," Phoebe nodded. She could tell that something was wrong, but she didn't want to push him to tell her, she hadn't in the past and she wasn't about to start now. "But know that, if there is something wrong, and you want to talk about it, I'm right here! I'm not going anywhere."

The Slytherin nodded, pulled her closer and turned his head back to the gaping hole in the wall.

Darkness had swept over the grounds in the short few minutes that they had been talking, and the stars were gleaming like tiny fireflies in the night's sky.

Phoebe pushed herself up, crawled over and sat so that she was back-to-chest with him, his arms wrapped around her waist and Phoebe allowed herself the opportunity to curl up literally on his lap.

Her eyes drooped as sleep started to set in, she hadn't had a proper night's sleep in a while, and tonight seemed like the perfect time to do so.

"Goodnight Phoebe," Terence whispered, tucking a stray strand of black hair behind her ear. "Sweet dreams."

The Elemental smiled as she sank further into the darkness, knowing that she was safe from the outside world as long as she had Terence with her, his arms were her shield, and she felt safe within them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

No sooner had her eyes closed and sleep overcame her, Phoebe felt someone shaking her awake.

"Damn, she sleeps like a log!"

"Yeah, she is harder to wake up than Ron!"

"Would you two keep it down? You'll wake everyone up!"

"She needs to wake up!"

"Professor McGonagall wants to see her in her office!"

"I know! Look, she's coming round, give her some space!"

There was the sound of shuffling footsteps, and Phoebe blinked in the darkness as her eyes adjusted to the dim light.

She was still on top of the Astronomy Tower, and she was still wrapped up in Terence's arms, the only difference being this time was that there were three other people present.

"Alright, what's the big deal?" Phoebe demanded. "Who decided to wake me up?"

"Good evening, sunshine," Fred Weasley grinned, as his face loomed in front of hers.

Phoebe pulled back in surprise. "Fred! What do you want? What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," said George. "McGonagall wants you, Phoebe, in her office, right now."

The elemental paused. "What? Why?"

"Don't know," Fred shrugged. "Didn't think to ask…did you guys?"

He looked to those who were present with him.

Phoebe rubbed the sleep from her eyes and saw that – as per usual – George and Roxanna were present in the Astronomy tower with Fred.

"Nope," George shook his head in answer to his brother's question.

Roxanne shook her head. "Neither did I. Learned not to question the motives of Professors, thanks, I value my life."

The twins nodded in agreement. "We're supposed to take you down to her office," George said. "So, come on, get a move on!"

"OK, OK," Phoebe huffed sitting up, and stretching. She then turned to Terence and shook his shoulders as too wake him up. "Ter, come on, wake up! I've got to go!"

Terence stirred, blinked and looked around. "What's going on?" he croaked his voice thick with sleep.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "But McGonagall wants to see me in her office. I've got to go…"

"OK," Terence yawned, stretching and getting carefully to his feet.

Phoebe followed his lead, and then turned to Fred, George and Roxanna. "Lead the way," she instructed.

The twins saluted and led the way down from the Astronomy tower, leaving the three others to follow in their wake.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe stood, for a moment, outside Professor McGonagall's door, before she raised her hand, knocked once and the allowed herself to enter.

"Ah, Miss. Blackheart," Professor McGonagall said as the elemental closed the door behind her. "There you are! Now, that everyone is present we can begin!"

"Begin, ma'am?" Phoebe asked, looking around and noticing that she was not as alone as she thought she would be. Ron, Amelia and Fleur's younger sister, Gabrielle were also present, along with Dumbledore, Serefina and Madame Maxime.

Amelia crossed the room quickly, and gripped Phoebe's arm. "I too would like to know what is going on," she said, turning to her Professors. "Why have we been called here?"

"As you all know," Dumbledore began, "the second task is tomorrow. All four champions should have worked out their clue by now, and be on the path of figuring out ways to get past this task. They must each piece together the puzzle and then find a way to breathe underwater for an hour,"

Ron and Phoebe exchanged looks, they already knew this, but Gabrielle and Amelia did not, because they were staring at the headmaster in utter confusion.

"Maybe this will help you understand a little more," Dumbledore smiled, and he motioned for the four to sit down, while he began to explain the nature of the second task.

When he had finished, Amelia looked terrified. "Sir, I don't think I will be able to do that!"

"You will be perfectly safe, Miss. Winchester," Dumbledore assured her. "You have nothing to fear. You will be in safe hands. No one will be harmed in the extract of this task; the song is quite literally something that will help the champions, neither one of you will be lost to the Black Lake. I will not allow it."

Phoebe frowned and looked around at her friends. That was why there were four of them; they were each going to be a champion's treasure.

The elemental surveyed the four 'treasures', trying to work out who would belong to whom – although it wasn't that difficult.

Gabrielle was obviously Fleur's, because she was her little sister.

Amelia was obviously Cedric's because they were now dating.

Ron belonged to Harry because they had been friends since they were eleven.

And she belonged to Blake…for the same reasons that Ron belonged to Harry. They were best friends.

With a wave of her wand, McGonagall transfigured four desks into comfortable looking beds. "Each select a bed," she instructed. "We will cast a simple sleeping charm over you, until you break the surface of the Black Lake tomorrow morning during the task. Quickly now."

Phoebe helped Gabrielle into one of the beds, before claiming her own rather quickly; she then rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling.

Serefina appeared above her. "_You must resist in using your powers tomorrow, Phoebe, you will be surrounded by students that do not know your secret, I have informed Dumbledore that this could possibly be a bad idea, especially with a water element; but you are the only rational treasure for Blake."_

"_What about Jackson?"_

"_Jackson and Blake are close, yes,"_ Serefina nodded. "_But Blake does not worry about Jackson as much as he worries about you. You are the only perfect candidate."_

Phoebe sighed, that as true. _"I promise that I will not use my powers…or will use them as discreetly as I possibly can."_

She smiled.

Serefina nodded, produced her wand and then waved it over her Goddaughter's body.

Phoebe felt warmth ripple through her from head-to-foot, and slowly, as she had awoken from the Astronomy tower, Phoebe could feel herself drifting back off into the darkness that consumed her thoughts.

Soon, her breathing leveled out, and she was unconsciousness to the world.

All around her, Ron, Amelia and Gabrielle had also been sent on their way to the land of dreams, all prepped and ready for the Second Task the next day.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As he stood on the edge of the Black Lake, Blake couldn't help but shake the frantic urgency in Jackson's voice as he had told him that Phoebe was not in the stands. Where was she? She had promised that she would be there to cheer him on, had something happened? Had Warrington recovered from his beating, and gone after Phoebe as revenge for what he had done?

_**No!**_ He scolded himself, he shouldn't have been thinking of the worst, Phoebe was probably fine. _**Probably just slept late. She isn't a morning person...especially if she doesn't have class. No, she probably just slept in and will be here soon.**_

The sound of pounding footsteps on the damp morning grass of the front lawn caused Blake to look around; he wasn't really that surprised to see Harry Potter running full out towards them. The task had 10 minutes before it really started, and Potter was the only champion who had yet to arrive.

"Ah, here comes our fourth champion, now," Bagman smiled excitedly.

Harry reached them and fell to his knees, his breathing ragged and his chest moving rapidly as he tried to absorb air into his lungs.

"I'm...here..." Harry panted.

"Where have you been?" said a bossy disapproving voice. "The tasks about to start!"

Blake looked around to the person who had spoken. He remembered him as Percy Weasley, he was sitting in Crouch's seat, the ministry official was too ill to attend to his duties as judge - although that is the story to which Weasley was sticking.

"Now, now, Percy!" said Bagman, who was looking intensely relieved to see Harry. "Let him catch his breath!"

Dumbledore smiled at Harry, but Karkaroff and Madame Maxime didn't look at all pleased to see him...it was obvious from the looks on their faces that they had thought he wasn't going to show up.

Harry bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath. Blake watched him for a few seconds, wondering if he knew where Phoebe was, maybe there had been signs of her in the Gryffindor common room; but before he could make a move and ask the younger Gryffindor, Ludo Bagman was talking again.

_"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them..."_ his voice boomed out across the dark water towards the stands._ "On the count of three, then. One...two...THREE!"_

The whistle echoed shrilly in the cold, still air, Blake took a running dive into the depths of the Black Lake. The moment he broke the surface, he waved his wand and muttered his desired spell, before disappearing in a hundred ripples. The cheers and applause from the stands disappearing, muffled by the murky depths of the cold Black Lake.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The water didn't feel icy any more...on the contrary, he felt pleasantly cool, and very light...Harry struck out at once more, marveling at how far and fast his flipper-like feet propelled him through the water, and noticing how clearly he could see, and how he no longer needed to blink. He had soon swum so far into the lake that he could no longer see the bottom.

He flipped over, and dived into the depths.

Silence pressed upon his ears as he soared over a strange, dark, foggy landscape. He could only see ten feet around him, so that as he sped through the water new scenes seemed to loom, suddenly out of the oncoming darkness; forests of rippling, tangled black weed, wide plains of mud littered with dull, glimmering stones.

He swam deeper and deeper, out towards the middle of the lake, his eyes wide, string through the eerily, grey-lit water around him to the shadows beyond, where the water became opaque.

Small fish flickered past him like silver darts. Once or twice he thought he saw something larger moving ahead of him, but when he got nearer, he discovered it to be nothing but a large blackened log, or a dense clump of weed. There no sign of any of the other champions, merpeople, Ron - nor, thankfully, the giant squid.

Light-green weed stretched ahead of him as far as he could see, two feet deep, like a meadow of very overgrown grass. Harry was staring unblinkingly ahead of him trying to discern shapes through the gloom...and then, without warning -

"How are you getting on?"

Harry thought he was having a heart attack. He whipped around, and saw Moaning Myrtle floating hazily in front of him, gazing at him through her thick pearly glasses.

"Myrtle!" Harry tried to shout - but nothing came out of his mouth but a very large bubble.

Moaning Myrtle giggled.

"You want to try over there!" she said, pointing. "I won't come with you...I don't like them much, they always chase me when I get too close."

Harry gave her the thumbs-up to show his thanks, and set off at once. He swam on for what felt like at least twenty minutes. He was passing over vast expanses of black mud now, which swirled murkily as he disturbed the water. Then, at long last, he heard a snatch of haunting mer-song.

_"An hour long you'll have to look,_

_And to recover what we took..."_

Harry swam faster, and soon saw a large rock emerge out of the muddy water ahead. It had paintings of merpeople on it; they were carrying spears, and chasing what looked like the giant squid. Harry swam on past the rock, following the mer-song.

_"...your time's half-gone, so tarry not_

_Lest what you seek stays here to rot..."_

A cluster of crude stone dwellings stained with algae loomed suddenly out of the gloom on all sides. Here and there at the dark windows, Harry saw faces...faces that bore no resemblance at all to the painting of the mermaid in the Prefects bathroom...

The merpeople had greyish skin and long, wild, dark green hair. Their eyes were yellow, as were their broken teeth, and they wore thick ropes of pebbles around their necks. They leered at Harry as he swam past; one or two of them emerged from their caves to watch him better, their powerful, silver fishtails beating the water, spears clutched in their hands.

Harry spend on, staring around, and soon the dwellings became more numerous; there were gardens of weed around some of them, and he even saw a pet Grindylow tied to a stake outside one door. Merpeople were emerging on all sides now, watching him eagerly, and pointing at his webbed hands and gills, talking behind their hands to each other.

Harry sped around a corner, and a very strange sight met his eyes.

A whole crowd of merpeople was floating in front of the houses that lined what looked like a mer-version of a village square. A choir of merpeople were singing in the middle, calling the champions towards them, and behind them rose a crude sort of statue; a gigantic merperson hewn from a boulder. Four people were bound tightly to the tail of the stone merperson.

Ron was tied between Phoebe and Amelia. There was a also a little girl who looked no older than eight, whose clouds of silvery hair made Harry feel sure that she was Fleur Delacour's sister. All four of them appeared to be in a very deep sleep. Their heads were lolling onto their shoulders, and fine streams of bubbles kept issuing from their mouths.

Harry sped towards the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to lower their spears and charge at him, but they did nothing. The ropes of the weed tying the hostages to the statue were thick, slimy and very strong. For a fleeting second he thought of the knife Sirius had brought him for Christmas - locked in his trunk in the castle a quarter of a mile away, no use to him whatsoever.

He looked around. Many of the merpeople surrounding him were carrying spears. He swam swiftly towards a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs, and tried to mime a request to borrow the spear.

The merman laughed and shook his head.

"We do not help," he said in a harsh, croaky voice.

"Come _ON_!" Harry said fiercely (but only bubbles issued from his mouth), and he tried to pull the spear away from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, still shaking his head and laughing.

Harry swirled around, staring about. Something sharp...anything.

There were rocks littering the lake bottom. He dived and snatched up a particularly jagged one, and returned to the statue. He began to hack at the ropes behind Ron, and after several minutes' hard work, they broke apart. Ron floated, unconscious, a few inches above the lake bottom; drifting a little in the ebb of the water.

Harry looked around. There was no sign of the other champions. What were they playing at? Why didn't they hurry up? He turned back to Phoebe, raised the jagged rock and began to hack at her bindings, too -

At once, several pairs of strong grey hands seized him. Half-a-dozen mermen were pulling him away from Phoebe, shaking their green-haired heads and laughing.

"You take your own hostage," one of them said. "Leave the others..."

"No way!" said Harry furiously.

"Your task is to retrieve your own friend...leave the others..."

"_She's_ my friend, too!" Harry yelled, gesturing towards Phoebe. "And I don't want _them_ to die, either!"

Amelia's head was on Phoebe's shoulder; the small silvery-haired girl was ghostly green and pale. Harry struggled to fight off the mermen, but they laughed harder than ever, holding him back.

But then the merpeople around him started pointing excitedly over his head. Harry looked up and saw Cedric swimming towards them. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched.

"Got lost!" he mouthed, looking panic-stricken. "Fleur and Blake're coming now!"

Feeling enormously relieved, Harry watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Amelia free. He pulled her upwards and out of sight.

Harry looked around, waiting. Where were Fleur and Blake? Time was getting short and, according to the song, the hostages would be lost after an hour. _**Come on, Blake! This is Phoebe! We can't lose her!**_

The merpeople started screeching excitedly. Those holding Harry loosened their grip, staring behind them. Harry turned, and saw something monstrous cutting through the water towards them; a human body in swimming trunks with the head of a shark...it was Blake. He had transfigured himself.

The shark-man swam straight past Harry, snapped the weed that was tying Phoebe to the rock, grabbed Phoebe around the waist and, without a backward glance, began to rise rapidly with her towards the surface.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Blake broke the surface of the Black Lake first, his head started to shrink from that of a shark and returned to his normal sized head and features. Phoebe popped up beside him, the spell broke and she gasped taking in as much fresh air as she possibly could.

"Pheebs...?" Blake murmured, blinking in the bright light.

The elemental smiled and turned to her best friend. "Wet, isn't it?" she joked.

Blake rolled his eyes, shook his head, and motioned to the bank a few feet away. "C'mon, let's get you back on dry land!"

The crowd in the stands was making a great deal of noise; shouting and screaming, everybody seemed to be on their feet! But Blake and Phoebe paid very little attention to them, focusing more on getting back into dry land, and hopefully some warm fluffy blankets to block out the chill of the mid-February air.

Phoebe could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Amelia and Cedric, both of whom were wrapped in thick blankets. Dumbledore and Josephine Higgs stood beaming at Phoebe and Blake from the bank as they swam nearer, but Jackson, who looked very white and much younger than fifteen, came splashing out to meet them.

"Phoebe!" Jackson cried, seizing the elemental and dragging her back to the bank. He wrapped a blanket around her and Karkaroff pulled Blake off to the side to congratulate him.

Meanwhile out on the lake Harry, Ron and Gabrielle broke the surface and were returning to the safety of the bank, with a guard of mer-people singing their screechy songs.

"I'm all right, Jack!" Phoebe cried, pushing away her flapping friend. She had just been at the bottom of the lake for who knew how long, she didn't really want to be smothered by over-protective best friends. She understood that he had been worried about her, but Dumbledore had asked her for her consent to participate, and she knew that while it had been Dumbledore no harm would have come to her.

"Come here, you," said Madam Pomfrey's voice, she seized Phoebe and pulled her over to Amelia and Cedric, and forced a very hot potion down her throat.

Soon they were joined by Harry, who was forced into a blanket and a potion was administrated forcefully to him too. Steam gushed from his ears, causing Amelia and Phoebe to giggle in response. Once the steam and giggling had subsided, Phoebe turned to her friend.

"Well done! You did it, you found out how, all by yourself!" she said.

"Well -" Harry started, before realizing that Karkaroff was watching them. "Yeah, that's right!"

Karkaroff scowled at the Gryffindor as Blake returned and hugged Phoebe tightly, as Terence and Esmee hurried over from the stands. The latter threw her arms around Blake, as Terence scooped Phoebe up and spun her around as he hugged her.

"So, that's where you were!" Terence said, as he put Phoebe back on her feet and kissed her. "We've been worried sick!"

"Sorry, when Fred and George said McGonagall wanted to see me," Phoebe explained. "They didn't know that she wanted four important 'treasures' that the champions would miss most. It was either me or Jackson..."

Jackson smirked. "I guess your reputation of getting into life-threatening situations is stronger than mine," he teased.

Phoebe stuck her tongue out at him, as she lay into Terence's embrace. "It just proves that Blake cares about me more!"

"Well, of course he does!" Jackson grinned. "You're a girl! You need the protection!"

"Oh no, you didn't!"

Jackson grinned at her daringly.

"Wait until I get feeling back into my body, Jackson Stream!" Phoebe threatened. "I would make you pay right now, but i'm too cold!"

"'Course you are, sweetheart," Jackson said tauntingly. "'Course you are!"

Harry, Cedric and Amelia shook their heads at the two friends as they smiled at the playful banter, while Blake and Esmee, however, paid little-to-no attention seeing as they were too engrossed with one another to care.

Jackson, who had just spotted them, nodded over Phoebe's shoulder, his lips forming a perfect 'O'.

Phoebe frowned and turned to see what had caught his attention, a squeal escaped her lips as her hands flew up to cover her mouth. "I knew it!" she cried. "I knew it! I knew it!"

"Mhmm, I'm not completely sure I agree with this," Terence said, as Phoebe turned to face him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Well, for one," Phoebe started. "She is older than you! Two, maybe now, if Blake is too busy with Esmee, he'll leave us alone!"

Terence met her gaze and grinned, lowered his lips so that they hovered over hers and said, "I like the sound of that..."

And he kissed her.

They broke apart when Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out beside them, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet.

"_Ladies and Gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Mer-chieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows...Miss Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by Grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points."_

Applause from the stands.

_"Mr. Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour."_ Enormous cheers from the Hufflepuff's in the crowd; Phoebe saw Amelia give Cedric a glowing look. _"We therefore award him forty-seven points."_

Harry's heart sank. If Cedric had been outside the time limit, he most certainly had been.

_"Mr. Blake Brooks used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points."_

Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking ver superior.

Phoebe and Esmee grinned at Blake.

_"Mr. Harry Potter used Gillyweed to great effect,"_ Bagman continued._ "He returned last and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Mer-chieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own."_

Phoebe gave Harry a half-exasperated, half-commiserating look.

_"Most judges -"_ and here, Bagman gave Karkaroff a very nasty look - _"feel that this shows moral fiber and merits full marks. However...Mr. Potter's score is forty-five points."_

Ron and Phoebe, caught by surprise, stared at Harry, then laughed and started applauding hard with the rest of the crowd.

"There you go, Harry!" Ron shouted over the noise. "You weren't being thick after all - you were showing moral fiber!"

Fleur was clapping very hard, too, and even Blake didn't seem upset with the fact that he had been out-done by a fourteen year old. In fact, he approached Harry, clapped his hand on his shoulder and congratulated him taking first place - despite being tied with Cedric.

_"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June,"_ continued Bagman. "_The champions will be notified of what is coming, precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions."_

_**It was nearly over,**_ Phoebe thought, as Madam Pomfrey began herding the champions and hostages back to the castle to get into dry clothes...it was nearly over, not only the second task, but the Triwizard Tournament and the end of fourth year! It was nearly over and she had made it through without being kidnapped and/or 'killed' in a freak accident.

Sure fourth year hadn't started out as she had planned it too, but maybe...just _maybe_...she could end it as she wanted it to end.

Safe.

Alive.

Without incident.

Sadly, what the elemental didn't realize was an even more sinister threat was waiting...just around the corner.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, January 24, 2012 at 1:45am**


	75. Chapter 75

**Author's Note:** Apologies for the delay. This chapter has literally taking me 3 days to complete. On the other hand…Padfoot returns. Yay!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squad 3rd Seat** and **Fan of Fics**.

**In Responses: **First too _**KingdomHeartsNerd**_: None of Phoebe's friends were mentioned much last chapter, save for Amelia who is Cedric's girlfriend. Ashlyn, Sarah and James weren't apart of the last chapter, which is why they weren't mentioned. I only mention characters that play relevance to the chapter in hand.

Second too _**Fan of Fics**_: Fifth year is going to be conflicting themes. Happiness and sadness. Darkness and Light. I also agree that Phoebe shouldn't get her hopes up, she has a while to go and anything could happen in that amount of time, in all honesty I have already worked out what is going to happen to her this year. It will come to light very soon.

Third too _**Vivi Fontaine:**_ He really does like using the name 'Phe...'

Lastly too _**10th Squad 3rd Seat**_: I am glad you love it. As for the fluff? Who doesn't love a little bit of fluff? Breaks up the dark themes, yes? More to come.

* * *

><p>One of the best (or worst) things about the aftermath of the second task was that everybody was very keen to hear details of what had happened down in the lake, which meant for once Ron was getting to share Harry's limelight, however, not everyone was sharing the enthusiasm; Phoebe, who had also been a 'treasure' were subjected to her own Q&amp;A and wanted more than anything to just forget the whole ordeal.<p>

"I don't know," the elemental would say as other students stopped her in the middle of the corridors, or interrupted her afternoons with her friends. Once or twice a few brave first years stopped her as she was heading off to the Astronomy Tower with Terence. "I was put under a sleeping spell! I don't remember anything from the time I was put to sleep in McGonagall's office, to the time I woke up when Blake rescued me."

Ron's version on the other hand changed subtly every time he re-told it. At first he gave what seemed to be the truth; it tallied with Phoebe's story, anyway - Dumbledore had put all the hostages into a bewitched sleep in Professor McGonagall's office, first assuring them that they would be quite safe, and would awake when they were back above the water.

One week later, however, Ron was telling a thrilling tale of kidnap in which he struggled single-handedly against fifty heavily armed merpeople who had to beat him into submission before tying him up.

"Lovely story, Ronald," Phoebe said when she overheard this version. "Just one flaw. Merpeople can't walk on land - they don't have legs - and what were you going to do? Snore at them?"

Ron's ears went red, and he reverted thereafter to the bewitched-sleep version of events.

As they entered March the weather became drier, but cruel winds skinned their hands and faces every time they went out into the grounds. There were delays in the post because the owls kept being blown off course; Phoebe and Serefina refrained from sending Athena out if they could help it, but when she did go out the Eagle managed to slice through the air like a knife through butter.

The brown owl that Harry had sent to Sirius with the dates of the Hogsmeade weekend turned up at breakfast on Friday morning with half its feathers sticking up the wrong way; Harry had no sooner torn off Sirius's reply than it took flight, clearly afraid that it was going to be sent outside again.

"Poor thing," Phoebe cooed as she watched the brown owl disappear into the rafters of the Great Hall.

Sirius's reply was short.

_Be at stile at end of road out of Hogsmeade (past Dervish and Banges) at two o'clock on Saturday afternoon. Bring as much food as you can._

"He hasn't come back to Hogsmeade?" said Ron.

"It looks like it, doesn't it?" said Hermione.

"I can't believe him!" said Harry tensely. "What if he's caught?"

"Made it so far, though, hasn't he?" said Phoebe. "And it's not like the place is swarming with Dementors anymore."

Harry sighed as he folded the note and put it away. He really wanted to see Sirius again, but he didn't want Sirius to get captured by the Ministry of Magic and be shipped off back to Azkaban - he still was a wanted murderer.

As the day grew on, Phoebe approached the final lesson of the afternoon - double Potions - with a rather fore boarding feeling, and no matter what she did, the elemental could not shake the sinking feeling she had in her gut.

"There they are, there they are!" giggled Pansy Parkinson the moment Phoebe, Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor's stepped into the dungeons. There was a knot of Slytherin's around her, and they broke apart the moment she had squealed. Phoebe saw that Parkinson had a magazine in her hands - _Witch Weekly._

_**Oh no,**_ the elemental thought as she realized _why_ she had a gut-wrenching feeling. This was _not_ going to be good.

"You might find something of interest in here, Blackheart!" Parkinson said loudly, and she threw the magazine at Phoebe, who caught it, looking startled. At that moment, the dungeon door opened, and Snape beckoned them all inside.

Phoebe, James and Ashlyn headed for a table that they usually occupied. Once Snape had turned his back on them to write up the ingredients of today's potion on the blackboard, Phoebe hastily riffled through the magazine under the desk.

"You don't want to do that," Ashlyn murmured. "You won't like it."

"Skeeter!" Phoebe snarled under her breath. She had ripped open the magazine to the centre pages, where a coloured photograph of Harry headed a short piece entitled:

_HARRY POTTER'S SECRET HEARTACHE:_

_A boy like no other, perhaps - yet a boy suffering all the usual pangs of adolescence, _writes Rita Skeeter. _Deprived of love since the tragic demise of his parents, fourteen-year-old Harry Potter thought he had found solace in his steady girlfriend at Hogwarts, Pureblood Phoebe Malfoy. Little did he know that he would shortly be suffering yet another emotional blow in a life already littered with personal loss._

_Miss Malfoy, an attractive but haughty girl, seems to have a taste for wizards that are way below her standards, that one Halfblood simply does not satisfy her needs. The arrival of one; Terence Higgs, who was witnessed with Miss Malfoy during a Hogsmeade trip last month, and around the grounds of Hogwarts, acting very openly and affectionate to the young Lion, shows that Miss Malfoy is clearly toying with both boys' affections._

_However, it might not be Miss Malfoy's natural charms which have captured these unfortunate boys' interest._

_"She's quite brainy," said Pansy Parkinson, a pretty and vivacious fourth year student, "she'd be well up to making a Love Potion. I think that is how she is doing it."_

_Love Potions are of course banned at Hogwarts, and no doubt Albus Dumbledore will want to investigate these claims. In the meantime, Harry Potter's well-wishers must hope that, next time, he bestows his heart upon a worthier candidate._

"Wow," James whispered. "Didn't realize you were such a...a...scarlet woman, Pheebs!"

Phoebe snorted with laughter. "Scarlet woman?" she questioned.

"It's what my mum calls them," James muttered.

"If that's the best Rita can do, she's losing her touch," said Phoebe, still giggling, as she threw Witch Weekly back into her backpack. "What a pile of rubbish."

She looked around at the Slytherin's, all of whom were watching her, clearly waiting for her reaction. Phoebe gave them a sarcastic smile and wave, and she, James and Ashlyn stared unpacking the ingredients they would need for their Wit-Sharpening Potion.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There was a knock at the door.

Phoebe, who had been mid-way through cutting her ginger-roots, paused and looked around with the rest of the class as Snape permitted entry to whoever was on the otherside.

Professor Karkaroff came in. Everyone watched him as he walked up towards Snape's desk. He was twisting his finger around his goatee, and looking agitated.

"We need to talk," said Karkaroff abruptly, when he had reached Snape's desk. He seemed determined that nobody should hear what he was saying that he was barely opening his lips; it was as though he was a rather poor ventriloquist.

"I'll talk to you after my lesson, Karkaroff -" Snape muttered, but Karkaroff interrupted him.

"I want to talk now, while you can't slip away, Severus. You've been avoiding me."

"After the lesson," Snape snapped.

And so, Karkaroff hovered behind Snape's desk for the rest of the double period. He seemed intents on preventing Snape slipping away at the end of the class.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They left the castle at noon the next day to find a weak silver sun shining down upon the grounds. The weather was milder than it had been all year, and by the time they arrived in Hogsmeade, Phoebe and Terence had taken off their coats and thrown them over their shoulders.

"Does Black know about his father's return?" Terence asked he was walking hand-in-hand with Phoebe down the High Street.

Despite Skeeter's article yesterday, neither one of them avoided public display of affection just because people believed Phoebe to be toying with both Slytherin and Gryffindor!

Terence knew that Phoebe loved him, and Phoebe knew that too.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, he, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia are meeting us at the end of stile at 2 o'clock. They are going present shopping for Sarah's parents, it is their anniversary tomorrow."

"When is ours?"

"Our, what?" Phoebe asked, glancing up at him.

"Anniversary,"

The elemental giggled. "We're not married," she pointed out.

"We should still have one," Terence responded. "To mark the date that our relationship changed from friendship to something more."

"End of term," Phoebe answered. "The End of Term Feast. On that day, two years previous, I kissed you and our relationship changed."

"Two years?"

"Yup. Two years. How on earth have you managed to put up with me for this long?"

Terence grinned. "I was asking myself the same question," he answered. "Maybe it is time for a change..."

Phoebe sucker punched him in the arm. "Don't even joke!" she warned.

"Sorry,"

"You're forgiven,"

Terence grinned and kissed her, laughing as he felt her grip the front of his shirt and pull him closer as she deepened the kiss.

The two stumbled backwards and Terence placed his hand against the rough rock of the side of the building which Phoebe was now resting against, neither of them wanted to break this connection, and only did when a shy giggle cut through the air several feet away.

Pulling away from Terence, Phoebe blinked and turned her head to see who had interrupted them - there, standing on the doorstep of the building they were resting against, was a small child around the age of seven. She had bright blue eyes, dark hair, and was watching them with a sort of shy expression.

"Busted," Terence whispered, his breathing heavy.

Phoebe nodded, winked at the child, before tugging at Terence's hand, pulled him down the lane behind the building and out towards the edge of the village. Neither of them had been in this direction before.

The winding lane was leading them out into the wild countryside around Hogsmeade. The cottages were fewer here, and their gardens large; they were walking towards the foot of the mountain in whose shadow Hogsmeade lay.

Then they turned a corner, and saw a stile at the end of the lane. Waiting for them, its front paws on the topmost bar, was a very large, shaggy black dog, which was carrying some newspapers in its mouth, and looked very familiar...

"Hello, Padfoot," said Phoebe, when they had reached him, she raised her hand and scratched him behind the ears.

A crooked smile seemed to appear on the dog's face as she petted him, before turning to the sound of approaching footsteps. The Golden Trio, James, Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah had arrived.

"You're late," Phoebe commented.

"You only just got here," Ashlyn answered. "Don't act like you didn't. We know exactly why you are late."

Phoebe grinned. "Been spying, have you?"

"No. But you're not exactly discreet about it."

"Just because Adrian won't snog you in public," James teased.

Ashlyn glared at him. "No one asked for your input," she retorted, throwing a slushy snowball at him.

James ducked and the snowball splattered against the side of the stile.

"Now, now children," said Amelia, as she got between the two cousins. "So, Terence and Phoebe are more open about their relationship than Adrian and Ashlyn, especially after Skeeter's article!"

"I told you," Phoebe responded. "I don't care what that woman writes about me! Everyone at Hogwarts knows that there is nothing going on between Harry and me! I love Terence, and am Loyal to him, and only him!"

"Except for that one incident -" Terence started.

Phoebe turned quickly towards him. "Yeah, but that was a mistake. A one-time thing. I am loyal to you. I would never purposely cheat on you! I'll never be able to live with myself if I hurt you intentionally!"

Terence smiled and kissed her cheek. "I know. I have forgiven you for that incident, just forget it."

Phoebe nodded and turned to her friends. "Forget everything. The past isn't important, anyway!"

Her friends nodded. Ashlyn dropped her snowball as James dropped the subject.

Whilst the friends had bantered back and forth, Sirius had sniffed Harry's bag, wagged his tail once, then turned, and began to trot away from them across the scrubby patch of ground which rose to meet the rocky foot of the mountain.

Sirius led them to the very foot of the mountain, where the ground was covered with boulders and rocks. It was easy for him, with his four paws, but the students were soon out of breath. They followed Sirius higher, up onto the mountain itself. For nearly half an hour they climbed a steep, winding and stony path, following Sirius' wagging tail, sweating in the sun.

Then, at last, Sirius slipped out of sight, and when they reached the place where he had vanished, they saw a narrow fissure in the rock.

They squeezed into it, and found themselves in a cool, dimly lit cave.

Tethered at the end of it, one of his rope around a large rock was Buckbeak the Hippogriff. Half-grey horse, half-giant eagle. Buckbeak's fierce orange eyes flashed at the sight of them.

All nine of them bowed low to him, and after regarding them imperiously for moment, Buckbeak bent his scaly front knees, and allowed Phoebe to rush forward and stroke his feathery neck.

Harry, James and Ashlyn, however were staring at the black dog, which had just turned back into his human form.

Sirius was wearing ragged grey robes; the same ones he had been wearing when he had left Azkaban.

His black hair was longer than it had been when he had appeared in the fire, and it was untidy and matted once more. He looked very thin.

"Chicken!" he said hoarsely, after removing the old _Daily Prophets_ from his mouth and throwing them down onto the cave floor.

Harry pulled open his bag and handed over the bundle of chicken legs and bread.

"Thanks," said Sirius, opening it, grabbing a drumstick, sitting down on the cave floor and tearing off a large chunk with his teeth. "I've been living off rats mostly. Can't steal too much food from Hogsmeade; I'd draw attention to myself."

Amelia resisted the urge to gag at the mention of Sirius living off Rats.

"What are you doing here, Sirius?" Harry asked.

"Fulfilling my duty as godfather," said Sirius, gnawing on the chicken bone in a very dog-like way. "Don't worry about me; I'm pretending to be a loveable stray."

James's hands balled into fists. "Your duty as godfather?" he asked. "What about me? You're my father! All this time you have been back, and not _once_ did you contact me!"

"Harry needs me now, James," Sirius answered. "I understand that you are angry, but you have your mother to turn too when you need someone. Harry has no one, but me."

"A note would have been nice!"

"And have you leave the castle just to come see him?" Phoebe asked, as she lay against Buckbeak's pelt, his feathers soft against her skin. "Not bloody likely."

James glared at her. "And _you_! You knew! You knew that Harry was in communication with my father! You knew that he was back here, and not once did you tell me!"

"Of course I knew Harry was in communication," Phoebe answered. "I was there in the common room the night before the first task! I was there when Sirius came to talk to Harry! I didn't tell you because I know what you are like!"

"So wanting to see my father is a crime now?" James demanded.

Phoebe shook her head. "No. But sneaking out of the castle to see him is!"

"I wouldn't have said anything," James reasoned. "You wouldn't have said anything. No one would be any the wiser!"

"Dumbledore would have known," Ashlyn pointed out. She turned to her uncle. "I am correct in assuming that the Headmaster knows you are here?"

Sirius considered her for a moment, nodded and then said, "You are very familiar..."

"I should be," Ashlyn smirked. "We are, after all, blood related."

"We are?" Sirius frowned.

Ashlyn nodded.

"Sirius," Phoebe grinned, "meet Ashlyn - your Niece."

"Niece?" Sirius questioned, before realization dawned. "You are Thalia's daughter? Reg -" he paused. "Regulus's child?"

Ashlyn nodded, her smile dropping at the mention of her father's name. She, unlike most of her friends, didn't have a relationship with her father, mostly because he had been dead long before she had been born. "Yes. Your younger brother, Regulus, is my father. Thalia Flint is my mother."

"Flint?" Sarah questioned. "You never told us that you were related to him!"

"You never asked," Ashlyn told them. "But, yes, he is my cousin, on my mother's side."

"Ouch," Phoebe muttered. "And I thought being related to Lucius was bad."

Amelia looked around at the elemental. "Well, in comparison, you do have it worse,"

"How?"

"Well, you are Lucius Malfoy's daughter," Amelia reasoned. "Ashlyn is Flint's cousin. You are more related to Lucius than Ash is to Marcus."

Phoebe nodded. "True. Very true."

Amelia nodded and grinned, as Sirius spoke again.

Sirius was still grinning, but seeing the anxiety in Harry's face, said in a serious voice, "I want to be on the spot. Your last letter...well, let's just say things are getting fishier. I've been stealing the paper every time someone throws one out, and by the looks of things, I'm not the only one who's getting worried."

He nodded at the yellowing _Daily Prophets_ on the cave floor, and Sarah picked them up and unfolded them.

Harry, however, continued to stare at Sirius. "What if they catch you? What if you're seen?"

"You lot and Dumbledore are the only ones who know I am here," Sirius said, pointing at Ashlyn, "As Ashlyn already asked. Dumbledore was the second person to know that I was back - don't start, James -" James, who had opened his mouth to protest closed it and glared at his father. "- Dumbledore had a right to know. He has been keeping tabs on me since the end of last year."

Hermione looked around at Sirius. "Why didn't you go find your wife?" she asked.

"Yeah!" James protested. "Why didn't you come find us?"

"I tried," Sirius answered. "Samantha is still convinced that I murdered James and Lily. She will not like it if I just turned up out of the blue, she would probably notify the authorities the moment she saw me, and I would be sent straight back to Azkaban."

James shook his head. "No! You wouldn't! Mum misses you! I know she does!"

Sirius smiled a smile full of sorrow. "I know you want me to come home, James, but I cannot do that yet." he explained. "Your mother will simply not take me back, not after 12 years. She must learn the truth herself, and then - and only then - will I be able to come home."

"I can't really see you playing happy families, Sirius," Phoebe pointed out. "You know, settling down with Samantha. Raising your children. Staying out of trouble."

"Wait a minute," Sirius gasped. "Children?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. Children. That is why Samantha is afraid..." she glanced at James, paused, and then said, "Sirius. You have two other children other than James. That night, 12 years ago, Sam was going to tell you that she was pregnant..."

Sirius's jaw dropped.

"But you didn't return home," Phoebe pressed on. "A few hours later she received an Owl from Dumbledore explaining that James and Lily were dead, and you had been arrested as the murderer. It was then that she decided to keep Melissa and Henry a secret, and keep you a secret from them."

Ron narrowed his eyes at her. "How do _you_ know that?"

"Dumbledore," Phoebe answered. "He told Serefina, who in turn told me. Dumbledore requested that I keep an eye on James all throughout last year, which is why I made the decision to not tell him that his father had returned to Hogsmeade this year. I was protecting him. It is what friends do."

James huffed in frustration and annoyance. "I don't need protecting!" he stated. "One day, I will be the head of the House of Black, and then you two -" he pointed at Phoebe and Ashlyn. "Will be under my protection."

Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged looks and snorted.

"You will!" James protested. "I am the son of the oldest Black child! This makes me the heir!"

"Yeah, and I am the heir to the Blackheart fortune and estate," Phoebe pointed out. "I'm destined to be a pretty powerful witch. If anyone is going to be doing the protecting, it is going to be me."

"I am older than you,"

Phoebe shrugged. "So? Age has got nothing to do with it! So you are older than me by a month. A couple of days, if that. Age is merely a number; it doesn't give you power or protection. I have the power to enlist protection."

James glared, and turned away.

Amelia and Sarah exchanged looks, the latter rolling her eyes and returning to the paper. "Hey, Mr. Crouch is mentioned in here!" she exclaimed, in the now silent cave. "Well, more than just mentioned, there is an entire article on him!"

"What's it say?" Hermione asked.

_Mystery Illness of Bartemius Crouch._

Phoebe moved away from Buckbeak, and stepped up behind Sarah. She looked down at the paper and read the article, as a few phrases jumped out at her: _Hasn't been seen in public since November...house appears deserted...St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies decline comment...Ministry refuses to confirm rumors of critical illness..._

"Critical illness?" the elemental questioned. "They're making it sound like he is dying!"

"But he can't be that ill if he managed to get up here..."

"My brother's Crouch's personal assistant," Ron informed Sirius. "He says Crouch is suffering from overwork."

"Mind you, he _did_ look ill, last time I saw him up close," said Harry slowly. "The night my name came out of the Goblet..."

"Getting his comeuppance for sacking Winky isn't he?" said Hermione coldly. She was now stroking Buckbeak, who was crunching up Sirius' chicken bones. "I bet he wishes he hadn't done it now - bet he feels the difference now she's not there to look after him."

"Hermione's obsessed with house-elves," Ron muttered to Sirius, casting Hermione a dark look.

Phoebe caught the look. "She's not obsessed with them!" she defended. "She just doesnt agree with the way the system works! And if I am truly honest...neither am I!"

"We all know you aren't," Ron answered. "You're just -"

"Crouch sacked his house-elf?" Sirius interrupted, looking interested.

"Yeah, at the Quidditch World Cup," said Harry, and he launched into the story of the Dark Mark's appearance, and Winky being found with Harry's wand clutched in her hand, and Mr. Crouch's fury. When Harry had finished, Sirius was on his feet again, and had started pacing up and down the cave.

"Let me get this straight," he said after a while, brandishing a fresh chicken le. "You first saw the elf in the Top Box. She was saving Crouch a seat, right?"

"Right," said Harry, Ron and Hermione together.

Phoebe frowned. "How come I don't remember seeing her in the Top Box?" she asked.

"This was before the game started," Hermione answered. "You were talking with the Salem Warrior's coach."

"Oh,"

Sirius pressed on. "But Crouch didn't turn up for the match?"

"No. I think he said he'd been too busy!"

Sirius paced all around the cave in silence. Then he said, "Harry, did you check your pockets for your wand after you'd left the Top Box?"

"No," Harry answered. "I didn't need to use it before we got in the forest. And then I put my hand in my pocket, and all that were there were the Omnioculars." He stared at Sirius. "Are you saying whoever conjured the Mark stole my wand in the Top Box?"

"It's possible," said Sirius.

"Winky didn't steal that wand!" said Hermione shrilly.

"The elf wasn't the only one in that box," said Sirius, his brow furrowed as he continued to pace. "Who else was sitting behind you?"

"Loads of people," said Harry. "Some Irish and Salem ministers...Cornelius Fudge...the Malfoy's..."

"The Malfoy's!" said Ron suddenly, so loud that his voice echoed all around the cave, and Buckbeak tossed his head nervously. "I bet it was Lucius Malfoy."

"Anyone else?" said Sirius.

"No one," said Harry.

"Ludo Bagman," Hermione reminded him.

"Oh, yeah..."

"I don't know anything about Bagman, except that he used to be Beater for the Wimbourne Wasps," said Sirius, still pacing. "What's he like."

"He's creepy," Amelia answered. "I don't like him."

Sarah nodded in agreement. "He doesn't hesitate to stop us on the Hogwarts grounds, always asking questions about Harry. He stopped us once when were on our way to Herbology, and he kept asking if we had seen you," she looked at Harry. "Kept saying that he needed to talk to you about the Tournament."

"Why would he need to do that?" Ashlyn asked.

"He keeps offering to help me," Harry answered.

"He does?" Phoebe asked. "Why?"

"Says he's taken a liking to me," said Harry.

"Hmm," said Sirius, looking thoughtful.

"We saw him in the forest just before the Dark Mark appeared," Terence told Sirius. "Remember?" he said to Phoebe, Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Yeah, but he didn't stay in the forest, did he?" said Ron. "The moment we told him about the riot, he went off to the campsite."

"How d'you know?" Hermione shot back. "How d'you know where he Disapparated to?"

"Come off it," said Ron incredulously, "are you going to say you reckon Ludo Bagman conjured the Dark Mark?"

"It's more likely he did it than Winky," said Hermione stubbornly.

"Told you," said Ron, looking meaningfully at Sirius, "told you she's obsessed with house -"

Sirius held up a hand to silence Ron. "When the Dark Mark had been conjured, and the elf had been discovered holding Harry's wand, what did Crouch do?"

"Went to look in the bushes," said Harry, "but there wasn't anyone else there."

"Of course," Sirius muttered, pacing up and down, "of course, he'd want to pin it on anyone but his own elf...and then he sacked her?"

"Yes," said Phoebe in a heated voice, "he sacked her, just because she hadn't stayed in her tent and let herself get trampled -"

"Phoebe, _will_ you and Hermione give it a rest with the elf!" said Ron.

But Sirius shook his head and said, "They've got the measure of Crouch better than you have, Ron. If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."

He ran a hand over his unshaven face, evidently thinking hard. "All these absences of Barty Crouch's...he goes to the trouble of making sure his house-elf saves him a seat at the Quidditch World Cup, but doesn't both to turn up and watch. He works very hard to reinstate the Triwizard Tournament, and then stops coming to that, too...it's not like Crouch. If he's ever taken a day off work because of illness before this, I'll eat Buckbeak."

"D'you know Crouch, then?" said Ashlyn.

Sirius' face darkened. He suddenly looked as menacing as the night when they had first met him, the night when they all still believed him to be a murderer

"Oh, I know Crouch all right," he said quietly. "He was the one who gave the order for me to be sent to Azkaban - without a trail."

_"What?"_ said the nine students together.

"You're kidding!" said Harry.

"No, I'm not," said Sirius, taking another great bite of chicken. "Crouch used to be Head of Department of Magical Law Enforcement, didn't you know?"

The students shook their heads.

"He was tipped as the next Minister for Magic," said Sirius. Phoebe scoffed and rolled her eyes. "He's a great wizard, Barty Crouch, powerfully magical - and power-hungry. Oh, never a Voldemort supporter. No, Barty Crouch was always very outspoken against the Dark side. But then a lot of people were against the Dark side...well, you wouldn't understand...you're too young..."

Phoebe snapped to attention. "Try me!" she stated, staring at Sirius.

A grin flashed across Sirius's face. "All right, I'll try you..."

He walked once up the cave, back again, and then said, "Imagine that Voldemort's powerful now. You don't know who his supporters are, you don't know who's working for him and who isn't; you know he can control people so that they do terrible things without being able to stop themselves. You're scared for yourself, and your family, and your friends. Every week, news comes of more deaths, more disappearances, more torturing...the Ministry of Magic's in disarray, they don't know what to do, they're trying to keep everything hidden from the Muggles, but meanwhile, Muggles are dying too. Terror everywhere...panic...confusion...that's how it used to be."

"You just described what it would be like to live in 1880 England for the Muggles," Phoebe pointed out.

"Jack the Ripper?" Hermione questioned.

Phoebe grinned. "I knew you would pick up the reference of the date,"

The bookworm shook her head, a small smile appearing on her lips.

"Anyway," Phoebe said, turning back to Sirius. "Continue."

"Well, times like that bring out the best in some people, and the worst in others. Crouch's principles might've been good in the beginning - I wouldn't know. He rose quickly through the Ministry, and he started ordering very harsh measures against Voldemort's supporters. The Aurors were given new powers - powers to kill rather than capture, for instance. And I wasn't the only one who was handed straight to the Dementors without trial. Crouch fought violence with violence, and authorized the use of the Unforgiveable Curses against suspects."

Amelia started wide-eyed at her friend's father. "He ordered the uses of them curses on people?" she repeated.

"He sounds as ruthless and cruel as You-Know-Who," Sarah squeaked.

Sirius nodded in agreement. "He had his supporters too, mind you - plenty of people thought he was going about things the right way, and there were a lot of witches and wizards clamoring for him to take over as Minster for Magic."

"And I thought Fudge was bad," Phoebe commented. "Fudge is a pansy compared to Crouch…"

"When Voldemort disappeared," Sirius continued, "it looked like only a matter of time until Crouch got the top job. But then something rather unfortunate happened…" he smiled grimly. "Crouch's own son was caught with a group of Death Eaters who'd managed to talk their way out of Azkaban."

Phoebe nodded. "Barty Crouch Jnr," she stated.

Her friends stared at her.

"What?"

"How did you know that?" Harry asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "History," she answered, as if it were obvious. "It's like, where you are taught about the Wall Street crash and the World Wars in the Muggle worlds, or in the Wizarding world you are taught about Goblin wars and terrors on the country; kids in Portugal are taught about the First Wizarding world war and Voldemort."

"Sounds fun," Hermione smiled.

"You have no idea," Phoebe agreed. "If there is one thing I have learned, and that is Voldemort reminds me of a magical Hitler."

The bookworm giggled. "I was thinking exactly the same thing," she agreed.

"You two are weird," James commented, turning back to his father. "Please, continue…"

Sirius was staring at Phoebe. "Well, like I said, Crouch's son, Barty Crouch Jnr, was caught with a group of Death Eaters. Apparently they were trying to find Voldemort and return him to power."

He threw his chicken bone to Buckbeak, and flinging himself back down on the grounds beside the loaf of bread, and tear it in half. "Nasty little shock for old Barty, I'd imagine. Should have spent a bit more time at home with his family, shouldn't he? Ought to have left the office early once in a while…got to know his own son."

He began to wolf down large pieces of bread.

"W_as_ his son a Death Eater?" said Harry.

"No idea," said Sirius, still stuffing down bead. "I was in Azkaban myself when he was brought in. This is mostly stuff I've found out since I got out. They boy was definitely caught in the company of people I'd bet my life were Death Eaters – but he might have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, just like the house-elf."

"Did Crouch try and get his son off?" Hermione whispered.

Sirius let out a laugh that was much like a bark. "Crouch let his son off? I thought you had the measure of him, Hermione? Anything that threatened to tarnish his reputation had to go; he had dedicated his whole life to becoming Minister for Magic. You saw him dismiss a devoted house-elf because she associated him with the Dark Mark again – doesn't that tell you what he's like?"

Phoebe smirked in satisfaction as she turned towards Ron. "See, reputation means _everything_ to those big shots at the Ministry!"

"My father works at the Ministry!" Ron responded hotly. "Not to mention _his_ mother!"

He pointed at Terence.

"Is your father Head of Department?" Phoebe asked. "No? Does your father have people beneath him that he can treat like trash? No? Then he's not a big shot, is he?"

"What about Percy?"

"Percy only cared about reputation when he was at school!" Phoebe argued. "You even accused him yourself! Or do I need to refresh your memory to that day back in second year? You stated, and I quote: "You just don't want me messing up your chances of being Head Boy!' and don't even try denying it!"

Ron's ears flushed red.

"Crouch's fatherly affection stretched just far enough to give his son a trial and, by all accounts, it wasn't much than an excuse for Crouch to show how much he hated the boy…then he sent him straight to Azkaban," said Sirius.

"He gave his own son to the Dementors?" asked Harry quietly.

"That's right," said Sirius, and he didn't look remotely amused now. "I saw the Dementors bringing him in, watched them through the bars in my cell door. He can't have been more than nineteen. They took him into a cell near mine. He was screaming for his mother by nightfall. He went quiet after a few days, though…they all went quiet in the end…except when they shrieked in their sleep…"

For a moment, the deadened look in Sirius' eyes became more pronounced than ever, as though shuttered had closed behind them.

"So he's still in Azkaban?" Harry said.

"No," said Sirius dully. "No, he's not in there any ore. He died about a year after they brought him in."

"He _died_?" Amelia asked.

"He wasn't the only one," said Sirius bitterly. "Most go mad in there, and plenty stop eating in the end. They lose the will to live. You could always tell when a death was coming, because the Dementors could sense it, they got excited. That boy looked pretty sickly when he arrived. Crouch being an important Ministry member, he and his wife were allowed a deathbed visit. That was the last time I saw Barty Crouch, half carrying his wife past my cell. She died herself, apparently, shortly afterwards. Grief. Wasted away just like the boy. Crouch never came for his son's body. The Dementors buried him outside the fortress, I watched them do it."

Sirius threw aside the bred had just lifted to his mouth and instead picked up the flask of pumpkin juice and drained it.

"So old Crouch lost it all, just when he though he had it made," Phoebe said, as Sirius drank his fill. "One moment, a hero, poised to become Minister for Magic…next, his son dead, his wife dead, the family name dishonored, and a big drop in popularity."

Sirius nodded, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Once the boy died, people started feeling a bit more sympathetic towards him, and started asking how a nice young lad from a good family had gone so badly astray. The conclusion was that his father had never cared much for him."

"So Cornelius Fudge got the Minister position," Phoebe stated. "And Crouch was shunted sideways into the Department of International Magical Co-operation."

Again, Sirius nodded.

There was a long silence. Phoebe was thinking of the way Crouch's eyes had bulged as he'd looked down at Winky back in the wood at the Quidditch World Cup. This, then, had to have been the reason that Crouch overreacted to Winky being found beneath the Dark Mark. It had brought back memories of his son, and the old scandal, and his fall from grace at the Ministry.

"Moody says Crouch is obsessed with catching Dark wizards," said Harry.

"Yeah, I've heard it's become a bit of a mania with him," said Sirius nodding. "If you ask me, he still thinks he can bring back the old popularity by catching one more Death Eater."

"And he sneaked up here to search Snape's office!" said Ron triumphantly, looking at Phoebe.

The elemental glared at him.

"Yes, and that doesn't make sense at all," said Snape.

"Yeah, it does!" said Ron excitedly.

But Sirius shook his head. "Listen, if Crouch wants to investigate Snape, why hasn't he been coming to judge the Tournament? It would be an ideal excuse to make regular visits to Hogwarts and keep an eye on him."

"So you think Snape could be up to something, then?" asked Harry, but Hermione broke in.

"Look, I don't care what you say, Dumbledore trusts Snape -"

"Oh, come off it, Hermione!" said Ron impatiently. "I know Dumbledore's brilliant and everything, but that doesn't mean a really clever Dark wizard couldn't fool him -"

"Why did Snape save Harry's life in the first year, then? Why didn't he just let him die?"

"I dunno – maybe he thought Dumbledore would kick him out -"

"What do you think, Sirius?" Harry asked loudly, and Ron and Hermione stopped bickering to listen.

"I think they've both got a point," said Sirius, looking thoughtfully at Ron and Hermione. "Ever since I found out Snape was teaching here, I've wondered why Dumbledore hired him. Snape's always been fascinated by the Dark Arts, he was famous for it at school. Slimy, oily, greasy-haired kid, he was," Sirius added, and Harry and Ron grinned at each other. "Snape knew more curses when he arrived at school than half the kids in the seventh year and he was part of a gang of Slytherin's who nearly all turned out to be Death Eaters."

Sirius held up his fingers, and began ticking off names. "Rosier and Wilkes – they were both killed by Aurors the year before Voldemort fell. The Lestrange's – they're a married couple – they're in Azkaban. Avery – from what I've heard he wormed his way out of trouble by saying he'd been acting under the Imperius Curse – he's still at large. But as far as I know, Snape was never even accused of being a Death Eater – not that means much. Plenty of them were never caught. And Snape's certainly clever and cunning enough to keep himself out of trouble."

"Snape knows Karkaroff pretty well, but he wants to keep that quiet," said Ron.

"Yeah, you should've seen Snape's face when Karkaroff turned up in Potions yesterday!" said Harry quickly. "Karkaroff wanted to talk to Snape; he says Snape's been avoiding him. Karkaroff looked really worried. He showed Snape something on his arm, but I couldn't see what it was…"

Phoebe perked up. "He showed him something on his arm?" she asked. "Was it his left forearm?"

Harry nodded. "But I couldn't see -"

"What is it, Phe?" Terence asked.

"Well, Death Eaters of Voldemort's inner circle was branded with the Dark Mark," Phoebe answered. "It was always branded on their left forearm. And I know for a fact that Karkaroff was a Death Eater…"

"But…?" Sarah pressed.

Phoebe shrugged and ran her fingers distractedly through her hair. "The Dark Mark was supposed to have disappeared when Voldemort fell. That is why the Ministry of Magic had a lot of trouble sorting the Death Eaters out from the innocent people, because there was nothing incriminating them and linking them to Voldemort in any way, shape or form."

"But if Karkaroff is genuinely worried, and he's going to Snape for answers -" Ron started up.

Sirius interrupted him. "There's still the fact that Dumbledore trusts Snape, and I know Dumbledore trusts where a lot of other people wouldn't, but I just can't see him letting Snape teach at Hogwarts if he'd ever worked for Voldemort."

"Why is Moody and Crouch so keen to get into Snape's office, then?" said Ron stubbornly.

"Well," said Sirius slowly, "I wouldn't put it past Mad-Eye to have searched every single teacher's office when he got to Hogwarts. He takes his Defence Against the Dark Arts seriously, Moody. I'm not sure _he_ trusts anyone at all, and after the things he's seen, it's not surprising. I'll say this for Moody, though; he never killed if he could help it. Always brought people in alive where possible. He was tough, but he never descended to the level of the Death Eaters. Crouch; though…he's a different matter…is he really ill? If he is, why did he make the effort to drag himself up to Snape's office? And if he's not…what's he up to? What was he doing at the World Cup that was so important he didn't turn up in the Top Box? What's he been doing while he should have been judging the Tournament?"

Sirius lapsed into silence, still staring at the cave wall. Buckbeak was ferreting around on the rocky floor, searching for bones he might have overlooked.

Finally, Sirius looked up at Ron. "You say your brother's Crouch's personal assistant? Any chance you could ask him if he's seen Crouch lately?"

"I can try," said Ron doubtfully. "Better not make it sound like I reckon Crouch is up to something dodgy, though, Percy loves Crouch."

"And you might try and find out whether they've got any leads on Bertha Jorkins while you're at it," said Sirius, nodding at the paper. "Blustering on about how bad Bertha's memory is. Well, maybe she's changed since I knew her, but the Bertha I knew wasn't as forgetful at all – quite the reverse. She was a bit dim, but she had an excellent memory for gossip. It used to get her into trouble; she never knew when to keep her mouth shut. I can see her being a bit of a liability at the Ministry of Magic…maybe that's why Bagman didn't bother looking for her for so long…"

"I can ask Aiden about Bertha," said Phoebe. "His guardian is usually on top of the notch for information."

"His guardian is from Salem," said Ashlyn. "What would he know about English Ministry members?"

Phoebe turned to her best friend. "You'd be surprised what we know," she answered. "Thomas is very good friends with my family, he usually gives Serefina information on things that are happening in England, and that is how Serefina knows what is going on. It's a little scary to some people – like Fudge, who was surprised that Serefina knew about Sirius breaking out of Azkaban at the end of last year, and how she knew that Harry had run away before the Ministry of Magic knew."

"What? Do you have like a tracking device on us, or something?" Amelia asked.

"No," Phoebe giggled. "It is Thomas's job to know what is happening in other countries, not just his own."

"Is Thomas an elemental?" Terence asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "I do not know," she answered. "I do not know him that well. I just know that he is the person that Serefina goes to for information. He is the person that told her about Sirius being on the loose last year, and she used that information to keep me off the streets of Hogsmeade, because she thought – just like everyone else – he was a Death Eater and was working for Voldemort. No one wanted him to be able to get his hands on me and take me to Voldemort."

Sirius stared at the elemental with wide eyes. "Of all the stories I have heard about your family, I never knew that."

Phoebe smiled. "My family is awesome!"

"Which side?"

"The Blackheart side, obviously!"

Sirius heaved an enormous sigh and rubbed his shadowed eyes. "What's the time?"

Terence checked his watch. "It's half past three," he said.

"You'd better get back to school," Sirius said, getting to his feet. "Now, listen…" he looked particularly hard at Harry and James – "I don't want you lot sneaking out of school to see me, all right? Just send notes to me here. I still want to hear about anything odd. But you're not to go leaving Hogwarts without permission; it would be an ideal opportunity for someone to attack you."

"No one's tried to attack me so far, except a dragon," said Harry.

"And occasionally Phoebe," James added.

The elemental grinned in response.

But Sirius scowled at them. "I don't care…I'll breathe freely again when this Tournament is over, and that's not until June. Phoebe…"

"Yeah," Phoebe asked, turning to Sirius.

"You are in charge," Sirius stated. "I know that you have a little more leeway up at the castle because of your Godmother. You're in charge of keeping an eye on both James and Harry when I can't be there to do it myself. OK?"

Phoebe nodded. "Don't I always?"

"True. And don't forget, if you're talking about me among yourselves, call me Padfoot. OK?"

James and Harry scowled at the idea of Phoebe being their unofficial baby sitter.

"What are we?" Harry asked, as Sirius handed him the empty napkin and flask. "Babies,"

"Yeah," James agreed. "We don't need a babysitter!"

Sirius offered them looks that clearly showed that he did not believe them. "Phoebe is in charge. I am giving her permission to watch over you while you are up at the castle. At least until this is all over, or I am sure that you are going to be safe."

Phoebe grinned at the two boys. "Now, boys, listen to the man, he knows what he is talking about."

The others laughed in response, as Terence slid his arms around Phoebe's waist and the elemental leaned back into him.

"I'll walk to the edge of the village with you," said Sirius, after he had patted Buckbeak goodbye, "see if I can scrounge another paper."

He transformed into the great black dog before they left the cave, and they walked back down the mountainside with him, across the boulder-strewn ground, and back to the stile.

Here he allowed each of them to pat him on the head, before turning and setting off at a run around the outskirts of the village.

The two groups of friends made their way back into Hogsmeade, and up towards Hogwarts.

"Wonder if Percy knows all that stuff about Crouch?" Ron said, as they walked up the drive to the castle. "But maybe he doesn't care…it'd probably just make him admire Crouch even more. Yeah, Percy loves rules. He'd just say Crouch was refusing to break them for his own son."

"Percy would never throw any of his family to the Dementors," said Hermione severely.

"I don't know," said Ron. "If he thought we were standing in the way of his career…Percy's really ambitious, you know."

They walked up the stone steps into the Entrance Hall where the delicious smell of dinner wafted towards them from the Great Hall.

"Poor old Padfoot," said Amelia, breathing deeply. "He must really like you, Harry…imagine having to live off rats."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 11:17pm**


	76. Chapter 76

**Author's Note:** Hello out there? I live! I managed to tear myself away from Rescue: Special Ops to actually update!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Vivi Fontaine **and **Fan of Fics**.

**In Responses: **_**Vivi Fontaine:**_ Yes, Terence knows about the kiss between Harry/Phoebe; but Phoebe explained that it meant nothing and it won't happen again...but it was a sort of spur of the moment thing. Anyway...can't see Harry been all too happy about it, but Terence doesn't care as long as he doesn't lose Phoebe (again)

_**Fan of Fics:**_ Hi, I won't say much because there may be readers that haven't worked out who he is yet, but you are correct to assume that idea. I hope you understand what I mean, I can't say it anymore discreetly that what I already have.

**Shout Outs:** First too: **Jojia, AureliaPhoenixAnasasia** and **NightBrother** for adding me to their Story Alerts. Also too **NightBrother** and **ZabuzasGirl** for adding me to their Favourite Story's. Thank you guys!

* * *

><p>By breakfast Monday morning, Phoebe, Harry and the rest of their friends had sent enough food up to Padfoot to last him a lifetime.<p>

When the post arrived, Hermione looked up eagerly; she seemed to be expecting something.

"Percy won't have had time to answer yet," said Ron. "We only sent Hedwig yesterday."

"No, it's not that," said Hermione. "I've taken out a new subscription to the _Daily Prophet_; I'm getting sick of finding everything out from the Slytherin's."

"Good thinking!" said Harry, also looking up at the owls. "Hey, Phoebe, I think you've got mail."

Phoebe frowned and looked up. A grey owl was soaring down towards her. "Who's Owl is that?" she asked.

"Don't you know?" Hermione asked.

"No," the elemental answered. "Katie doesn't own an Owl and Oliver isn't talking to me. So, I don't know who this belongs to."

By now the Owl had landed in front of her plate, closely followed by four barn owls, a brown owl and a tawny.

"What the hell -?" Phoebe demanded, pushing her breakfast away, as James seized her goblet before it was knocked over by the cluster of owls, all of whom were jostling close to her, trying to deliver their own letter first, she took the letter from the grey owl, opening and starting to read. "Oh, really!" she spluttered, going rather red.

"What's up?" said James.

"It's - oh, how ridiculous -" She thrust the letter at Harry, who saw that it was not handwritten, but composed from pasted letters that seemed to have been cut out of the _Daily Prophet_.

_You are a WickEd giRL. HaRRy PottEr desErves BetteR. gO Back wherE you cAME from mAlfoy._

"They're all like it!" said Phoebe desperately, opening one letter after another. "'_Harry Potter can do much better than the likes of you...' 'You deserve to be boiled in frog-spawn...' Ouch!"_

She had opened the last envelope, and yellowish green liquid smelling strongly of petrol gushed over her hands, which began to erupt in large yellow boils.

"Undiluted Bubotuber pus!" said Ron, picking up the envelope gingerly and sniffing it.

"Ow!" said Phoebe, tears starting in her eyes as she tried to rub it off her hands with a napkin, but her fingers were now so thickly covered in painful sores that it looked as though she was wearing a pair of thick, knobbly gloves.

"You'd better get up to the hospital wing," said Harry, as the owls around Phoebe took flight, "we'll tell Professor Sprout where you've gone..."

Jumping from her seat, Phoebe hurried from the Great Hall, cradling her hands.

"What happened?" Ashlyn asked as she hurried over with Terence, Esmee, Blake, Jackson and Krum.

James explained everything.

"I warned her!" said Terence. "I warned her not to annoy Rita Skeeter!"

"Look at this one -" said Ron, as he opened another letter and started to read. "_I read in _Witch Weekly_ about how you are playing Harry Potter false and that boy has had enough hardship and I will be sending you a curse by next post as soon as I can find a big enough envelope.' _Blimey, she'd better watch out for herself."

Blake tightened his hands into fists as he re-read the letter that Ron had just read out loud. "Remind me to monitor Phoebe's mail," he said, turning to Jackson.

"Remind you? Wait until I get my hands on Rita," Jackson said, looking equally angry, "or maybe the bastards that are threatening Phoebe! She's been through enough!"

"Just remind me," Blake warned.

Jackson nodded. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe didn't turn up for Herbology. As James left the greenhouses for Care of Magical Creatures with Harry, Ron and Hermione, they saw Parkinson whispering and giggling with her gang of Slytherin girls. Catching sight of Harry, Pansy called, "Potter, have you split up with your girlfriend? Why was she so upset at Breakfast?"

Harry ignored her; but he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much trouble the _Witch Weekly_ article had caused.

Hagrid, who had told them last lesson that they had finished with unicorns, was waiting for them outside his cabin with a fresh supply of open crates at his feet. James's heart sank at the sight of the crates - surely not another Skrewt hatching? - but when he got near enough to see inside, he found himself looking at a number of fluffy black creatures with long snouts.

Their front paws were curiously flat, like spades and they were blinking up at the class, looking politely puzzled at all the attention.

"These're Nifflers," said Hagrid, when the class had gathered around. "Yeh find 'em down mines mostly. They like sparkly stuff...there yeh go, look."

One of the Nifflers had suddenly leapt up and attempted to bite Pansy Parkinson's watch off her wrist. She shrieked and jumped backwards.

"Useful little treasure detectors," said Hagrid happily. "Thought we'd have some fun with 'em today. See over there?"

He pointed at the large patch of freshly turned earth. "I've buried some gold coins. I've got a prize fer whoever picks the Niffler that digs up most. Jus' take off yer valuables, an' choose a Niffler an' get ready ter set 'em loose."

James took off his watch, which he was only wearing out of habit, as it didn't work anymore, and stuffed it in his pocket. Then he picked up a Niffler. It put its long snout in Harry's ear and sniffed enthusiastically. It was really quite cuddly.

"Hang on," said Hagrid, looking down into the crate, "there's a spare Niffler here...who's missin'? Where's Phoebe?"

"She had to go to the hospital wing," said James.

"We'll explain later," Harry muttered; Pansy Parkinson was listening.

It was easily the most fun they had ever had in Care of Magical Creatures. The Nifflers dived in and out of the patch of earth as though it was water, each scurrying back to the student who had released it and spitting gold into their hands. Ron's was particularly efficient; it had soon filed his lap with coins.

"Can you buy these as pets, Hagrid?" he asked excitedly, as his Niffler dived back into the soil, splattering his robes.

"Yer mum wouldn' be happy, Ron," said Hagrid, grinning, "they wreck houses, Nifflers. I reckon they've nearly got the lot now," he added, pacing around the patch of earth, while the Nifflers continued to dive. "I on'y buried a hundred coins. Oh, there y'are, Phoebe!"

Phoebe was walking towards them across the lawn. Blake and Jackson flanking her either side. Her hands were heavily bandaged and she looked miserable. Pansy Parkinson was watching her beadily.

"Well, let's check how yeh've done!" said Hagrid. "Count yer coins! An' there's no point tryin' ter steal any; Goyle," he added, his beetle-black eyes narrowed. "It's leprechaun gold. Vanishes after a few hours."

Goyle emptied his pockets, looking extremely sulky. It turned out that Ron's Niffler had been most successful, so Hagrid gave him an enormous slab of Honkeydukes chocolate for a prize. The bell rang across the grounds for lunch; the rest of the class set off back to the castle, but the Golden Trio, Phoebe, James, Ashlyn, Jackson and Blake stayed behind to help Hagrid put the Nifflers back in their boxes.

"What yeh done ter your hands, Phoebe?" said Hagrid, looking concerned.

"Hate mail," Phoebe answered. "Undiluted Bubotuber pus was in one of the envelopes, and I opened it."

"Ouch," Hagrid winced.

"Tell me about it," Phoebe nodded.

"Aaaah, don' worry," said Hagrid gently, looking down at her. "I got some o' those letters an' all, after Rita Skeeter wrote abou' me mum. "_Yeh're a monster an' yeh should be put down" "Yer mother killed innocent people an' if you had any decency you'd jump in a lake.'"_

"No!" Phoebe gasped.

"Yeah," said Hagrid, heaving the Niffler crates over by his cabin wall. "They're jus' nutters, Phoebe. Don' open 'em if yeh get any more. Chuck 'em straigh' in the fire."

"She's not going to get anymore hate mail," said Blake. "I will be checking her mail personally!"

Phoebe caught Ashlyn's eye and gave a strained smile. Trust Blake to go directly into protective mode. "Serefina has also agreed that she and Aiden will be checking my mail before it comes through to the Great Hall."

"You can do that?" Ashlyn asked.

"I guess so," Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know. But I know not to question my godmother."

Ashlyn nodded.

"You missed a really good lesson," James told Phoebe, as they headed back towards the castle. "They're good, Nifflers, aren't they, Ash?"

Ron, however, was frowning at the chocolate Hagrid had given him. He looked thoroughly put out about something.

"What's the matter?" said Harry, noticing his best friend's expression. "Wrong favour?"

"No," said Ron shortly. "Why didn't you tell me about the gold?"

"What gold?" said Harry.

"The gold I gave you at the Quidditch World Cup," said Ron. "The leprechaun gold I gave you for my Omnioculars. In the Top Box. Why didn't you tell me it disappeared?"

The look on Harry's face clearly stated that he didn't have a clue what Ron was talking about. Suddenly realization dawned.

"Oh..." he said, the memory coming back to him at last. "I dunno...I never noticed it had gone. I was more worried about my wand, wasn't I?"

They climbed the steps into the Entrance Hall and went into the Great Hall for lunch.

"Must be nice," Ron said abruptly, when they had sat down and started serving themselves roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. "To have so much money you don't notice if a pocketful of Galleons goes missing."

"Listen, I had other stuff on my mind that night!" said Harry impatiently. "We all did, remember?"

"I didn't know leprechaun gold vanishes," Ron muttered. "I thought I was paying you back. You shouldn't' ve given me that Chudley Canon hat for Christmas."

"Forget it, all right?" said Harry.

Ron speared a roast potato on the end of his fork, glaring at it. Then he said, "I hate being poor"

"Come on, Ron, it could be worse. At least your fingers aren't full of pus." Phoebe said. She was having a lot of difficulty managing her knife and fork; her fingers were so stiff and swollen. "I _hate_ that Skeeter woman!"

Hermione touched her shoulder comfortingly. "We'll get her back for this if it's the last thing we do!" she promised.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hate mail continued to arrive for Phoebe over the following week, and although Blake, Jackson and Serefina followed through out on their word and kept as many letters away from the Great Hall as possible, several of her ill-wishers sent Howlers, which managed to get through security and exploded at the Gryffindor table and shrieked insults at her for the whole Hall to hear.

Even those people who didn't read _Witch Weekly_ knew all about the supposed Harry/Phoebe/Terence triangle now. Harry was getting sick of telling people that Phoebe was not his girlfriend.

"It'll die down, though," he told Phoebe, "if we just ignore it...people got bored with that stuff she wrote about me last time -"

"I just want to know how she is getting her information when she is supposed to be banned from school grounds!" said Phoebe angrily.

Hermione touched her best friend's shoulder. "Look, you've got enough to deal with by trying to figure out who put Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire. I'll worry about how Rita is getting her information, OK?"

"OK," Phoebe agreed.

Hermione hung back in their next Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson to ask Professor Moody something. The rest of the class was very eager to leave; Moody had given them such a rigorous test of hex-deflection that many of them were nursing small injuries.

Harry had such a bad case of Twitchy Ears, he had to hold his hands clamped over them as he walked away from the class.

"Well, Rita's definitely not using an Invisibility Cloak!" Hermione panted five minutes later, catching up with Phoebe, Harry, Ron, James and Ashlyn in the Entrance Hall and pulling Harry's hand away from one of his wiggling ears so that he could hear. "Moody says he hasn't seen her around the grounds anywhere!"

"Hermione is there any point telling you to drop this?" said Ron.

"No!" said Hermione and Phoebe stubbornly.

Ron threw his hands up in frustration. "I give up!"

"So you should!" Phoebe argued. "This woman is tearing my life apart! And you want us to give up? Ron, I know you and I do not have a strong friendship, but I at least thought that you would have some compassion and sympathy for me!"

"Maybe she inside resources," Harry suggested. "Maybe she's bugged someone or something, you know, to get close to us and everything?"

"Bugged?" said Ron blankly. "What...fleas and insects?"

Harry started explaining about hidden microphones and recording equipment.

Ron was fascinated, but Hermione, Phoebe and Ashlyn rolled their eyes at their stupidity. "How many times do you boys have to be told?" Ashlyn asked. "All those substitutes for magic Muggles use - electricity, and computers and radar, and all those things - they all go haywire around Hogwarts, there's too much magic in the air."

"Rita's using magic to eavesdrop," said Hermione. "She must be...if I could just find out what it is...ooh, if it's illegal, I'll have her..."

"What if you just make things worse?" James asked. "Skeeter has already got a vendetta against Phoebe, she could turn on you next, aren't you the least bit worried about that?"

"I'm not asking for help!" Hermione snapped. "I'll do it myself!"

"I'll help," Phoebe volunteered.

Hermione shook her head. "You have too much on your plate," she assured. "I'll be fine."

And she marched back up the marble staircase without a backwards glance.

"What's the betting she comes back with a box of _I hate Rita Skeeter_ badges?" said Ron.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The start of the summer term would normally have meant that Phoebe was training hard for the last Quidditch match of the season. This year, however, it was simply studying, studying and more studying for the final year exams.

And in the last week of May, Phoebe found Harry after Transfiguration and pulled him away from Hermione and Ron to talk privately.

"What's so important you couldn't tell me in front of the others?" Harry asked.

"It's about the third task,"

"What about it?" Harry asked. "It is not until next month!"

Phoebe sighed. "Don't you remember what Bagman said? You will be informed exactly a month before..."

Harry was silent before realization dawned. "So, how am I being informed?"

"You are to go down to the Quidditch Pitch tonight at nine o'clock," Phoebe explained. "Bagman will be there to tell you and the other champions about the third task."

**~*Phoebe*~**

So at half past eight that night, Harry left Ron and Hermione in Gryffindor Tower and went downstairs. As he crossed the Entrance Hall, Cedric came up from the Hufflepuff common room.

"What d'you reckon it's going to be?" he asked, as they went together down the stone steps, out into the cloudy night. "Fleur keeps going on about underground tunnels; she reckons we've got to find treasure."

"That wouldn't be too bad," said Harry, thinking that he would simply ask Hagrid for a Niffler to do the job for him.

They walked down the dark lawn to the Quidditch stadium, turned through a gap in the stands, and walked out onto the pitch.

"What've they done to it?" Cedric said indignantly, stopping dead.

The Quidditch pitch was no longer smooth and flat. It looked as though somebody had been building long, low walls all over it, twisting and criss-crossing in every direction.

"They're hedges!" said Harry, bending to examine the nearest one.

"Hello there!" called a cheery voice.

Ludo Bagman was standing in the middle of the pitch with Blake, Fleur and Phoebe. Harry and Cedric made their way towards them, climbing over the hedges. Fleur beamed when she saw Harry. Her attitude had completely changed since he had pulled her sister out of the lake.

"Well, what d'you think?" said Bagman happily. "Growing nicely, aren't they? Give them a month and Hagrid'll have them twenty foot high. Don't worry," he added, grinning, spotting the less-than-happy expressions on Harry, Cedric and Phoebe's faces, "you'll have your Quidditch pitch back to normal once the task is over! Now, I imagine you can guess what we're making here?"

No one spoke for a moment. Then -

"It's a maze," said Blake.

"That's right!" said Bagman. "A maze. The third task's really very straightforward. The Triwizard Cup will be placed in the centre of the maze. The first champion to touch it will receive full marks."

"We simply 'ave to get through the maze?" said Fleur.

"There will be obstacles," said Phoebe. "Hagrid is providing a number of creatures...then there will be spells that must be broken...all that sort of thing, you know."

"Now, the champions who are leading on points will get a head start into the maze." Bagman grinned at Harry and Cedric. "Then Mr. Brooks will enter...then Miss Delacour. But you'll all be in with a fighting chance, depending on how well you get past the obstacles. Should be fun, eh?"

Phoebe, who knew all too well the kind of creatures that Hagrid was likely to provide for an event like this, thought it was unlikely to be any fun at all, but who was she to complain? She wasn't a champion and therefore she wouldn't have the face the creatures.

"Very well...if you haven't got any questions, we'll go back up to the castle, shall we, it's a bit chilly..."

Hugging Blake goodnight, Phoebe hurried across the grounds towards Harry and Cedric, and started to make her way back up the front lawn.

Bagman hurried alongside Harry as they began to wend their way out of the growing maze. Sensing that Bagman was going to offer Harry help again, Phoebe caught her friends hand and pulled him around to face the judge. "Offering help to champions is against the rules, Mr. Bagman," Phoebe stated. "I wonder how the Ministry would react if they knew of this? I know Rita Skeeter would do an awesome piece on it, don't you Harry?"

"Huh?" Harry frowned. "Oh, yeah, definitely! Brilliant piece!"

"You wouldn't?" Bagman paused.

"She's already ruined my life," Phoebe answered. "She'd have a field day if it meant ruining yours, don't you think?"

Bagman seemed to pale considerably, as Harry wondered if Phoebe was bluffing or actually threatening a Ministry official.

"Goodnight Mr. Bagman," Phoebe smiled, pulling Harry over towards where Cedric had been waiting.

Harry turned to his friend. "Did you mean that?"

"What?"

"About handing his story over to Skeeter?"

"No," Phoebe scoffed. "Not even I am that cold hearted! But it got him off your back, though, didn't it?"

Harry grinned, glanced back over his shoulder as Bagman headed into the Forbidden Forest. "Yeah. I guess it did." he agreed.

Phoebe smirked and together the three Hogwartarian's returned to the castle.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**I am not **_**completely**_** happy with this chapter; I kind of lost focus after a while and had to force myself to write it.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 2:02am**


	77. Chapter 77

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. Man, it feels like a week ago since I last updated…which it almost is.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Vivi Fontaine, Jojia** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout outs:** Thank you too **Kuro Neko to Kuro Bara** for adding this story to their Story Alerts. Appreciate it mate.

* * *

><p>Blinking blindly in the dark, Phoebe rolled over and reached for the candle that rested on the bedside table between her four poster bed and Hermione's. She flicked her wand and a flame ignited the wick immediately as shadows flickered across the far wall blinding Phoebe momentarily.<p>

But the reason she was awake? There was a light scratching at the window. Pulling back the curtains of her four poster bed, Phoebe slid out from beneath the covers and hurried across the wooden floor towards the glass, there, outside the window, wings flapping in the breeze was Athena.

"Athena?" Phoebe whispered, rubbing her eyes tiredly and reaching for the clasp that locked the window. The moment it was open, Athena swooped in and dropped a letter onto Phoebe's bed before flying up to the canopy to rest.

With a heavy sigh, Phoebe picked up the letter, crawled back into bed and opened it. Using the light of the flame to read the letter - the handwriting she recognized as her grandmother's.

_Check the Forbidden Forest._

Was all the message said.

Phoebe frowned. "Check the Forest?" she repeated, as if waiting for someone to give her a reason for checking the forest at this time of night. "Marauder's Map."

Jumping from her bed once more, Phoebe grabbed a pair of PJ bottoms, and a jacket, before snagging her wand from the table and leaving the Dormitory, the letter in hand. She raced down the steps into the common room, and then hurried up another set of spiral staircases, quietly bursting into the fourth year boy's dorms, in search of Harry.

"Harry, wake up," Phoebe whispered, shaking her friend. "Come on, Harry, wake up!"

"What? What's happening?" Harry asked groggily.

"Harry, I need the map!" Phoebe whispered urgently. "The Marauder's Map. Where is it?"

"I gave it to Moody,"

Phoebe froze. "Why in the bloody hell would you do something like that?" she screeched quietly. "I need that map! It's important!"

"What's so important?" Harry asked.

"I had a letter from my grandmother to check the forest," Phoebe explained. "And I can't go out there at this time, since the Map shows all of Hogwarts, _including_ the grounds I thought it would be useful. Obviously not."

She sighed in aggravation.

Harry paused and sat up. "I still have the Invisibility Cloak," he said. "We could use that to avoid any Professors and ghosts. What do you say?"

Phoebe hesitated, before caving. "Fine. Let's go."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Aiden groaned as he tossed and turned in his sleep, as unwanted dreams plagued his mind. He had been at Hogwarts since the end of September and had been having visions ever since he had arrived.

_A man staggered out from behind a tall oak. For a moment, Aiden didn't recognize him...then he realized it was Mr. Crouch._

Waking with a start, Aiden rolled completely out of his bed and landed on the floor with a thud. He grunted in pain, before pushing himself up and straightening quickly. Grabbing a pair of bottoms and a jacket, Aiden grabbed his wand and hurried from the dormitory that he shared with Serefina in her office.

The woman in question was nowhere to be found, and Aiden wondered if he should have located her first and told him what he had just seen before going out searching for Crouch himself. That would have been the logical thing to do, and he most probably would have done just that had it not been for silent footsteps that were making their way towards him.

_"Are you sure she said Forest?" Harry asked, as he threw on the Invisibility Cloak, Phoebe ducked under the velvety silkiness and the two hurried away from Gryffindor Tower._

_"I'm positive!" Phoebe answered. "My Portuguese is fluent, Harry, I know what my grandmother's note says. Don't doubt me!"_

_"I do not doubt you," Harry retorted. "I'm just making sure. I mean, why would your grandmother send you the note. Why not Serefina?"_

_Phoebe shrugged. "Maybe she did," she replied. "Maybe the note is meant for Serefina, but when Athena couldn't find her it was re-routed to me."_

_Harry nodded. It was a possible theory._

Aiden sighed and pressed himself against the wall outside of the office, why shouldn't he have been surprised that Phoebe and Potter were walking around the hallways at this time of night. As they passed the place where he was hidden amongst the shadows, he stepped out silently as they passed, snatching the cloak off of them as he did so.

"You know? Sneaking around together and alone at this time of night is only going to fuel Rita Skeeter if she ever catches wind of it," he commented.

Phoebe and Harry froze, turning slowly on the spot.

"Aiden!" Phoebe scolded. "What are you doing here? How did you know we were under there?"

"I have my tricks, Phoebe," Aiden answered. "Point is _why_ are you out here and under this at 2:00 in the morning?"

Exchanging a look with Harry, Phoebe sighed and removed the letter from her jacket pocket. "I received this from my grandmother. We need to check it out. Either you are with us...or I'm going to have to bound you until we get back," she said, reaching for her wand. "The last thing we need is you going for help."

Aiden held his hands up in defence. "I'm here to help," he answered. "I have good reason to believe that the reason your grandmother wants you to investigate the Forbidden Forest is because Mr. Crouch is out there, right now."

"What makes you think Crouch is out there?" Phoebe asked.

"Intuition," Aiden shrugged, but he could tell Phoebe was still skeptical. "Look, you can either take my word at face value, or we can stand here and debate about it all day and let whoever it is get further away. Your choice."

Phoebe's eyes narrowed. "Fine. But we're not finished here, you've got some serious explaining to do, and by damned am I letting you leave Hogwarts this year without getting the answers that I want."

Aiden nodded. "Fine. I'll help you search the Forest," he said. "And in return I will answer any and all questions you may have."

"Truthfully and honestly."

"Truthfully and honestly." Aiden agreed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe linked her arms with Aiden's and Harry's as they entered the woods surrounding the Hogwarts castle, they hadn't gone that far into the forest when something moved behind them in the trees, and having some experience of the sort of thing that lurked in the Forest, instinctively Phoebe stopped walking, causing both boys to stop walking also.

"What is it?" Aiden whispered.

Pointing into the trees, Phoebe indicated at the moving black mass amongst the trees. "What is that?" she whispered, frantically.

Suddenly Crouch burst out of the trees, and lunged at the group of three. Phoebe screamed as Aiden wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her out of the way of the flailing arms of the delusional man.

Crouch looked as though he had been travelling for days. The knees of his robes were ripped and bloody; his face scratched; he was unshaven and grey with exhaustion. His neat hair and moustache were both in need of a wash and a trim. His strange appearance, however, was nothing to the way he was behaving.

"Mr. Crouch?" said Harry cautiously.

"Dumbledore!" gasped Mr. Crouch. He reached out and seized a handful of Harry's robes, dragging him closer, through his eyes was starting over Harry's head. "I need...see...Dumbledore..."

"OK," said Harry, "if you get up, Mr. Crouch, we can go up to the -"

"I've done...stupid...thing..." Mr. Crouch breathed. He looked utterly mad. His eyes were rolling and bulging, and a trickle of spittle was sliding down his chin. Every word he spoke seemed to cost him a terrible effort. "Must...tell...Dumbledore..."

"Get up, Mr. Crouch," said Harry loudly and clearly. "Get up; I'll take you to Dumbledore."

Phoebe, who was lying with her back pinned against Aiden's chest his arm around her waist, stared up at Crouch with wide eyes. "Harry, let him go! He's crazy!"

"He needs Dumbledore!" said Harry.

"Who...you?" he whispered.

"We're students at the school," said Harry, looking around at Aiden and Phoebe. The latter was holding Phoebe back away from Crouch, he was looking nervous.

"You're not..._his_?" Crouch whispered.

"No," said Harry, looking at Phoebe, she was wondering who the hell Crouch was talking about.

"Dumbledore's?"

"That's right," said Harry.

Crouch was pulling him closer; Harry tried to loosen Crouch's grip on his robes, but it was too powerful.

"Warn...Dumbledore..."

"We'll get Dumbledore if you let go of me," said Harry. "Just let go, Mr. Crouch, and I'll get him..."

"Thank you, Weatherby, and when you have done that, I would like a cup of tea. My wife and son will be arriving shortly; we are attending a concert tonight with Mr. and Mrs. Fudge."

Crouch was now talking fluently to a tree, and seemed completely unaware that Harry, Phoebe and Aiden where even there.

"Stay with him!" Harry said to Phoebe and Aiden. "I'll get Dumbledore. I'll be quicker; I know where his office is -"

"You can't leave us out here!" Phoebe argued. "What if whoever is chasing Crouch is out there?"

"He's crazy, Potter!" said Aiden doubtfully, staring down at Crouch, who was still gabbling to the tree, apparently convinced it was Percy Weasley.

"Just stay away from him," said Harry, starting to get up, but his movement seemed to trigger another abrupt change in Mr. Crouch, who seized him hard around the knees and pulled Harry back to the ground.

"Don't...leave...me!" he whispered, his eyes bulging again. "I...escaped...must warn...must tell...see Dumbledore...my fault...all my fault...Bertha...dead...all my fault...my son...my fault...tell Dumbledore...Harry Potter...the Dark Lord...stronger...Phoebe Blackheart..."

Phoebe paused at the sound of her name. "What?" she squeaked. "Dark Lord? I knew it! Harry, go get Dumbledore!"

"But Phoebe -" Aiden started to protest.

"NOW!" Phoebe ordered. Aiden and Harry both jumped a foot in the air at her yell, and seconds later Harry was sprinting out of the trees and back up to the castle.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry tore up the stone steps, through the oak front doors and off up the marble staircase, towards the second floor.

Five minutes later he was hurtling towards a stone gargoyle standing halfway along an empty corridor.

"Sher-sherbert lemon!" he panted at it.

This was the password to the hidden staircase to Dumbledore's office - or, at least, it had been two years ago. The password had evidently changed, however, for the stone gargoyle did not spring to life and jump aside, but stood frozen, glaring at Harry malevolently.

"Move!" Harry shouted at it. "C'mon!"

But nothing at Hogwarts had ever moved just because he shouted at it; he knew it was no good. He looked up and down the dark corridor. Perhaps Dumbledore was in the staff room? He started running as fast as he could towards the staircase -

"POTTER!"

Harry skidded to a halt and looked around.

Snape had just emerged from the hidden staircase behind the stone gargoyle, but he wasn't alone. Serefina was with him. The wall was sliding shut behind them even as Snape beckoned Harry back towards them. "What are you doing out of bed after hours, Potter?"

"I need to see Professor Dumbledore!" said Harry, running back up the corridor and skidding to a standstill in front of the two professors instead. "Mr. Crouch...he's just turned up...he's in the Forest...he's asking -"

"What is this rubbish?" said Snape, his black eyes glittering.

Serefina held up her hand to silence the Potion's master. "Why were you in the Forest at three in the morning, Harry?" she asked gently.

"Phoebe had a message from your mother," said Harry. "Telling her to check the Forest. She didn't know why, so we agreed that we would go check it out - I know it was a stupid thing to do, but in a way, if we hadn't done it then Mr. Crouch would still be walking around aimlessly looking for help."

"Where is Phoebe now?" Serefina asked, panic-stricken.

Harry pointed over his shoulder. "I left her and Aiden with Crouch," he panted. "She sent me up here to get Dumbledore...Crouch said something about Voldemort and getting stronger, and Phoebe freaked out!"

Serefina's eyes widened and she turned quickly to Snape. "Get Dumbledore! I will arouse Alastor..."

"But seriously, Serefina," Snape started to protest.

"If you do not wish to help, Severus," Serefina cut across him, "then go back to your dungeons and allow those who actually care do their jobs! I am sure between the Headmaster, Alastor and myself; we can handle three students and a Ministry official. I wouldn't want your reputation being tarnished for helping us in, what you believe, to be such trivial things."

Snape bristled angrily.

The stone wall behind Snape slid open; Dumbledore was standing there, wearing long green robes, and a mildly curious expression.

"Is there a problem?" he said, looking between Harry, Snape and Serefina.

"Professor!" Harry said side-stepping Snape before Snape could speak. "Mr. Crouch is here - he's down in the Forest, he wants to speak to you!"

Harry expected Dumbledore to ask questions but, to his relief, Dumbledore did nothing of the sort. "Lead the way," he said promptly, and he swept off along the corridor behind Harry, along with Serefina, leaving Snape standing next to the gargoyle and looking twice as ugly.

"What did Mr. Crouch say, Harry?" said Dumbledore, as they walked swiftly down the marble staircase.

"Said he wants to warn you...said he's done something terrible...he mentioned his son...and Bertha Jorkins...and - and Voldemort...something about Voldemort getting stronger..."

"Indeed," said Dumbledore, and he quickened his pace as they hurried out into the pitch darkness.

"He's not acting normally," Harry said, ignoring Serefina. "He doesn't seem to know where he is. He keeps talking like he thinks Percy Weasley's there, and then he changes, and says he needs to see you..."

Serefina followed at a hurried pace. "Where are Phoebe and Aiden?" she asked, nervously.

"Right in there," Harry pointed at the place that he had left the elemental and Aiden.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As Harry took off towards the school, Crouch made another lunge for Phoebe; the elemental screamed as she jumped backwards, Aiden's hand tightening around her wrist and pulling her effectively behind him; using his body as a wall to protect her from the crazy Ministry official before them.

Phoebe, however, gasped as she felt instant warmth wash over her, starting from her hand and splitting in two: One rushing down to the tips of her toes and the other to her brain. A blaze of orange and scarlet flame flashed in front of her, and the next thing she knew she was running.

Aiden's hand was still wrapped tightly around her wrist and he was pulling her backwards at a fast pace.

"Where are we going?" asked Phoebe.

"Away," Aiden answered. "We have to get away! You're not safe!"

"What do you mean?"

Aiden didn't answer, merely kept running, pulling Phoebe with him.

Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe spotted Crouch trudging drunkenly after them, he tripped over tree roots and slipped on dry leaves, but still he managed to chase to them towards the edge of the woods. "We can't leave him!" Phoebe protested, trying to turn back. "He needs help! Harry will be returning with Dumbledore any minute! We have to stay put!"

"If we stay put then something dangerous is going to happen!" Aiden argued.

"Dangerous?" Phoebe repeated. "Dangerous, how?"

"You're going to hurt someone, Phoebe," Aiden warned her. "And that someone just might be yourself!"

Crouch had covered the distance between him and the two fourteen year olds. "The Dark Lord...wants...the ultimate power! He wants...Phoebe Blackheart!"

"Get off me!"

"Get off her!"

Both Phoebe and Aiden's yells cut through the atmosphere as Crouch lunged for Phoebe again, he caught her around the waist and they both toppled over from the momentum. Rolling in the dirt and dry leaves for a second, Crouch lost his grip and Phoebe rolled back to her feet.

The ground beneath her shook violently, and instinctively Phoebe looked around for Serefina. Her godmother was nowhere in sight, but Aiden stood opposite her, his hand outstretched in front of him, palm up and his eyes - his eyes were flashing between silvery grey and cobalt blue.

Phoebe gasped. "Aiden..." she breathed.

The ground stopped moving and Aiden's eyes returned to their normal colour, as he refocused them on Phoebe. "What happened?" he asked.

"That's a good question," Phoebe nodded, looking down at the ground. Crouch was sprawled out on his stomach, fighting for support as the ground shook. "Mr. Crouch, it's over! Everything's OK, Dumbledore is on his way."

Crouch blinked and looked up. "Dumbledore...?" he gasped.

"He's on his way, Mr. Crouch," Phoebe repeated. "Just stay calm! Everything will be fi -"

"Oof!" Aiden muttered, as something red hit him clean in the back. He toppled over forwards, landing face first in the dry leaves of the Forest floor.

Phoebe froze. "Aiden?" she questioned, stepping forward, but the sound of a soft clunk stopped her in his tracks. She recognized that noise. _Moody._ "Hello...?" she called cautiously. "Anyone there?"

"Out of bed after hours, Miss Blackheart?" said a familiar gruff voice. "Should report you to the Headmaster for this."

"Professor Dumbledore is already aware that I am down here," Phoebe answered, as Moody stepped out of the trees.

"Oh? And why are we down here at 3:30 in the morning?"

Phoebe shook her head. "I had a tip off," she answered. "A reliable source told me that there would be trouble in the Forest, they wanted me to check it out."

"This 'reliable source' wouldn't happen to be your Godmother now, would it?"

"No," Phoebe answered. "Although she is aware that I am down here too. Speaking of which, I should get going."

She made a move towards the unconscious Aiden, but Moody stopped her, his hand tightening around her wrist and pulling her back from the other student. "We haven't finished yet, Miss Blackheart. I am sure that your godmother will not mind if you are in the presence of a Professor."

"Let go," Phoebe said, attempting to tug her hand away from his. "I have to go! As you said, I shouldn't even be out here after curfew, so I think I'll just wake Aiden and we can be on our way."

"I think not, Miss Blackheart," said Moody. "For you see, you've just made everything that little bit easier."

Phoebe frowned and glanced up at the professor before her. "W-what do you mean?" she stuttered out, her throat closing up in fear and she swore she could have seen movement beneath the skin of Moody's face. "P-p-professor...are you OK?" she asked.

Mad-Eye was looking awfully twitchy.

Then - Mad-Eye spotted Crouch on the ground behind the elemental. "Barty Crouch," he whispered excitedly, releasing his grip on Phoebe, and shoving her onto the ground beside Aiden. "This is too good to be true," she seemed to cackle.

Pushing herself backwards across the leaves, Phoebe came to a stop beside Aiden, and watched carefully as Moody sniffed around Crouch like a hound-dog looking for clues. Briefly she turned her attention to Aiden, and started shaking his shoulder. "Aiden..." she whispered, "wake up! We got to go, something isn't right here!"

Aiden didn't move.

"You should know, Miss Blackheart," Moody spoke, his attention still on Crouch. "A stunning spell is only as strong as its caster..."

And before Phoebe could do anything to defend herself, Moody had whipped out his own wand, pointed it at the elemental and muttered _"Bombarda!"_ there was a flash of light, and a huge force hit Phoebe directly in the chest knocking the wind out of her as she was propelled backwards into a tree.

Slumping down into the bed of dry leaves, Phoebe blinked as she attempted to clear her gaze. It was a little hazy, but she vaguely remembered hitting it on the trunk of the tree behind her, she could have very well had a concussion.

"You are a meddling some little brat, Miss Blackheart," Moody said, limping towards her, his voice sounding different to what it had before. "But the Dark Lord will be pleased...he will be very pleased when I hand deliver you to him, myself."

He chuckled darkly as darkness clouded Phoebe's vision and she sank into unconsciousness.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_So? Who is going to be my lovely 400th reviewer? Keep up the good work =)_

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated**** Saturday, February 04, 2012 at 2:53am**


	78. Chapter 78

**Author's Note: **It's essay week again! Got a History essay due in Wednesday, so I am uploading this now because I doubt I will have time in the next two days; and I most definitely will not have time after Wednesday.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd, 10th Squad 3rd Seat **and **Jojia.**

* * *

><p>"It comes down to this," said Hermione, rubbing her forehead. "Either Mr. Crouch attacked Aiden and Phoebe, or somebody else attacked the three of them when Phoebe wasn't looking."<p>

"It must have been Couch," said Ron at once. "That's why he was gone when Harry, Dumbledore and Serefina got there. He'd done a runner."

"I don't think so," said Harry, shaking his head. "He seemed really weak - I don't reckon he was up to Disapparating or anything."

"You _can't_ Disapparate in the Hogwarts grounds, haven't I told you enough times?" said Hermione.

It was daybreak. Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting in the Hospital wing where Phoebe and Aiden were resting, all of them were puffy-eyed and pale, because they had been talking late into the night about Mr. Crouch.

"Just go through it again, Harry," said Hermione. "What did Mr. Crouch actually say?"

"I've told you, he wasn't making much sense," said Harry. "He's said he wanted to warn Dumbledore about something. He definitely mentioned Bertha Jorkins, and he seemed to think she was dead. He kept saying stuff was his fault...he mentioned his son."

"Well, that _was_ his fault," said Hermione testily.

"He was out of his mind," said Harry. "Half the time he seemed to think his wife and son was still alive, and he kept talking to Percy about work and giving him instructions."

"And...remind me what he said about You-Know-Who?" said Ron tentatively.

"I've told you," Harry repeated dully. "He said he's getting stronger."

There was a pause.

Then Ron said in a falsely confident voice. "But he was out of his mind, like you said, so half of it was probably just raving..."

"He was the sanest when he was trying to talk about Voldemort," rasped Phoebe as she started to come too.

"Hey," Hermione smiled down at the elemental. "Welcome back."

Phoebe smiled. "Thanks. What happened?"

"Don't you remember?"

"No," Phoebe shook her head.

Hermione, Harry and Ron exchanged looks. This didn't sound good.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Next morning, Phoebe was released from the Hospital Wing and back into the care of her friends. Terence, who had found out last about Phoebe's trip into the Forbidden Forest, was beside himself with worry.

"Who in their right mind would go into that Forest at 3 o'clock in the morning?" he demanded, pacing back and forth the Hospital Wing as Phoebe changed behind the curtains surrounding her bed. "You do realize that you could have been killed?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Well I wasn't killed, was I?" she retorted.

"No, you got off lightly,"

"Lightly?" Phoebe asked. "I hardly count being smashed into a tree 'getting off lightly'."

Terence sighed and stopped pacing. "Are you finished?"

"Nearly," Phoebe answered, pulling back the curtains and pulling her jacket on over her shoulders. She pulled her hair out from underneath the collar and held her hand out towards her boyfriend.

Terence grinned, clutched her hand and spun her inwards towards him.

Phoebe giggled and looked up at him. "You're so weird," she teased.

"And you're not right in the head," Terence retorted, coming back to his earlier question. "Come on. Its breakfast time, Black said that Potter had written to his father yesterday evening, and the message isn't going to take that long to come back now that Black is in such close proximity."

Phoebe nodded and allowed Terence to lead her from the Hospital wing, down seven floors to the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Harry - what do you think you and Phoebe are playing at, walking off into the Forest in the middle of the night? I want you to swear; by return owl that you are not going to do something stupid like this again. There is somebody highly dangerous at Hogwarts. It is clear to me that they wanted to stop Crouch seeing Dumbledore and you were probably feet away from them in the dark. You could have been killed, and from what you have told me, Phoebe nearly was!_

_Your name didn't come out of the Goblet of Fire by accident, Harry. If someone's trying to attack you, they're on their last chance. Stay close to Ron, Hermione and Phoebe, do not leave Gryffindor Tower after hours, and arm yourself for the third task. Practice Stunning and Disarming. A few hexes wouldn't go amiss either. There's nothing you can do about Crouch. Keep your head down and look after yourself._

_I'm waiting for your latter giving me your word you won't stray out of bounds again._

_Sirius._

"Who's he, to lecture me about being out of bounds?" said Harry in mild indignation, as he folded up Sirius' letter and put it inside his robes. "After all the stuff he did at school!"

"He's worried about you!" said Hermione sharply. "Just like Moody and Hagrid! So listen to them!"

"No one's tried to attack me all year," said Harry. "No one's done anything to me at all -"

"Except put your name in the Goblet of Fire," said Phoebe, as she arrived with Terence behind him. "And they must've done that for a reason, Harry. Padfoot is right. Maybe they've been biding their time. Maybe this is the task they're going to get you."

"Look," said Harry impatiently, "let's say Padfoot is right and someone Stunned Aiden and attacked Phoebe to kidnap Crouch. Well, they _would've_ been in the trees near us, wouldn't they? But they waited 'til I was out of the way until they acted, didn't they? So it doesnt look like I'm their target, does it?"

"They couldn't have made it look like an accident if they'd murdered you in the Forest!" said Hermione. "But if you die during a task -"

"Crouch said something about Voldemort wanting Phoebe," said Aiden, as he arrived with Blake and Jackson. "And whoever kidnapped Crouch attacked Phoebe! So theoretically both you and Phoebe are targets."

Harry sighed in annoyance. "So, why didn't they finish her off?" he demanded.

"For the same reasons they didn't do you in at the same time!" Blake answered, a little angrily for anyone's liking. Harry's whining was starting to irritate him. "They couldn't make it look like an accident! Besides, Phoebe is _wanted_, Potter! Get that through your skull! Killing her wouldn't go down well with the Dark Lord now, would it?"

Phoebe frowned as she looked between Blake and Harry. "Can we not talk about me like I am not here?" she asked. "I may not remember much about what happened night before last, but that doesn't mean I want you guys arguing over it! Enough is enough! Harry, Aiden and I are alive, that is all that matters!"

The boys deflated and backed off, but there was more to be said, and even Phoebe could see that there was another blow out on the horizon.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Hogwarts grounds never looked more inviting than when Phoebe had to stay indoors. For the next few days she spent all of her free time in the library with Harry, Hermione and Ron, looking up hexes, or else in empty classrooms, which they sneaked into to practice. Harry was concentrating on the Stunning Spell, which he had never used before. The trouble was that practicing it involved certain sacrifices on Ron and Hermione's part.

"Can't we kidnap Mrs. Norris?" Ron suggested during Monday lunchtime, as he lay flat on his back in the middle of their Charms classroom, having just been Stunned and re-awoken by Phoebe for the fifth time in a row. "Let's Stun her for a bit. Or you could use Dobby, Harry. I bet he'd do anything to help you. I'm not complaining or anything," - he got gingerly to his feet, rubbing his backside - "but i'm aching all over..."

"Well, you keep missing the pillows, don't you!" said Phoebe impatiently, rearranging the pile of pillows they had used for the Banishing Spell, which Flitwick had left in a cabinet. "Just try and fall backwards!"

"Once you're Stunned, you can't aim too well, Phoebe," said Ron, angrily. "Why don't you take a turn?"

"Because i'm too fast of a dueler for Harry," Phoebe answered. "I'd have him pinned before he even has a chance to draw his wand. Besides, I think Harry's got it now, he doesn't need any more training in Stunning spells."

Hermione nodded. "And we don't have to worry about Disarming, because he's been able to do that for ages," she said. "I think we ought to start on some of these hexes this evening."

She looked down at the list they had made in the library.

"I like the look of this one," she said, "this Impediment Jinx. Should slow down anything that's trying to attack you, Harry. We'll start with that one."

The bell rang. They hastily shoved the cushions back into Flitwick's cupboard, and slipped out of the classroom.

"See you at dinner!" said Hermione, and she set off for Arithmancy, while Harry, Ron and Phoebe headed towards North Tower, and Divination. Broad strips of dazzling gold sunlight fell across the corridor from the high windows. The sky outside was so brightly blue it looked as though it had been enameled.

"It's going to be boiling in Trelawney's room, she never puts out that fire," said Ron, as they started up the staircase towards the silver ladder and the trapdoor.

He was quite right. The dimly lit room was swelteringly hot. The fumes from the perfumed fire were heavier than ever.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Aiden groaned as he sat in a dark corner of his dorm room, he was holding his head in his hands as a helmet-like pressure erupted throughout his whole head. He had only experienced pain like this once before and that was when he was experiencing a full-body vision; he still hadn't worked out how to control the pain that came with seeing the future, and his guardian often told him that whilst the pain was there now, it would pass as he learned to control them more.

He could hear an insect humming gently somewhere behind the curtain. His eyelids began to droop, as he hoped and prayed that the pain would disappear if he was asleep.

_He was riding on the back of an eagle owl, soaring through the clear blue sky towards an old, ivy-covered house set high on a hillside. Lower and lower they flew, the wind blowing pleasantly in his face, until they reached a dark and broken window in the upper story of the house, and entered. Now they were flying along a gloomy passageway, to a room at the very end...though the door they went, into a dark room whose windows were boarded up..._

_He had left the owl's back...he was watching, now, as it fluttered across the room, into a chair with its back to him...there were two dark shapes with watery eyes and a pointed nose...he was wheezing and sobbing on the hearth-rug..._

_"You are in luck, Wormtail," said a cold, high-pitched voice from the depths of the chair in which the owl had landed. "You are very fortunate indeed. Your blunder has not ruined everything. He is dead."_

_"My Lord!" gasped the man on the floor. "My Lord, I am...I am so pleased...and so sorry..."_

_"Nagini," said a cold voice, "you are out of luck. I will not be feeding Wormtail to you, after all...but never mind, never mind...there is still Harry Potter..."_

_The snake hissed. The tongue fluttering._

_"Now, Wormtail," said the cold voice, "perhaps one more little reminder why I will not tolerate another blunder from you..."_

_"My Lord...no...I beg you..."_

_The tip of a wand emerged from the depths of the chair. It was pointing at Wormtail. "Crucio," said the cold voice._

_Wormtail screamed, screamed as though every nerve in his body was on fire, the screaming filled his ears as the pain throughout his entire head; he was yelling, too...Voldemort would hear him, would know he was there..._

"Aiden! _Aiden!"_

Aiden opened his eyes. He was lying on the floor of his quarters with his hands over his face. His head was pounding and there was a dull throbbing behind his eyes was so bad they were watering. The pain had been real. The whole room was out of focus, and there was a fuzzy silhouette of someone standing directly in front of him.

"Aiden! Aiden!" a familiar voice was shouting his name, and he could feel small delicate hands on his shoulders shaking him forcefully. "Aiden! You all right?"

"Of course he isn't!" said another familiar voice. This time male. "Are you blind Izzy?"

"Screw you, Liam!" sneered the first voice. "What is it, Aiden? What did you see?"

"Nothing," Aiden lied. Despite the pain subsiding, and his eyes refocusing on the room, but he didn't need his vision to tell him who was in the room with him now. The voices were all too familiar to him; he had heard them many times in the past.

"You were clutching your head!" said the male voice - Liam. - "You were rolling on the floor, clutching your head! There is no point in lying to us; we've seen you in situations like this before!"

Izzy, or Isabella, nodded as she clutched Aiden's hand. "Where is Serefina?" she asked.

"In a meeting with the Headmaster," Aiden answered. "What - What are you two doing here?"

"Then you need to go to the Hospital wing," Isabella said. "You need a headache cure."

Aiden sighed, and with the help of Liam, made to back to his feet. He and Isabella were looking unnerved. "I don't need the Hospital wing," he said. "I need to find Serefina. I need to see the Headmaster. I need to tell them something."

"About what you saw?" Liam asked. Aiden didn't answer. "Aid, we know that you just had a vision! You can tell us, we're your best friends, mate, we've been with you since you were five; known that you're a Seer since you were seven and you started having your first visions. We can handle it."

Isabella nodded. She was still holding Aiden's hand within her own, and staring at him with wide pleading eyes.

Aiden sighed. "I'll tell you," he caved. "But after I have explained to Dumbledore. Besides, you still owe me and explanation on why you are here."

"And eye for an eye?" Liam stated. "You tell us what you saw, and we'll tell you why we are here! Deal?"

"Deal!" Aiden agreed, "But not now."

"We'll be here when you get back," Isabella stated. "Be careful, Aiden, wouldn't want you passing out in the hallways, we may never find you."

Aiden smirked. "Oh, I do not doubt that you'd get lost, Izzy," he teased. "You're like a bloodhound on the best of days."

"I have to be, in order to save your ass!"

Liam rolled his eyes at the pair and turned away. Their playful banter was too much like harmless flirting for his liking.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they reached the bottom of Trelawney's stepladder, however, they did not set off for the hospital wing. Phoebe had no intentions of taking Harry to see Madam Pomfrey, Serefina had told her that if she noticed anything strange then she was to inform the Headmaster straight away, and Phoebe was going to follow her godmother's advice, which was why she was taking Harry straight to Dumbledore's office.

They marched down the corridors, Harry's mind was on his dream...it had been as vivid as the one which had awoken him over the summer...he ran over the details in his mind, trying to make sure he could remember them...he had heard Voldemort accusing Wormtail of making a blunder...but the owl had brought good news, the blunder had been repaired somebody was dead...so Wormtail was not going to be fed to the snake...he, Harry, was going to be fed to it instead...

Harry had walked right past the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance to Dumbledore's office without noticing.

"Harry," Phoebe called.

Harry blinked, looked around, realized what he had done and retraced his steps, stopping in front of the elemental. Then he remembered he didn't know the password. He turned expectantly to Phoebe.

"Cockroach cluster!" said Phoebe.

The gargoyle sprang to life, and jumped aside.

Harry blinked and hurried through the gap in the walls, and stepped onto the foot of a spiral stone staircase, which moved slowly upwards as the doors closed behind them, taking them up to a polished oak door with a brass door-knocker.

Phoebe could hear voices from inside the office. She stepped off the moving staircase and hesitated, listening.

"Dumbledore, I'm afraid I don't see the connection, don't see it at all!" it was the voice of the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge. "Ludo says Bertha's perfectly capable of getting herself lost. I agree we would have expected to have found her by now, but all the same, we've no evidence of foul play, Dumbledore, none at all. As for her disappearance being linked with Barty Crouch's!"

"And what do you think's happened to Barty Crouch, Minister?" said Moody's growling voice.

"I see two possibilities, Alastor," said Fudge. "Either Crouch has finally cracked - more than likely, I'm sure you'll agree, given his personal history - lost his mind, and gone wandering off somewhere -"

"He wandered extremely quickly, if that is the case, Cornelius," said Serefina.

"Or else - well..." Fudge sounded embarrassed. "Well, I'll reserve judgment until after I've seen the place where he was found, but you say it was just past the Beauxbatons carriage? Dumbledore, you know what that woman is?"

"I consider her to be a very able Headmistress - and an excellent dancer," said Dumbledore quietly.

"Dumbledore, come!" said Fudge angrily. "Don't you think you might be prejudiced in her favour because of Hagrid? They don't all turn out harmless - if, indeed, you can call Hagrid harmless, with that monster fixation he's got -"

"I no more suspect Madame Maxime than Hagrid," said Dumbledore, just as calmly. "I think it possible that it is you who are prejudiced, Cornelius."

"Can we wrap up this discussion!" growled Moody.

"Yes, yes, let's go down into the grounds, then," said Cornelius impatiently.

"No, it's not that," said Moody, "it's just that Potter and Blackheart want a word with you, Dumbledore. They're just outside the door."

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, February 07, 2012 at 3:35am**


	79. Chapter 79

**Author's Note:** Managed to finish my History questions. Just got to write up the actual essay now, but I can do that tomorrow and then submit the essay electronically; which is lucky for you all, because that means I can relax a bit now and write up this new chapter.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**** and KingdomHeartsNerd**

**Shout outs:** Big thank you too **Shadowfox2011** for adding this story to their Story Alerts and another thank you too **Itrrcrazy** for adding this story to their Favourite Story. Appreciate it.

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><p>The door of the office opened.<p>

Serefina looked around at her goddaughter with a questionable gaze.

Clutching Harry's hand, Phoebe pulled him into the office. She had been in Dumbledore's office many times in the past; it was very beautiful, circular room, lined with pictures of previous Headmasters and mistresses of Hogwarts, all of whom were fast asleep, their chests rising and falling gently.

"Harry!" said Fudge jovially, moving forwards and completely ignoring Phoebe. "How are you?"

"Fine," Harry lied

"We were just talking about the night when Mr. Crouch turned up on the grounds," said Fudge. "It was you who found him, was it not?"

"Phoebe and Aiden were also there," Harry said.

Phoebe, who was staring at Serefina, turned to look at Fudge. "And we didn't see Madame Maxime anywhere, I suspect, even if she was there, she would have had a hard job hiding herself, wouldn't she?"

Fudge looked embarrassed.

Serefina looked smirked.

And Dumbledore smiled behind Fudge's back, his eyes twinkling.

"Yes, well," stuttered Fudge, "we're about to go for a short walk in the grounds, Harry, if you'll excuse us...perhaps if you just go back to your class -"

"I wanted to talk to you, Professor," Harry said quickly, looking at Dumbledore, who gave him a swift, searching look.

"Wait here for me, Harry," he said. "Our examination of the grounds will not take long. Miss. Blackheart, I will leave him in your care."

Phoebe nodded. "I won't let him out of my sight, Headmaster,"

"Good girl,"

They trooped out in silence past the two students, and closed the door. After a minute or so, Phoebe heard the clunks of Moody's wooden leg growing fainter in the corridor below. She looked around and spotted Dumbledore's Phoenix, sitting on its perch behind the Headmaster's desk.

"Hello, Fawkes," she said.

Fawkes swished his long tail and blinked benignly at the two students.

Harry sat down in a chair in front of Dumbledore's desk. For several minutes there was silence, and then, suddenly, the door burst open. Phoebe whirled around in surprise, her hand plunging into her pocket and drawing her wand preparing herself to stun whoever had crashed through the door, however, she held off on the Stunning spells as Aiden stood there with his hands held up in front of him defensively.

"Damnit Aiden!" Phoebe sighed. "You looking to get yourself killed?"

"Sorry," Aiden apologized. "Where is Serefina?"

"She's just left with the Headmaster, Fudge and Moody," Phoebe answered. "Why? What's wrong?"

Aiden shook his head. "Oh, nothing, I just need to tell her something."

"Tell her what?"

Aiden studied the elemental in front of him, he remembered agreeing to tell her the whole truth the other night; but she had cracked her head on a tree when she had been attacked and had completely forgotten about the whole deal, thankfully, but he also knew how inquisitive Phoebe was, so it was only a matter of time before those memories came flooding back to her; and he'd be in the same predicament he had been the previous night.

While Aiden and Phoebe had been chatting, a patch of silver and shimmering light had caught Harry's attention and drew him out of his seat and over to the other side of the room.

A shallow stone basin lay there, with odd carvings around the edge; runes and symbols that Harry did not recognize. The silvery light was coming from the basin's contents, which were like nothing Harry had ever seen before. He could not tell whether the substance was liquid or gas. It was bright, whitish silver, and it was moving ceaselessly; the surface of it became ruffled like water beneath wind, and then, like clouds, separated and swirled smoothly - Harry couldn't make up his mind.

"It's a Pensieve," said Phoebe, appearing beside her friend and looking into the basin. "These are Dumbledore's memories."

"Memories?" Harry questioned.

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. What are you doing?" she added hastily, as Harry pulled out his wand and prodded the memories.

The surface of the silvery stuff inside the basin began to swirl very fast.

Harry bent closer, his head right inside the cabinet. The silver substance had become transparent; it looked like glass. He looked down into it, expecting to see the stone bottom of the basin - he could hear Phoebe yammering on about something, but he could barely hear her over the sound of the blood rushing to his ears - an enormous room appeared in front of his eyes, a room into which he seemed to be looking through a circular window in the ceiling.

The room was dimly lit; it might have been underground, for there were no windows, merely torches in brackets such as the ones that illuminated the walls of Hogwarts. Lowering his face so that his nose was a mere inch away from the glass substance, Harry saw that rows and rows of witches and wizards were sat around every wall on what seemed to be benches rising in levels. An empty chair stood in the very centre of the room.

There was something about the chair that gave Harry an ominous feeling. Chains encircled the arms of it, as though its occupants were usually tied to it.

What was this place?

The tip of his nose touched the strange substance.

"Harry!"

He heard Phoebe screaming his name as Dumbledore's office gave an almighty lurch, and he was throwing forwards and pitched headfirst into the substance inside the basin.

"Harry!" Phoebe yelled again, grabbing the sides of the basin and staring into the memories. She turned to Aiden. "What do we do?"

"I don't know," Aiden answered. "We can't leave him in there!"

"We can't go into Dumbledore's memories!" Phoebe argued. "It's an invasion of privacy!"

Aiden nodded in agreement. "I know, Phoebe, but we cannot leave Potter in there," he reasoned. "We have to get him. He doesn't understand what is happening; we are purebloods, we are used to Pensieve, we understand what to expect in them, Potter does not."

Phoebe sighed, she knew that Aiden was right, but that didn't make her feel any better about the situation.

Finally - she caved.

"Fine. We'll go get him," she said. "But we grab him, and come straight back, yes?"

Aiden nodded. "As you command," he said, lurching headfirst into the basin.

Phoebe followed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The room was almost like a dungeon, with a bleak and forbidding air about the place; there were no pictures on the walls, no decorations at all; just the serried rows of benches, rising in levels all around the room, all positioned so that they had a clear view of the sole chair in the middle of the room, with chains on its arms.

Phoebe turned to Harry and opened her mouth to tell him that they needed to leave, but before she could utter a word the door in the corner of the dungeon opened, and three people entered - or at least, one man, flanked by two Dementors.

Phoebe's insides went cold. The Dementors, tall, hooded creatures whose faces were concealed, were gliding slowly towards the chair in the centre of the room, each grasping one of the man's arms with their dead and rotten-looking hands. The man between them looked as though he was about to faint, and Phoebe couldn't blame him...she knew the Dementors could not touch her inside a memory, but Phoebe remembered their power only too well.

The watching crowd recoiled slightly as the Dementors placed the man in the chained chair and glided back out of the room. The door swung shut behind them.

Phoebe looked around at Harry and Aiden, Aiden was staring at something directly opposite him, while Harry was staring at the man in the chair. Following Aiden's line of sight, Phoebe gasped as she spotted the familiar faces of her grandmother and great-grandparents. Why were they here?

Looking down at the man in the chair, Phoebe realized instantly _why_ her grandmother and grandparents were present in this memory. Igor Karkaroff sat in the chair. He looked much younger, his hair and goatee were black. He was not dressed in sleep furs, but in thin and ragged robes. He was shaking.

Suddenly the chains on the arms of the chair glowed gold, and snaked their way up his arms, binding him there.

"Igor Karkaroff," said a curt voice to Phoebe's left. Phoebe looked around, and saw Mr. Crouch standing up in the middle of the bench beside her. Crouch's hair was dark, his face was much less lined, he looked fit and alert. "You have been brought from Azkaban to give evidence to the Ministry of Magic. You have given us to understand that you have important information for us."

Karkaroff straightened himself as best he could, tightly bound to the chair.

"I have, sir," he said, and Phoebe noticed how his gaze seemed to flicker towards his parents - her great-grandparents. "I wish to be of use to the Ministry. I wish to help. I - I know that the Ministry is trying to - to round up the last of the Dark Lord's supporters. I am eager to assist in any way I can..."

There was a murmur around the benches. Some of the wizards and witches were surveying Karkaroff with interest, others were pronounced mistrust. Then Phoebe heard, quite distinctly from Harry's far left, a familiar, growling voice saying, "Filth."

She glanced down the bench so that she could see past Harry; past Dumbledore - Mad-Eye Moody was sitting there - though there was a very noticeable difference in his appearance. He did not have his magical eye, but two normal ones. Both were looking down upon Karkaroff, and both were narrowed in intense dislike.

"Crouch is going to let him out," Moody breathed quietly. "He's done a deal with him. Took me six months to track him down, and Crouch is going to let him go if he's got enough new names. Let's hear his information, I say, and throw him straight back to the Dementors."

Dumbledore made a small noise of dissent through his long, crooked nose.

"Ah, I was forgetting...you don't like the Dementors, do you, Albus?" said Moody, with a sardonic smile.

"No," said Dumbledore calmly, "I'm afraid I don't. I have long felt the Ministry is wrong to ally itself with such creatures."

"But for filth like this..." Moody said softly.

Dumbledore's gaze lifted to the Karkaroff's across the room, his gaze settled on Elena who was staring at her brother disdainfully. "It is hard to believe they are related," he murmured.

"Filth can be found in the best of families," said Moody, his eyes never leaving Karkaroff.

"You say you have names for us, Karkaroff," said Mr. Crouch. "Let us hear them, please."

"You must understand," said Karkaroff hurriedly, "that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named operated always in the greatest secrecy...he preferred that we - I mean to say, his supporters - and I regret now, very deeply, that I ever counted myself among them -"

"Get on with it," sneered Moody.

"- we never knew the names of every one of our fellows - he alone knew exactly who we all where -"

"Which was a wise move, wasn't it, as it prevented someone like you, Karkaroff, turning all of them in," muttered Moody.

"Yet you say you have _some_ names for us?" said Mr. Crouch.

"I - I do," said Karkaroff breathlessly. "And these were important supporters, mark you. People I saw with my own eyes doing his bidding. I give this information as a sign that I fully and totally renounce him, and am filled with a remorse so deep I can barely -"

"These names are?" said Mr. Crouch sharply.

Karkaroff drew a deep breath.

"There was Antonin Dolohov," he said. "I - I saw him torture countless Muggles and - and non-supporters of the Dark Lord."

"And helped him do it," murmured Moody.

"We have already apprehended Dolohov," said Crouch. "He was caught shortly after yourself."

"Indeed?" said Karkaroff, his eyes widening. "I - I am delighted to hear it!"

But he didn't look it. Phoebe could tell that this news had come as a real blow to him. One of his names was worthless.

"Any others?" said Crouch coldly.

"Why, yes...there was Rosier," said Karkaroff hurriedly. "Evan Rosier."

"Rosier is dead," said Crouch. "He was caught shortly after you were, too. He preferred to fight rather than coming quietly, and was killed in the struggle."

"Took a bit of me with him, though," whispered Moody, indicating to the large chunk out of his noise.

"No - no more than Rosier deserved!" said Karkaroff, a real note of panic in his voice now. Aiden could see that he was starting to worry that none of his information would be any use to the Ministry.

Karkaroff's eyes darted towards his parents and sister, and then to the door in the corner, behind which the Dementors undoubtedly still stood, waiting.

"Anymore?"

"Yes!" said Karkaroff. "There was Travers - he helped murder the McKinnons! Mulciber - he specialized in the Imperius curse, forced countless people to do horrific things! Rookwood, who was a spy, and passed He Who Must Not Be Named useful information from inside the Ministry itself!"

The watching crowd murmured amongst themselves, and Karkaroff knew he had struck gold.

"Rookwood?" said Mr. Crouch, nodding to a witch sitting in front of him, who began scribbling upon her piece of parchment. "Augustus Rookwood of the Department of Mysteries?"

"The very same," said Karkaroff eagerly. "I believe he used a network of well-placed wizards, both inside the Ministry and out, to collect information -"

"But Travers and Mulciber, we have," said Mr. Crouch. "Very well, Karkaroff, if that is all, you will be returned to Azkaban while we decide -"

"Not yet!" cried Karkaroff, looking quite desperate. "Wait, I have more!"

Phoebe could see him sweating in the torchlight, his white skin contrasting strongly with the black of his hair and beard.

"Snape!" he shouted. "Severus Snape!"

"Snape has been cleared by this council," said Crouch coldly. "He has been vouched for by Albus Dumbledore."

"No!" shouted Karkaroff. "I assure you! Severus Snape is a Death Eater!"

Dumbledore had got to his feet. "I have given evidence already on this matter," he said calmly. "Severus Snape was indeed a Death Eater. However, he rejoined our side before Lord Voldemort's downfall and turned spy for us, at great personal risk. He is now no more a Death Eater than I am."

Moody was looking skeptical.

"Very well, Karkaroff," Crouch said coldly, "you have been of assistance. I shall review your case. You will return to Azkaban in the meantime..."

Mr. Crouch's voice faded. Harry looked around the dungeon, before turning to Phoebe as she laid a hand on top of his, and smiled reassuringly.

_*Memory*_

For a split second the three students were surrounded by darkness, and then, the dungeon returned. They were sitting in a different seat; still on the highest bench, but now to the left side of Mr. Crouch.

The atmosphere seemed quite different; relaxed, even cheerful. The witches and wizards all around the walls were talking to each other, almost as though they were at some sort of sporting event.

The door in the corner opened, and Ludo Bagman walked into the room.

"No way," Harry whispered. "What is he doing here?"

"This is why I didn't trust him around you," Phoebe answered. "I knew there was something off about him, I just couldn't put my finger on it."

Aiden glanced sideways at the two Gryffindor's.

"Why is he here?" Harry asked.

"He is being tried as Death Eater," Aiden answered. "He was caught passing information to Voldemort's supporters."

Harry's eyes widened, he couldn't believe his ears. _Ludo Bagman, a Death Eater?_

"...For this, I suggest a term of imprisonment in Azkaban lasting no less than -"

But there was an angry outcry from the surrounding benches. Several of the witches and wizards around the walls stood up, shaking their heads, and even their fists, at Mr. Crouch.

"But I've told you, I had no idea!" Bagman called earnestly over the crowd's babble, his round eyes widening. "None at all! Old Rookwood was a friend of my dad's...never crossed my mind he was in with You-Know-Who! I thought I was collecting information for our side! And Rookwood kept talking about getting me a job in the Ministry later on...once my Quidditch days are over, you know...I mean I can't keep getting hit by Bludgers for the rest of my life, can I?"

There were titters from the crowd.

Phoebe shook her head. "They wouldn't think twice of defending him if he wasn't some famous Quidditch player!" she whispered furiously. "I mean, look what they did to Karkaroff...look how the treat Snape? I bet if they were famous, the Ministry would think twice of talking down to them!" she turned to Harry, "Look at how Fudge treats you! Like you are his son, or something!"

Harry frowned.

"It's because you are famous!" Phoebe said. "If you've got Fame, you can get away with murder, just about!"

Aiden shook his head and turned back to the trial, he was starting to see why Phoebe hated the Ministry so much - they were push overs. Could be bought over by a little fame; the reputation meant more to them than life itself, and they would have done everything and anything to keep that reputation from being tarnished.

"Yes!" barked Crouch.

A witch on the jury had stood up. "We'd just like to congratulate Mr. Bagman on his splendid performance for England in the Quidditch match against Turkey last Saturday," the witch said breathlessly.

Mr. Crouch looked furious. The dungeon was ringing with applause now, Bagman got to his feet and bowed, beaming.

"Despicable," Mr. Crouch spat, as he sat back down, as Bagman walked out of the dungeon. "Rookwood get him a job indeed...the day Ludo Bagman joins us will be a very sad day for the Ministry..."

_*Memory*_

And the dungeon dissolved again. When it returned, Phoebe noticed that she, Aiden and Harry were sitting once again beside Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch.

There was total silence this time, broken only by the dry sobs of a frail, wispy-looking witch in the seat next to Crouch. She was clutching a handkerchief to her mouth with trembling hands. Mr. Crouch on the other hand looked gaunter, and greyer than ever before. A nerve was twitching in his temple.

The door in the corner opened yet again. Six Dementors entered this time, flanking a group of four people. A few people in the crowd turned to Crouch and whispered amongst themselves.

"What's going on?" Harry asked.

Aiden pointed at the four people who had just been brought it. "Barty Crouch," he said, pointing at the youngest of the four.

"Jnr," Phoebe added.

Harry's eyes widened and looked down at the boy in his late teens; he looked nothing short of petrified. He was shivering, his straw-colored hair all over his face, his freckled skin milk-white.

Either side of him there was a thickly built man who stared blankly up at Crouch, a thinner and more nervous-looking man, whose eyes were darting around the crowd, and a woman, with thick, shining dark hair, and heavily hooded eyes, who was sitting in the chained chair as though it were a throne.

The wispy-looking witch beside Crouch began to rock backwards and forwards in her seat, whimpering into her handkerchief.

Crouch stood up. He looked down upon the four in front of him, and there was pure hatred on his face.

"You have been brought here for the Council of Magical Law," he said clearly, "so that we may pass judgment on you, for a crime so heinous -"

"Father," said the boy. "Father...please..."

"- that we have rarely heard the like of it within this court," said Crouch, speaking more loudly, drowning out his son's voice. "We have heard the evidence against you. The four of you stand accused of capturing an Auror - Frank Longbottom - and subjecting him to the Cruciatus Curse, believing him to have knowledge of the present whereabouts of your exiled master, He Who Must Not Be Named -"

"Father, I didn't!" shrieked the boy in chains. "I didn't, I swear it, Father; don't send me back to the Dementors -"

"You are further accused," bellowed Mr. Crouch, "of using the Cruciatus curse on Frank Longbottom's wife, when he would not give you information. You planned to restore He Who Must Not Be Named to power, and to resume the lives of violence you presumably led while he was strong. I now ask the jury -"

"Mother!" screamed the boy below, and the wispy little witch beside Crouch began to sob, rocking backwards and forwards. "Mother, stop him, Mother, I didn't do it, it wasn't me!"

"I now ask the jury," shouted Mr. Crouch, "to raise their hands if they believe, as I do, that these crimes deserve a life sentence in Azkaban."

In unison, the witches and wizards along the right-hand side of the dungeon raised their hands. The crowd around the walls began to clap as it had for Bagman, their faces full of savage triumph. The boy began to scream. Phoebe screwed her eyes up tight, and clamped her hand over her ears in hopes of blocking out the boy's cries.

It was no use, she could still hear him.

"No! Mother, no! I didn't do it, I didn't do it, I didn't know! Don't send me there, don't let him!"

The Dementors were gliding back into the room. The boy's three companions rose quietly from their seats; the woman looked up at Crouch and called, "The Dark Lord will raise again, Crouch! Throw us into Azkaban, we will wait! He will rise and will come for us; he will reward us beyond any of his other supporters! We alone were faithful! We alone tried to find him!"

But Barty Crouch Jnr was trying to fight the Dementors off, even though their cold, draining powers were starting to affect him. The crowd were jeering, some of them on their feet, as the woman swept out of the dungeon, and the boy continued to struggle.

"I'm your son!" he screamed up at Crouch. "I'm your son!"

"You are no son of mine!" bellowed Mr. Crouch, his eyes bulging suddenly. "I have no son! Take them away! Take them away, and may they rot there!"

"Father! Father, I wasn't involved! No! No! Father, please!"

Phoebe shook her head, wrapped her arms tightly around herself, and buried her face into her hands. Aiden turned to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, as they started to slowly rise into the air, his other hand grabbed Harry's elbow bringing him up at exactly the same time, the dungeon dissolved around them; for a moment, all was blackness, and then, as if they had done a slow-motion somersault, the three of them landed flat on their feet, in Dumbledore's office.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on February 09, 2012 at 02:04am**


	80. Chapter 80

**Author's Note: **Fanfiction has been down for the last couple of days, which is my reason for not updating. But here is chapter 80.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out too: **Fan of Fics, Vivi Fontaine, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**.

**In Responses: ****Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**: How are the memories different? They are different from the film, yes, I agree with you there, but they are not different from the books. The only things that are different is the fact that Phoebe's grandparents and great-grandparents were there, and Karkaroff was mentioned as being Elena's brother, other than that there was no changes made to the memories.

* * *

><p>"Curiosity is not a sin," said Dumbledore, he was standing in the door of his office, watching the three students with a grim smile on his face. "But one should exercise caution with our curiosity."<p>

Phoebe whirled around. "Professor!" she gasped. "Sir, we didn't mean - It's just Harry fell in, and Aiden and I decided that he shouldn't be left alone in a place that he didn't understand - I know we shouldn't have been going through your things in the first place -"

"The cabinet door was open -" Harry interjected, quickly. "We're really sorry, Professor!"

Dumbledore nodded and stepped inside. "I quite understand," he said, approaching the basin. He lifted it up and carried it over to his desk, placed it upon the polished top, and sat down in the chair behind it. He motioned for Phoebe, Harry and Aiden to take a seat opposite him.

They did so.

The contents of the stone basin had returned to their original, silvery white state, swirling and rippling beneath their gaze.

"Am I to be aware that you have already explained what this is, Miss. Blackheart?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes, Headmaster," she confirmed. "I was in the middle of explaining when Harry was thrown headfirst into your memories."

"And am I to assume that you have some questions for me?"

The elemental opened and closed her mouth, looking ever more so like a goldfish out of water. "Um..."

"It is at times like the ones we have now," said Dumbledore, indicating to the stone basin. "I use the Pensieve. One simply siphons the excess thoughts from one's mind, pours them directly into the basin and examines them at ones leisure. It becomes easier to spot patterns and links, you understand, when they are in this form. As you saw, Phoebe,"

Phoebe nodded. "There are things I never knew about my grandmother," she said. "I never knew that she was Igor Karkaroff's brother, I always assumed that they were related in some other way...and I have viewed several memories of hers from when she was a child, and not once has Headmaster Karkaroff been present."

Dumbledore nodded. "I assume that your grandmother does not want you to think badly of her by knowing that she is related to a former Death Eater,"

"But I thought once you were a Death Eater then there was no turning back?" Phoebe frowned.

"That statement is true," Dumbledore agreed. "But one must realize that while the Dark Lord is gone, the Death Eaters are no more. Now, if the Dark Lord were to return -"

"It would be a different story," Phoebe finished for him.

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes. My child. A very different story indeed."

"When you say connection?" Aiden questioned.

"A connection I could have made without assistance," Dumbledore sighed, "but never mind." He peered over the top of his half-moon spectacles at the three of them, who were staring at him with a look of intent curiosity. "I was using the Pensieve when Mr. Fudge arrived for our meeting, and put it away rather hastily. Undoubtedly I did not fasten the cabinet door properly. Naturally, it would have attracted your attention."

"I'm sorry," Harry mumbled.

Dumbledore shook his head.

Frowning slightly he prodded the thoughts within the basin with the tip of his wand. Instantly a figure rose out of it, a plump, scowling girl of around sixteen, who began to revolve slowly, with her feet still in the basin: "He put a hex on me, Professor Dumbledore, and I was only teasing him, sir, I only said I'd seen him kissing Florence behind the greenhouses last Thursday -"

"But why, Bertha?" said Dumbledore sadly, looking up at the now silently revolving girl, "why did you have to follow him in the first place?"

"Bertha?" Harry whispered, looking up at her. "Is that - was that Bertha Jorkins?"

"Yes," said Dumbledore, prodding the thoughts in the basin again; Bertha sunk back into them, and they became silvery and opaque once more. "That was Bertha as I remember her at school."

The silvery light from the Pensieve illuminated Dumbledore's face, and it struck Phoebe suddenly how very old he was looking. She knew, of course, that Dumbledore was getting on in years, but somehow she never really thought of Dumbledore as an old man.

"So, Harry," said Dumbledore quietly. "Before you got lost in my thoughts, you wanted to tell me something."

"Yes," said Harry. "Professor - I don't really know how to say this - but I was in Divination just now, and - er - I fell asleep."

Phoebe snorted into her hands at the slight hesitation behind Harry's words. It was obvious that falling asleep in a lesson you had chosen to study, wasn't a wise thing to tell a Professor, especially a Headmaster.

But Dumbledore merely said, "Quite understandable. Continue."

"Well, I had a dream," said Harry. "A dream about Lord Voldemort. He was torturing Wormtail...you know who Wormtail -"

"I do know," said Dumbledore, promptly. "Please continue."

"Voldemort got a letter from an owl. He said something like -"

"Wormtail's blunder had been repaired?" Aiden questioned.

Phoebe frowned and turned questionably in Aiden's direction, Dumbledore and Harry mimicked her actions.

"Yeah," Harry nodded a small frown on his face. "How - How did you know that?"

Aiden swallowed and looked between the two Gryffindor's and the Headmaster, Dumbledore already knew of his 'gift' and he also knew who Aiden had inherited it from he knew everything there was to know about Aiden's heritage. "I...uh...I saw it," he hesitated.

"What do you mean 'you saw it'?" Phoebe questioned. "As in you dreamt it? Or saw it as in _saw_ it? As in a vision or something?"

"Um..." Aiden paused, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. He knew that this day was coming, but that didn't mean that he wanted Phoebe to know - at least not yet.

"What?" Phoebe demanded. "How did you know?"

"I saw it," Aiden answered.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "I heard you the first time," she nodded. "But what I want to know is _how_ did you see it? Dream or vision?"

Aiden sighed. "Vision."

"Vision?" Phoebe questioned. "So, you're a Seer?"

Aiden nodded.

"How?"

It was Aiden's turn to frown. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"How do you get visions?" Phoebe asked. "Is it through heritage, or did you train?"

"Heritage," Aiden answered. "My grandmother is a Seer. A pretty powerful one."

The elemental paused, her mouth open in retort. "Your Grandmother?"

Aiden nodded again. "Yes. Do you want to know how she had the gift too?"

"No," Phoebe answered, although she was staring at Aiden in a sort of new light. Suddenly something clicked, and her eyes widened.

_Serefina entered the Great Hall during the second course; but she wasn't alone._

_"Who is that?"_

_"I don't know. Does he look familiar to you?"_

_"He looks like another Malfoy,"_

"He looks like another Malfoy," Phoebe echoed her own thoughts. "Ron was right..."

Harry frowned. "Ron, was right about what?" he asked.

"I don't believe it!" Phoebe exclaimed. "All this time! You knew...She knew! All this time, everyone knew and no one told me!"

"Phoebe -?"

Aiden grabbed the elemental's shoulders. "Phoebe, you must calm down!"

"Calm down?" Phoebe yelled, shrugging Aiden off of her. "You knew! All this time you knew, and not once did you bother to tell me! Why? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because it wasn't time for you to know," Aiden sighed. "There is a time and place to be told something like this, and this was neither! Please, please, calm down..."

But Phoebe was glaring at Aiden in betrayal. "I trusted you!" she snapped. "And all this time you've been lying to me!"

The door swung open. Phoebe wheeled around to find Serefina standing on threshold. The professor took one look at Aiden and Phoebe and let out a heavy sigh. "You know," was all she said.

"Oh, I know," Phoebe snapped. "I also know that you lied to me!"

"Phoebe, please," Serefina pleaded, her heart breaking at the look of betrayal on her goddaughter's face. "You have to understand -"

"I understand just fine!" Phoebe cried, tears already appearing in her eyes. "Is this the reason you were surprised to find Aiden here at the end of last year?"

Serefina paused. "Excuse me?"

"I heard you," Phoebe said. "I heard you speaking in hushed whispers outside of the Hospital wing, you were afraid of me learning the truth with Aiden being here! Something about the twin cores! Is this what you meant?"

"No," Serefina shook her head. "The twin cores are a completely different topic, but they are the reasons that Aiden is enrolling as a student here at Hogwarts. You must connect your powers with his -"

Phoebe held up her hand. "Powers? What powers?"

Serefina nodded. "I see you didn't get through the entire story?"

"There's more?" Phoebe cried. "How much more?"

"Quite a bit," Aiden answered.

Phoebe shook her head and looked around at Harry, who was frowning in confusion. "We're related, Harry," she answered.

Harry looked even more confused. "How?"

"He's my brother!"

"Well," Aiden shrugged. "Half-brother..."

Phoebe's eyes narrowed. "Nonetheless, you're still my secret brother!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Many of you were wondering when Phoebe would find out about Aiden, as Dumbledore says "We must exercise caution with our curiosity."**

**So I hope this satisfies you all. It is the only way I could think of introducing the bombshell that Lucius and Serefina have been harboring for years. All there is now is for Draco to find out…that is not going to end well!**

**The rest of this chapter (where Harry and Aiden tell Dumbledore about their dream/vision) will continue at the beginning of chapter 81.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Saturday, February 11, 2012 at 3:22am**


	81. Chapter 81

**Author's Note: **Special shout out to **Vivi Fontaine** for being my 400th reviewer.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Vivi Fontaine, Jojia** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**

**In responses:** **Fan of Fics: **Yup, Phoebe will be very upset with Serefina; she just won't be able to explain _why_ she is upset. It is going to be the type of situation where she knows that she has a right to be mad at someone, but she can't explain it. As for the twin cores there is plenty to come on that storyline in the upcoming chapters. As for Draco, I am working on him finding out about Aiden, as I write up this chapter.

**Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**: Yes. Aiden's parents are Lucius and Serefina.

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** Phoebe will not be mad at Aiden.

* * *

><p>After Phoebe had revealed to Harry exactly who was the elemental left the room with her godmother, leaving Aiden and Harry in Dumbledore's presence.<p>

"Phoebe shall be fine," Dumbledore reassured them. "This has just come as a surprise to her. Professor Blackheart will sort everything out."

Harry nodded, he understood that Serefina would work everything out, but he was worried about Phoebe and her mental wellbeing because of this bombshell.

"Now," Dumbledore began again, "Harry, if you would like to continue with your explanation; and Aiden, if you would like to input anything that you have seen that Harry has missed."

Harry and Aiden exchanged looks; the older boy nodded and motioned for Harry to go first.

"Um...well after he said that Wormtail's blunder had been repaired, he said someone was dead. Then he said, Wormtail wouldn't be fed to the snake - there was a snake beside his chair. He said - he said he'd be feeding me to it, instead. Then he did the Cruciatus curse on Wormtail - and my scar hurt," Harry said. "It woke me up, it hurt so badly."

Dumbledore merely looked at him, before turning his blue gaze onto Aiden. "Is there anything you would like to add?" he questioned.

"No," Aiden answered. "That is exactly what I saw,"

"I see," said Dumbledore quietly. "I see. Now, Harry, has your scar hurt at any other time this year, excepting the time it woke you up over the summer?"

"No, I - how did you know it woke me up over the summer?" said Harry, astonished.

"You are not Sirius' only correspondent," said Dumbledore. "I have also been in contact with him ever since he left Hogwarts last year. It was I who suggested the mountainside cave as the safest place for him to stay. Also, it would seem that young Phoebe is worried about your home life. Everything you have told her about your summers with the Dursleys she has messaged me about."

Aiden nodded. "She has been looking into ways for you to be transferred permanently to Portugal," he explained to the Gryffindor. "But it is proving a little more difficult than she thought."

Dumbledore got up, and began walking up and down behind his desk. Every now and then, he placed his wand tip to his temple, removed a silver thought and added it to the Pensieve. The thoughts inside began to swirl so fast that Harry couldn't make out anything clearly; it was merely a blur of colour.

"Professor?" he said quietly, after a couple of minutes.

Dumbledore stopped pacing, and looked at the two boys before him.

"My apologies," he said quietly. He sat back down at his desk.

"D'you - d'you know why my scar's hurting me?"

Dumbledore looked very intently at Harry for a moment, and then said, "I have a theory, no more than that...it is my belief that your scar hurts both when Lord Voldemort is near you, and when he is feeling a particularly strong surge of hatred."

"But...why?"

"Because you and he are connected by the curse that failed," said Dumbledore. "That is no ordinary scar."

"So you think...that dream...did it really happen?"

"Yes," Aiden stepped in. "If it didn't happen, and was only a dream, then I wouldn't have seen it."

Harry frowned.

"Harry, did you see Voldemort?" asked Dumbledore.

"No," said Harry. "Just the back of his chair. But - there wouldn't have been anything to see, would there? I mean, he hasn't got a body, has he?"

"But...but then how could he have held the wand?" Aiden asked slowly.

"How indeed?" muttered Dumbledore. "How indeed..."

Neither Dumbledore, Harry nor Aiden spoke for a while. Dumbledore was gazing across the room, every now and then placing his wand to his temple, and adding another shining, silver thought to the seething mass within the Pensieve.

"Professor," Harry said at last, "do you think he's getting stronger?"

"Voldemort?" said Dumbledore, looking at Harry over the Pensieve. It was the characteristic, piercing look Dumbledore had given him on other occasions, and always made Harry feel as though Dumbledore was seeing right through him, in a way that even Moody's magical eye could now. "Once again, Harry, I can only give you my suspicions."

Dumbledore sighed again, and he looked older, and wearier than ever.

"The years of Voldemort's ascent to power," he said, "were marked with disappearances. Bertha Jorkins has vanished without trace in the place where Voldemort was certainly known to be last. Mr. Crouch, too, has disappeared...within these very grounds. And there was a third disappearance, one which the Ministry, I regret to say, does not consider of any importance, for it concerns a Muggle. His name was Frank Bryce, he lived in the village where Voldemort's father grew up, and he has not been seen since last August. You see, I read the Muggle newspapers, unlike most of my Muggle friends."

Aiden and Harry exchanged looks, as Dumbledore looked at them seriously. "These disappearances seem to me to be linked. The Ministry disagrees - as you may have heard, while waiting outside my office."

Harry nodded. Silence fell between them again. Dumbledore extracting thoughts every now and then. Harry felt as though he ought to go, but his curiosity held him in his chair.

"Professor?" he said again.

"Yes, Harry?" said Dumbledore.

"Er...could I ask you about...that court thing I was in...In the Pensieve?"

"You could," said Dumbledore heavily. "I attended it many times, but some trials come back to me more clearly than others...particularly now..."

"You know - the trial with Crouch's son? Well...were they talking about Neville's parents?"

Dumbledore gave Harry a very sharp look.

"Yes, they were talking about Neville's parents," said Dumbledore. "His father, Frank, was an Auror just like Professor Moody. He and his wife were tortured for information about Voldemort's whereabouts after he lost his powers, as you heard -"

"So they're dead?" said Harry quietly.

"No," said Aiden, his voice full of bitterness, "they are insane. They are both in St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries."

Harry frowned at Aiden, he wanted to ask how he knew that, but knew better, it was always a surprise to him how Phoebe and Aiden knew anything about England, even thought they were not from the country.

"They do not recognize him," Aiden finished.

Harry sat there, horror-struck.

"The Longbottom's were very popular," said Dumbledore. "The attacks on them came after Voldemort's fall from power, just when everyone thought they were safe. Those attacks caused a wave of fury such as I have never known. The Ministry was under great pressure to catch those who had done it. Unfortunately, the Longbottom's' evidence was - given their condition - none too reliable."

"Then Mr. Crouch's son might not have been involved?" said Harry.

Dumbledore shook his head. "As to that, I have no idea."

Harry sat in silence once more, watching the contents of the Pensieve swirl. There were two more questions he was burning to ask...but they concerned the guilt of living people.

"Er," he said, "Mr. Bagman..."

"...has never been accused of any Dark activity since," said Dumbledore calmly.

"Right," said Harry hastily, staring at the contents of the Pensieve again, which were swirling more slowly now that Dumbledore had stopped adding thoughts. "And...er..."

But the Pensieve seemed to be asking his questions for him. Snape's face was swimming on the surface. Dumbledore glanced down at it, and then up at Harry.

"No more has Professor Snape," he said.

Harry looked into Dumbledore's light-blue eyes, and the thing he really wanted to say spilled out of his mouth before he could stop it. "What made you think he'd really stopped supporting Voldemort, Professor?"

Dumbledore held Harry's gaze for a few seconds, and then said, "That, Harry is a matter between Professor Snape and myself."

Harry knew that the interview was over; Dumbledore did not look angry, yet there was finality in his tone than told Harry it was time to go. He stood up, and so did Dumbledore and Aiden - who had seemingly been forgotten -

"Harry," he said, as Harry reached the door. "Please do not speak about Neville's parents to anybody else. He has the right to let people know, when he is ready."

"Yes, Professor," said Harry, turning to go.

"And -"

Harry looked back.

Dumbledore was standing over the Pensieve, his face lit from beneath by its silvery spots of light, looking older than ever. He stared at Harry for a moment, and then said, "Good luck with the third task."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Dumbledore reckons You-Know-Who's getting stronger again as well?" Terence asked.

He was sat in the Astronomy Tower with Phoebe, Aiden, Blake, Jackson and Esmee. It was already past midnight and they were still awake and talking about what had happened in Dumbledore's office, Phoebe had explained about the Pensieve and Aiden had gone on to explain nearly everything that had happened after Phoebe and Serefina had left the office.

Esmee stared into the darkness that had overcome the grounds of Hogwarts, and she shivered slightly, even though it was a warm evening.

"And he trusts Professor Snape?" Jackson asked. "He really trusts him, even though he knows he was a Death Eater?"

"Yes," said Aiden.

Phoebe had not spoken for ten minutes. She was sitting with her head buried in her arms, staring at the stone floor of the tower. "Rita Skeeter," she muttered finally.

"I thought Granger told you not to worry about her?" said Aiden, in disbelief.

"I'm not worrying about her," Phoebe said to the floor. "I'm just thinking...remember what I told you she said about Ludo Bagman? This is what she meant, isn't it? She reported his trial; she knew he'd passed information to the Death Eaters. And Winky, too, remember..."Mr. Bagman is a bad wizard," Mr. Crouch would have been furious he got off, he would have talked about it at home."

"Yeah, but Bagman didn't pass information on purpose, did he?" said Blake.

Phoebe shrugged. "We don't know that,"

"And Fudge thinks _Madame Maxime_ attacked Crouch?" Esmee asked, with fierce loyalty to her headmistress.

"Yeah," said Phoebe, "but he's only saying that because Crouch disappeared near the Beauxbatons carriage."

Blake clutched his girlfriend close to him. "Don't worry, Ez, we know that Madame Maxime did not do anything to Crouch, she has no reason to harm him."

"This brings us back to Rita Skeeter," said Phoebe. "Everyone is afraid of Hagrid and Madame Maxime now because they are part giant, all because that witch and her stupid articles! No one needs this kind of prejudice! This is exactly the reason I didn't tell anyone about me being a Malfoy, everyone automatically jumps to the wrong conclusions!"

Aiden checked his watch. "It's coming up to 2:00am," he said, "we should get some sleep."

"Are you sure we aren't going to get in trouble for being up here?" Esmee asked, looking worried.

Phoebe smiled. "I promise," she assured. "The number of times we have spent the night up here and no one has reprimanded us for it."

Terence nodded and pulled Phoebe closer; he waved his wand and conjured a blanket for them both. Blake mimicked his actions and pulled the blanket over Esmee who cuddled into his side, this left Aiden and Jackson to get themselves comfortable.

Lying in the darkness, Phoebe was left to reminisce on what had happened in the past couple of hours. She had gone from having only an older twin brother, to having an older twin brother _and_ an old half-brother; and what was worse? She had to find a way to explain all this to Draco.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe, Ron and Hermione were supposed to be revising for their exams, which would finish on the day of the third task, but they were putting most of their efforts into helping Harry prepare.

"Don't worry about it," Hermione said shortly, when Harry pointed this out, and said he didn't mind practicing on his own for a while. "At least we'll get top marks in Defence Against the Dark Arts, we'd never found out about all these hexes in class."

"Good training for when we're all Aurors," said Ron excitedly.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Please tell me you're not all taking Moody's advice to heart?"

"Why not?" Harry asked.

"Because not everything he says is true," answered Phoebe. "He's hiding something, I know it!"

It was Ron's turn to roll his eyes. "You're paranoid,"

"Paranoid, am I?" Phoebe snapped. "Well, we'll see how _paranoid_ I am when i'm proven correct, shall we?"

"You're not _always_ right,"

"I know i'm not," Phoebe answered.

"You sure seem to think you are," Ron corrected.

Phoebe glared. "Shut up, Weasley, just because I prove you wrong on many occasions, doesn't mean I always think I am right! You're just too stupid to make the connection!"

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks, the latter was very confused on Phoebe's sudden change of attitude, but the former knew that the pressure of Serefina lying to Phoebe for the last fourteen years was causing major mental problems for the elemental.

The mood in the castle as they entered June became excited and tense again. Everyone was looking forward to the third task, which would take place a week before the end of term. Harry was practicing hexes in every available moment.

He felt more confident about this task than either of the others. Difficult and dangerous though it would undoubtedly be, Phoebe knew that Harry had managed to find his way past monstrous creatures and enchanted barriers before now, and this time he had some notice, some chance to prepare himself for what lay ahead.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Breakfast was a very noisy affair at the Gryffindor table on the morning of the third task. The post owls appeared, bringing Harry a good-luck card from Sirius. It was only a piece of parchment, folded over and bearing a muddy paw print on its front, but Harry appreciated it all the same. A screech owl arrived for Hermione, carrying her morning copy of the _Daily Prophet_ as usual, and Phoebe received a letter from Adrian, warning her to not allow Harry to see the front page of the Prophet.

"Hermione..." Phoebe started, but cut off as Hermione spat a mouthful of orange juice all over the table, the second after she had opened the _Daily Prophet_. "Oh! Gross!"

"What?" Harry and Ron said together, as Roxanna, who sat beside Phoebe started patting the elemental down with napkins from the table.

"Nothing," said Hermione quickly, trying to shove the paper out of sight, but Ron grabbed it.

He stared at the headline, and said, "No way. Not today. That old _cow_."

"What?" said Harry. "Rita Skeeter again?"

"No," said Ron, and just like Hermione, he attempted to push the paper out of sight.

"It's about me, isn't it?" said Harry.

"No," said Phoebe, snatching the paper away from Ron before Harry had a chance. "Why would you think that?"

Harry shot her a disbelieving look. "Because you are trying to hide the paper from me, if it's not Skeeter and it's not about me, you'd let me see."

Phoebe shook her head. "Come on, Harry, that's not true," she defended. "Besides, it's bad luck to see the news the morning before a big task. Your mind will be filled with reporters' lies, when it needs to be focused on the spells, hexes, curses and jinxes that you have been practicing."

"Phoebe," said Harry, determinately. "Give me the paper!"

The Elemental hesitated, before sighing and handing over the paper. "Don't say I didn't warn you," she said.

Harry turned it over, and found himself staring at his own picture beneath a banner headline.

_HARRY POTTER 'DISTURBED AND DANGEROUS'_

_The boy who defeated He Who Must Not Be Named is unstable and possibly dangerous, _writes Rita Skeeter_. Alarming evidence has recently come to light about Harry Potter's strange behavior, which casts doubts upon his suitability in a demanding competition like the Triwizard Tournament, or even to attend Hogwarts School._

_Potter, the _Daily Prophet _can exclusively reveal, regularly collapses at school, and is often heard to complain of pain in the scar on his forehead (relic of the curse with which You-Know-Who attempted to kill him). On Monday last, mid-way through a Divination lesson, your _Daily Prophet_ reporter witnessed Potter being escorted from the class, by ex-girlfriend Phoebe Malfoy, claiming that his scar was hurting too badly to continue studying._

_It is possible, say top experts at St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, that Potter's brain was affected by the attack inflicted upon him by You-Know-Who, and that his insistence that the scar is still hurting is an expression for his deep-seated confusion._

_"He might even be pretending," said one specialist, "this could be a plea for attention."_

_The_ Daily Prophet_, however has unearthed worrying facts about Harry Potter that Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, has carefully concealed from the Wizarding public._

_"Potter can speak Parseltongue," reveals Draco Malfoy, a Hogwarts fourth year and twin brother to Potter's ex-girlfriend, Phoebe. "There were a lot of attacks on students a couple of years ago, and most people thought Potter was behind them after they saw him lose his temper at a Dueling Club and set a snake on another girl. It was all hushed up, though. But he's made friends with werewolves and giants too. We think he'd do anything for a bit of power."_

_Parseltongue, the ability to converse with snakes, has long been considered a Dark Art. Indeed, the most famous Parselmouth of our times is none other than You-Know-Who himself. A member of the Dark Force Defence League, who wished to remain unnamed, stated that he would regard any wizard who could speak Parseltongue 'as worthy of investigation. Personally, I would be highly suspicious of anybody who could converse with snakes, as serpents are often used in the worst kinds of Dark Magic, and are historically associated with evil-doers." Similarly, 'anyone who seeks out the company of such vicious creatures as werewolves and giants would appear to have a fondness for violence."_

_Albus Dumbledore should surely consider whether a boy such as this should be allowed to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. Some fear that Potter might resort to the Dark Arts in his desperation to win the Tournament, the third task of which takes place this evening._

"Gone off me a bit hasn't she?" said Harry lightly, folding up the paper.

Over on the Slytherin table, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were laughing at him, tapping their heads with their fingers, pulling grotesquely mad faces and waggling their tongues like snakes.

"How did she know your scar hurt in Divination?" Ron said. "There's no way she was there, there's no way she could've heard -"

"The window was open," said Harry. "I opened it to breathe."

"We were at the top of North Tower!" Phoebe said. "There is no way your voice carried all the way down to the grounds!"

"Well, Hermione's the one who's supposed to be researching magical methods of bugging!" said Harry. "Ask her how Rita did it!"

"I've been trying!" said Hermione. "But...I...but..."

An odd, dreamy expression suddenly came over Hermione's face. She slowly raised her hand, and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Are you all right?" said Ron, frowning at her.

"Yes," said Hermione breathlessly. She ran her fingers through her hair again, and then held her hand up to her mouth, as though she was speaking into an invisible walkie-talkie. Harry, Ron and Phoebe stared at each other. "I've had an idea. I think I know...because then no one would be able to see...even Moody...and she'd have been able to get onto the window ledge...but she's not allowed...that's _definitely_ not allowed. I think we've got her! Just give me two seconds in the library - just to make sure!"

With that, Hermione seized her schoolbag, and dashed out of the Great Hall.

"Oi!" Phoebe called after her. "We've got our History of Magic exam in ten minutes!"

"Blimey," said Ron, turning to Harry, "she must really hate that Skeeter woman to risk missing the start of an exam."

"What're you going to do in Binns class today, Harry?" James asked, leaning across the table. "Read again?"

Exempt from end-of-term tests as a Triwizard champion, Harry had been sitting at the back of every exam class so far, looking up fresh hexes for the third task.

"S'pose so," Harry said, but just then, Blake came walking along the Gryffindor table with Jackson beside him.

"Potter, Professor McGonagall wanted me to tell you that the champions are congregating in the chamber off the Hall after breakfast."

"But the tasks not 'til tonight!" said Harry.

"I'm aware of that, Potter," Blake said. "The champions families are invited to watch the final task, you know. This is simply a chance for us to greet them."

Phoebe paused in her breakfast and looked around at her best friends. "Rose is coming?" she asked.

"Yes," Jackson nodded. "And there will be a surprise for you also."

The elemental's eyes lit up. "Oh, a surprise? Tell me! I love surprises!"

"Nope," Jackson grinned. "It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you now, would it?"

"You're no fun," Phoebe pouted.

Jackson chuckled. "Don't you have an exam this morning?"

"Yes. But I feel the need to follow you into the chamber off the Hall, now!"

"No," Blake interrupted. "You go to your exam. You can have your surprise at Lunch!"

Phoebe pouted, her lower lip protruding and wobbling slightly as she stared at her best friends with puppy dog eyes.

"It's not going to work, Phoebe," said Blake. "You missed your end of exams last year -"

"Yeah, because I died!"

"Even more of a reason for you to sit them this year," Jackson exclaimed. "Now go! Your surprise will still be here later."

"Fine!" Phoebe huffed, getting to her feet, snatching her schoolbag from the floor and leaving the Great Hall with James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Lunch swung around after two hours of practical and theory exams.

Phoebe shouldered her schoolbag and led the way down the Marble staircase, across the Entrance Hall and into the Great Hall for lunch.

"Grandmama - Grandpapa!" whispered Phoebe, looking stunned, as she spotted the familiar sight of two people up at the teacher's table. "What are you doing here?"

"Come to watch Blake in the last task!" said Elena Blackheart brightly. "I must say, it makes a lovely change of scenery. How was your exam?"

"It went fine," said Phoebe. "Did my best!"

Jacob smiled. "And that is all you can do," he agreed.

Phoebe nodded.

There was a slight awkward pause between them, and Phoebe frowned, there had never been an awkward moment between her and her grandparents - ever.

_"We are aware that you know about Aiden,"_ said Jacob in his native tongue.

Phoebe nodded.

"_We understand if you are angry with us,"_ Jacob continued.

"_I am not angry,"_ Phoebe sighed. "_I...OK...maybe I am a little angry, but not with you!"_

_"Serefina?"_ Elena asked.

Phoebe nodded. "_Fourteen years you told me everything about Draco and my real family. You never kept anything from me; yet Aiden was kept a secret. Why?"_

_"Because there is more to it than just a case of infidelity,"_ said Elena.

_"The twin cores?"_

Jacob nodded.

"_What are they?"_

"_The twin cores,"_ Jacob started to explain, "_are the most powerful wiccan witch and wizard to have ever lived. Both elementals. Both are polar opposites."_

Phoebe frowned. "_You mean to say, that Aiden is an elemental?"_

Elena nodded. "_Yes, Phoebe, he is your polar opposite. He is the Fire to your Water, the Earth to your Air..."_

_"What did Serefina mean when she said that we would have to connect our powers?"_

Jacob shook his head, and motioned to the Great Hall, which was slowly filling with other students. "_Now is not the time to speak of such things. We will speak more once this year is over, Aiden will be returned to Portugal with us, you will have time over the summer to become acquainted with him."_

_"And you will explain everything then?"_ Phoebe pleaded. "_Please, Grandpapa, I cannot go a second longer! I must know!"_

_"I will explain everything,"_ Jacob promised. "_But you must promise me that you will wait...only until the end of term. Can you do that for me?"_

_"For you, Grandpapa?"_ Phoebe nodded, with a small smile. "_I will wait."_

Jacob smiled and pressed a small kiss to his granddaughter's forehead. "_Good. Now, go join your friends. Blake could use company before this evening."_

Phoebe nodded and dashed off to join her friends at the Gryffindor table, as she slid into her seat between Krum and Blake, she noticed that Mrs. Weasley had come to Hogwarts to support Harry; the older red-head nodded stiffly at the elemental, but did not greet her like she did over the summer.

"Mrs. Weasley, you didn't believe that rubbish Rita Skeeter wrote in _Witch Weekly_, did you? Before Phoebe is not my girlfriend." _**Despite how much I wish she was**_ he added as an afterthought.

"Oh!" said Mrs. Weasley. "No - of course I didn't!"

But she became considerably warmer towards Phoebe after that.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Elena and Jacob whiled away the afternoon with their daughter in her chambers on the fourth floor, while Rose spent the afternoon out on the grounds with Jackson, Blake and Esmee. She wanted to get to know Esmee better, and it seemed the two hit it off without a problem.

When they returned to the Great Hall that evening for the feast. Ludo Bagman and Cornelius Fudge had joined the staff stable now. Bagman looked quite cheerful, but Cornelius Fudge, who was sitting next to Madame Maxime, looked stern and was not talking. Madame Maxime was concentrating on her plate, and her eyes were looking rather red. Hagrid kept glancing along the table at her.

There were more courses than usual, but Harry, who was starting to feel really nervous now, didn't eat much. As the enchanted ceiling overhead began to fade from blue to a dusky purple. Mid-way through the fourth course, a screech cut through the air and Athena swooped down into the Hall and headed for the Gryffindor table.

"Phoebe...?" Jackson frowned, as the great eagle landed in front of him and turned her amber eyes to the elemental.

Phoebe frowned and took the letter that was attached to Athena's leg. Who would be writing to her? It wasn't her grandparents because they were currently sitting at the staff table, it wasn't Serefina because she was with her parents, and it couldn't have been any one of her friends outside of Hogwarts because only the Blackheart family used the eagle for messages.

_I know you have been searching for me...but there is nothing you can do to stop me!_

"_Who is it from?" _Rose asked.

"There is no name," Phoebe answered, reading the small folded parchment, her eyes widening slightly as she recognized the handwriting from somewhere. _**No, it can't be, can it?**_ She wondered curiously.

"Then what does it say?" Blake asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "Nothing," she replied, stuffing the note into her pocket. "Listen, I have to check something, I'll meet you at the task, alright?"

"Where are you going?" Jackson asked. "I'll come with you."

"No," Phoebe smiled. "Stay with Blake. I won't be long. I just have to check something in my dorm room. I'll be two minutes and then I will be straight down. I promise."

Jackson and Blake hesitated, before nodding, and watched as Phoebe jumped to her feet and dashed out of the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Miss. Blackheart?"

Phoebe turned, trying her hardest to not show how startled she was to find Moody standing behind her.

"Yes, professor?" Phoebe asked.

"Why are you not at the task, Miss. Blackheart?"

"I had to check something first, sir,"

"Oh?" Moody asked, his magical eye rolling rapidly in his eye socket. "Like the correspondents on who sent you that letter? It came from inside the castle, you know? There are no correspondents at the Post Office!"

Phoebe stared at him. "How would you know that?"

Moody's magic eye rolled backwards into his head, causing Phoebe to look around and realize that she was completely alone with him. "Maybe because I know who sent you that note."

**Phoebe!**

_**Salazar?**_

**Phoebe, you must get away, now!**

_**Why?**_

**Listen to Salazar, Little One. He cannot be trusted. Go, run! Run to Dumbledore!**

"I should really be going," said Phoebe, stepping backwards away from her Professor. "I promised Jackson that I would meet him in the stands...so if you will excuse me."

She took several hurried steps backwards.

Moody followed her. A dull _clunk_ echoing every other step. "I am sorry to have to say this, Miss. Blackheart, but you will not be making the task tonight - _Stupefy._"

The spell came so quickly that Phoebe barely had time to react or defend herself.

The spell hit her dead in the chest, and knocked her clean off of her feet, landing unconsciousness a few feet away from her original standing point, Phoebe sank into the darkness that conveyed around her.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Tuesday, February 14, 2012 at 4:12am**


	82. Chapter 82

**Author's Note:** Question: Where has all my readers gone? I hope everyone had a good Valentine's Day. I did. I got to spend it with my baby…baby nephew that is…and I got to take the piss out of my sister and her boyfriend. =D

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd **and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**

**Warning:** This chapter may include some heartbreaking scenes that some people may not enjoy. Read at your own risk!

* * *

><p>Jackson frowned and glanced back, over his shoulder towards the castle behind him. On the ground in front of the maze were the four champions and Bagman, the crowd was cheering their support, but someone was missing.<p>

"Where is Phoebe?" Jackson asked Rose who stopped cheering for Blake to look around.

_"I do not know. She said that she would be two minutes, maybe she got held up,"_ Rose said.

"She'll turn up," James said. "I remember the first Quidditch match back in first year; she didn't turn up for half the game, and then appeared in the Teacher's stands with Professor Blackheart."

Ashlyn nodded. "That is true. Maybe she is with Professor Blackheart and her grandparents?"

"She is not talking to Serefina," Jackson pointed out. "Why would she be with them?"

Rose patted his knee. _"I am sure she is fine,"_ she smiled. "_She'll turn up when you least expect it. She always does."_

Jackson sighed and turned back to face the champions as Bagman pointed his wand at his throat, and seconds later his magically magnified voice echoed into the stands.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin! Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, on eighty-five points each - Mr. Cedric Diggory and Mr. Harry Potter, both of Hogwarts School!" The cheers and applause sent birds from the Forbidden Forest fluttering into the darkening sky. "In second place, on eighty points - Mr. Blake Brooks, of Durmstrang Institute!" More applause. "And in third place - Miss. Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy!"

But as the cannon blasted on the otherside of the stands, and Harry and Cedric disappeared into the maze. Jackson couldn't help the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe groaned as she started to come too, the effects of the Stunning Spell wearing off and causing a dull ache to rest inside her body. Her vision was blurred and she felt sluggish as she tried to stretch her muscles that felt like they were about to seize up if she didn't move soon.

She tried to move but found that her hands were bound behind her back. By her feet was a strip of parchment, with the words '_You thought you could catch me...how the tables have turned,'_ written on it.

With a shuddering gasp, Phoebe looked up. "Someone help!"

"No one can hear us down here," said a voice. Phoebe screamed startled by the presence of another that was hidden in the darkness that surrounded her. "It's OK...i'm not going to hurt you!"

"Who are you?"

"Alastor Moody,"

Phoebe scoffed. "Nice try," she retorted. "Moody just attacked me!"

"That was an imposter," the man in the shadows answered. "I am the real Alastor Moody."

"How do I know that you are telling the truth?" Phoebe asked.

There was a slight shuffling noise. "If I were the person that attacked you, why would I lock myself in a trunk with you?"

"Point taken," Phoebe nodded. "How do we get out of here?"

"We can't," Moody answered. "The only way out is if someone were to come find us. I have been here for almost a year, and no one has come for me."

"We didn't know you were here," Phoebe answered honestly. "We though the imposter - whoever he is - was you! Do you know who he is?"

Moody nodded in the darkness. "Barty Crouch Jr,"

"But - he - how -" Phoebe spluttered, before inhaling sharply. "Polyjuice Potion."

Moody chuckled deeply. "Dumbledore was right when he told me that you were a smart girl," he said.

"You've spoken to Dumbledore?"

"During the summer," Moody nodded. "When he asked me to come back and teach you Defence Against the Dark Arts. He mentioned you...told me that you were in danger of the Dark Lord, how did Crouch catch you?"

Phoebe sighed. "I received a note at lunch," she answered. "I recognized the handwriting as the same that scrawled Harry's name the night it came out of the Goblet of Fire; I wanted to be sure that I had the right person before I went to Dumbledore so I decided to check it against the parchment with Harry's name on it. It was in my Dorm room."

"So you went up the Gryffindor Tower alone?"

"Yes," Phoebe whispered, blinking back the tears that burned the back of her throat. "It was a foolish thing to do, I know that now! But I didn't expect to be attacked by Moody - I mean, Barty Crouch Jr - I thought he would go down to the third task with the rest of the teachers - I'm so stupid!"

Moody shifted and Phoebe felt the ropes that bound her hands slacken around her wrists. "Now, now, Miss. Blackheart, you are not stupid," he soothed. "Curious...but not necessarily stupid. You just have to learn to exercise your curiosity."

"You sound like Dumbledore," Phoebe sobbed.

"He is a wise man," Moody chuckled. "I thought you of all people would know that."

Phoebe sniffled, and dried her eyes on the back of her sleeve. "Where are we?" she asked.

"In my trunk," he answered. "We're still in the castle..."

"But for how much longer?"

"I cannot answer that question," Moody answered.

"How did you get in here?"

"Crouch snuck up on me from behind during the summer," Moody explained. "Stunned me and stuck me in my own trunk. He has some plan to bring You-Know-Who back from the dead...a plan that involves Potter."

Phoebe sighed. "And me," she muttered.

"Excuse me?"

"I fear that whatever Crouch Jr has told you," Phoebe answered, "is very much becoming true...Dumbledore always said that Voldemort would find a way back from the dead...and Harry had a vision over the summer about him...said that Voldemort was talking about the plan, Harry was mentioned and so was I."

"But what would You-Know-Who want with you?" Moody asked.

Phoebe sighed. "That is a long and complicated story," she answered.

"We have time,"

"Not enough time," Phoebe said, as a muffled bang echoed from several feet above them. The trunk was jostled slightly, as if something had been pushed into it, and then forced away. "What's happening?"

Moody shook his head. "I do not know," he answered, before silence fell both inside and outside of the trunk.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry felt himself slam flat into the ground; his face was pressed into grass; the smell of it filled his nostrils. He had closed his eyes while the Portkey transported him, and he kept them closed now. He did not move. All the breath seemed to have been knocked out of him; his head was swimming so badly he felt as though the ground beneath him was swaying like the deck of a ship.

A torrent of sound deafened and confused him, there were voices everywhere, footsteps, screams...he remained where he was, his face screwed up against the noise, as though it was a nightmare that would pass...

Then a pair of hands seized him roughly and turned him over.

"Harry! _Harry!_"

He opened his eyes.

He was looking up at the starry sky, and Albus Dumbledore was crouched over him. The dark shadows of a crowd of people pressed in around him, pushing nearer; Harry felt the ground beneath his head reverberating with their footsteps.

He had come back to the edge of the maze. He could see the stands rising above him, the shapes of people moving in them, the stars above.

Harry let go of the Cup, raised his hand and seized Dumbledore's wrist, while Dumbledore's face swam in and out of focus.

"He's back," Harry whispered. "He's back. Voldemort."

"What's going on? What's happened?"

The face of Cornelius Fudge appeared upside-down over Harry; it looked white, appalled.

"My God - Dumbledore - he's dead!"

The words were repeated, the shadowy figures pressing in on them gasped it to those around them...and then others shouted it - screeched it - into the night - "He's dead!" "He's _dead_!"

"Harry, let him go," he heard Fudge's voice say, and he felt fingers trying to pry him from the limp body, but Harry wouldn't let go.

Then Dumbledore's face, which was still blurred and misted, came closer. "Harry, you can't help him now. It's over. Let go."

"He wanted me to bring him back," Harry muttered - it seemed important to explain. "He wanted me to bring him back to them...to her..."

"That's right, Harry...just let go, now..."

Dumbledore bent down and, with extraordinary strength for a man so old and thin, raised Harry from the ground, and set him on his feet. Harry swayed. His head pounding. His injured leg would no longer support his weight. The crowd around them jostled, fighting to get closer, pressing darkly in on him - "What's happened?" "What's wrong with him?"

"He'll need to go to the Hospital wing!" Fudge was saying loudly. "He's ill, he's injured - Dumbledore..."

"I'll take Harry, Dumbledore, I'll take him -"

"No, I would prefer -"

"Dumbledore -"

A girl's scream drowned out the rest of Fudge's sentence, there was a hysterical scream...and the scene flickered oddly before Harry's eyes...

"It's all right, son, I've got you...come on...hospital wing..."

"Dumbledore said stay," said Harry thickly, the pounding in his scar making him feel as though he was about to throw up; his vision was blurring worse than ever.

"You need to lie down...come on, now..."

Someone larger and stronger than Harry was, was half-pulling, half-carrying him through the frightened crowd; Harry heard them gasping, screaming and shouting as the man supporting him pushed a path through them, taking him back to the castle. Across the lawn, past the lake and the Durmstrang ship; Harry heard nothing but the heavy breathing of the man helping him walk.

"What happened, Harry?" the man asked at last, as he lifted Harry up the stone steps. _Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. _It was Mad-Eye Moody.

"Cup was a Portkey," said Harry, as they crossed the Entrance Hall. "Took us to a graveyard...and Voldemort was there...Lord Voldemort..."

_Clunk. Clunk. Clunk._ Up the marble staircase...

"The Dark Lord was there? What happened then?"

_Clunk. Clunk. Clunk._ Along another corridor...

"Made a potion...got his body back..."

"The Dark Lord got his body back? He's returned?"

"And the Death Eaters came...and then we dueled..."

"You dueled with the Dark Lord?"

"Got away...my wand...did something funny...I saw my mum and dad...they came out of his wand..."

"In here, Harry...in here, and sit down...you'll be all right now...drink this..."

Harry heard a key scrape in a lock, and felt a cup being pushed into his hands.

"Drink it...you'll feel better...come on now, Harry, I need to know exactly what happened..."

Moody helped tip the stuff down Harry's throat; he coughed, a peppery taste burning his throat. Moody's office came into sharper focus, and so did Moody himself...he looked as white as Fudge, and both eyes were fixed unblinkingly upon Harry's face.

"Voldemort's back, Harry? You sure he's back? How did he do it?"

"He took stuff from his father's grave, and from Wormtail, and me," said Harry. His head felt clearer; his scar wasn't hurting so badly, he could now see Moody's face distinctly, even though the office was dark. He could still hear screaming and shouting from the distant Quidditch pitch.

"What did the Dark Lord take from you?" said Moody.

"Blood," said Harry, raising his arm. His sleeve was ripped where Wormtail's dagger had torn it.

Moody let out his breath in a long, low hiss. "And the Death Eaters? They returned?"

"Yes," said Harry. "Loads of them..."

"How did he treat them?" Moody said quietly. "Did he forgive them?"

But Harry had suddenly remembered. He should have told Dumbledore, he should have said it straight away - "There's a Death Eater at Hogwarts! There's a Death Eater here - they put my name in the Goblet of Fire, they made sure I got through to the end - they have Phoebe - they are going to take her too him -"

Harry tried to get up, but Moody pushed him back down.

"I know who the Death Eater is," he said quietly.

"Karkaroff?" said Harry wildly. "Where is he? Have you got him? Is he locked up?"

"Karkaroff?" said Moody with an odd laugh. "Karkaroff fled tonight, when he felt the Dark Mark burn upon his arm. He betrayed too many faithful supporters of the Dark Lord to wish to meet them...but I doubt he will get far. The Dark Lord has ways of tracking his enemies."

"Karkaroff's _gone_? He ran away? But then - he didn't put my name in the Cup?"

"No," said Moody slowly. "No, he didn't. It was I who did that."

Harry heard, but didn't believe.

"No, you didn't," he said. "You didn't do that...you can't have done..."

"I assure you I did," said Moody, and his magical eye swung around, and fixed upon the door, and Harry knew he was making sure that there was no one outside it. At the same time, Moody drew out his wand, and pointed it at Harry.

"He forgave them, then?" he said. "The Death Eaters who went free? The ones who escaped Azkaban?"

"What?" said Harry.

He was looking at the wand Moody was pointing at him. This was a bad joke, it had to be.

"I asked you," said Moody quietly, "whether he forgave the scum who never even went to look for him. Those treacherous cowards who wouldn't even brave Azkaban for him. The faithless, worthless bits of filth that were brave enough to cavort in masks at the Quidditch World Cup, but fled at the sight of the Dark Mark when I fired it into the sky."

"_You_ fired...what are you talking about...?"

"I told you, Harry...I told you. If there's one thing I hate more than any other, it's a Death Eater who walked free. They turned their backs on my master, when he needed them most. I expected him to punish them. I expected him to torture them. Tell me he hurt them, Harry..." Moody's face was suddenly lit with an insane smile. "Tell me he told them that I, I alone remained faithful...prepared to risk everything to deliver to him the one thing he wanted above all...Phoebe Blackheart."

Harry sprang to his feet. "Where is she?" he screamed. "Where's Phoebe!"

Moody's magical eye had now left the door. It was fixed upon Harry. His lopsided mouth leered more widely than ever. "She's safe...for now..."

"What are you going to do to her?"

"Nothing damaging," he grinned. "Her powers are legendary...she has the power to return my Lord to his most powerful state! Once he has consumed enough of her powers, he will turn her - she will be a most favorable Death Eater - Powerful - Intellectual - Charming - Beautiful -"

Harry felt himself shaking in anger. He didn't like the tone of voice that Moody was using when he was speaking of Phoebe - like she was a side of meat, rather than a human being. "Where is she?" he repeated.

"I told you," Moody answered. "She is safe."

"Where? Where is she safe?"

Moody laughed. "Do you expect me to tell you, Harry? What can you do for her now? You can't save her this time!"

Moody's wand was still pointing directly at Harry's heart.

Harry stared at Moody. He just didn't see how this could be...Dumbledore's friend, the famous Auror...the one who had caught so many Death Eaters...it made no sense...no sense at all...

The foggy shapes in the Foe-Glass were sharpening, had become more distinct, Harry could see the outlines of three people over Moody's shoulder, moving closer and closer. But Moody wasn't watching them. His magical eye was upon Harry.

"The Dark Lord didn't manage to kill you, Potter, and he so wanted to," whispered Moody. "Imagine how he will reward me, when he finds out that I killed you for him, and I can hand him your pretty little elemental friend. I will be honored beyond all other Death Eaters. I will be his dearest, his closest supporter...closer than a son..."

Moody's normal eye was bulging, the magical eye fixed upon Harry. The door was barred, and Harry knew he would never reach his own in time.

"The Dark Lord and I," said Moody, and he looked completely insane now, towering over Harry, leering down at him, "have much in common. Both of us, for instance, had very disappointing fathers...very disappointing indeed. Both of us suffered the indignity, Harry, of being named after those fathers. And both of us had the pleasure...they very great pleasure...of killing our fathers, to ensure the continued rise of the Dark Order!"

He laughed darkly.

"Think about it, Potter," he continued. "When your pretty little friend is made into a Death Eater...she will be just like us too...she too has a disappointing father...she too will have the pleasure of killing her father...and the rise of the Dark Order will continue..."

"You're mad!" Harry said - he couldn't stop himself - "you're mad!"

"Mad, am I?" said Moody, his voice rising uncontrollably. "We'll see! We'll see who's mad, now that the Dark Lord has returned, with me and Blackheart at his side! He is back, Harry Potter, you did not conquer him - and now - I conquer you!"

Moody raised his wand, he opened his mouth, and Harry plunged his own hand into his robes -

"_Stupefy!"_

There was a blinding flash of red light, and with a great splintering and crashing, the door of Moody's office was blasted apart.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe was starting to grow tired, her arms were now free and she was using them to hug her knees close to chest, as she sat in the silent darkness trying to think and draw everything together. Mad-Eye Moody was really Barty Crouch Jr. who had attacked his father in the grounds the night she had received the letter from her grandmother - that also meant that it had been Barty Crouch Jr. who had attacked her and Aiden that night the grounds - if that were the case, why hadn't he just finished her off then and there? Or did he want her alive for another reason?

She shuddered at the thought of what he may have wanted her for -

Her wand was clearly still outside the trunk and they were locked in. Using her powers now was useless, if they were trapped in Moody's trunk then that meant it was magically protected; if this had been the plan all along, then the trunk was bound to be protected against elemental magic.

What time was it? How long had she been trapped down here? The third task was bound to have been over by now, hadn't it? Someone was bound to know that she was missing by now, right?

Right.

Jackson would notice that she was missing.

But time was moving slowly.

Phoebe felt herself starting to become short of breath. She didn't know how long she had been trapped in this tiny, enclosed space, she wasn't sure how much longer she could hold herself together...and in front of Moody, who had been trapped in this trunk for a year. She was starting to feel lightheaded and had the incredible feeling of not being able to breathe.

She closed her eyes.

What did he want with her? Why was she so important? What was going to happen to her? Why hadn't anyone saved her yet?

Phoebe could hear Moody breathing softly, deep in sleep, beside her and the sound of voices echoed above her.

There was a loud bang and, just before she lost consciousness, Phoebe was able to utter one word -

"Serefina..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Phoebe...Phoebe, can you hear me?"

"Professor Dumbledore...do you think he wanted to kidnap her because - because of who she is?"

"Yes, Miss. Black, I do believe so."

"Phoebe?"

Phoebe curled her fingers around Terence's, forcing her eyes open. Terence smiled softly down at her, pressing the palm of her hand against his lips. "It's about time."

She blinked her head and movements causing bright spots to appear in front of her eyes, slowly she turned her head, taking in her surroundings. Elena and Jacob Blackheart stood between her bed and the one which Harry slept. Hermione, Ron, Ashlyn, James, Sarah, Amelia and Terence were there too and, of course, Jackson, Esmee, Madam Pomfrey and...Snuffles?

Phoebe looked back to Terence and he helped her to sit up, propping her up against her pillows. "What happened?" she asked, her voice hoarse.

"You were attacked," Terence answered. "By Barty Crouch Jr."

"But why?"

The room was silent as Phoebe looked around, it seemed everyone was avoiding eye contact with her. "Well...? Isn't someone going to tell me?"

"I will," Aiden spoke, approaching the bed.

"Aiden..." Elena tried to stop her grandson.

Phoebe shook her head. "No! Let him talk!" she looked to her half-brother, waiting for her explanation. "Why did Barty Crouch Jr. kidnap me?"

"You remember Potter telling you that he had a dream over the summer about Voldemort and the old house?" Aiden asked. Phoebe nodded. "I had a similar one...only I saw something that Potter did not..."

"What did you see?"

"I witnessed Voldemort give the order for you to be brought to him," Aiden answered. "Wormtail had told him that there was another...another who could restore Voldemort to his full strength...someone who had control over two elements...someone other than Harry Potter..._you_."

Phoebe swallowed. "So, he's back?" she whispered.

Aiden nodded.

"Where is Moody?" Phoebe asked. "He was locked in the trunk with me...where is he? Is he OK?"

Elena touched her granddaughter's shoulder, and soothingly brushed her black and blonde hair from her face. "He is fine," she promised. "Dumbledore rushed him in here at the same time you were brought in...He is right over there," she pointed to the far end of the room, where she could see the real Moody lying motionless in a bed, his wooden leg and magical eye on a table beside him.

Looking around once more, Phoebe paused as she took in each of her friends, something was wrong...someone was missing. "Where's Blake?"

The room was silent as Phoebe looked around; every eye cast was cast downwards away from her, as if someone had just shared some big secret. "What's going on?" she asked.

"Phoebe..." Terence started, grabbing her hand and rubbing his thumb over the back of it. "There is something you should know..."

"Where's Blake?" Phoebe repeated, not liking where this was heading. She looked around at Jackson. "Where's he, Jackson? WHERE IS BLAKE?"

Tears burned the back of her throat as Jackson shook his head. "I'm sorry, Phoebe..."

"No," Phoebe whispered, tears blurring her vision. "No...Please...no..."

The room seemed to go numb. Phoebe's hand slipped from Terence's, as one by one salty tears slid down her cheeks. This wasn't happening...there was no possible way...there was a mistake...Blake wasn't...he was there...somewhere, he had to be there!

"No..."

"He's dead, Phoebe..." Jackson croaked. "Blake's dead."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Don't hurt me! Please! *Runs and hides*_

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, February 15, 2012 at 11:32pm**


	83. Chapter 83

**Author's Note:** Coming up to the end of fourth year. Going to take a small break after this year and try and catch up on some stories that are outdated. Some need to be completely re-written, while others need editing.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**. I know the rest of you have reasons for not reviewing...but just I know I miss you. =(

Big **shout out** to: **Hawk Wood** for adding this story their Favourite Stories and me to their Favourite Author's lists. Appreciate it.

Here is Chapter 83.

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><p>"<em>The glaring injustice is there for all who are not blinded by prejudice to see."<em>

_~ Bram Fischer_

* * *

><p>Phoebe woke up, so warm, so very sleepy, that she didn't open her eyes, wanting to drop off again. The room was still dimly lit; she was sure it was still night-time, and had a feeling that she couldn't have been asleep very long.<p>

Then she heard whispering around her.

"They'll wake them if they don't shut up!"

"What are they shouting about? Nothing else can have happened, can it?"

Phoebe opened her eyes blearily. Someone's arm was behind her neck, and she was lying on her side, face buried into someone's chest; she knew this because she could see the fuzzy outline of their person. _**It must be Terence**_, she thought tiredly, closing her eyes once more and trying to go back to sleep.

"That's Fudge's voice,"

"And that's Professor McGonagall's,"

"But what are they arguing about?"

Now Phoebe could hear them, too; people shouting and running towards the hospital wing.

"Regrettable, but all the same, Minerva -" Cornelius Fudge was saying loudly.

"You should never have brought it inside the castle!" yelled Professor McGonagall. "When Dumbledore finds out -"

The hospital wing doors burst open and Phoebe shot up in her bed, the movement surprised Terence, who had been lying beside her, and causing him to tumble off the bed and onto the floor, although no one seemed to notice, only Phoebe who leaned over the edge and smiled guiltily down at him.

"I'm OK," Terence promised, pushing himself to his feet and resuming his place on the bed.

Fudge came striding up the ward. Professors McGonagall and Snape were at his heels.

"Where's Dumbledore?" Fudge demanded of Mrs. Weasley.

"He's not here," said Jacob angrily. "This is a hospital wing, Minister, don't you think you'd do better to -"

But the door opened, and Dumbledore came sweeping up the ward.

"What has happened?" said Dumbledore sharply, looking from Fudge to Professor McGonagall. "Why are you disturbing these people? Minerva, I'm surprised at you - I asked you to stand guard over Barty Crouch -"

"There is no need to stand guard over him anymore, Dumbledore!" she shrieked. "The Minister has seen to that!"

Phoebe had never seen Professor McGonagall lose control like this. There were angry blotches of colour in her cheeks, her hands were balled into fists; she was trembling with fury.

"When we told Mr. Fudge that we had caught the Death Eater responsible for tonight's events," said Snape, in a low voice, "he seemed to feel his personal safety was in question. He insisted on summoning a Dementor to accompany him into the castle. He brought it up to the office where Barty Crouch -"

"I told him you would not agree, Dumbledore!" stormed Professor McGonagall. "I told him you would never allow Dementors to set foot into the castle, but -"

"My dear woman!" roared Fudge, who likewise looked angrier than ever. "As Minister for Magic, it is my decision whether I wish to bring protection with me when interviewing a possibly dangerous -"

Phoebe shook her head. "But a Dementor?" she questioned, alerting everyone to the fact that she was awake. "Out of everything you could have used, you decided to use one of the worst creatures in existence! Neither one of us has to have been in the room to know what happened when the Dementor arrived, I think it is safe to say that Barty Crouch Jr is worse than dead!"

"By all accounts, he is no loss!" blustered Fudge. "It seems he has been responsible for several deaths!"

"But he cannot now give testimony, Cornelius," said Dumbledore. He was staring hard at Fudge, as though seeing him plainly for the first time. "He cannot give evidence about why he killed those people."

"Why he killed them? Well, that's no mystery, is it?" blustered Fudge. "He was a raving lunatic! From what Minerva and Severus have told me, he seems to have thought he was doing it all on You-Know-Who's instructions!"

"Lord Voldemort _was_ giving him instructions," said Aiden. "Those people's deaths were mere by-products of a plan to restore Voldemort to full strength again. The plan succeeded. Voldemort has been restored to his body."

Fudge looked as though someone had just swung a heavy weight into his face. Dazed and blinking, he looked between Dumbledore and Aiden as if he couldn't quite believe what he had just heard.

He began to splutter, still goggling at Dumbledore, "You-Know-Who...returned? Preposterous. Come now, Dumbledore..."

"As Minerva and Severus have doubtless told you," said Dumbledore, "we heard Barty Crouch confess. Under the influence of Veritaserum, he told us how he was smuggled out of Azkaban, and how Voldemort - learning of his continued existence from Bertha Jorkins - went to free him from his father, and used him to capture Harry and kidnap Phoebe. The plan worked, I tell you. Crouch has helped Voldemort to return."

"See here, Dumbledore," said Fudge, "you - you can't seriously believe that. You-Know-Who - back? Come now, come now...certainly, Crouch may have _believed_ himself to be acting upon You-Know-Who's orders - but to take the word of a lunatic like that, Dumbledore..."

"When Harry touched the Triwizard Cup tonight, he was transported straight to Voldemort," said Dumbledore steadily. "He witnessed Lord Voldemort's rebirth. I will explain it all to you if you will step up to my office, but I am afraid I cannot permit you to question Harry tonight."

Fudge glanced over his shoulder at Harry, and Phoebe turned to see that her friend was sitting up in bed, wide awake and listening intently to what was going on around him, just like her.

"You are - er - prepared to take Harry's word on this, are you, Dumbledore?"

There was a moment's silence, which was broken by Sirius growling. His hackles were raised, and he was baring his teeth at Fudge.

"Certainly I believe Harry," said Dumbledore. His eyes blazing now. "I heard Crouch's confession, and I heard Harry's account of what happened after he touched the Triwizard Cup, the two stories make sense, they explain everything that has happened since Bertha Jorkins disappeared last summer."

Once again, Fudge glanced in Harry's direction before answering. "You are prepared to believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, on the word of a lunatic murderer, and a boy who...well..."

Fudge shot Harry another look, and Phoebe suddenly understood.

"You've been reading Rita Skeeter, Mr. Fudge," Harry said, before Phoebe could have a chance. Those who hadn't noticed that he was awake jumped in surprise.

Fudge reddened slightly, but a defiant and obstinate look came over his face.

"And if I have?" he said, looking at Dumbledore. "If I have discovered that you've been keeping certain facts about the boy very quiet? A Parselmouth, eh? And having funny turns all over the place -"

"I assume that you are referring to the pains Harry has been experiencing in his scar?" said Dumbledore coolly.

"You admit that he has been having these pains, then?" said Fudge quickly. "Headaches? Nightmares? Possibly - hallucinations?"

"Listen to me, Cornelius," said Dumbledore, taking a step towards Fudge, and he seemed to radiate an indefinable sense of power. "Harry is as sane as you or I. That scar upon his forehead has not addled his brains. I believe it hurts him when Lord Voldemort is close by, or feeling particularly murderous."

Fudge had taken half a step back from Dumbledore, but he looked no less stubborn. "You'll forgive me, Dumbledore, but I've heard of a curse scar acting as an alarm bell before..."

"Look, I saw Voldemort come back!" Harry shouted. He tried to get out of bed, Mrs. Weasley forced him back. "I saw the Death Eaters! I can give you their names! Lucius Malfoy -"

Snape made a sudden movement, but as Harry looked at him, Snape's eyes flew back to Fudge.

Phoebe, Aiden and Serefina, however, paused and exchanged subtle glances that no one but Terence could see. In the aftermath, the older Slytherin wrapped his arms around Phoebe's stomach and pulled her over onto his lap as he settled on the bed.

"Malfoy was cleared!" said Fudge, visibly affronted. "A very old family - donations to excellent causes -"

"Suck up," Phoebe muttered under her breath.

She went unnoticed.

"Macnair!" Harry continued.

"Also cleared! Now working for the Ministry!"

"Avery - Nott - Crabbe - Goyle -"

"You are merely repeating the names of those who were acquitted of being Death Eaters thirteen years ago!" said Fudge angrily. "You could have found those names in old reports of the trails! For heaven's sake, Dumbledore - the boy was fully of some crackpot story at the end of last year, too - his tales are getting taller, and you're still swallowing them - the boy can talk to snakes, Dumbledore, and you still think he's trustworthy?"

"You're a fool!" Phoebe hissed, her eyes burning a light cobalt blue. "Blake wasn't killed just by anyone! And I have known Harry long enough to never take a life, especially a life that means so much to a friend! Blake was my best friend, and I believe that Harry didn't kill him!"

"Mr. Brooks entered the Tournament of his own free will," Fudge answered. "He knew of the consequences if something went wrong!"

Phoebe's hands shook, as she fought against the on slaughter of tears that threatened to spill over. "You should never have given the order that the Tournament could be reinstated! You knew of the consequences! You knew of the Death Toll! And, yet you still allowed this tournament to go ahead! Blake's death is on your hands, Minister, it is your fault he is dead!"

Elena, who was closer to Phoebe's bed, reached across and wound her hand around Phoebe's fists. "_Calm down, Little Star,"_ she whispered soothingly. "_You do not want to create a freak storm within the Hospital wing..."_

_"He killed Blake,"_ Phoebe said teary.

"_I know precious," _Elena agreed. "_But he does not see it that way...you must calm down, if not for us and yourself, then do it for Blake. He would not want you to lose control like this."_

Jacob, Serefina and Aiden, the only ones that could understand what Elena and Phoebe were saying, nodded at Phoebe and the elemental breathed in deeply as she allowed her anger to subside. She'd explode soon and she felt rather sorry for the person that pushed her over the edge.

"Phoebe provides a point," Professor McGonagall defended. "Blake Brooks and Mr. Crouch were not the random work of a lunatic!"

"I see no evidence to the contrary!" shouted Fudge, now matching the anger of just about everyone within the room, except maybe Phoebe who was ready to murder someone herself. "It seems to me that you are all determined to start a panic that will destabilize everything we have worked for these last thirteen years!"

Phoebe scoffed as Fudge refused, point-blank, to accept the prospect of disruption in his comfortable and ordered world - to believe that Voldemort could have returned.

"Voldemort has returned," Dumbledore repeated. "If you accept that fact straight away, Fudge, and take the necessary measures, we may still be able to save the situation. The first and most essential step is to remove Azkaban from the control of the Dementors -"

"Preposterous!" shouted Fudge again. "Remove the Dementors! I'd be kicked out of the office for suggesting it! Half of us only feel safe in our beds at night because we know the Dementors are standing guard at Azkaban!"

"And what of the other half?" Elena questioned. "The rest of us sleep less soundly in our beds, Fudge, knowing that you have put Lord Voldemort's most dangerous supporters in the care of creatures that will join him the instant he asks them! They will not remain loyal to you! Voldemort can offer them much more scope for their powers and their pleasures than you can! With the Dementors behind him, and his old supporters returned to him, you will be hard pressed to stop him regaining the sort of power he had thirteen years ago!"

Fudge was opening and closing his mouth as though no words could express his outrage.

"The second step you must take - and at once," Dumbledore added, "is to send envoys to the giants."

"Envoys to the giants?" Fudge shrieked, finding his tongue again. "What madness is this?"

"Extend them the hand of friendship, now, before it is too late," said Dumbledore, "or Voldemort will persuade them, as he did before, that he alone among wizards will give them their rights and their freedom!"

"You - you cannot be serious!" Fudge gasped, shaking his head, and retreating further from Dumbledore. "If the magical community got wind that I approached the giants - people hate them, Dumbledore - end of my career -"

There was a heavy pause, as just about every head turned in Phoebe's direction, her friends knew exactly how she felt about the Ministry of Magic putting their reputation before the safety of others.

Phoebe's eyes burned a brilliant cobalt blue. "You're blinded!" she shouted, an aura of power around her palpable, "by the love of the office you hold, Fudge! You place too much importance, and you always have done, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be! Your Dementor has just destroyed the last remaining member of a pureblood family as old as any - and see what that man chose to make of his life! I tell you now - take the steps my grandmother and Professor Dumbledore has suggested, and you will be remembered, in office or out, as one of the bravest and greatest Ministers for Magic Britain has ever known. Fail to act - and history will remember you as the man who stepped aside and allowed Voldemort a second chance to destroy the world you have tried to rebuild!"

"Insane," whispered Fudge, still backing away. "Mad..."

And then there was silence. Madam Pomfrey was standing frozen at the foot of Harry's bed, her hands over her mouth. Mrs. Weasley was still standing over Harry, her hand on his shoulder to prevent him rising. Terence still had Phoebe on his lap, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. Jackson, Bill, James, Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia, Ron, Hermione and everyone else were staring at Fudge.

"If your determination to shut your eyes will carry you as far as this, Cornelius," said Dumbledore, "we have reached a parting of ways. You must act as you see fit. And I - I shall act as I see fit."

Dumbledore's voice carried no hint of a threat; it sounded like a mere statement, but Fudge bristled as though Dumbledore was advancing upon him with a wand.

"Now, see here, Dumbledore," he said, wavering a threatening finger. "I've given you free rein, always. I've had a lot of respect for you. I might not have agreed with some of your decisions, but I've kept quiet. There aren't many who'd have let you hire werewolves, or keep Hagrid, or bring in international students and Professors -" he motioned at Serefina and Phoebe, "or even decide what to teach your students, without reference to the Ministry. But if you're going to work against me -"

"The only one against whom I intend to work," said Dumbledore "is Lord Voldemort. If you are against him, then we remain, Cornelius, on the same side."

It seemed Fudge could think of no answer to this. He rocked backwards and forwards on his small feet for a moment, and spun his bowler hat in his hands. Finally, he said, with a hint of plea in his voice, "He can't be back, Dumbledore, he just can't be..."

Snape strode forwards, past Dumbledore, pulling up his left sleeve of his robes as he went. He stuck out his forearm, and showed it to Fudge, who recoiled.

"There," said Snape harshly. "There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was, an hour ago, when it burned black, but you can still see it. Every Death Eater had the sign burnt into him by the Dark Lord. It was a means of distinguishing each other, and his means of summoning us to him. When he touched the Mark of any Death Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly at his side. This Mark has been growing clearer all year, Karkaroff's too."

"Why do you think Igor fled tonight, Fudge?" Elena asked. "He felt the Mark burn. He knew that Voldemort had returned. My brother fears the Dark Lord's vengeance. He betrayed too many of his fellow Death Eaters to be sure of a welcome back into the fold."

Fudge stepped back from Snape, too. "How can we be sure that he truly has fled," he spluttered. "How can we be sure that _she -_" he pointed at Elena, "has not helped him escape? To avoid losing her brother for a second time?"

At Fudge's words, there was uproar. Jacob swore loudly and Elena barely held back her husband, with a loud rumble and a bang, several water basins all over the ward exploded, water pouring out of them like torrents. Screens and several beds ignited and the fires spread rapidly throughout the ward as the ground shook violently.

Sarah screamed in fright and jumped backwards, knocking into James and sending both of them to the floor. Amelia ducked behind Ashlyn as a bed near her ignited fiercely. Hermione and Ron whipped around to look at Phoebe who was staring at Fudge with a murderous rage, her eyes blazing blue, and her fists clenched.

"How dare you!" Jacob roared, a nearby bed igniting into flames and turning to ash instantly under the heat. "How dare you accuse my wife of helping a convicted Death Eater to escape capture!"

"Get out!"

"Miss. Blackheart, you do not have the authority to order me abo -"

"OUT!"

"_Serefina, stop this immediately!"_

Serefina seemed to cool at her mother's voice, but her gaze remained transfixed on Fudge, still blazing a soft cobalt blue. The ground within the hospital wing started to steady itself, the fires died and the water started to disappear back into the basins as Phoebe and Aiden's eyes softened back to their natural colours.

"Why would I help Igor escape, Minister?" Elena asked, as her family started to somewhat relax, "I did nothing when you threw him into Azkaban and I've done nothing now, and, for that matter, I do not intend to do anything at all! My brother can run for as long as he likes, but he won't get far... he was never the smartest tool in the shed."

Fudge, who was looking around at the Blackheart family in terror, opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish.

When he did manage to find his voice he said, "Elementals..." he gasped. "I cannot believe I did not realize it before! You have allowed Elementals to enter Hogwarts, Dumbledore! You know of the rules of the Ministry, creatures that can perform magic without the uses of a wand are classed as dark and highly dangerous! I do not know what game you are playing at, Dumbledore, but it ends here and now!"

"I play no game, Cornelius," said Dumbledore. "Serefina and her family are here to help, they possess no danger to any of us, their individual magic is stronger than anything imaginable and together, as you can see, they make an unbeatable force!"

Fudge shook his head, looked up at Dumbledore and whispered, "I don't know what you and your staff are playing at Dumbledore, but I have heard enough. I have no more to add. I will be in touch with you tomorrow, Dumbledore, to discuss the running of this school. I must return to the Ministry."

"Yes, return to your inner sanctum," Phoebe spat.

Fudge ignored her and strode to the door; he had almost reached it when he paused. He turned around, strode back down the dormitory, and stopped at Harry's bed.

"Your winnings," he said shortly, taking a large bag of gold out of his pocket, and dropping it onto Harry's bedside table. "One thousand Galleons. There should have been a presentation ceremony, but given the circumstances..."

He crammed his bowler hat onto his head, and walked out of the room, the door slamming behind him. The moment he had disappeared, Dumbledore turned to look at the group around Harry and Phoebe's beds.

"That was unnecessary, Miss. Blackheart," he told Phoebe.

The elemental shrugged. "He should be thankful I didn't do it to his face," she answered.

"There is work to be done," Dumbledore started again. "Molly...is I right in thinking that I can count on you and Arthur?"

"Of course you can," said Mrs. Weasley. She was white to the lips, but she looked resolute. "He knows what Fudge is. It's Arthur's fondness for Muggles that has held him back at the Ministry all these years. Fudge thinks he lacks proper Wizarding pride."

"Then I need to send a message to him," said Dumbledore. "All those that we can persuade of the truth must be notified immediately, and Arthur is well placed to contact those at the Ministry who are not as short-sighted as Cornelius."

"I'll go to Dad," said Bill, standing up. "I'll go now."

"Excellent," said Dumbledore. "Tell him what has happened. Tell him I will be in direct contact with him shortly. He will need to be discreet, however. If Fudge thinks I am interfering at the Ministry -"

"Leave it to me," said Bill.

He clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder, kissed his mother on the cheek, pulled on his cloak, and strode quietly from the room.

"Mr. Higgs," said Dumbledore, turning to Terence. "Would it be too much to ask that you contact your brother and mother? Just like Arthur Weasley, your mother is an excellent position within the Ministry to help."

Terence nodded. "Of course, Mum never did like Fudge anyway," he smiled looking down at Phoebe who grinned in respect of Josephine. "I'll go now..."

"But..." Phoebe started, her hand clutching Terence's tightly. She didn't want him to leave her.

"I'll come straight back," Terence promised, kissing her lightly.

Phoebe sighed and nodded. "Use Athena," she said. "She'll get your letter straight through, and she will wait for your mother's reply."

"I'll come with you," Esmee said, her eyes were still red from crying over Blake, and her voice was hoarse with the lack of use. "I need something to take my mind off of the past few hours."

Terence nodded, wrapped an arm around his sister and led her from the ward. Phoebe watched them go longingly, but smiled as Ashlyn scrambled up onto the bed claiming Terence's spot as her own.

Dumbledore nodded and turned to Professor McGonagall. "Minerva, I want to see Hagrid in my office as soon as possible. Also - if she will come - Madame Maxime."

Professor McGonagall nodded, and left without a word.

"Poppy," said Dumbledore to Madam Pomfrey, "would you be very kind, and go down to Professor Moody's office, where I think you will find a house-elf called Winky in considerable distress? Do what you can for her, and take her back to the kitchens. I think Dobby will look after her for us."

"Very - very well," said Madam Pomfrey, looking startled, and she too left.

Dumbledore made sure that the door was closed, and that Madam Pomfrey's footsteps had died away, before he spoke again. "And now," he said, "it is time for two of our number to recognize each other for what they are. Sirius...if you could resume your natural form."

The great black dog looked up at Dumbledore, then, in an instant, turned back into a man.

Mrs. Weasley screamed and leapt back from the bed.

"Sirius Black!" she shrieked, pointing at him.

"Mum, shut up!" Ron yelled. "It's OK!"

Snape had not yelled or jumped backwards, but the look on his face was one of mingled fury and horror.

"Him!" he snarled, staring at Sirius, whose face showed equal dislike. "What is he doing here?"

"He is here at my invitation," said Dumbledore, looking between them, "as are you, Severus. I trust you both. It is time for you to lay aside your old differences, and trust each other."

Neither Snape nor Sirius made any hesitation to compel to Dumbledore's request; it would be a near miracle if these two old enemies could put aside their differences and work together, seeing as both of them were eyeing each other with the utmost loathing.

"I will settle, in the short term," said Dumbledore, with a bite of impatience in his voice, "for a lack of open hospitality. You will shake hands. You are on the same side now. Time is short, and unless the few of us who know the truth stand united, there is no hope for any of us."

Very slowly - but still glaring at each other as though each wished the other nothing but ill - Sirius and Snape moved towards each other, and shook hands. They let go extremely quickly.

"That will do to be going on with," said Dumbledore, stepping between them once more. "Now I have work for each of you. Fudge's attitude, though not unexpected, changes everything. Sirius, I need you to set off at once. You are to alert Remus Lupin, Arabella Figg, and Mundungus Fletcher - the old crowd. Lie low at Lupin's for a while, I will contact you there."

"But -" said Harry.

"You'll see me very soon, Harry," said Sirius, turning to him. "I promise you. But I must do what I can, you understand, don't you?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "Yeah...of course I do."

Sirius grasped his hand briefly, nodded to Dumbledore, transformed again into the black dog, and ran the length of the room to the door, whose handle he turned with a paw. Then he was gone.

"Severus," said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, 2you know what I must ask you to do. If you are ready...if you are prepared..."

"I am," said Snape.

He looked slightly paler than usual, and his cold, black eyes glittered strangely.

"Then, good luck," said Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of apprehension on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius.

It was several minutes before Dumbledore spoke again.

"Serefina," he said. "Rose is waiting upon you and your parents in my office. She is very distraught over Mr. Brooks..."

"He was the only real family that she had left," Serefina nodded. "I can understand why she is distraught. But I will go to her at once," she turned to her goddaughter. "You will be okay, Phoebe?"

"I'll be fine," Phoebe nodded. "Go take care of Rose. Give her my love."

"And mine," Jackson added.

Serefina smiled.

"Tell her," Phoebe added quickly, "while we are mourning the loss of our friend, others are rejoicing to meet him behind the veil."

Serefina nodded and left the ward along with her parents.

Dumbledore turned to Harry. "You must rest," he said. "Take the rest of your potion. I will see all of you later."

Harry slumped back against his pillow as Dumbledore disappeared. Hermione, Ron and Mrs. Weasley were all looking at him. None of them spoke for a very long time.

"You've got to take the rest of your potion, Harry," Mrs. Weasley said at last. Her hand nudged the sack of gold on his bedside cabinet as she reached for the bottle and the goblet. "You have a good long sleep. Try and think about what you're going to buy with your winnings!"

"I don't want that gold," said Harry in an expressionless voice. "You have it. Anyone can have it. I shouldn't have won it. It should've been Blake's."

The thing against which he had been fighting on and off ever since he had come out of the maze was threatening to overpower him. He could feel a burning, prickling feeling in the inner corners of his eyes. He blinked and stared up at the ceiling.

"Don't do that, Harry," Phoebe whispered. "Don't you dare do that? It wasn't your fault!"

"I told him to take the Cup with me," said Harry.

Now the feeling of burning was in his throat, too.

"You thought you were doing the right thing," said Phoebe. "You thought that you were helping out a friend, there was no way you and Blake were going to fight over the cup, and there was no way that Blake would have taken the cup without you. He is a good sportsman..."

"But if I hadn't told him to take the cup with me, then he would still be alive,"

Phoebe shook her head as more tears flooded her eyes. "Please..." she pleaded, "please don't do this to you! Blake wouldn't want you to do this. So, please, don't..."

Jackson, who had switched places with Ashlyn, wrapped his arms around Phoebe, as the full weight of everything that had happened that night seemed to fall in upon her. Esmee's face. Jackson's voice when he told her that Blake was dead, all if it started spinning in his head until she could hardly bear it, until she was crying freely once more into her hands.

There was a loud slamming noise, and everyone within the ward looked around. Hermione was standing by the window. She was holding something in her hand.

"Sorry," she whispered.

But the interruption didn't seem to stop the on slaughter of howling misery that Phoebe felt rising within her. It was like someone had taken a wand to her heart and was torturing it constantly with the Cruciatus curse.

She couldn't breathe, her throat was restricted and her lungs weren't expanding with the air she was taking in. Her breathing was coming in short shallow gasps and her hands were shaking vigorously as the tears continued to spill over.

"What's happening?" Amelia asked.

"She's having a panic attack," Aiden answered, grabbing his sister's shoulders. "Phoebe, it's OK! Listen to my voice, Phoebe! You are OK!"

Aiden's voice penetrated her sense, but Phoebe barely registered a word he had said.

Spots had started to appear in front of her eyes, she blinked several times to try and clear them, but it was with great difficulty. Arms wrapped around her tightly and someone pulled her in close, whispering soothingly and reassuringly into her ear, but again, she failed to register what was being said.

The effect of the panic was starting to take its toll on the elemental, her world was spinning, then darkness set in and she knew no more.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

_Uh-oh - is Phoebe going to be OK? Or will the effects of Blake's death cause her to break down?_

_Also, I'm sure everyone has suffered a panic attack at some point in their life, they are not fun and they are different for everyone._

_What I described above is a series of different attacks I experience when faced with different things I fear._

_So, please don't comment and say that you don't feel or see anything that I have written when you have a panic attack, because everyone is different._

_End of fourth year is next chapter._

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:00pm**


	84. Chapter 84

**Author's Note:** Omg! It is the final chapter of Phoebe's fourth year! Well, we've had some fun this year, haven't we? Break ups and make ups. Smiles and Laughs. Secrets and Lies. Deception and Betrayal. Damn, we've had it all. So here comes the hardest chapter of all, the place where I have to take the entire year and summaries it all into one chapter. Will it be sad? Will it be happy? Who knows...wait...one thing I _**do**_ know is it will not be a happy end of year. At least not for one character.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following that have been with me since throughout these terrible times: **Fan of Fics, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, KingdomHeartsNerd, Vivi Fontaine, SkyLibraBelle, Soccercatmice, Murder-Winter-Cullen, Angel JKK, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Kankananime123, Jojia, Twilightgirl00000001** and **Ashu71.** Wow, that is a lot of people. You guys are experimentally amazing, have I ever told you? I think I have!

Big **Shout Out** to **Allstarcheergirl** for adding this story to her Favorite Story list. Thank you. Very much appreciated.

Would just like to say that Fourth year was the BIGGEST year I have ever written. It started on Chapter 53 and ended 31 chapters later with 84. As Ron Weasley would say: "Bloody Hell!" LOL. (Just thought I would add that because I am a bit of a Ron basher in this story. Poor Weasley. :P)

Anyway...gonna shut up now and let you carry on reading the final chapter. Enjoy.

The quote underneath? Yeah, I don't own it.

* * *

><p><em>When someone you love becomes a memory, that memory becomes a treasure. <em>

_~ Author Unknown_

* * *

><p>A month had past.<p>

And in that time Phoebe found that she had very few happy memories from the moment that she had been rescued from the trunk in which she had been kept with the real Alastor Moody. From the time when Jackson told her that Blake was dead, to the morning she was being released from the Hospital wing, to the afternoon that Terence had come to her in distress because Esmee had been rushed back into hospital.

"But she is going to be OK, right?" she had said.

Terence had taken her from the Gryffindor common room, and walked her up to the Astronomy Tower. He had then told her that his sister was in the Hospital wing being treated for Leukemia, a Muggle disease that affected the blood and bone marrow within the body.

"I don't know," Terence answered. "I do know that she was diagnosed with it when she was a small child, but she had fought off the infection back then."

"Well that is a good sign,"

Terence shook his head. "No, Phoebe, it's not," he sighed heavily. "When she was taken ill over Christmas, they told my mother than if she fell ill again then there was a chance that she would not pull through this time."

Phoebe gulped as tears sprang instantly to her eyes. It had been a month since Blake's death and now she was being told that her new friend was dying of a disease that she had had since she was a child. "Is there any way she can fight it?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"She needs a donor,"

"Blood donor?"

Terence nodded. "Or Bone marrow."

"What blood type is she?"

"B negative."

"I'm no good," Phoebe whispered. "I can't help. I'm A positive."

"Snap," Terence nodded with a small smile.

"We can't go through this again," Phoebe murmured, turning her back to him and staring out across the grounds. "I can't..."

Terence wrapped his arms around her stomach and rested his head against hers. "It's OK," he answered. "I know you would do everything you could. This is just something that is out of our hands."

"Yeah, but first Blake -" Phoebe cut off; Blake's death was still a sore subject for her. "I just don't want you to go through what I am going through."

There was a silent pause.

"I can't stop thinking about him," Phoebe whimpered, tears forming behind her eyes. "Rose met with Harry today, he told her everything that happened," she paused and swallowed. "As you know Rose doesn't speak English, so Harry needed a translator, and with Serefina back in Portugal sorting the funeral expenses out, I was the only person left to translate."

Terence felt her body shake as she started to sob into her hands. "I just don't understand!" she cried. "Why Blake? Why did he have to die?"

"Would you have preferred it if it were Potter?"

"Why did either of them have to be transported there in the first place?" Phoebe stated. "Why did this have to happen to us?"

Terence shook his head and drew her closer. "I don't know, Phoebe," he answered solemnly. "I wish I did. I wish I could take away the pain you feel, but I can't, you just have to come to terms with it and move on."

"What if I don't want too?"

"You have to," Terence said. "You can't hold onto the past forever, Phoebe, it could kill you."

The elemental shook her head. "Blake didn't deserve to die,"

"No one deserves to die," Terence answered. "At least not in the way Brooks did, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. You have to let him go..."

Phoebe sighed and lowered her gaze to the ground beneath her. She didn't want to leave Blake go, but she knew that she had too; holding onto the memory she had of him was not going to bring him back.

The time had come to set him free.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was with a heavy heart that Phoebe packed her trunk up in the dormitory, on the night before her return to Portugal. She was dreading the Leaving Feast, which was usually a cause for celebration, when the winner of the Inter-House Championship would be announced.

She had avoided being in the Great Hall when it was fully ever since she had left the hospital wing, preferring to eat when it was nearly empty, to avoid the stares and muttered whispers of her fellow students.

When she and James entered the Hall, she saw at once that the usual decorations were missing. The Great Hall was normally decorated with the winning house's colours for the Leaving Feast. Tonight, however, there were black drapes on the wall behind the teachers' table. Phoebe knew instantly that they were there as a mark of respect for Blake.

The real Mad-Eye Moody was at the staff table, his wooden leg and his magical eye back in place. He was extremely twitchy, jumping every time someone spoke to him. Phoebe couldn't blame him; Moody's fear of attack was bound to have been increased by his ten-month imprisonment in his own trunk.

Professor Karkaroff's chair was empty, and Phoebe wondered as she sat down with the Gryffindor's, where Karkaroff was now; whether Voldemort had caught up with him.

Madame Maxime was still there. She was sitting next to Hagrid. They were talking quietly together. Further along the table, sitting next to Professor McGonagall, was Snape. His eyes lingered on Phoebe for a moment as the elemental looked his way. His expression was difficult to read. He looked as sour and unpleasant as ever.

Terence was sat at the Slytherin table, although he looked just as detached as Phoebe felt, and the elemental couldn't blame him; the previous evening she had received a letter from him stating that they had taken Esmee out of the Hogwarts hospital wing and checked her into St. Mungo's for further analysis.

There was no change in her current state and the chances of her pulling out of this alive were getting slimmer and slimmer with each day

Phoebe offered Terence a supportive smile as he looked up and caught her gaze, he was sitting with Ashlyn and Adrian, both of whom were trying to encourage him to smile and talk in hopes of taking his mind off of his critically ill sister, but so far nothing had managed to get him to cheer up. He nodded in response to her smile, but did not smile himself.

Phoebe sighed heavily, she didn't want Terence to go through the same depression that she had gone through when she had learned the truth about Blake, but she guessed knowing that your sister is critically ill and could die any day from this point forward was enough to make anyone depressed.

The Great Hall, which in any case had been less noisy than it usually was at the Leaving Feast, became very quiet when Professor Dumbledore stood up at the Staff table.

"The end," said Dumbledore, looking around at them all, "of another year."

He paused, and his eyes fell upon Phoebe and Jackson, who sat side-by-side at the Gryffindor table.

"There is much that I would like to say to you all tonight," said Dumbledore, "but I must first acknowledge the loss of a very fine person, who should be sitting here -" he motioned to the Gryffindor table - "enjoying our Feast with us. I would like you all, please, to stand, and raise your glasses, to Blake Brooks."

They did it, all of them; the benches scraped as everyone in the Hall stood, and raised their goblets, and echoed, in one loud, low, rumbling voice, "Blake Brooks."

Phoebe choked back a sob and sat back down before the rest of the Hall. Jackson dropped down beside her and cradled her tightly in his arms.

"From what I have been told my Professor Blackheart," Dumbledore went on. "Blake was a person who exemplified many of the qualities which distinguished the house of Gryffindor, despite himself being a Durmstrang. He was a brave, good and a loyal friend, a hard worker, he valued fair play and was protective of those he redeemed worthy -" his gaze fell on Phoebe. "His death has affected you all, whether you knew him well or not. I think that you have the right, therefore, to know exactly how he died."

From the corner of her eye, Phoebe saw Harry raise his head and stare up at Dumbledore.

"Blake Brooks was murdered by Lord Voldemort."

A panicked whisper swept the Great Hall. People were staring at Dumbledore in disbelief, in horror. He looked perfectly calm as he watched them mutter themselves into silence.

"The Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore continued, "does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so - either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you as, young as you are. It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Blake died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory."

Stunned and frightened, every face in the Hall was turned towards Dumbledore now...or almost every face. Over at the Slytherin table, Phoebe saw Pansy Parkinson muttering something to her usual fellow giggling girls. Phoebe felt a hot, sick swoop of anger building deep within her stomach, and had to force down an angry outburst as she turned back to Dumbledore. Now was not the time to cause a scene.

"There is somebody else who must be mentioned in connection with Blake's death," Dumbledore went on. "I am talking, of course, about Harry Potter."

A kind of ripple crossed the Great Hall, as a few heads turned in Harry's direction before flickering back to face Dumbledore.

"Harry Potter managed to escape Lord Voldemort," said Dumbledore. "He risked his own life to return Blake's body to Hogwarts. He showed, in every respect, the sort of bravery that few wizards have ever shown in facing Lord Voldemort, and for this, I honour him."

Dumbledore raised his goblet once more. Nearly everyone in the Great Hall followed suit. They murmured Harry's name, as they had murmured Blake's, and drank to him. But, through a gap in the standing figures, Harry saw that Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle and many other Slytherin's had remained defiantly in their seats, their goblets untouched; Dumbledore, who after all possessed no magical eye, did not see them.

When everyone had once again resumed their seats, Dumbledore continued. "The Triwizard Tournament's aim was to further and promote magical understanding. In the light of what has happened - of Lord Voldemort's return - such ties are more important than ever."

Dumbledore looked from Madame Maxime and Hagrid, to Fleur Delacour and her fellow Beauxbatons students, to Viktor Krum and the Durmstrang students.

"Every guest in this Hall," said Dumbledore, and his eyes lingered upon the Durmstrang students, "will be welcomed back here, at any time, should they wish to come. I saw to you all, once again - in the light of Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided. Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open."

Phoebe wiped her eyes on the back of her sleeve, but refused to remove Jackson's arms from around her. They were now her only form of protection. Her barrier against the harshness of the world that had taken her best friend from her in the first place.

"It is my belief - and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken - that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you, in this Hall, have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Many of your families have been torn asunder. A week ago, a student was taken from our midst. A brother was taken from his family. Remember Blake. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right, and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort."

Dumbledore's gaze re-connected with Phoebe's watery one, as he smiled encouragingly at her.

"Remember Blake Brooks," he finished.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe's trunk was packed and resided now in her godmother's office, along with Jacksons. He was not returning to Durmstrang with his fellow schoolmates, but rather returning straight to Portugal with him, Blake's funeral had been scheduled for the next day, and if he were to return to Durmstrang he would have missed it.

It was another beautiful summer's day.

"Phoebe,"

Phoebe looked around; she was standing in the Entrance Hall with James, Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia, Jackson and Terence, all of whom - except Jackson - were waiting for the carriages that would take them from the castle grounds down to the Hogsmeade platform and the Hogwarts Express.

Fleur Delacour was hurrying up the stone steps into the castle. Beyond her, far across the grounds, Phoebe could see Hagrid helping Madame Maxime to back two of the giant horses into their harness. The Beauxbatons carriage was about to take off.

"We will see each uzzar again, I 'ope," said Fleur, as she reached the elemental. "I am 'oping to get a job 'ere, to improve my Eenglish."

"It's very good already," said James, in a strangled sort of voice. Fleur smiled at him; Sarah scowled.

"Goodbye, Phoebe," said Fleur, turning to go. "It 'az been a pleasure meeting you!"

Phoebe nodded and waved to her new friend, but she did not speak, she had not said a word since the Leaving Feast the previous evening.

"Wonder how the Durmstrang students are getting back?" said Ron, as he, Harry and Hermione joined Phoebe and her friends. "D'you reckon they can steer that ship without Karkaroff?"

"Karkaroff did not steer," said Jackson, as he was joined by Krum. "He stayed in his cabin and let us do the work."

Krum, who had joined his fellow student and friend, at this point had come to say goodbye to Hermione. "Could I have a vord?" he asked her.

"Oh...yes...all right," said Hermione, looking slightly flustered, and following Krum through the crowd and out of sight.

"You'd better hurry up!" Ron called loudly after her. "The carriages will be here in a minute!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and swatted him across the back of the head. Ron scowled, but Phoebe did not speak in retaliation and neither did Ron. For once, he could see that she was too upset over Blake's death to argue, and he did not want to cause her anymore pain. And for that, Phoebe was very thankful.

Maybe there was hope for her and Ron yet.

Hermione and Krum returned quite soon. Ron stared at Hermione, but her face was impassive.

"I liked Blake," said Krum abruptly. "He vos my friend. Alvays polite to me. Alvays."

He held out his hand to Harry, shook it and then Ron's, before turning to Phoebe and Jackson. "_It will not be the same without you, Jackson,"_ he said, speaking in Russian. "_The trip back, I mean, but it will also be different not seeing you as school every day. I know that if Blake where here, he would tell you that if you have trouble next year, to write and he will be there to help you. That offer still stands with myself. If you have any trouble from any students, write to me and I will come immediately."_

Jackson smiled weakly and nodded. "_Thank you, but I am looking into a transfer,"_ he answered.

"_Transfer?"_

_"Yes. I wish to transfer to Hogwarts,"_ Jackson answered. "_I have reasons of my own to be here next year..."_ he glanced subtly at Phoebe who was staring at the marble floor beneath her. _"Blake would not be proud of me if I leave her in this misery. She needs someone supportive next year. Someone who understands what she is going through."_

Krum nodded. "_I wish you all the luck with your transfer,"_ he smiled, before turning to Phoebe. "_Fear and distress is not something I thought I would see with you, Phoebe. You are usually braver than this._"

Phoebe blinked but did not speak.

"_Keeping things inside are not going to make them go way,"_ Krum told her. "_You must speak soon. I may not be Blake, but if you feel that you cannot talk to any of your friends about how you feel, then I see no reason in why you should not write to me. Like I said, Blake was my friend, he knew that he could tell me anything and I would not judge him, please let me be your friend, too."_

Phoebe nodded, smiled weakly and held her hand out to Krum.

But Krum did not take it; instead, he did something that surprised not only Phoebe, but everyone within the vicinity. He hugged her.

_"Goodbye Phoebe,"_

Phoebe merely waved as Krum turned and walked away.

"There is us," Amelia said, pointing out into the courtyard to where the horseless carriages which were now trundling towards them from up the drive, came into view. "Are you going to be OK?" she added, turning to Phoebe.

The elemental nodded and held her arms over to her friends. Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia hugged her, each holding on longer than intended. Neither one of them enjoyed seeing Phoebe so withdrawn, so sad and upset, they didn't know of any way to make her smile other than to show her that they were there for her whenever she needed them.

"Write to us this summer," Ashlyn said. "I don't care what time of day or night it is, if you need anything you let me know and I'll be there! I have the Floo network connected to my bedroom; Elladora will not mind if I leave, as long as I leave a note or tell Adrian where it is I am going."

"Won't he try and stop you from leaving?" Sarah asked. "Especially now that You-Know-Who is back?"

Ashlyn shrugged. "I do not care," she answered. "Phoebe will need us now more than ever, what kind of friends will we be if we are not there for her?"

Amelia nodded. "She provides a good point," she agreed, turning to Phoebe. "Take Ashlyn's advice and send Athena as soon as you can. We want to hear from you, Phoebe, want to be sure that you are OK."

Phoebe smiled and nodded to show that she understood what her friends were expecting of her. She wanted to say something, but she also didn't want to speak, Blake's death was something that she still had yet to come to terms with, despite promising Terence that she would let go of his memory, but she found that each time she tried to set him free, there was a piercing pain in her chest that made it very hard to breathe.

To say she missed him would have been an understatement. And it was going to take a while for everything to go back to normal.

It had been a very emotional year, one that consisted of anger, jealously, hurt, comfort, horror, courage, trust, love and friendship.

But Phoebe knew that while she had her friends and family behind her, she would never truly be alone, and if the day came for when they had to face Voldemort...they would face it together...just as it should have been.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**:( - Fourth year is over. I can't believe it! What will happen in Fifth year? Plans are already underway.**

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 01:04am**


	85. Chapter 85

**Author's Note: **Here is the beginning of Phoebe's fifth year. Sadly nothing will ever be the same from here on out.

**Dedications: **To everyone who has been immensely supportive of me since the beginning of this story. I love each and everyone one of you.

**Shout Outs:** Thank you too **LuckedClover** for adding this story to their story alert. Appreciate it.

**Warnings:** Dark and tragic themes are about to arise. Can't stomach it? Then don't read it, I am giving you a choice. You don't have to read it if you can handle any more dark and tragic themes, but the books turn more dark and tragic after year 4 & 5 - at least they do in my opinion.

Here we go...

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><p>"As you know Blake Brook's death was not an accident," Serefina said as she stood in front of a number of people, all of whom had congregated in the main hall of Thomas Chamberlain's manor, she was addressing them on the incident that had happened two months prior to this day, the same day that the Third Task had been executed at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and also the same day of Lord Voldemort's return.<p>

There was a low murmur which rippled around the room, but Serefina paid no attention to it, she merely wanted to get this meeting over with as soon as possible so that she could return to Portugal and speak with Phoebe and Aiden on the next part of the plan.

"Diggory had been bewitched by Barty Crouch Jr," Serefina pressed on, electing more startled gasps. "His story is an even longer and more complicated one; and I simply do not have time to indulge you with his escape, it remains the fact that he was still alive and had managed to reunite with his beloved Master. The night of the Third Task, Crouch Jr, bewitched Cedric Diggory and later took out Fleur Delacour, leaving Blake Brooks and Harry Potter to be the last two champions in the Tournament."

"Why would he attack Blake in the first place?" asked a short witch with unruly blonde hair. "What threat did he possess?"

"Blake was a stronger connection," Serefina answered.

"Connection?" a tall wizard with short brown hair questioned.

Serefina nodded. "Blake Brooks had a stronger relationship to my goddaughter than Harry Potter did," she answered. "It is believed that Crouch's intended target was Phoebe, but in order to get Phoebe would mean adding her name to the Goblet of Fire, but that was not a part of the plan; Voldemort did not need Phoebe's powers to return he had everything he needed for his plan to work, the only thing he essentially need that he could not get was Harry Potter's blood."

There was another whisper of confusion.

"Now, I understand that you all know the story of Harry Potter," Serefina nodded. "So you are all familiar with the fact that when Lily Potter died for her son, she was able to protect him with the oldest of all magic; magic that Voldemort obviously does not possess. Love."

There was silence.

Serefina smiled. "Harry Potter is protected by the love his mother gave him the night she died," she explained.

"So why did Crouch Jr kidnap Phoebe?" asked another wizard, he was standing not that far away from Serefina, and she could just make out his fine features.

"Because she is a powerful elemental," Serefina answered.

"I thought she was not as strong without Thomas's godson?" the wizard asked again.

"Together they are strong," Serefina nodded. "But they both have their individual powers, and Phoebe is just that little bit stronger than Aiden. But we are getting off topic here; after Blake and Potter touched the cup at the end of the third task they were transported to Little Hangleton where Voldemort and Pettigrew were waiting for them. Pettigrew killed Blake upon Voldemort's orders. They then planned to kill Potter, and Crouch Jr would follow through on his part of the plan and return Phoebe to his master, they have every intention of turning her into one of them, her powers are great, with someone as powerful as Phoebe on his side, nothing will stop Voldemort from reigning both our world and the Muggle for years to come."

There was a heavy silence.

"So what do we do?" the witch with unruly blonde hair asked.

"We all know that the return of Voldemort was to be anticipated," said Serefina. "All necessary precautions are being taken in England. As we speak, Professor Albus Dumbledore is reviving the secret organization known as the Order of the Phoenix, he has managed to assemble most of his remaining members, and some new ones have been added to the fold. I am under oath to protect Phoebe as best I can, which is why I will be moving her to England as soon as I possibly can."

"Wouldn't she be safer somewhere out of the country in which Voldemort resides?"

Serefina looked thoughtful. "One would think that," she agreed. "But then again, it is not just England that is under threat, with Voldemort back, nowhere is safe!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The night was calm as they stood on Grimmuald Place, Phoebe was stood between Jackson and Aiden, she was wearing a long flowing robe which covered her completely, but also for added protection a Disillusionment Charm had been cast over her.

Phoebe looked up at the row of buildings in front of her, they weren't just any sort of buildings, and they were houses. "Where are we?" she asked quietly, it had been a few weeks since she had started speaking again, and it had taken the combined efforts of Terence, Jackson, Aiden and Serefina to get a single comprehensible word out of her. Blake's death had affected her worse than anyone had guessed.

The muffled pounding of a stereo was coming from an upper window in the nearest house. A pungent smell of rotting rubbish came from the pile of bulging bin-bags just inside the broken gate.

"Here," said Serefina, thrusting a piece of parchment towards her three charges. She held her wand close to the parchment, muttered "_Lumos_," and the tip ignited brightly.

Phoebe exchanged a look with Aiden and Jackson, and looked down at the piece of paper. The narrow handwriting was vaguely familiar. It said:

_The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmuald Place, London._

"But there isn't -" Jackson started.

Serefina silenced him and said, "Remember what you have just read."

"Number 12 Grimmuald Place," Aiden muttered.

There was a low grinding noise which caused Phoebe to look up in surprise; the houses in front of her were moving, and it was like an extra house had inflated between numbers eleven and thirteen, followed swiftly by dirty walls and grimy windows. The radio in number eleven thudded on. Apparently the Muggles inside hadn't felt anything.

"Come along," Serefina said, moving forward. Phoebe, Jackson and Aiden followed her up to the door where the Earth elemental knocked quietly. There was a grinding sound of locks and the door was pulled open as Molly Weasley appeared in the small gap.

"Oh, Serefina," Molly sighed. "We were not expecting you until tomorrow."

Serefina nodded. "Yes, I apologize, Molly," she smiled. "I would have sent word earlier, but we had to leave as quickly as possible."

"Why, is everything alright?"

"Everything is fine," Serefina confirmed. "My mother just senses terrible things are about to happen, and while she and my father can protect themselves well, they did not want Phoebe or Aiden to be home."

Molly nodded, although she continued to look confused. "Of course, well, Phoebe you will be sharing a room with Hermione and Ginny," the Weasley mother smiled. "They are on the third floor. Aiden, Jackson, you are on the fourth floor opposite Fred and George; would you like me to show you?"

"Actually Molly," Serefina interrupted. "Phoebe is to stay with me for the time being."

"But there is a meeting underway,"

Serefina nodded. "Dumbledore as already confirmed that she can be present," she said.

Mrs. Weasley seemed put off with the information, but agreed.

"Jackson, Aiden, why don't you go settle," Serefina smiled. "Phoebe will come find you once the meeting is over."

Aiden nodded and started upstairs. Phoebe paused at the bottom and smiled up at her half-brother, she had gotten to know him quite a bit over the few weeks they had spent in Portugal, and he wasn't all that bad, and Jackson even seemed to like him also, which was a nice surprise; considering Phoebe had expected her best friend to go back into protective mode now that they had lost Blake.

"_Stay awake,"_ Phoebe said, in her native tongue. "_I don't want to be alone tonight."_

_"We'll be awake, Phoebe,"_ Aiden nodded.

Jackson nodded too. "_We'll wait for your return, and then we'll sort out sleeping arrangements."_

Phoebe smiled, and followed Serefina and Molly down into the kitchen where the rest of the Order was waiting.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There were a lot of people in the overly large kitchen.

When she entered the room Phoebe spotted Bill Weasley sitting at the table, beside his father, she smiled softly as he acknowledged her. She liked Bill, from what she knew about him he seemed like a cool guy, but it was Charlie Weasley that she got on with better. Mostly due to their interest in Dragons.

But Charlie wasn't present. He had gone back to Romania at the end of the first task of the Triwizard Tournament that had taken place at Hogwarts last year. However, in his place, there were several other people, some of which Phoebe recognized and some she did not.

She saw Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Dumbledore, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Nymphadora Tonks (who preferred being called by her surname, rather than her first), Josephine Higgs, Remus Lupin, Severs Snape, Mad-Eye Moody, the filthy Mundungus Fletcher and Sirius Black.

"Ah, Serefina, Miss. Blackheart," Dumbledore smiled, his blue eyes twinkling. "We've been expecting you. Please, have a seat."

Phoebe did as instructed and took a seat next to Godmother near the head of the table where Dumbledore was still standing.

"I want to thank you all for coming," Dumbledore started, once everyone was seated around the table. "As you're all aware, Voldemort has regained a body of his own and the Ministry refuses to believe he has returned, despite complete evidence. When Voldemort first came to power 14 years ago, we created an organization known as the Order of the Phoenix, which involved a select group of Witches and Wizards."

Phoebe glanced sideways down the table to where Josephine sat; the older female caught the elemental staring, and smiled in acknowledgement. Phoebe returned it, and then looked back at her Headmaster, she wondered vaguely if Josephine being here meant that Philip, Bambi and Terence were too; she knew that Esmee would not be at Headquarters because she the last letter she had received from Terence, which happened to have been last night, stated that Esmee was gradually getting worse in St. Mungo's.

"The Order of the Phoenix fought against Voldemort's tyranny..." Dumbledore pressed on, "we are gathered here this evening, to revive that organization, that is, of course, if you are all willing to participate."

"What exactly does becoming an Order member entitle?" Phoebe asked curiously.

"We are the eyes and ears of the Magical world," Dumbledore explained. "It will be our job to keep track of the going-on in Voldemort's inner circle, the Muggle world, our world, and within the Ministry."

"How do we do that?" Phoebe asked, before anyone else could voice their concerns. "How do you keep tabs on what is happening within Voldemort's inner circle? Only Death Eaters know what is happening, and last I checked none of us were Death Eaters..."

She snuck a subtle glance in Snape's direction, she knew that he was a former Death Eater, and often questioned which side he was truly one, especially when she knew that once you were a Death Eater there was no going back. It was a one way door.

Dumbledore smiled fondly at his student. "I have my ways, Miss. Blackheart," he nodded. "Now, please, do not worry about the smallest of details. Anything else?"

He looked around the room at the rest of the members.

No one spoke up, even if they had wanted too.

"I am afraid that I cannot continue this meeting without verbal permission," Dumbledore pressed. "I am sure that you all understand the costs of the situation at hand, and I will not hold anything against any of you if you decide to leave now..."

No one spoke a word and no one made a move to leave.

A smile came to Dumbledore's lips. "Excellent. Now, to our first order of business: Mr. Harry Potter. Mundungus," he said suddenly, causing the filthy man to flinch. "You will Apparate to Privet Drive. Keep a watch on Harry. Make sure he stays out of trouble."

Mundungus grumbled to himself, sending the Headmaster the briefest of glares, before getting to his feet and leaving the kitchen. There was a silent pause before a loud _**CRACK**_ sounded from upstairs and Phoebe knew that it was Mundungus Disapparating.

"He doesn't seem very nice," Phoebe whispered to her godmother.

"He's not," Serefina responded. "He keeps mostly to himself. But he is very valuable if you need information..."

"So you tolerate him, then?"

Serefina smiled, brushed a stray strand of hair from her goddaughter's face, and nodded. "Yes, we tolerate him."

With Mundungus gone, Dumbledore continued, looking to Snape, who was eyeing Sirius with the deepest loathing. "Severus, you have news?"

"He suspects nothing, Headmaster," Snape nodded.

Phoebe frowned. Who suspected nothing? Was it possible that Snape had re-taken his role as Death Eater _under_ Dumbledore's orders?

"Excellent. I will not keep you any longer."

Snape nodded again and with a swish of his black cloak he was gone. Phoebe's frown deepened as she tried to think of reasonable ways for why Dumbledore would want someone, especially Severus Snape, within Voldemort's ranks. Wasn't that a disaster waiting happen?

"As for the rest of you," Dumbledore continued. "It will be your jobs to protect, watch and report everything that happens within the Ministry of Magic. Continue on as normal, but keep a watchful eye for anything unusual."

"What about me?" Phoebe asked.

Everyone's attention turned to her.

Dumbledore smiled at her. "I want you to stick close to Harry," he said. "He is going to need as much support that he can get this year! Especially with the _Daily Prophet_ and Ministry coming down hard on him!"

Phoebe looked thoughtful, hesitated as the image of her and Harry in the Gryffindor common room a year previous flashed across her mind's eye. She nodded. "I will do what I can, Headmaster," she agreed.

"Good," Dumbledore smiled.

And with his final word, the business-like atmosphere disappeared, the group exchanged glances before some moved on to talk amongst themselves. From across the table, Phoebe caught Lupin's eye, he smiled softly at her, before Phoebe turned to Serefina who had touched her shoulder.

"I believe it is time for you to rest," the Care of Magical Creatures professor ordered gently. "_Jackson and Aiden are probably still awake. Why don't you head on upstairs, and I will be up in a few minutes to check that everything is the way it should be."_

Phoebe blinked, nodded once and got carefully to her feet, but by the time she had gotten to the door, Dumbledore was calling her back.

"Miss. Blackheart," the Headmaster smiled, "I am sure that you understand that while you are a member of these meetings, you are sworn to secrecy. That means -"

"I cannot tell Jackson, Aiden, or anyone outside of this door what has been discussed," Phoebe nodded. "Yes, Headmaster, I am aware of the code of secrecy. You have my word, I will not tell a soul about what has transpired here this evening."

Dumbledore nodded. "Perfect. Goodnight Miss. Blackheart,"

"Goodnight Headmaster,"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated on Sunday, March 04, 2012 at 04:04am**


	86. Chapter 86

**Author's Note: **I apologize for the late update. It would seem the tables have turned and my obsession with Power Rangers seems to be greater than Harry Potter at the moment. *gasp* I know...but I am back now, and that is what is important.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Jojia** and **Vivi Fontaine.**

* * *

><p>The moment he had stepped foot into the house, he knew that something was going to happen; he just hadn't expected to be bowled over by a small female. A smile came to his face when he noticed that the female was none other than Phoebe, and she was looking more beautiful than ever.<p>

"Phoebe..." he smiled.

Phoebe grinned and pulled away from him. "How are you feeling, Harry?" she asked. "Anymore nightmares?"

"Just the one," Harry answered, not wanting to go into detail. He knew that what had happened at the end of the last school year was still a sore subject for Phoebe; she didn't have to be present in the graveyard to know what was haunting him. Blake's death was something that neither one of them was going to be able to let go of so easily.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, it's still haunting me too," she admitted. "It's like, every time I close my eyes, Blake is there," she explained. "He refuses to leave me."

Deciding to change the subject, Harry went on to ask about something that had been bugging him since Privet Drive, and that was where he was.

Seemingly reading the question on his face, Phoebe smiled. "You're at Grimmuald Place," she explained. "It's the Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix."

"What's the Order of the Phoenix?" Harry asked.

"It's a secret organization," Phoebe smiled. "Put together by Dumbledore to fight Voldemort. C'mon, Hermione and Ron are upstairs they are dying to see you! Oh, and keep your voice down in the hall," she added in an urgent whisper.

"Why?"

"I don't want to wake anything up."

"What d'you -?"

"I'll explain later. I've got to hurry, I'm supposed to be at the meeting - I'll just show you where Ron and Hermione are waiting."

Pressing her finger to her lips, she led him on tiptoe passed a pair of long, moth-eaten curtains, behind which Harry supposed there must have been another door, and after skirting a large umbrella stand that looked as though it had been made from several trolls legs they started up the dark staircase, passing a row of shrunken heads mounted on plaques on the wall.

A closer look showed Harry that the heads belonged to House-elves. All of them had the same rather snout-like nose.

"Inbreeding," Phoebe muttered. "The Blacks did it with their house-elves as well as family members,"

"The Blacks?" Harry questioned.

Phoebe nodded. "Didn't anyone tell you where we are, Harry?"

"No,"

"We're in Sirius's home,"

Harry frowned in surprise. Why would Phoebe say that Sirius lived in a house that looked like it was a home for the Darkest of Wizards? There had to be some kind of mistake, right?

"Phoebe, why -?"

"Ron and Hermione will have to explain everything, Harry. I've really got to dash," Phoebe whispered distractedly. "There -" they had reached the second land. "- you're sleeping with Ron, it's the door on the right. I'll come get you when the meeting is over."

She smiled and hurried off back downstairs.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The meeting didn't seem to take long that evening, although Dumbledore talked about the fact that Harry had been attached by Dementors and he was being subjected to a hearing at the Ministry of Magic where they would determine whether Harry was fit enough to go back to Hogwarts. Serefina had already agreed that she would be present to support Harry in this difficult time, but she had forbidden Phoebe from going to the Ministry with her.

And now, she was on her way back upstairs to get the others for Dinner. Phoebe reached the second floor landing and hurried towards the second door on the right; she pushed it open and smiled at her friends. "The meeting is over now," she told them. "Everyone is dying to meet you, Harry!"

She led the way out of the room and on to the landing, but before they could descend the stairs -

"Wait!" Ron breathed, flinging out an arm to stop Harry and Hermione, and he grabbed Phoebe's shoulder as she stepped foot of the stairs in front of him. "They're still in the hall; we might be able to hear something."

Phoebe bit her lip as she peered over the banister, Ron still didn't believe her when she said that she was a part of the Order meetings, mostly because she refused to tell them what was discussed behind the doors. But then again, he didn't trust her with most things.

A thin piece of flesh-coloured string descended in front of Phoebe's eyes. Looking up, she saw Fred and George on the landing above, cautiously lowering the Extendable Ear towards the dark knot of people below. A moment later, however, they all began to move towards the front door and out of sight.

"Dammit," Phoebe heard Fred whisper, as he hoisted the Extendable Ear back up again.

They heard the front door open, then close.

"That is Snape leaving, he never eats here," Phoebe whispered to Harry.

"Thank God," Ron muttered. "C'mon,"

"And don't forget to keep your voice down in the hall, Harry," Hermione whispered.

As they passed the row of house-elf heads on the wall, they saw Lupin, Serefina and Tonks at the front door, magically sealing its many locks and bolts behind those who had just left.

"We're eating down in the kitchen," Phoebe whispered as she reached the bottom of the stairs. "Just tiptoe across the hall it's through that door there -"

CRASH

_"Tonks_!"

"I'm sorry!" wailed Tonks, who was lying flat on the floor. "It's that stupid umbrella stand, that's the second time I've tripped over -"

But the rest of her words were drowned by a horrible, ear-splitting, blood-curdling screech.

The moth- eaten velvet curtains Harry and Phoebe had passed earlier had flown apart, but there was no door behind them. For a split second, Harry thought he was looking through a window, a window behind which an old woman in a black cap was screaming and screaming as though she were being tortured - then he realized it was simply a life-size portrait, but the most realistic, and the most unpleasant, he had ever seen in his life.

The old woman was drooling, her eyes were rolling, the yellowing skin of her face stretched taut as she screamed, and all along the wall behind them, the other portraits awoke and began to yell, too, so that Harry actually screwed up his eyes at the noise and clapped his hands over his ears.

Lupin and Serefina darted forward and tried to tug the curtain shut over the woman, but they would not close and she screeched louder than ever, brandishing claws hands as though trying to tear at their faces.

_"Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, be gone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers -"_

Tonks apologized over and over again, dragging the huge, heavy troll's leg back off the floor. Mrs. Weasley was running up and down the hallway Stunning the rest of the portraits with her wand; when a man with long black hair came charging out of the door facing Harry.

"Shut up, you horrible old hag, shut UP!" he roared, seizing the curtain that Serefina was trying to close.

The old woman's face blanched.

_"Yooooou!"_ she howled, her eyes popping at the sight of the man. _"Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh!"_

"I said - shut - UP!" roared the man, and with a stupendous effort he and Lupin managed to force the curtains closed again.

The old woman's screeches died and an echoing silence fell.

Panting slightly and sweeping his long dark hair out of his eyes, Harry's godfather Sirius turned to face him.

"Hello, Harry," he said grimly. "I see you've met my mother."

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

Yay! Harry makes an appearance and so does Sirius.

Hopefully James, Ashlyn and Terence will appear soon... and Esmee, Philip and Bambi return.

Sorry it is short. They will get longer.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 03:11am**


	87. Chapter 87

**Author's Note: **Started writing this at 02:00pm and it has taken me seven hours to finish! I have a massive headache forming, so I think I'm gonna take a well-deserved break. Bye.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Fan of Fics** and** Vivi Fontaine** (wow...I did this without looking. Hahaha. You guys are _**AWESOME**_!)

**In responses:** First too** Vivi Fontaine:** Happy Belated birthday. If I had known I would have tried to update earlier. I hope you had a great day. =)

Second too **Fan of Fics**: Yes. Harry still has feelings for Phoebe. Uh...no, Cho isn't with Cedric; Amelia is with Cedric, remember? Cho went to the Yule Ball with Terence. As for Cho/Harry - there will be none that is one scene that I will be changing.

Third too **Jojia**: Yeah, sorry for not updating sooner. But the chapters are getting longer and are taking more time to write, especially with the added scenes for Phoebe. There is simply not enough time in the day, especially with my assignments. I will try and find balance. Promise.

Fourth too** KingdomHeartsNerd:** When does Ron ever trust Phoebe? He never has even before he found out she was a Malfoy.

* * *

><p>"Your -?"<p>

"My dear old mum, yeah," said Sirius. "We've been trying to get her down for a month but we think she put a Permanent Sticking Charm on the back of her canvas. Let's get downstairs, quick, before they all wake up again."

Harry nodded and followed his godfather through a door leading into the basement kitchen. It was scarcely less gloomy than the hall above, a cavernous room with rough stone walls. Most of the light was coming from a large fire at the far end of the room. A haze of pipe smoke hung in the air like battle fumes, through which loomed the menacing shapes of heavy iron pots and pans hanging from the dark ceiling.

Many chairs had been crammed into the middle of the room for the meeting and a long wooden table stood in the middle of them, littered with rolls of parchment, goblets, empty wine bottles, and a heap of what appeared to be rags. Mr. Weasley and Bill were talking quietly with their heads together at the end of the table.

Serefina cleared her throat. Mr. Weasley, a thin, balding red-haired man who wore horn-rimmed glasses, looked around and jumped to his feet.

"Harry!" Mr. Weasley said, hurrying forward to greet him, and shaking his hand vigorously. "Good to see you!"

Over his shoulder Harry saw Bill, who still wore his hair long in a ponytail, hastily rolling up the lengths of parchment left on the table.

"Journey all right, Harry?" Bill called, trying to gather up twelve scrolls at once. "Mad-Eye didn't make you come via Greenland, then?"

"He tried," said Tonks, striding over to help Bill and immediately toppling a candle on to the last piece of parchment. "Oh no - _sorry -_"

Phoebe smiled and touched to the young Aurors arm. "It's okay... I got it..." she closed eyes, circled her arm high over her head and said. "I call upon the powers of water..."

There was a blast of cool air, and seconds later a gush of cool liquid shot from her fingertips and doused the flames which had erupted from the parchment and candle.

"That never gets old," Bill grinned at the elemental.

In the flash of blue light caused by Phoebe's active powers, Harry caught a glimpse what looked like a plan of a building.

Mrs. Weasley had seen him looking. She snatched the plan off the table and stuffed it into Bill's already overladen arms. "This sort of thing ought to be cleared away promptly at the end of meetings," she snapped, before sweeping off towards an ancient dresser from which she started unloading dinner plates.

"You look like you could use some help," Phoebe teased, turning to Bill and taking a few scrolls from him.

"Thanks," he nodded, before removing his wand and muttering "_Evanesco!"_ and the scrolls vanished.

"Sit down, Harry," said Sirius. "You've met Mundungus, haven't you?"

The thing that Harry had taken to be a pile of rags give a prolonged, grunting snore, then jerked awake.

"Some'n say m'name?" Mundungus mumbled sleepily. "I 'gree with Sirius..." he raised a very grubby hand in the air as though voting, his droopy, bloodshot eyes unfocused.

Ginny giggled.

"The meeting's over, Dung," said Sirius, as they all sat down around him at the table. "Harry's arrived."

"Eh?" said Mundungus, peering balefully at Harry through his matted ginger hair. "Blimey, so 'e 'as. Yeah... you all right, 'Arry?"

"Yeah," said Harry.

Mundungus fumbled nervously in his pockets, still staring at Harry, and pulled out his grimy black pipe. He stuck it in his mouth, ignited the end of it with his wand and took a deep pull on it. Great billowing clouds of greenish smoke obscured him within seconds.

"Owe you a 'pology," grunted a voice from the middle of the smelly cloud.

Jackson, who had just arrived with Aiden, coughed in disgust as the cloud of smoke reached him at the door. He waved his hand in front of his face and then covered his nose and mouth with it, in an attempt to block out the fumes.

Phoebe looked up at their arrival, waved her hand once more, and emptied a bucket-size amount of water over Mundungus, who spluttered as he was drowned. "You've been asked before. Do _not_ smoke at the table, especially not when we're about to eat, and not when my friends are present! You want to smoke that thing then take it outside!"

"Ah," said Mundungus. "Right. 'Apologies Miss!"

The cloud of smoke vanished as Serefina waved her wand and Mundungus stowed his pipe back in his pocket. But an acrid smell of burning lingered.

"If you all want dinner before midnight I'll need a hand," Mrs. Weasley called to the large room. "No, you can stay where you are, Harry dear, you've had a long journey."

"What can I do, Molly?" said Tonks enthusiastically, bounding forwards.

"Er - no, it's all right, Tonks, you have a rest too, you've done enough today."

"No, no, I want to help!" said Tonks brightly, knocking over a chair as she hurried towards the dresser, from which Ginny was collecting cutlery.

Soon, a series of heavy knives were chopping meat and vegetables of their own accord, supervised by Mr. Weasley, while Mrs. Weasley stirred a cauldron dangling over the fire and the others took out plates, more goblets and food from the pantry. Harry was left at the table with Sirius, Phoebe, Mundungus, Jackson and Aiden. Mundungus was blinking mournfully at Harry.

"Seen old Figgy since?" he asked.

"No," said Harry. "I haven't seen anyone."

"See, I wouldn't 'ave left," said Mundungus, leaning forward, a pleading note in his voice, "but I 'ad a business opportunity -"

Phoebe felt something brush against her knee and looked down to find it was Crookshanks, Hermione's bandy-legged ginger cat, who wound himself around Phoebe's legs, purring, then jumped onto Sirius's lap and curled up. Sirius scratched him absent-mindedly behind the ears as he turned, still grim-faced, to Harry.

"Had a good summer so far?"

"No, it's been lousy," said Harry.

For the first time, something like a grin flittered across Sirius's face.

"Don't know what you're complaining about, myself."

_"What_?" said Harry incredulously.

"Personally, I'd have welcomed a Dementor attack. A deadly struggle for my soul would have broken the monotony nicely. You think you've had it bad, at least you've been able to get out and bout, stretch your legs, get into a few fights -"

"The last fight you got into put you in Azkaban, Sirius!" said a sharp voice from the back of the kitchen.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned in the direction of the door. There, standing at the back of the kitchen, surrounded by her children, was Samantha Black. Sirius's estranged wife. Around her were her three children, James, Melissa and Henry Black.

"James!" Phoebe exclaimed, jumping from her seat and running around the table. She threw her arms around her best friend and hugged him tightly. "Why didn't you send me a letter and let me know you were coming?"

"What kind of surprise would that be?" James teased. "How are you, Phoebe?"

"I've been better," Phoebe nodded. "But maybe now my mood will lighten, now that I am around friends. I know that were Serefina's intentions all along, she just hates seeing me moping."

"It's not you if you're moping," Aiden pointed out, approaching his sister and holding his hand out to James. "Black..."

"Chamberlain," James nodded, shaking his hand, and nodding in Jackson's direction. "Stream!"

"Black!" Jackson nodded back.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned back to James. "Have you heard from Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah?"

"Sarah is in Wales, visiting her grandparents," James answered. "She has wrote to be a couple of times, said we will see her by the time we go back to school. Amelia has been staying with Cedric for the summer, she has been in constant contact with Ashlyn for information on what is happening; she too will see us by the time we go back to school."

"And Ashlyn?"

"Ashlyn should be arriving any day from now," Samantha answered. "I do not see why she should be stuck with the Pucey's any longer. They are in league with the Dark Lord, they always have been! She should have been put into my care the moment her mother was killed, but Walburga would not allow it!

Phoebe's eyes widened and she turned to look at James.

"It's a bit of a sore subject," he whispered quietly. "C'mon, you can tell me how your summer has been over dinner. I'm starving."

"No surprise there then," Phoebe teased. "You and Ron go hand in hand when it comes to food."

James frowned. "Shut up!"

Phoebe grinned and re-took her place between Harry and Aiden. James pulled up a chair and squeezed himself in between her and Harry, as Melissa, Henry and his mother sat opposite him. Phoebe smiled at the twins. "Alright guys, how's your summer been so far?"

"It's been great," Henry grinned. "We've been skiing in the Alps! It's amazing there!"

"I bet," Phoebe smiled. "What about you, Melissa? Did you have fun Skiing?"

Melissa nodded. "I did. It was beautiful there..."

"So I hear," Phoebe nodded. "You'll have to tell me more about it later."

Melissa looked delighted.

"Sirius," said Mundungus, who did not appear to have paid any attention to the conversation or the fact that more people had arrived, but had been closely examining an empty goblet. "This real sliver, mate?"

"Yes," said Sirius, surveying it with distaste. "Finest fifteenth-century goblin-wrought silver, embossed with the Black family crest."

"That'd come orf, though," muttered Mundungus, polishing it with his cuff.

"Fred - George - NO, JUST CARRYING THEM!" Mrs. Weasley shrieked. Those at the table looked around and, within a split second, they had dived away from the table. Fred and George had bewitched a large cauldron of stew, an iron flagon of Butterbeer and a heavy wooden breadboard, complete with knife, to hurtle through the air towards them.

The stew skidded the length of the table and came to a halt just near the end, leaving a long black burn down the wooden surface; the flagon of Butterbeer fell with a crash, spilling its contents everywhere; the bread knife slipped off the board and landed, point down and quivering ominously, exactly where Samantha's right had had been seconds before.

"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!" screamed Mrs. Weasley. "THERE WAS NO NEED - I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS - JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO DO MAGIC NOW, YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY LITTLE THING!"

"We were just trying to save a bit of time!" said Fred, hurrying forward to wrench the bread knife out of the table. "Sorry, Mrs. Black - didn't mean to -"

Samantha nodded and ushered Henry and Melissa back towards the table. She didn't look extremely apologetic or happy to even be at back in her old home. She had only agreed to come here because Dumbledore had said he was resurrecting the Order, and she wanted to do something productive, rather than sit around her parents Manor doing nothing. This also gave her the opportunity to speak with Sirius on a matter that had been on her mind ever since she had found out he had escaped Azkaban was living in England.

"Boys," Mr. Weasley said, lifting the stew back into the middle of the table, "your mother's right, you're supposed to show a sense of responsibility now you've come of age -"

"None of your brothers caused this sort of trouble!" Mrs. Weasley raged at the twins as she slammed a fresh flagon of Butterbeer down on to the table, and spilling almost as much again. "Bill didn't feel the need to Apparate every few feet! Charlie didn't charm everything he met! Percy -"

She stopped dead, catching her breath with a frightened look at her husband, whose expression was suddenly wooden.

"Let's eat!" said Bill quickly.

"It looks wonderful, Molly," said Lupin, ladling stew onto a plate for her and handing it across the table.

For a few minutes there was silence but for the chink of plates and cutlery and the scraping of chairs as everyone settled down to their food. Then Mrs. Weasley turned to Sirius.

"I've been meaning to tell you, Sirius, there's something trapped in that writing desk in the drawing room, it keeps rattling and shaking. Of Couse, it could just be a Boggart, but I thought we ought to ask Alastor to have a look at it before we let it out."

"Whatever you like," said Sirius indifferently.

"The curtains in there are full of Doxys, too," Mrs. Weasley went on. "I thought we might try and tackle them tomorrow."

"I look forward to it," said Sirius, his tone full of sarcasm, his gaze was on his wife who hadn't even spared him a glance since she had come in.

A few seats way from Samantha, Henry and Melissa, Tonks was entertaining Hermione and Ginny by transforming her nose between mouthfuls. Screwing up her eyes each time with the same pained expression she had worn back in Harry's bedroom, her nose swelled to a beak-like protuberance that resembled Snape's, shrank to the size of a button mushroom and then sprouted a great deal of hair from each nostril.

Apparently this was regular mealtime entertainment, because Hermione and Ginny were soon requesting their favourite noises and Phoebe wasn't paying much attention. Harry, on the other hand, was stealing, what he thought to be subtle glances at the elemental as she conversed with James, Jackson and Aiden, however, it seemed he wasn't subtle enough as Bill smirked at him when they caught one another's gaze.

Harry dropped his eyes to his stew and went back to eating, while Bill returned to the conversation he was having with his father and Lupin.

"They're not giving anything away yet," said Bill. "I still can't work out whether or not they believe he's back. Course, they might prefer not to take sides at all. Keep out of it."

"I'm sure they'd never go to You-Know-Who," said Mr. Weasley, shaking his head. "They've suffered losses too; remember that goblin family he murdered last time, somewhere near Nottingham?"

"I think it depends on what he can offer them," said Lupin. "And I'm not talking about gold. If they're offered the freedoms we've been denying them for centuries they're going to be tempted. Have you still not had any luck with Ragnok, Bill?"

"He's feeling pretty anti-wizard at the moment," said Bill, "he still hasn't stopped raging about the Bagman business, he reckons the Ministry did a cover-up, those goblins never got their gold from him, you know -"

A gale of laughter from the middle of the table drowned the rest of Bill's words. Fred, George, Ron and Mundungus were rolling around in their seats.

"... and then," chocked Mundungus, tears running down his face, "and then, if you'll believe it, 'e says to me, 'e says "'Ere, Dung, where didja get all them toads from? 'Cos some son of a Buldger's gone and nicked all mine!" and I says, 'Nicked all your toads, Will, what next? So you'll be wanting some more, then?' And if you'll believe me, lads, the gormless gargoyle buys all 'is own toads back off me for a lot more'n what 'e paid in the first place -"

"That is enough," Serefina said sharply, as Ron slumped forwards onto the table, howling with laugher. "I don't think we need to hear any more of your business dealings, thank you very much, Mundungus."

"Beg pardon, Serefina," said Mundungus at once, wiping his eyes and winking at Harry. "But, you know, Will nicked 'em orf Warty Harris in the first place so I wasn't really doing nothing wrong."

"I don't know where you learned about right or wrong, Mundungus, but you seem to have missed a few crucial lessons," said Serefina coldly.

Fred and George buried their faces in their goblets of Butterbeer; George was hiccoughing. For some reason, Mrs. Weasley threw Sirius a very nasty look and then got to her feet and going to fetch a large rhubarb crumble for pudding. Harry looked round at his godfather.

"Molly and Serefina do not approve of Mundungus," said Sirius in an undertone.

"How come he's in the Order?" Harry said, very quietly.

"He's useful," Sirius muttered. "Knows all the crooks - well, he would, seeing as he's one himself. But he's also very loyal to Dumbledore, who helped him out of a tight spot once. It pays to have someone like Dung around, he hears things we don't. But Molly thinks inviting him to stay for dinner is going too far. She hasn't forgiven him for slipping off duty when he was supposed to tailing you."

Three helpings of rhubarb crumble and custard later and the waistband on Harry's jeans were feeling uncomfortably tight. As he laid down his spoon there was a lull in the general conversations: Mr. Weasley was leaning back in his chair, looking replete and relaxed, Tonks was yawning widely, her nose back to normal, Ginny was playing with Crookshanks, and Phoebe was using her water powers to create shapes in the air for Henry and Melissa, who found the idea of her being an elemental fascinating.

"Nearly time for bed, I think," said Mrs. Weasley with a yawn.

"Not just yet, Molly," said Sirius, pushing away his empty plate and turning to look at Harry. "You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort."

The atmosphere in the room changed with a rapidity Phoebe associated with the arrival of the Dementors. Where seconds before it had been sleepily relaxed, it was no alert, even tense. A frisson had gone around the table at the mention of Voldemort's name. Lupin, who had been about to take a sip of wine, lowered his goblet slowly, looking wary.

"I did!" said Harry. "I asked Ron and Hermione but they said we're not allowed in the Order, so -"

"And they're quite right," said Mrs. Weasley. "You're too young."

She was sitting bolt upright in her chair, her fists clenched on its arms, every trace of drowsiness gone.

"But Phoebe -" Harry started again, pointing at the Elemental.

"Phoebe has special circumstances from Dumbledore," Mrs. Weasley said, waving her hand. "I cannot say anything against that."

"Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions, anyway?" asked Sirius. "Harry's been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He's got the right to know what's been happen -"

"Hang on!" interrupted George loudly.

"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" said Fred angrily.

"_We've_ been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven't told us a single stinking thing!" said George.

"_You're too young, you're not in the Order!"_ said Fred, in a high-pitched voice that sound uncannily like his mother's. "Harry's not even of age! And Phoebe's an underage Order member!"

"It's not my fault you haven't been told what the Order's doing," said Sirius calmly, "that's your parents' decision. Harry, on the other hand -"

"It's not down to you to decide what's good for Harry!" said Mrs. Weasley sharply. The expression on her normally kind face looked dangerous. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"

"Which bit?" Sirius asked pointedly, but with an air of a man readying himself for a fight.

"The bit about not telling Harry more than he _needs to know_," said Mrs. Weasley, placing a heavy emphasis on the last three words.

"I don't intend to tell him more than he _needs to know_, Molly," said Sirius. "But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back, he has more right than most to -"

"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!" said Mrs. Weasley. "He's only fifteen and -"

"Phoebe is only fifteen and she is a part of the Order!" Harry said angrily. "Is that the reason why the rules are bended for her? Because she is an elemental!"

Phoebe gaped at her friend in shock and anger. "No, Harry, why would you imply that?"

"Because that is what it seems to be like," Harry pointed out. "Why can't the rest of us know about the Order? Because we're underage? You're underage and yet you're still included!"

Serefina touched Phoebe's shoulder as she spoke to Harry. "Phoebe has a bigger role in this, Harry," she soothed. "She will be able to put these Order meetings to good use when you go back to school!" she turned to Sirius. "And you, Sirius, have to remember that Harry is not _James_,"

"I'm perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Serefina," said Sirius coldly.

"At times I am not sure you are!" said Mrs. Weasley. "Sometimes the way you talk about him, it's as though you think you've got your best friend back!"

"What's wrong with that?" said Harry.

"What's wrong, Harry, is that you're _not_ your father, however much you might look like him!" said Mrs. Weasley. "You are still at school and adults responsible for you should not forget it!"

"Meaning I'm an irresponsible godfather?" demanded Sirius, his voice rising.

"Meaning you have been known to act rashly, Sirius, which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and -"

"We'll leave my instructions from Dumbledore out of this, if you please!" said Sirius loudly.

"Arthur!" said Mrs. Weasley, rounding on her husband. "Arthur, back me up!"

Mr. Weasley did not speak at once. He took off his glasses and cleaned them slowly on his robes, not looking at his wife. Only when he had replaced them carefully on his nose did he reply. "Dumbledore knows the position has changed, Molly. He accepts that Harry will have to be filled in, to a certain extent, now that he is staying at Headquarters."

"Yes, but there is a difference between that and inviting him to ask whatever he likes!"

"Personally," said Phoebe quietly, as Mrs. Weasley turned quickly to her, hopeful that finally she was about to get an ally. "I think it better that Harry gets the facts - not all the facts, Mrs. Weasley, but the general picture - from us, rather than a garbled version from... others."

Phoebe's expression was mild, but Harry felt sure the elemental, at least, knew that some Extendable Ears had survived Mrs. Weasley's purge.

"Well," said Mrs. Weasley, breathing deeply and looking around the table for support that did not come, "well...I can see I'm going to be overruled. I'll just say this: Dumbledore must have had his reasons for not wanting Harry to know too much, and speaking as someone who has Harry's best interests at heart -"

"He's not your son," said Sirius quietly.

"He's as good as," said Mrs. Weasley fiercely. "Who else has he got?"

"He's got me!"

"Yes," said Samantha, coming into the conversation, "the thing is Sirius, you seem to care more about what Harry needs and deserves more than you do your own children, has it not occurred to you yet that James, Henry and Melissa are too young to be a part of the Order? Or do you simply not care about them?"

Sirius turned his cold look onto his wife. "James and Harry are the same age!" he said. "If Harry can know about the meeting, then I see no problem in James knowing, either!"

"But as you so kindly pointed out," Samantha went on. "Harry has dealt with more things than anyone else, and that includes James! Harry is not your son any more than he is Molly's, Sirius, it would do you well to remember that!"

Sirius started to rise from his chair.

"Sirius, _sit down!"_ Lupin said sharply. "Molly, you're not the only one around this table that cares about Harry's well-being. I think Harry ought to be allowed a say in this. He's old enough to decide for himself."

"I want to know what is going on," Harry said at once, slightly put off with Mrs. Weasley's mollycoddling. Sirius was right, he was not a child.

"Very well," said Mrs. Weasley, her voice cracking. "Ginny - Ron - Hermione - Fred - George - I want you out of this kitchen, now."

There was instant uproar.

"We're of age!" bellowed Fred and George together.

"If Harry's allowed, why can't I?" shouted Ron.

"Mum, I want to hear!" wailed Ginny.

"NO!" shouted Mrs. Weasley standing up, her eyes over bright. "I absolutely forbid -"

"Molly, you can't stop Fred and George," said Mr. Weasley wearily. "They _are_ of age."

"They're still in school."

"But they are legally adults now," said Mr. Weasley, in the same tired voice.

Mrs. Weasley was now scarlet in the face.

"I - oh, all right then, Fred and George can stay, but Ron -"

"Harry'll tell me and Hermione everything you say anyway!" said Ron hotly. "Won't - won't you?" he added uncertainly, meeting Harry's eyes.

Phoebe glanced at Harry and could see, for a split second that he considered telling Ron that he wouldn't say a word, mostly because they hadn't told him anything about what was going on. He had been left in the dark while they had been at Headquarters together, getting news left, right and centre, they may not have been getting it from the Order meetings like she had been, but they were getting it on the off chance. He had been left in the dark for an entire month.

"Course I will," Harry said.

Ron and Hermione beamed.

"Fine!" shouted Mrs. Weasley. "Fine! Ginny - BED!"

Ginny did not go quietly. They could hear her raging and storming at her mother all the way up the stairs, and when she reached the hall Mrs. Black's ear-splitting shrieks were added to the din. Lupin hurried off to the portrait to restore calm, while Samantha led Henry and Melissa from the room. It was only after Lupin had returned, closing the door behind him and returning to his seat at the table did Sirius speak.

"OK, Harry... what do you want to know?"

"Where's Voldemort?" Harry said. "What's he doing? I've been trying to watch the Muggle news, and there hasn't been anything that looks like him yet, no funny deaths or anything."

"That's because there hasn't been any funny deaths, yet," said Sirius, "not as far as we know, anyway... and we know quite a lot."

"More than he thinks we do, anyway," said Lupin.

"How come he's stopped killing people?" Harry asked.

"Because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself," said Phoebe. "It would be dangerous for him. His comeback didn't come off quite the way he had planned it, you see. He messed it up."

"Or rather, you messed it up for him," said Aiden, with a satisfied smile.

"How?" Harry asked.

"You weren't supposed to survive!" said Sirius. "Nobody apart of his Death Eaters were supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness."

"And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore," said Serefina. "And you made sure Dumbledore knew at once."

"How has that helped?" Harry asked.

"Are you kidding?" said Billy. "Dumbledore was the one person that You-Know-Who was ever scared of!"

"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," said Sirius.

"So, what's the Order been doing?" said Harry, looking around at them all.

"Working as hard as we can to make sure Voldemort can't carry out his plans," said Sirius.

"How do you know what his plans are?" Harry asked quickly.

"Dumbledore's got a shrewd idea," said Lupin, "and Dumbledore's shrewd ideas normally turn out to be accurate."

"So what does Dumbledore reckon he's planning?"

"Well, firstly, he wants to build up his arm again," said Sirius. "In the old days he had huge numbers at his command, witches and wizards he'd bullied or bewitched into following him, his faithful Death Eaters, a great variety of Dark creatures. You heard him planning to recruit the giants, well; they'll be just one of the groups he's after. He's certainly not going to try and take on the Ministry of Magic, with only a dozen Death Eaters."

"And as you know," Phoebe piped up. "He wants me… if he can get to me, then he can get to my whole family."

"So you've been trying to stop him getting more followers?" Harry asked.

"We've been trying," Phoebe nodded.

"How?"

"Well, the main thing is to try and convince as many people as possible that Voldemort is back, to put them on their guard," said Phoebe. "It's proving difficult."

"Why?"

"Because the Ministry's attitude," said Tonks. "You saw Cornelius Fudge after You-Know-Who came back, Harry. Well, he hasn't shifted his position at all. He's absolutely refusing to believe it's happened!"

"But why?" said Harry desperately. "Why's he being so stupid? If Dumbledore -"

"Ah, well, you've put your finger on the problem," said Serefina. "_Dumbledore_,"

Phoebe turned to Harry. "Fudge is frightened, Harry," she told him.

"Frightened of Dumbledore?" Harry said.

"Frightened of what he's up to," said Mr. Weasley. "Fudge thinks Dumbledore's plotting to overthrow the Ministry. He thinks Dumbledore is after his job, that he wants to be Minister for Magic!"

"But Dumbledore doesn't want -"

"We know!" Phoebe nodded feverishly. "We know that Dumbledore doesn't want the position of Minister for Magic. He's never wanted the position. Deep down Fudge knows that Dumbledore is smarter and more popular than he is, a much more powerful wizard, and in the early days of his Ministry he was forever asking Dumbledore for help,"

Harry frowned, it was always a wonder to him how Phoebe knew so much about the History of England's Wizarding world. But he guessed that Serefina had made sure that she knew everything she needed to know.

"But it seems he's become more fond of power and much more confident himself that he's the clever one and Dumbledore's simply stirring up trouble for the sake of it," Phoebe finished.

"How can he think that?" said Harry angrily. "How can he think Dumbledore would just make it all up – that _I'd_ make it all up?"

"Because accepting that Voldemort's back would mean trouble like the Ministry hasn't had to cope with for nearly fourteen years," said Sirius bitterly. "Fudge just can't bring himself to face it. It's so much more comfortable to convince himself Dumbledore's lying to destabilize him."

"You see the problem," said Lupin. "While the Ministry insists there is nothing to fear from Voldemort it's hard to convince people he's back, especially as they really don't want to believe it in the first place. What's more, the Ministry's leaning heavily on the _Daily Prophet_ not to report any of what they're calling _Dumbledore's rumour-mongering_, so most of the Wizarding community are completely unaware anything's happened, and that makes them easy targets for Death Eaters if they are using the Imperius Curse."

"But you're telling people, aren't you?" said Harry looking around. "You're letting people know he's back?"

They all smiled humourlessly.

"Well, as everyone thinks I'm a mad mass-murderer and the Ministry's put a ten thousand Galleon price on my head, I can hardly stroll up the street and start handing out leaflets, can I?" said Sirius restlessly.

"And I'm not a very popular dinner guest with most of the community," said Lupin. "It's an occupational hazard of being a werewolf."

"Tonks and Arthur could lose their jobs at the Ministry of Magic if they started shooting their mouths off," said Sirius.

Phoebe nodded. "And so could Josephine," she pointed out. "She has been doing her best to warn her neighbors though; some of them are witches and wizards."

"My parents have warned the Portuguese Wizarding community," Serefina said. "My father is close personal friends with our Minister; he has set out a community wide alert on Voldemort."

"It is very important to have spies within the Ministry," Jackson said, "because you can bet Voldemort will have them."

"The elemental academy is also on high alert," Phoebe pointed out. "I have connections there… everyone in Portugal are ready for the war that is sure to come from all this. They are just awaiting further instructions."

"You see, Harry," said Mr. Weasley. "We've managed to convince a couple of people. Tonks here, for one – she's too young to have been in the Order of the Phoenix last time, and having Auror's on our side is a huge advantage – Kingsley Shacklebolt's been a real asset, too, he's in charge of the hunt for Sirius, so he's been feeding the Ministry information that Sirius is in Tibet."

"But none of you are putting the news out that Voldemort's back -" Harry began.

"Who said none of us are putting the news out?" said Sirius. "Why do you think Dumbledore's in so much trouble?"

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"They're trying to discredit him," said Lupin. "Didn't you see the _Daily Prophet_ last week? They reported that he'd been voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards because he's getting old and losing his grip, but it's not true; he was voted out by Ministry wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemort's return. They demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot – that's the Wizard High Court – and they're talking about taking away his Order of Merlin, First Class too."

"But Dumbledore doesn't care what they do as long as they don't take him off the Chocolate Frog Cards," said Bill grinning.

Phoebe giggled.

"This is no laughing matter," said Serefina sharply. "If he carries on defying the Ministry of Magic like this he could end up in Azkaban and the last thing we want is to have Dumbledore locked up. While Voldemort knows Dumbledore's out there and wise to what he's up to he's going to go cautiously. If Dumbledore's out of the way – well, Voldemort will have a clear field."

"But if Voldemort's trying to recruit more Death Eaters it's bound to get out that he's come back, isn't it?" said Harry desperately.

"Voldemort doesn't march up to people's front doors, Harry," said Phoebe. "He tricks, jinxes and blackmails them. He's well-practiced at operating in secret. In any case, gathering followers isn't the only thing he is interested in. He's got other plans too, plans he can put into operation very quietly indeed, and he's concentrating on those for the moment."

"What's he after apart from followers?" Harry asked swiftly. He thought he saw Sirius and Lupin exchange the most fleeing of looks before Sirius answered.

"Stuff he can only get by stealth,"

When Harry continued to look puzzled, Sirius said, "Like a weapon. Something he didn't have last time."

"When he was powerful before?"

"Yes…"

"Like what kind of weapon?" said Harry. "Something worse than the Avada Kedavra -"

"That's enough!"

Samantha spoke from the shadows beside the door. No one had noticed her return from taking Henry and Melissa upstairs. Her arms were crossed and she looked furious.

"James, bed, now!"

"But -"

"I said NOW!" Samantha yelled.

James snapped his mouth closed, slipped from his chair and made his way towards the door.

"That goes for the rest of you, too," Samantha said, looking around at Ron, Hermione, Fred and George.

"You can't boss us -" Fred began.

"Watch me," Samantha snarled. "Your mother wants you all in bed on the double! You've given Harry plenty of information, Sirius, anymore and you may as well induct him into the Order straightaway."

"Why not?" said Harry quickly. "I'll join. I want to join, I want to fight."

"No."

It was not Samantha Black that had spoken this time, but Serefina.

"The Order is comprised only of overage wizards. Wizards who have left school," she added quickly to Fred and George, "and wizards who have special circumstances assigned to them from Headmaster Dumbledore," she added to James, who had pointed at Phoebe and opened his mouth. "There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you… I think Molly and Sam are right, Sirius. We've said enough."

Sirius half-shrugged but did not argue.

Serefina turned back to those sitting at the table. "Students old and new of Hogwarts are to leave this room effective immediately," she instructed.

One by one the students stood up and Harry, recognizing defeat, followed suit.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 9:03pm**


	88. Chapter 88

**Author's Note: **I am so sorry about the overdue delay but I have recently discovered the Hunger Games verse (and by recently I literally mean Saturday gone) and have not been able to put my Kindle down because I have been so enthralled to continue reading. Nothing has caught my attention this bad since the Harry Potter series. :)

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Jojia** and **Vivi Fontaine.**

**Shout outs:** Big thank you too **Ava-Saphire-Clearwater** and** Redvines-FavouritefoodofHP-RW** for adding this story to their Favourite Story alerts. Very much appreciated.

**Redvines-FavouritefoodofHP-RW**: I have to put dashes instead of full stops in your name otherwise it gets deleted.

* * *

><p>"Binding spell?" Phoebe questioned, as she looked up from the book of spells that Aiden had presented her with. Her half-brother nodded in confirmation.<p>

They were sat at the long table in the basement kitchen of Headquarters, everyone else had cleared out giving them the privacy that they craved, but now that the room was empty and she had been given a spell that would undoubtedly bind her to Aiden, Phoebe wanted everyone to cram back in and save her.

"What use is a binding spell?"

"It will bind us together," Aiden answered, "Elementally..."

"And physically," Phoebe answered, pointing out a section within the book. It explained how the spell worked. "It says that the spell varies depending on who the caster is... if the casters are pretty powerful then the spell with link them together not just by their magic, but also their emotions..."

Aiden frowned. "Well, that doesn't sound so bad, does it?" he questioned.

Phoebe shrugged. She didn't know what to make of the passage, but the idea of being linked to Aiden didn't seem so comforting to her, especially if they were linked via emotions.

What if she was feeling a typically strong feeling? Would that mean that Aiden could feel it too? If that was true, then what did that mean if she was with say, Terence? Would she want Aiden to feel the same things she felt when she was around him? Talk about embarrassing!

No, she'd have to talk to Serefina about this, she had no doubts that being connected to Aiden was going to be a bad thing; but she didn't want him feeling the same emotions she did, especially when she was around Terence.

"Phoebe...?" Aiden was snapping his fingers in front of her face.

Phoebe blinked and looked up at her half-brother. "What?" she asked, swatting his hand away from her face, she didn't like it, it was annoying and she was still reeling from the effects the Bonding spell could have on her and Aiden's brother/sister relationship if they were bonded via emotions as well as powers.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing,"

"Are you sure?" Aiden asked he was genially concerned for her.

Phoebe opened her mouth to answer but was saved by the clanging of the doorbell. The two elementals paused and turned towards the door of the kitchen, waiting for the endless explosion of voices from upstairs, not just from Mrs. Black's portrait but also Mrs. Weasley.

They didn't have to wait long before -

"WE ARE NOT RUNNING A HIDEOUT FOR STOLEN GOODS!"

Aiden and Phoebe exchanged looks, as one word passed between them. "Mundungus!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After what felt like several hours, but was actually several minutes, Aiden and Phoebe had broken the tense atmosphere within the kitchen and made their way up to the upper floors of Headquarters. Phoebe was still clutching the book of spells in her hands and flipping through the pages furiously looking for a counter spell to help block off her emotions to Aiden, unfortunately, she kept coming up empty.

"What's this?" Aiden asked, pulling back some curtains and revealing a door to him and Phoebe. He reached for the doorknob and twisted it.

The door opened with ease revealing to them another room, this room was empty, save for a huge tapestry that run around the length of the four walls. It looked immensely old and faded. Nevertheless, the golden thread with which it was embroidered still glinted brightly enough to show them a sprawling family tree dating back as far as the middle Ages.

Large words at the very top of the tapestry read:

_The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black_

_Toujours pur'_

"Always pure..." Aiden and Phoebe murmured as they ventured further into the room. The tapestry was that of the Black family tree.

Aiden paused and turned to Phoebe. "You're not on here?" he asked.

"No," Phoebe answered, with a shake of her head. "As far as the Black's know Phoebe Malfoy doesn't exist... I am Phoebe Blackheart."

"Which is a good thing, I guess," Aiden pointed out.

Phoebe nodded. "A very good thing... at least, it used to be. Now the whole world knows who I am!"

"Sirius isn't on here," Aiden added, trying to divert the topic.

"He should be," Phoebe frowned, looking up at the tapestry and searching for her cousin's name. She quickly located James and Ashlyn's names, tracing back across their branches to their parents; both Ashlyn's parents were present, but only Samantha was attached to James's name, in the place where Sirius was supposed to have been was nothing but a charred piece of fabric.

Aiden frowned as he found the charred piece of fabric with Sirius's name underneath. "What happened?" he asked.

"He must have been blasted off," Phoebe answered. "Walburga Black must have blasted him off after he became a Gryffindor,"

"Try when he run away from home," said a voice from the doorway. Both Aiden and Phoebe spun around and found Sirius standing on the threshold with Harry. "My sweet old mother blasted me off after I ran away from home - Kreacher's quite fond of muttering the story under his breath."

Harry looked perplexed. "You ran away from home?" he questioned.

"When I was sixteen," said Sirius. "I'd had enough."

"Where did you go?"

"Your dad's place," said Sirius. "Your grandparents were really good about it; they sort of adopted me as a second son. Yeah, I camped out at your dad's in the school holidays, and when I was seventeen I got a place of my own. Samantha moved in with me a year later, she was a year beneath me in school so I had to wait for her to graduate Hogwarts,"

Phoebe smiled. "Was this before or after you asked her to marry you?"

"Before," Sirius smiled. "I asked her to marry me after I found out she was pregnant with James. The best news I could have had was when I found out I was going to be a father,"

"Why did you -?" Harry started

"Leave?" Sirius smiled bitterly and ran his fingers through his hair. "Because I hated the lot of them: my parents, with their pureblood mania, convinced that to be a Black made you practically royalty..."

Phoebe couldn't help but grin. "What about your brother?" she asked, tracing the branch leading from Ashlyn's name back to Regulus.

"He believed my parents," Sirius answered, "at least until he met Thalia... she seemed to bring him to his senses, he did everything for her, even disobeyed the Death Eaters to protect her and Ashlyn!"

"Wait a minute!" Harry gasped. "Your brother was a Death Eater?"

"Yes," Sirius nodded. "Come on, Harry, you've seen enough of this house to tell what kind of wizards my family were!"

"Were - were your parents Death Eaters as well?"

"No, no, but believe me, they thought Voldemort had the right idea, they were all for the purification of the Wizarding race, getting rid of Muggleborns and having Purebloods in charge. They weren't alone, either, there were quite a few people, before Voldemort showed his true colours, who thought he had the right idea about things... they got cold feet when they saw what he was prepared to do to get power, though."

"I bet your parents thought your brother was a right little hero for joining up, huh?" Harry asked, turning to look at Phoebe.

Phoebe was glaring at the tapestry. "So, who cares?" she asked. "Who cares if Regulus was a Death Eater? He died doing the right thing! He died protecting his wife and child! Ashlyn wasn't even born when he died, she didn't know her father, so saying that he was a hero because he became a Death Eater is painting him in a bad light!"

"Phoebe..." Harry started.

"No, Harry," Phoebe cut across him. "Ashlyn is my best friend! I won't decimate her father's name! He was a hero, yes, but not because he chose to join the Death Eaters..."

"Then why?"

"Because he chose to disobey them," Phoebe answered. "He chose that family was more important than killing people. He chose his wife and child over the death of hundreds of innocent people, and he paid the price for that heroism! That is a true hero... at least it is in my eyes!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Mrs. Weasley kept them all working very hard over the next few days. The drawing room took three days to decontaminate and by the end of the week the only room that had been left in the state it had been found was the tapestry room, mostly because no one had a clue how to remove the stupid thing from the wall.

During most of these cleaning sessions, Phoebe and Aiden would be pulled away by Serefina to discuss some 'important' business and Jackson would join them. Harry and the others found this rather strange because when the three returned they refused to shed light on where they had gone and what they had to discuss.

If it was Order business then Jackson and Aiden wouldn't have been involved, Harry and the others knew this, so it was obviously something that they didn't know, but why wouldn't Phoebe not want them to know about it?

"Where do you keep disappearing too?" Ron tried one afternoon, after Phoebe had returned from another secret meeting.

"Why should I tell you?" the elemental had reacted, rather defensively, like she had some big secret that she was trying to hide.

"Because I want to know!"

Phoebe's eyes narrowed. Wrong answer.

"Like I have told you before, Weasley," Phoebe snapped. "To tell you such important things would mean I would have to like you!"

Ron's eyes also narrowed and he opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off by the door opening and Ashlyn Black stumbled inside. She was shaking from head to foot and looking around wildly. The moment she spotted Phoebe, she squealed, flew across the room and threw her arms around her best friend's neck.

"Ashlyn!" Phoebe yelped, as she was attacked. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Ashlyn was trembling from head to foot, something was wrong, Phoebe knew that much, Ashlyn _never_ trembled this bad unless something had happened.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After several attempts at trying to calm Ashlyn down, Phoebe and James had resigned to just letting her rest while they went to dinner, but neither of them wanted to leave her alone.

"What can we do?" Phoebe questioned.

"Maybe one of us could go get something to eat and come back?" James suggested. "I'm sure they won't mind!"

Phoebe shook her head. "Mrs. Weasley likes it if we all eat as a family!"

"But we're not,"

"In a way we are," Phoebe pointed out. "We're all related somehow! So technically we are family. But I don't want to leave her..."

James sighed. "I wonder what has shaken her up so bad. Do you think that Pucey has done anything to her?"

"No! I don't think he has," Phoebe intercepted quickly. "Adrian loves her, I know he does, he may not show it or even believe it, but he does!"

"How can you be so sure?"

Phoebe stared at him. "He took her to the Yule ball so that no one else could have the satisfaction of having her," she explained. "He is always there to make sure that she is okay, he is very protective of her... I remember her telling me that Adrian as more than her best friend, she just didn't know how much more he meant to her."

"So you're saying that she loves him?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "She just doesn't realize it. This is why I believe that he hasn't done anything to her,"

James sighed. "Then what else is there?"

"I don't know," Phoebe shrugged. "Maybe Voldemort...?"

James sucked in a sharp breath.

"Her father was a Death Eater," Phoebe explained. "Maybe Voldemort thinks along the lines of 'Like father, like son - except in Ashlyn's case -"

James cut across her.

"There is also the case that she is your best friend," he said. "What if he is trying to use her to get to you? He knows your fiercely protective of her, he may think that you will coming running if she needs help!"

Phoebe sighed and shook her head; she didn't want to think that her friends were being hunted because she was the prime target for Voldemort's return to power. She didn't want her friends to be the hunted in this life-sized game of Cat and Mouse.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** This chapter was a right pain in the ass to get started on... I hope it turned out well.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, March 19, 2012 at 3:30am**


	89. Chapter 89

**Author's Note:** Yes! I found the chapter... Yay! *Does happy dance!*

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, G-L-I-M-M-E-R-ESSENCE, Vivi Fontaine, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn** andanonymous reviewer** Allie**.

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you too **Turquoise Waffles** for adding this story to their story alerts, also too **Dianaemrys15** for adding this story to their favourite stories and thank you too **Moonlight Lantern** for adding me to their favourite author's. It is all very much appreciated.

Oh! I am sorry for the delay... as you all know I couldn't find the beginning of this chapter for a while, and I have unconsciously slipped into the Hunger Games verse and am currently finding myself becoming obsessed with the books and the movie that I went to see yesterday. It was awesome! I will definitely go see it again. I am already a huge Peeta/Katniss fan and my favourite character is Peeta... although, for some reason, I can feel myself cozying up to Cato.

I will stop jabbering now and let you get on with the story.

* * *

><p>Phoebe gave a start as the hand landed on her shoulder, she flew to her feet, spun around and aimed her wand at the person that had snuck up behind her, she relaxed, however, as she saw who it was.<p>

A sigh escaped her lips as she dropped her arm back to her side. "Ter..." she complained, "You scared the living daylights out of me! What are you doing here?"

"Professor Blackheart told me where to find you," Terence answered, embracing her as she shuffled over the wooden floor and sank into his arms. They stood in silence for a few moments, relishing in the others warmth. It had been nearly two weeks since they had last saw each other, and within those two weeks a lot had happened.

For Phoebe? She had come to England from Portugal because it was believed to be safer - however she didn't believe that she was safe here, given this was Voldemort's hunting grounds - she had joined the Order of the Phoenix - a secret organization for over aged witches and wizards, and those who had graduated school - she had special circumstances from Dumbledore to join - oh, and they had been created to fight Voldemort's forces and look after Harry Potter.

As for Terence? Well, he had spent the majority of his summer holidays at the hospital with his sister. Esmee Higgs had been re-diagnosed with Leukemia and was currently fighting for her life in a Muggle hospital on the otherside of London; she had been transferred there a few days into the start of the summer holidays and resided there for the rest of the holidays.

Her brothers and younger sister hadn't left her side, her father was trying to carrying on working just to pay for the treatment, but Terence knew that was just a cover-up, the insurance that they had covered any treatments that Esmee needed for her condition, he knew that his father was only pretending to work so that he didn't have to face his dying daughter.

It was never something he could stomach.

His mother was trying her best to be there every day for Esmee, but between Order meetings and her job at the Ministry it was left to Philip, the eldest Higgs child, to make sure that his siblings were properly looked after. This was mostly the reason that he was still living at home and not working full time like his parents or most of his friends, he was needed at home.

"When did you get here?" Phoebe asked, breaking the silence that had fallen.

"About half an hour ago," Terence answered. "Bambi and Philip are also here, they have just gone upstairs to get some sleep."

"How are you doing?" Phoebe questioned, she looked up at him and noticed the faint black bags under his eyes. "Have you been sleeping?"

Terence shook his head. "Not very well," he admitted.

Taking his hand, Phoebe led him to the single bed that lay on the otherside of the room; she pushed him down onto the edge, and allowed him to pull her onto his lap. She straddled him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You need to sleep," she whispered. "You'll make yourself sick, if you don't,"

"Sleep with me," he whispered.

"I can't," Phoebe answered. "I have to be there for when Ashlyn wakes up..."

"Adrian wrote to me," Terence nodded. "He wants to know if Ashlyn made it to mine safety."

Phoebe frowned. "Why did he send her to you? Do you know?"

"No," Terence shook his head. "I didn't even know she had been sent to me. I haven't left the hospital since Esmee's transfer,"

"Then how did she get here?"

"My mum, maybe?"

Phoebe nodded. Yeah. That must have been it. Josephine Higgs must have gone home, probably to get fresh clothes for her children, before another visit to the hospital, and found Ashlyn in her home, the dead Portkey at her feet. She must have coaxed the story out of her and then brought her to Headquarters last Friday.

"Sleep," Phoebe instructed, pushing him back onto the bed, and pulling the covers around him. She leaned down and kissed him. "I'll be here when you wake up..."

Terence smiled and before he could stop himself, sleep overtook him and he sank into darkness.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Ashlyn screamed as the door to her bedroom was blown apart, splinters showered down upon her and Adrian as he held her close and covered her, the best he could with his body._

_"Go!" he hissed, shoving her away and pushing the Portkey into her hands. "Go and never come back!"_

_"No, Adrian!" Ashlyn yelled. "Come with me! Don't leave me!"_

"NO! Adrian!"

**"**ADRIAN!"

"Ashlyn!"

There was a thud, followed by a groan, a giggle and then she was moving again. Arms were wrapping themselves around her and she was attempting to push them away.

"No..." she yelped. "Leave me alone! I won't go... You can't make me!"

"Ashlyn!" snapped a familiar voice. "Relax. You're safe!"

Feeling her voice failing, as sobs racked her body and tears spilled down from her cheeks. She allowed the arms to wrap themselves around her and felt the warmth and comfort from someone she knew... it wasn't Adrian, whoever the person was they were smaller than her. There was only one other person who she allowed to comfort her like this...

"Phoebe?"

"Yes," the elemental whispered. "You're safe..."

Phoebe felt Ashlyn relax and sighed in relief. "Thank god you woke up," she muttered. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine..." Ashlyn wheezed. Her voice hoarse from the lack of use.

Hearing the scratch in her friend's voice, Phoebe motioned to someone off to the left and a glass of water was soon being presented to the Slytherin. Ashlyn drunk her fill thirstily before sighing and looking up at the Gryffindor. "Thank you," she choked.

"Shh," Phoebe soothed. "Rest. When you're finished you can tell us what happened... we can wait until them,"

"But -"

Phoebe looked up at her companion, and now Ashlyn became aware that James was also present in the room, it must have been him that had gotten her water.

"How long have I been out?"

"You showed up on Friday," James answered. "It's now Wednesday."

"Five days?"

Phoebe nodded. "You sort of cried yourself out," she explained. "But we'll talk about it later... I want you to rest!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

When Ashlyn woke the second time, she stared up at the ceiling of the room in which she had been provided with at the strange place Terence's mother had called Headquarters and for some reason couldn't help but feel partially connected to the old walls and the bed that she was laying.

She pushed herself into a sitting position and looked around in alarm. Everything was so dark and dirty. _**Where am I?**_ She questioned herself, looking up quickly as the door opened to reveal Phoebe, James and Terence on the other side. Ashlyn smiled. "Hi," she said weakly, her voice cracking from the lack of use again.

"Ashlyn..." Phoebe smiled, jumping up onto the bed and hugging her friend. "How are you feeling? How long have you been awake?"

"Will you stop it?" James snapped. "She's already had one mother, she doesn't need another,"

"You mean she already _has_ one mother!" Phoebe corrected.

James glared. "Elladora Pucey is not her mother!" he said.

"She is as good as," Phoebe shrugged, before turning to her best friend. "So..."

Ashlyn smirked. "So...?"

The elemental grinned.

"I am feeling a little better," Ashlyn answered. "And I literally only just woke up! Where am I?"

"Headquarters," James answered.

"Where?"

"London?"

Ashlyn glared at him.

Phoebe shoved him off of the bed and brought Ashlyn's attention back to her. "You are at the Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix," she answered. "It is situated in Sirius's old home. 12 Grimm -"

"Grimmuald Place," Ashlyn finished for her, a small frown on her face as she looked down at the sheet that covered her body.

"... Yeah," Phoebe nodded, looking confused. "How did you -"

"I used to live here," Ashlyn answered. "This is my old home!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, after Harry had returned from his meeting at the Ministry of Magic, his appeal had been adjourned and he had been given the all clear to return to Hogwarts with the rest of his friends.

Phoebe persuaded Mrs. Weasley to allow her, James and Terence to eat their dinner upstairs with Ashlyn; the Slytherin had not yet been given a clean bill of health by Madam Pomfrey and had been instructed to bed rest for at least another week.

After giving the all clear the three friends had scooped up their food, prepared an extra bowl for Ashlyn, and started to climb the stairs to third floor where Ashlyn was resting, however, when they opened the door to the bedroom they didn't expect to find Ashlyn sitting up in bed talking to Kreacher.

"What do you want?" James snarled at the House Elf. "Get out!"

"Yes, Master," Kreacher bowed to James and shuffled out of the room, muttering along the lines of "Insufferable brat!" under his breath.

"James!" Ashlyn scolded, once her cousin had slammed the door shut on the House elf. "No wonder he doesn't like you! You treat him like dirt under your shoe!"

James shrugged. "That's because he is a worthless excuse for a House Elf!"

"What does it matter to you, anyway?" Ashlyn asked. "You never lived here."

"So, it's still my house,"

"I don't care," Ashlyn answered, thanking Phoebe for her food. "I lived here longer than you. I was born here! This was my first home and Kreacher was my first friend. I wouldn't change him for the world..."

"When my father has gone he will go under my command,"

Ashlyn glared. "Good luck trying to get him to work under your command," she scoffed. "He won't listen. He only listens to me."

"Brainwashing him early on, are you?"

"Maybe," Ashlyn grinned, spooning broth into her mouth and sighing, happily. This was the first proper meal that she had eaten in days; it was a refreshing change from potions.

For a while there was silence, before Phoebe broke it. "Are you going to tell us what happened?" she questioned.

Ashlyn froze and stared at her broth. "I fear you already know,"

"I don't know,"

There was another silence.

"What do you think happened?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Where you attacked?"

"Yes."

"Death Eaters?"

Ashlyn nodded. "When I got home from school at the end of last year, Mr. Pucey was waiting for me in his study," she explained. "He had ordered his wife to send me straight there the moment I got back. I did as instructed and was surprised to find that he was looking rather solemn. It wasn't until I had stepped fully into the room and the door had closed behind me, did I realize the intensity of the situation. Voldemort was also sitting there, waiting for me."

"Voldemort?" James asked, glancing at Phoebe. "What did he want?"

"The same thing he wants from Phoebe,"

"You don't have powers?" James frowned.

"Not powers, you idiot!" Ashlyn snapped. "He wants me to join him! To finish what my father started!"

Phoebe nodded. "You refused?"

"Yes. He tortured me... and then threatened to torture Adrian if I didn't reconsider," Ashlyn answered. "I asked for time to think about the situation. He agreed to give me some time, but not too much time. I located Adrian and told him what was going on; he instantly started packing away a few of my things! He charmed an old brush into a Portkey, thrust my things into my arms and was in the middle of explaining where I was going when the door crashed open and his father entered."

"Did he hurt you?"

"No," Ashlyn answered, her voice growing quiet. "But Adrian was hit with the torture curse..." she choked. "Phoebe, what if they kill him?"

She was starting to hyperventilate.

Phoebe squeezed her shoulder. "Ashlyn, listen to me," she said soothingly. "They are not going to kill Adrian; they at least need him alive if they want to get to you!"

"Why are they doing this?" Ashlyn cried, her hands shaking so badly, as the tears returned with a vengeance, that Terence had to take her broth off of her so that she didn't tip it all over the place. With her hands free, Ashlyn covered her face and sobbed.

Feel guilty, Phoebe wrapped her arms around her best friend and hugged her. "Me..." she answered quietly, "it's because of me!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Been awake since 9:30am... I am half asleep... and I am terribly ready to bed. Had to force myself awake to write this chapter! It isn't all that important... just a filler to help you understand what happened to Ashlyn. Yes, if it's not clear, Harry was cleared by the Ministry, next chapter we'll get back into the thick of things.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, March 25, 2012 at 03:27am**


	90. Chapter 90

**Author's Note:** Argh! Its chapter 90 and we're only in 5th year! Gonna be one hell of a long story. Ah well, as long as you all don't abandon me because of the huge ass chapters, I'll be happy!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following:** Fan of Fics, Jojia** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout outs: **Thank you too **Fall1ng4U 1s HaRdRThN 1t L0ok5** for adding this story to their Favourites. Very much appreciated.

Now... back into the thick of things.

* * *

><p>Over the next few days Ashlyn was allowed to leave the confinements of her bedroom with the promise that she wouldn't over exert herself. Madam Pomfrey had explained to Phoebe and Serefina that she had been subjected to several rounds of the Cruciatus curse but there were no long-lasting effects and Ashlyn should return to full strength by the end of the week.<p>

Soon, before anyone cared to admit, the summer holidays came to an end, and on the Eve of their return to Hogwarts did anything remotely good happen. The fact was that, for some of Headquarters inhabitants, living in an anti-Voldemort movement home was not as interesting or exciting as they had expected it to be.

Some members of the Order of the Phoenix came and went periodically, sometimes staying for meals, sometimes only for a few minutes of whispered conversations, Mrs. Weasley always made sure that Harry and the others were kept well out of earshot and nobody, not even Sirius or Phoebe, seemed to feel that Harry needed to know anything more than he had heard on the night of his arrival.

On the very last day of the holidays, Ashlyn was sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast with James, Terence and Jackson when Phoebe entered carrying a couple of envelopes.

"Booklists have arrived," she said, passing one of the envelopes to James, one to Jackson and another to Ashlyn.

"About time," James sighed, scooping up his envelope. "I was starting to think they had forgotten they usually come much earlier than this..."

Ashlyn nodded and picked up her own envelope. She was feeling much better, considering how she had been when she first arrived at Grimmuald place, and while she was returning to her full strength and regular self, she still couldn't help but give a passing through to Adrian and pray that he was OK.

"You also have a letter," Phoebe added to Ashlyn passing her a second envelope.

"Thanks," Ashlyn smiled, taking the envelope and looking at the back of it. Her eyes brightened considerably as she noticed the Pucey family crest. "It's from Adrian!"

Phoebe, James and Terence looked up expectantly.

"What's it say?" James asked.

"Is he alright?" Terence inquired, Adrian was his best friend and he was nervous about his well-being, especially after Ashlyn had told them what had happened when she returned home from school at the end of last year.

Phoebe silenced both boys with a look and touched Ashlyn's shoulder, "You don't have to read it here," she smiled. "You're welcome to read it in your own time, don't feel pressured into thinking that you have to read it in front of us! Yes we are worried about Adrian, but he means more to you than he does us!"

Ashlyn smiled thankfully. "I'll read it later and get back to you," she told James and Terence.

They both nodded and James went back to reading his school supply list for this term. "Hey, we've only got to get two new books! And it looks like Dumbledore found us a new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor!"

"About time too," said Phoebe.

"What do you mean?" Ashlyn asked, curiously.

"Well, Professor Dumbledore was having real trouble finding anyone to do the job this year," Phoebe answered. "Not that it's a surprise. I mean, look at what's happened to the last four..."

"One sacked, one dead, one's memory removed and one locked in a truck for nine months," said James, counting them off on his fingers. "Yeah, I see what you mean."

But Phoebe was no longer listening, she was staring, opened mouthed at her Hogwarts letter.

"Phoebe?" Jackson called, moving around Phoebe to look over her shoulder at the parchment.

Jackson's mouth fell open, too.

"Prefect?" he said, staring incredulously at the letter. "_Prefect?"_

James leapt forwards, seized the envelope in Phoebe's hands and turned it upside down. Ashlyn saw something scarlet and gold fall into her cousins' palm.

"No way," said James in a hushed voice, thrusting the Prefect badge back his best friend.

Phoebe, who still had not said a word, took the badge, stared at it for a moment, staring at the large 'P' was superimposed on the Gryffindor lion, she then held it out to Jackson as though asking mutely for confirmation that it was genuine.

"Yes, Phoebe," Jackson nodded, curling Phoebe's fingers around the badge. "It's real. You're the new Gryffindor Prefect..."

"I wonder who got the other?" Ashlyn wondered, looking at James curiously.

James looked between his two friends and shook his head. "Don't look at me," he said, turning his envelope upside down and shaking it. "See, empty!"

"Well, then it's got to be Potter," said Terence, "no one in their right mind would make Weasley a Prefect!"

"He made Percy a Prefect," Phoebe pointed out. "And he later became Head Boy!"

Terence nodded. "True,"

"Or Ron," Phoebe inputted, shuddering slightly. "Oh, please, _please,_ let it be Harry!"

James and Ashlyn snickered at the idea of Phoebe and Ron being Prefects together.

The kitchen door banged open. Hermione came tearing into the room, her cheeks flushed and her hair flying, behind her came Ron and Harry, all three of them were carrying envelopes.

"Did you - did you get -?"

She spotted the badge in Phoebe's hand and let out a shriek.

"I knew it!" she said excitedly. "I knew that if it wasn't me then it would be you! Well done, Phoebe! Well done!"

Phoebe smiled and looked over at Harry and Ron. "Did either of you -?"

"Ron," said Harry, pointing at his best friend, who was still holding his Prefect badge in his hand.

"It - what?"

"Ron's prefect, not me," Harry said.

Phoebe felt her heart stutter to a halt. _**Oh boy,**_ she thought as James and Ashlyn snickered behind her. "Oh... well... um... congratulations, Ron," she nodded the red head, who didn't look any happier at the current situation than she was. They were practically mortal enemies, and now they had to spend the entire year together because they had been made Prefects.

The door opened again and Mrs. Weasley backed into the room carrying a pile of freshly laundered robes.

"Ginny said the booklists had come at last," she said, glancing around at them all as she made her way towards the washroom. "If you give them to me I'll take them to Diagon Alley this afternoon and get your books while you're packing. Ron, I'll have to get you more pyjamas, yours are at least six inches too short, I can't believe how fast you're growing... what colour would you like?"

"How about red and gold to match his badge?" suggested James, smirking.

"Match his what?" said Mrs. Weasley absently, rolling up a pair of maroon socks and placing them on Ron's clean clothes pile.

"His _badge_," repeated James, with an air of getting the worst over quickly. "His lovely shiny new _prefect's badge._"

James's words took a moment to penetrate Mrs. Weasley's pre-occupation with pyjamas.

"His... but... Ron, you're not...?"

Ron held up his badge.

Mrs. Weasley let out a shriek.

"I don't believe it! I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!"

Phoebe, James and Ashlyn exchanged looks and snickered at the look on Ron's face as his mother flung her arms around him.

"Wait until your father hears! Ron, I'm so proud of you, what wonderful news, you could end up Head Boy just like Bill and Percy, and it's the first step! Oh, what a thing to happen in the middle of all this worry, I'm just thrilled, oh, _Ronnie -_"

Ron's face had turned brighter scarlet than his badge, as his mother continued to kiss him.

"Mum... don't... Mum, get a grip..." he muttered, trying to push her away.

She let go of him and said breathlessly. "Well, what will it be? We gave Percy and owl, but you've already got on, of course."

"W-what do you mean?" said Ron, looking as though he did not dare believe his ears.

"You've got to have a reward for this!" said Mrs. Weasley. "How about a new cauldron, Charlie's old one's rusting through, or a new rat, you always liked Scabbers -"

Jackson frowned. "Why would he want a new rat if he's got an Owl?" he whispered to Phoebe.

"I dunno," said Phoebe, looking down as a soft purr caught her attention. Banshee had wandered into the room and brushed up against her leg, the elemental smiled and scooped up the kitten, and scratched behind its ears.

"Mum," said Ron hopefully, "can I have a new broom?"

Mrs. Weasley's face fell slightly; broomsticks were expensive.

"Not a real good one!" Ron hastened to add, "Just - just a new one for a change..."

Mrs. Weasley hesitated, and then smiled.

"Of course you can... well, I'd better get going if I've got a broom to buy too. I'll see you later... little Ronnie, a prefect! And don't forget to pack your trunks... a prefect... oh, I'm all a dither!"

She gave Ron yet another kiss on the cheek sniffed loudly, and bustled out of the room.

James grinned and made a kissing noise at Ron as his mother left. The red head glared. "I hate you, Black!" he snapped.

"Love you too, Ronnie," James laughed.

Phoebe and Ashlyn had to bite their lips from laughing along with their friend, they knew it was cruel, but they couldn't help it. Ron had never actually been a good friend to them, and often laughed at situations that they had been in and they weren't a laughing matter, so a little payback was fair... wasn't it?

"Question?" Jackson interrupted, "don't you think that you should go tell your mother what broomstick you want? You'll never be able to go with her to choose!"

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "Which one do you want anyway?"

"Well, Mum will never be able to afford a Nimbus," Ron answered, "but there is a new Cleansweep out, that'd be great... yeah, I think I'll tell her I like the Cleansweep, just so she knows..."

He dashed from the room; leaving Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and the others alone.

For some reason, Harry found he did not want to look at Phoebe, which was a big change for him because he remembered at the beginning of the summer he couldn't take his eyes off of her. Instead, he turned and started to leave the room.

"Harry?" said Phoebe, tentatively.

"Well done, Phoebe," said Harry, so heartily it did not sound like his voice at all, and, still not looking at her, "brilliant. Prefect. I thought for sure that it was Hermione, but you'll be great too!"

"Thanks," said Phoebe, with a small smile. "I think I better go find Serefina and tell her the good news... Ash, you want to come with? Stretch your legs a bit?"

Ashlyn's answer, however, was not one that Phoebe was expecting.

"Does anyone know if they have inter-house Prefect duties?" the Slytherin had asked.

Everyone frowned. "Um... not in the first year," Terence answered, "I think they do in 6th and 7th year... and I know that the Head Boy and Girl are from different houses."

"Why do you ask, anyway?" Jackson asked,

Ashlyn grinned and looked up at Phoebe. "Because then maybe we could have Prefect duty together," she said, holding out a Slytherin prefect badge to the elemental.

**~*Phoebe*~**

CONGRATULATIONS

RON, PHOEBE AND ASHLYN

NEW PREFECTS.

This is what had been hung over the heavily laden dinner table that evening in the basement kitchen. Phoebe and Ashlyn, both of whom had entered the kitchen with blindfolds over their eyes couldn't believe the trouble everyone was going to just to celebrate their new positions at Hogwarts.

"I thought we'd have a little party, not a sit-down dinner," said Mrs. Weasley, who was looking remotely better than she had done at the beginning of the summer. "Your father and Bill are on their way, Ron. I've sent them both owls and they're _thrilled_," she added beaming.

Sirius, Lupin, Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt were already there and Mad-Eye Moody stumped in shortly after James had got himself a Butterbeer.

"Oh, Alastor, I am glad you're here," said Mrs. Weasley brightly. "We've wanted to ask you for ages - could you have a look in the writing desk in the drawing room and tell us what's inside it? We haven't wanted to open it just in case it's something really nasty."

"No problem, Molly..."

Moody's electric-blue eye swiveled upwards and stared fixedly through the ceiling of the kitchen.

"Drawing room..." he growled, as the pupil contracted. "Desk in the corner? Yeah, I see it... yeah, it's a Boggart... want me to go up and rid of it, Molly?"

"No, no, I'll do it myself later," beamed Mrs. Weasley, "you have your drink. We're having a little bit of a celebration, actually..." she gestured to the banner. "Fourth prefect in the family!" she smiled fondly, ruffling Ron's hair.

"Prefect, eh?" growled Moody, his normal eye on Ron and his magical eye swiveling around to gaze into the side of his head, possibly looking for Harry, who had shuffled off to join Sirius and Lupin on the otherside of the kitchen.

"Well, congratulations," said Moody, still glaring at Ron with his normal eye, "authority figures always attract trouble, but I suppose Dumbledore thinks you can withstand most major jinxes or he wouldn't have appointed you..."

Ron looked rather startled at this view of the matter but was saved the trouble of responding by the arrival of his father and eldest brother. Mrs. Weasley was in such a good moody she did not even complain that they had brought Mundungus with them; he was wearing a long overcoat that seemed oddly lumpy in unlikely places and declined the offer to remove it and put it with Moody's travelling cloak.

"Well, I think a toast is in order," said Mr. Weasley, when everyone had a drink. He raised his goblet. "To Ron, Phoebe and Ashlyn, the new Gryffindor and Slytherin prefects!"

Ron, Phoebe and Ashlyn beamed as everyone drank to them, and then applauded.

"Congratulations, Miss. Blackheart," growled Moody as he limped over to where Phoebe stood with Ashlyn, Jackson and Terence.

She was smiling brightly as Terence told her about when he was a Prefect for Slytherin, but he wouldn't tell them who he had suggested passing his badge onto. He could only confirm that his counterpart, fellow Slytherin Shayla Robinson had selected Ashlyn to take over the position after she had graduated.

"She liked your attitude," Terence said, "You were the perfect candidate!"

Ashlyn smiled. "I guess it is a good thing she didn't see my reaction a few months ago,"

"You had been tortured," Phoebe soothed her best friend, "you had every right to react in that way! Oh, hello Professor, thank you!"

"I was never your professor," Moody growled.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "It is just easier to call you Professor because it would be disrespectful to call such an authority figure by his name!"

Moody eyed her curiously, before speaking, "I can now see why Dumbledore chose you as Prefect over the likes of Miss. Granger," he nodded, but he didn't evaluate on the specifics of his answer, instead he turned and walked away.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Terence frowned as he followed Phoebe past Walburga Black's portrait and up onto the first floor corridor. "Phoebe," he whispered, "we should go back down to the party!"

"Shh, it's okay," Phoebe whispered, tugging on his hand. "Ashlyn said she'd cover for us!"

"But what are you doing up here?"

"Somewhere to be alone," Phoebe answered, spinning around and wrapping her arms around his neck. Terence instinctively slid his arms around her waist and leaned in to kiss her, it had been one of the few kisses that they had exchanged this past summer, mostly because they were never alone for long.

They stumbled silently down the hall, too caught up in one another to worry about anything or anyone else, it wasn't until they reached the drawing room door did Phoebe pull away from her boyfriend and cast a confused look at the door, behind which she could hear sobbing from inside.

"Do you hear that?" she asked, breathlessly.

Terence nodded. "Hello?" he said.

There was no answer but the sobbing continued. Pulling away from one another, Phoebe crossed the landing and opened the drawing-room door.

"Hello?" Phoebe said.

Someone one cowering against the dark wall, her wand in her hand, her whole body shaking with sobs. Sprawled on the dusty old carpet in a patch of moonlight, clearly dead, was Harry.

All the air seemed to vanish from Phoebe's lungs; she felt as though she were falling through the floor; her brain turned icy cold - Harry dead, no, it couldn't be -

But wait a moment, it _couldn't be_ - Harry was downstairs -

"Mrs. Weasley?" Phoebe croaked.

"_R - r - riddikulus!"_ Mrs. Weasley sobbed, pointing her shaking wand at Ron's body.

_Crack_.

Harry's body turned into Hermione's spread-eagled on her back, her eyes wide open and empty. Mrs. Weasley sobbed harder than ever.

"_R - r - riddikulus!"_ Mrs. Weasley.

_Crack._ Dead twins. _Crack. _Dead Percy. _Crack._ Dead Ginny.

"NO!" Mrs. Weasley moaned. "No..."

"Mrs. Weasley, just get out of here!" shouted Phoebe, staring down at the dead Ginny on the floor. "Let someone else -"

"What's going on?"

Terence, who had seemingly left the room at one point, came rushing back in with Lupin, Sirius, Serefina and Moody on his heels.

It had been Lupin who had spoken. He was looking from Mrs. Weasley to the dead Ginny on the floor and seemed to understand in an instant. Pulling out his own wand, he said, very firmly and clearly.

"_Riddikulus!"_

Ginny's body vanished. A silvery orb hung in the air over the spot where it had lain. Lupin waved his wand once more and the orb vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Oh - oh - oh!" gulped Mrs. Weasley, and broke into a storm of tears, her face in her hands.

"Molly," said Serefina bleakly, walking over to her. "Molly, don't..."

Next second, she was sobbing her heart out on Serefina's shoulder.

"Molly, it was just a Boggart," said Serefina soothingly, patting her on the head. "Just a stupid Boggart!"

"I see them d - d - dead all the time!" Mrs. Weasley moaned into Serefina's shoulder. "All the t - t - time! I d - d - dream about it..."

Sirius was staring at the patch of carpet where the Boggart, pretending to be Ginny's body, had lain. Moody was looking at Phoebe and Terence, both of whom avoided his gaze. They had the funny feeling that he had caught them leaving the party and his magical eye had followed them all of the way upstairs.

"D - d - don't tell Arthur," Mrs. Weasley was gulping now, mopping her eyes frantically on her cuffs. "I d - d - don't want him to know... being silly."

Serefina handed her a handkerchief and she blew her nose.

"Phoebe, I'm so sorry. What must you think of me?" she said shakily. "Not even able to get rid of a Boggart..."

"Don't be stupid," said Phoebe. "I don't think any different of you!"

"I'm just s - s - so worried," Mrs. Weasley said, tears spilling out of her eyes again. "Half the family is in the Order, it'll b - b - be a miracle if we all come through this... and P - P - Percy's not talking to us... what if something d - d - dreadful happens and we've never m - m - made up with him? And what's going to happen if Arthur and I, who's g - g - going to take care of Ron and Ginny?"

"Molly, that's enough!" said Lupin firmly. "This isn't like last time. The Order are better prepared, we've got a head start, we know what Voldemort's up to -"

Mrs. Weasley gave a little squeak of fright at the sound of the name.

"Oh, Molly, come on, it's about time you got used to hearing his name -" said Serefina, "look, I can't promise no one's going to get hurt, nobody can promise that, but we're much better off than we were last time. Neither of us were in the Order last time, but I know the general history of what happened. The Order were outnumbered by the Death Eaters!"

"Don't worry about Percy," said Sirius abruptly. "He'll come around. It's only a matter of time before Voldemort moves into the open; once he does the whole Ministry's going to be begging us to forgive them. And I'm not sure I'll be accepting their apology," he added bitterly.

"And as for who's going to look after Ron and Ginny if you and Arthur died," said Lupin, smiling slightly, "what do you think we'd do, let them starve?"

Mrs. Weasley smiled tremulously.

"Being silly," she muttered again, mopping her eyes.

But Phoebe, closing her bedroom door behind her and Terence some ten minutes later, could not think Mrs. Weasley silly. She could still see the image of the Boggart posing as the corpse of Harry, Hermione and each member of the Weasley family flashing before her eyes.

"Phoebe...?" said Terence touching her shoulder and leading her towards the bed on the opposite side of the room, he sat her down on the edge and sat beside her.

"I can't shake the images," Phoebe answered, clutching his hand. "Stay with me!"

She couldn't explain the reason for wanting him to stay, it wasn't because they had been interrupted earlier, or because they hadn't spent much time alone in the last few weeks, it was more to do with the fact that he kept the nightmares at bay... he kept her safe!

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Aiden didn't make an appearance this chapter because he is doing something with Elena and Jacob, he will return next chapter.

New poll on my profile. If you don't have an account then take it here:

Question: Which house(s) should Jackson and Aiden be in?

(A) Jackson - Gryffindor

(B) Aiden - Slytherin

(C) Jackson - Ravenclaw

(D) Aiden - Hufflepuff

(E) Jackson - Slytherin

(F) Aiden - Gryffindor

(G) Jackson - Hufflepuff

(H) Aiden - Ravenclaw

You are allowed to choose 2 choices. But one for Aiden and one for Jackson. You are not allowed to choose two houses for Aiden or two for Jackson. One house each, please! Thank you.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, March 26, 2012 at 04:07am**


	91. Chapter 91

**Author's Note:** its essay week! I have a deadline for Friday 30th March 2012 and the essay is a Shakespeare one. I can't wait for this year to be over so that I can choose my Creative writing modules for next year and concentrate mainly on them! Be no essays then... thank god!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Coffee and soul nutrition, Fan of Fics, Jojia** and new anonymous reviewer **Maggie May**.

**Shout outs: **A big thank you too **Ladymacaroni, GirlOnFireRockz **and **Singing-my-blues** for adding this story to their story alerts.

Also too **Singing-my-blues** I have to put dashes between your name instead of full stops because it gets deleted otherwise.

Last chance: If you haven't already go vote on which house(s) Aiden and Jackson should be in. Poll closes soon as next chapter will be the new Sorting.

* * *

><p>For once, Phoebe did not have a troubled sleep. Blake did not weave in and out of her dreams, never speaking; no Death Eaters trying to kidnap her or Voldemort sneering at her from across the prone figures of her friends and family, in fact, her dreams were relatively empty, save for Terence, but then again, he was always there.<p>

The next morning, Phoebe was awoken by Hermione shaking her shoulder roughly.

"Come on, Phoebe," the bookworm urged, "get up! Mrs. Weasley has already been in here once!"

Phoebe opened her eyes, blinked, rolled away from Hermione and buried her face into her pillow. "Five more minutes..." she croaked.

"No, Pheebs," Hermione persisted. "You have to get up now! Mrs. Weasley wasn't happy when she came in and found you and Terence in the same bed!"

"We didn't do anything!" Phoebe exclaimed, shooting up in bed and turning to her best friend.

Hermione motioned for her to be quiet. "I know you didn't," she nodded, "I know! That is what Ginny, Ashlyn and I told her, but I don't think she believes us!"

Phoebe sighed; it was then that she realized that Terence wasn't beside her. "Where is Terence?" she asked.

"His brother came in to get him about ten minutes after Mrs. Weasley left," Hermione answered. "Something has happened with Esmee..."

"What?" Phoebe questioned. "Did he say?"

The bookworm shook her head. "No, he just said to tell you that he is sorry, he wanted to be there at the station when we leave for Hogwarts, but he has to go be with his sister. He says that he will write as soon as he gets the chance and he wants you to promise that you'll be careful this year."

Phoebe nodded and then rolled out of bed, but her thoughts weren't on dressing or returning to Hogwarts, her thoughts were on Esmee Higgs and what had happened to cause such a scare.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There was a lot of commotion in the house by 10:45am.

Fred and George, of course, was the centre of the shouting. Since they had turned seventeen in the April, they had become of age and were permitted to use their magic outside of Hogwarts. But, much to their mother's displeasure, they were using their magic for the simplest of things... and this had been the root of the problem this morning.

The twins had bewitched their trunks to fly downstairs to save the bother of having to carry them, with the result that they had hurtled straight into Ginny and knocked her down two flights of stairs into the hall; Mrs. Black and Mrs. Weasley were both screaming at the top of their voices.

"- COULD HAVE DONE HER SERIOUS INJURY, YOU IDIOTS -"

"- FILTHY HALF-BREEDS, BESMIRCHING THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS -"

"Thanks," Phoebe said to Aiden as he placed a bowl of cold water on the table between her and Ginny. "Here" she took the Red-head's hand, hovered it over the water so that her own hand was completely submerged and only Ginny's fingertips were touching the liquid; then, Phoebe's eyes turned cobalt blue and the water started to churn, raising up Ginny's arms and healing her injuries.

Melissa and Henry Black, who were also present, gasped in surprise and fascination.

Aiden smiled at the twins, he knew how fascinating it must have been to watch an elemental at work. He remembered how excited and enthralled he had been when Thomas had started teaching him the basics of controlling Fire and Earth.

"There," Phoebe announced, as the water fell back into the basin and Ginny was left injury free.

"Thank you, Phoebe," Ginny smiled, looking over her arms and touching her face and head. Not even a scar was present. "I best go tell mum I am fine," she jumped to her feet and scuttled out of the room.

Melissa and Henry hurried after her.

There was a short silence at the kitchen table before the door opened and Serefina entered. "Well done, Phoebe," she nodded, "I see your powers are greatly improving. Salazar should be proud."

"He is," Phoebe nodded.

"Have you seen him since last year?" Ashlyn asked.

"Yes," Phoebe answered, "I didn't see him last night because Terence stayed with me, I don't know what he does but he manages to keep the nightmares at bay, but he also keeps me in this dimension."

Serefina smiled. "Yes. I heard that you had a sleeping buddy last night," she nodded.

Phoebe looked sheepish. "Nothing happened, Serefina, I swear it!"

"Are you sure?" Serefina teased.

"Positive," Phoebe nodded, before adding slyly "besides... I wouldn't do anything with Hermione and Ginny in the room anyway!"

"Phoebe!" Jackson, Serefina and Aiden exclaimed.

The elemental giggled.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally, after everyone and everything had been packed into their respective trunks, all animals had been caught and locked away in cages those returning to Hogwarts were ready and leaving Grimmuald place at the same time.

Mrs. Weasley had wanted to take Harry on ahead of the rest of the group, a sort of precaution, but they were running late and they simply did not have time to split up the group.

"Where's Tonks?" James said, looking around as they went down the stone steps of number twelve, which vanished the moment they reached the pavement.

"She's waiting for us just up here," said Serefina, rolling her eyes at the great black dog that was lolloping around beside Harry.

An old woman greeted them on the corner. She had tightly curled grey hair and wore a purple hat shaped like a pork pie.

"Wotcher," she said, winking. "Better hurry up, hadn't we?" she added, checking her watch.

"I know, I know," moaned Mrs. Weasley, lengthening her stride, "but Mad-Eye wanted to wait for Sturgis... if only Arthur could have got us cars from the Ministry again... but Fudge won't let him borrow so much as an empty ink bottle these days... _how_ Muggles can stand travelling without magic..."

But the great black dog gave a joyful bark and gamboled around them, snapping at pigeons and chasing his own tail. Melissa and Henry couldn't help laughing. Sirius had been trapped inside for a very long time. Mrs. Weasley pursed her lips in irritation, it didn't take a genius to realize that she did not like, nor trust, Sirius at all.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It took nearly twenty minutes to reach Kings Cross on foot and nothing more eventful happened during that time than Sirius scaring a couple of cats for the groups entertainment, and Phoebe scolding him for his inappropriate behavior towards the felines, especially when Melissa had given a fearful gasp as her father got a tad too close to one.

Once inside the station they lingered casually beside the barrier between platforms nine and ten until the coast was clear, then each of them leaned against it in turn and fell easily through on to platform nine and three-quarters, where the Hogwarts Express stood belching sooty steam over a platform packed with departing students and their families.

"Where is Alastor?" Mrs. Weasley complained, as the group of students branched out mingling with the other students, finding friends and boarding the train without proper permission to leave the platform or the group in general.

"Relax, Molly," Serefina reassured the red-head, "there he is now!"

A porter's cap pulled low over his mismatched eyes, Moody came limping through the archway pushing a trolley loaded with their trunks.

"All OK," he muttered to Mrs. Weasley, Serefina and Tonks, "don't think we were followed..."

Seconds later, Mr. Weasley emerged on the platform with the rest of his children, Hermione and Lupin.

"No trouble?" growled Moody.

"Nothing," said Lupin.

"I'll still be reporting Sturgis to Dumbledore," said Moody, "that's the second time he's not turned up in a week. Getting as unreliable as Mundungus."

"Well, look after yourselves," said Lupin, shaking hands all round. He reached Phoebe last and gave her a clap on the shoulder. "You especially, Phoebe, no running around the castle alone at night and watch over Harry!"

"Yeah, keep your head down and your eyes peeled," said Moody, shaking Phoebe's hand too. "And don't forget, all of you - careful what you put in writing. If in doubt, don't put it in at all."

"It's been great meeting all of you," said Tonks, hugging Hermione, Phoebe, Ashlyn and Ginny. "We'll see you soon, I expect."

A warning whistle sounded; the students still on the platform started hurrying on to the train.

"Quick, quick," said Mrs. Weasley distractedly, hugging them at random and catching Harry twice. "Write... be good... if you've forgotten anything we'll send it on... on to the train, now, hurry..."

For one brief moment, the great black dog reared on its hind legs and placed its front paws on Harry's shoulders, but Mrs. Weasley shoved Harry towards the train door, hissing, "For heaven's sake, act more like a dog, Sirius!"

"See you!" Harry called out of the open window as the train began to move, while Ron, Hermione, Phoebe, James and Ginny waved beside him.

The figures of Tonks, Lupin, Moody, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Serefina shrank rapidly but the black dog was bounding alongside the window, wagging its tail; blurred people on the platform were laughing to see it chasing the train, then they rounded a bend, and Sirius was gone.

"He shouldn't have come with us," whispered Hermione in a worried voice.

"Oh, lighten up," said James, "he hasn't seen daylight for months!"

"Well," said Fred, clapping his hands together, "can't stand around chatting all day, we've got business to discuss with Lee. See you later," and he and George disappeared down the corridor to the right.

The train was gathering still more speed, so that the houses outside the window flashed past, and they swayed where they stood.

"Shall we go and find a compartment, then?" Harry asked.

Ron, Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged looks.

"Er," said Ron.

"We're - well - Ron, Ashlyn and I are supposed to go into the prefect compartment," Phoebe said awkwardly, given the fact that she didn't actually sit with the Golden Trio on the trip into Hogsmeade, it still felt like she was stealing Harry's best friend, who was actually her worst enemy.

Ron, however, wasn't even looking at Harry; he seemed to have become intensely interested in the fingernails on his left hand.

"Oh," said Harry. "Right. Fine."

"I'm sure we won't be there the whole journey," Phoebe inputted quickly. "Hermione will keep you company until Ron returns..."

"What about you?" Hermione asked, looking confused.

"James will save me and Ashlyn seats when he finds Sarah and Amelia," Phoebe answered. "I'll come back to your compartment with Ron before we go find them," she promised.

The bookworm nodded, looking relatively happy.

"Why do you have to go there anyway?" James asked.

"Our letters said that we have to get instructions from the Head Boy and Girl and then patrol the corridors from time to time," Ashlyn explained.

James nodded. "Okay, well, see you later,"

He waved and hurried off down the corridor in search of Amelia and Sarah.

"Well, I - I might see you later, then," Harry said.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, definitely. It's a pain having to go down there, I'd rather - but we have to - I mean, I'm not enjoying it, I'm not Percy," he finished defiantly.

"I know you're not," said Harry and he grinned. But as Phoebe and Ron turned and walked away, Harry felt an odd sense of loss. He had never travelled on the Hogwarts Express without Ron before, yeah, he had Hermione, but it wasn't the same.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Have you guys seen Sar -" James started as the door opened exactly an hour after the train had left the station and Phoebe walked in with Ashlyn and the missing Hufflepuff "- ah?"

Sarah giggled and sat down in the corner near the window; she picked up Tango, her orange kitten and smiled fondly at James. "Sorry, I was made Hufflepuff prefect over the summer," she smiled. "I was already in the carriage when Phoebe and Ashlyn arrived!"

"Ah," James nodded. "This sucks..."

"What sucks?" Ashlyn asked.

"Three out of five of us have been given badges," James answered, "it sucks because things are going to change now! We can't stay out after hours, sneaking around from professors, because three out of five of us have permission to be out after hours!"

Ashlyn, Phoebe and Sarah exchanged looks.

"Not to mention you'll have different areas to cover," James went on. "Ash, you'll be given the dungeons to patrol. Phoebe the seventh floor and Sarah the kitchens! Wait a minute, who is the other Slytherin and Hufflepuff Prefects?"

"Ernie Macmillan," Sarah answered.

"Draco Malfoy," Ashlyn answered, without a second thought.

"What about Ravenclaw?" Amelia asked.

"Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil," said Phoebe. "Not a bad bunch, if you ask me,"

James nodded. "Except for Malfoy!"

Phoebe frowned. "Watch it," she defended, "that happens to be my brother!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather remained undecided as they travelled further and further north. Rain spattered the windows in a half-hearted way, and then the sun put in a feeble appearance before clouds drifted over it once more.

When darkness fell and lamps came on inside the carriages Phoebe and Ashlyn left the carriage to check on things in the corridor, they ran into a few friends from different houses, passed by a Slytherin compartment and were called upon by Malfoy (who was on good terms with both of them) and then carried on with their duties of steering first years back into their compartments and telling older students off for using magic in the corridors.

"How does Potter feel about being second-best to Weasley?" Draco asked Phoebe as she and Ashlyn returned from the back of the train.

"Shut up, Draco," Phoebe snapped, sharply. "Harry isn't second best to anyone!"

"Oh," Draco grinned, "already moving on are we, Phoebe?"

Phoebe glared at him. "Take that back!" she snapped. "You know that I love no one other than Terence!"

"How is dear old Higgs?" Pansy smirked.

"What's it to you, Pug?"

Pansy glared. "Drakie!"

"Oh, shut up!" Draco snapped at her.

Pansy looked hurt before glaring at Phoebe, it was clear that she blamed the Gryffindor for Draco's attitude towards her. "Why don't you just go back to your lion friends, Blackheart?"

"Aw, is the Pug jealous of me..." Phoebe teased. "Pathetic! You'd think by now you'd realize that Draco obviously doesn't care about you! He simply tolerates you! Why else do you think he has put up with you for so long? It's not because he is madly in love with you, Pugface!"

If possible, Pansy glared harder.

"Come on Pheebs," Ashlyn said, pulling her best friend away from the compartment. "See you at Hogwarts, Draco."

Draco nodded and watched as his partner and sister disappeared down the hallway, when they were out of sight he turned to Pansy. "Do not do that again!" he snapped.

"Do what?" Pansy asked, looking confused.

"Involve yourself in things that do not concern you," Draco answered, harshly. "What happens between Phoebe and I is our business! It will do you well to remember your place, Parkinson!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

At last, the train began to slow down and they heard the usual racket up and down it as everybody scrambled to get their luggage and pets assembled, ready to get off. As Ashlyn, Phoebe and Sarah were supposed to supervise all this; they disappeared from the carriage again to find their respective prefect partners, leaving Amelia and James to make their way off on their own.

Jackson and Aiden, being new to Hogwarts, followed Phoebe out onto the platform where the cold September air stung their faces and they could smell the pine trees that lined the path down to the lake. Jackson stepped down onto the platform after Phoebe and looked around.

"Please tell me we do not have to cross the lake," he said, looking at Phoebe.

The elemental giggled at the idea of Jackson and Aiden surrounded by a bunch of first years. "No," she answered, shaking her head, "normally you would, but I have had special instructions from Serefina to take you up to the castle via the carriages."

"Cool," Aiden nodded, thankful too that he did not have to cross the lake with a bunch of eleven year old kids.

A lantern came swinging towards them and by its light Phoebe saw her godmother waving for the first years to follow her. "First-years line up over here, please! All first-years to me!"

"Where's Hagrid?" Harry asked, appearing on the platform a few feet away.

"I don't know," Phoebe told him, she knew it was a total lie but she had been sworn to secrecy by Dumbledore not to tell anyone, especially Harry, what had been discussed in the Order meetings. Hagrid's current situation was one of the discussion topics. "You better move on, Harry, you're blocking the door!"

"Oh, yeah..."

Harry, Ginny and Hermione hurried off up the platform, becoming separated in throng of students.

"That's all of them," Ashlyn announced as she and Draco appeared behind Phoebe and Ron, as Ernie and Sarah arrived soon after. "All first years have gone with Professor Blackheart..."

"I wonder where Hagrid is?" Sarah questioned. "Phoebe, do you know?"

Phoebe shook her head. "Not a clue," she shrugged, "come on, the carriages will be packed if we don't hurry!"

Ron gave Draco a nasty look before hurrying off to find Harry and Hermione.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned to Ashlyn and the others. "I love the fact that I have been made Prefect... but why did Dumbledore give Ron a badge too?" she complained. "This year is not going to be fun if I have to be stuck with him for patrol,"

"We'll see if we can have inter-house patrol," Ashlyn smiled, wrapping her arm around her best friend's shoulders. "Maybe then you can patrol with me or Sarah..."

"What about me?" Draco asked. "She's my sister!"

"True," Sarah nodded. "But how can we be sure that you won't try and harm her? You already tried to break her and Terence up!"

"I didn't mean for that to happen," Draco answered, "it just did! It wasn't my fault! I thought she would have at least told him!"

Phoebe shook her head. "I didn't want anyone to know," she answered, "Father has a bad reputation and you see how people treat you..."

"I thought you didn't care about reputation," Draco smirked.

"It's not the reputation I hate," Phoebe answered, "it's what people will do to make sure that their reputation isn't tarnished. That is what I fight for! When I say reputation isn't everything, I mean it! Reputation _isn't_ everything... at least not to me."

Ernie nodded. "That is why you were upset when the school turned against you last year," he pointed out.

Phoebe glared. "I didn't care that the whole school had turned against me," she answered, sourly. "I couldn't believe that my friends, most specifically, my boyfriend, refused to listen whenever I tried to explain the truth to them! I could care less what the rest of the school thinks about me!"

Ernie nodded. "Well, I think we better get going," he pointed over his shoulder at the carriages. "Or we'll be walking up to the school."

The five other prefects nodded and hurried over to the carriages that were pulled by horseless - or in Phoebe's case - Thestrals. Since they were pretty much the last ones in Hogsmeade, seeing as Jackson and Aiden had gone on ahead with Harry and Hermione, they clambered into the last remaining carriage and started the journey up the hill towards their home for the next year.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, March 29, 2012 at 02:50am**


	92. Chapter 92

**Author's Note:** So... is everyone ready to find out which houses Jackson and Aiden end up in? They may come as bits of a surprise to some who have already have visions of certain houses based on the character's personalities and the house traits.

**Author's Note Two: **Happy Birthday Fred and George! Lol! Sorry... couldn't resist.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics** and **GirlOnFireRockz**. =( - Where did everyone go?

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Ava-Sapphire-Clearwater** for adding this story to their story alert. And too **Gaara'sLover95** for adding this story to their favourite story and their story alert. Very much appreciated.

* * *

><p>The Entrance Hall was ablaze with torches and echoing with footsteps as the students crossed the flagged stone table for the double doors to the right, leading to the Great Hall and the start-of-term feast.<p>

The four long house tables in the Great Hall were filling up under the starless black ceiling, which was just like the sky they could glimpse through the high windows.

Candles floated in midair all along the tables, illuminating the silvery ghosts who were dotted about the Hall and the faces of the students talking eagerly, exchanging summer news, shouting greetings at friends from other houses, eyeing one another's new haircuts and robes.

Bidding goodbye to Ashlyn and Phoebe, Ernie took Sarah by the arm and lead her away towards the Hufflepuff table leaving the Gryffindor and two Slytherin's in the middle of the Great Hall doors.

"I best go find James," Phoebe said, scanning the Gryffindor table for her best friend. She found him sitting not that far away from Harry, Ron and Hermione, and he seemed to be saving her a seat, seeing as there was an empty space beside him. "I shall see you tomorrow for lessons?"

Ashlyn nodded. "Meet you in the Entrance Hall after breakfast?" she suggested. "We'll compare timetables and see what lessons we have together."

"We can also compare our Prefects times," Phoebe nodded, starting to walk backwards towards the Gryffindor's. "Goodnight. Sleep tight."

"You too," Ashlyn smiled, as she watched Phoebe hurrying along the isle towards James and take her seat beside him. She then turned to Draco and motioned to the Slytherin table. "Let's go find seats!"

Draco nodded and led the way towards two empty spaces between Daphne and Goyle.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile at the Hufflepuff table, Sarah and Amelia were in deep conversation with their Hufflepuff friends upon who the new teacher sitting at the staff table was. It was a squat woman, with short, curly, mouse-brown hair in which she had placed a horrible pink Alice band that matched the fluffy pink cardigan she wore over her robes.

"I wonder who she is?" Sarah whispered.

"Her name is Dolores Umbridge," said Susan Bones. "She works at the Ministry. My aunt says she isn't a very nice person."

"Why is she here at Hogwarts?" Justin Finch-Fletchley asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Amelia asked. "She's got to be our new Defence Against the Dark's professor!"

Sarah frowned. "But she works for Fudge!"

"Yeah," Amelia nodded. "I wonder why a Ministry official would want to be a Professor, especially in a school that Fudge thinks has gone to the dogs."

Susan shrugged. She knew quite a bit about what happened at the Ministry, due to the fact that her aunt worked there as part of the Court, the same court that had trailed Harry Potter over the summer, but she didn't know the answers to why a Ministry official would take a teaching job at Hogwarts.

It was only when Professor Serefina Blackheart took appeared behind the staff table, worked her way along to the very end and took her seat did silence fall as the other students realized that the first years had crossed the lake and reached the castle; the sorting was about to begin.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Any idea on which house Aiden and Jackson will be in?" James asked, turning to Phoebe as they watched Professor McGonagall lead a long line of scared looking first years down the aisle between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. Professor McGonagall was carrying a stool on which sat an ancient wizard's hat, heavily patched and darned with a wide rip near the frayed brim.

Phoebe shook her head. "Not a clue," she answered. "Jackson could be put in Slytherin because he was a Durmstrang, but he also has the traits of a Gryffindor. Aiden, he could be a Slytherin because he is cunning and ambitious... But he is also intelligent and creative."

The first years lined up in front of the staff table facing the rest of the students, and Professor McGonagall placed the stool carefully in front of them, then stood back.

The whole school waited with bated breath. Then the rip near the hat's brim opened wide like a mouth and the Sorting Hat burst into song:

_In times of old when I was new_

_And Hogwarts barely started_

_The founders of our noble school_

_Thought never to be parted:_

_United by a common goal,_

_They had the selfsame yearning._

_To make the world's best magic school_

_And pass along their learning._

_"Together we will build and teach!"_

_The four good friends decided_

_And never did they dream that they_

_Might someday be divided,_

_For were there such friends anywhere_

_As Slytherin and Gryffindor?_

_Unless it was the second pair_

_Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?_

_So how could it have gone so wrong?_

_How could such friendships fail?_

_Why, I was there and so can tell_

_The whole sad, sorry tale._

_Said Slytherin, "We'll teach those whose_

_Whose ancestry is purest."_

_Said Ravenclaw, "We'll teach those whose_

_Intelligence is surest."_

_Said Gryffindor, "We'll teach all those_

_With brave deeds to their name."_

_Said Hufflepuff, "I'll teach the lot,_

_And treat them just the same."_

_Those differences caused little strife_

_When first they came to light,_

_For each of the four founders had_

_A house in which they might_

_Take only those they wanted, so,_

_For instance, Slytherin_

_Took only pureblood wizards_

_Of great cunning, just like him,_

_And only those of sharpest mind_

_Were taught by Ravenclaw_

_While the bravest and the boldest_

_Went to daring Gryffindor._

_Good Hufflepuff, she took the rest,_

_And taught them all she knew._

_Thus the houses and their founders_

_Retained friendship firm and true._

_So Hogwarts worked in harmony_

_For several happy years,_

_But then discord crept among us_

_Feeding on our faults and fears,_

_The houses that, like pillars four,_

_Had once held up our school,_

_Now turned upon each other and,_

_Divided, sought to rule._

_And for a while it seemed the school_

_Must meet an early end._

_What with dueling and with fighting_

_And the clash of friend on friend_

_And at last there came a morning_

_When old Slytherin departed_

_And although the fighting then died out_

_He left us quite downhearted._

_And never since the founders four_

_Were whittled down to three_

_Have the houses been united_

_As they once were meant to be._

_And now the Sorting Hat is here_

_And you all know the score:_

_I sort you into houses_

_Because that is what I'm for,_

_But this year I'll go further,_

_Listen closely to my song:_

_Though condemned I am to split you_

_Still I worry that it's wrong,_

_Though I must fulfill my duty_

_And must quarter every year_

_Still I wonder whether Sorting_

_May not bring the end I fear._

_Oh, know the perils, read the signs,_

_The warning history shows,_

_For our Hogwarts is in danger_

_From external, deadly foes_

_And we must unite inside her_

_Or we'll crumble from within_

_I have told you, I have warned you..._

_Let the Sorting now begin._

The Hat became motionless once more; applause broke out, though it was punctured, for the first time in Phoebe's memory, with muttering and whispers. All across the Great Hall students were exchanging remarks with their neighbors, and Phoebe, clapping along with everyone else, knew exactly what they were talking about.

"Branched out a bit this year, hasn't it?" said James.

Phoebe nodded, "Although it has a point," she answered. "Without unity we don't stand a chance against Voldemort and his Death Eaters!"

"You're not implying we be friends with Slytherin!"

"You're already friends with Slytherin!" Phoebe remarked. "Ashlyn and Terence are Slytherin's!"

James waved her off. Ashlyn and Terence were special circumstances. But before he could say anything in return, Professor McGonagall was calling for silence.

"Before we start with the Sorting," she said as the mutterings came to an abrupt end. "I would like to inform each and every one of you, that we have two new students to Hogwarts. Both of whom, while this being their first year at Hogwarts; will be entering their fifth and seventh year at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They will be sorted after the First years."

Professor McGonagall then lowered her eyes to her long piece of parchment and called out the first name.

"Abercrombie, Euan."

A terrified-looking boy stumbled forwards and put the Hat on his head; it was only prevented from falling right down to his shoulders by his very prominent ears. The Hat considered for a moment, and then the rip near the brim opened again and shouted:

_"GRYFFINDOR!"_

Phoebe clapped loudly with the rest of Gryffindor house as Euan Abercrombie staggered to their table and sat down, looking as though he would like very much to sink through the floor and never be looked at again.

Slowly, the long line of first-years thinned. In the pauses between the names and the Sorting Hat's decisions, Phoebe could hear Ron's stomach rumbling loudly. Finally, "Zeller, Rose," was Sorted into Hufflepuff, and Professor McGonagall looked up at the rest of the school.

"Now, if you could wait a few more minutes," she called, "we will sort the Fifth and Seventh year students. Chamberlain, Aiden."

Phoebe turned in her seat and smiled as she spotted her half-brother make his way down the aisle from the back of the room, he did not look as nervous as the first years and merely kept his gaze on the wall behind the staff table. He reached the Sorting Hat, sat down on the three-legged stool and the hat was placed upon his head.

There was slight pause and Phoebe knew that the Hat was trying to distinguish which traits of Aiden's were stronger. Having spent several weeks with her half-brother, getting to know him, Phoebe was aware that he, just like her, held traits that could have placed him within all four houses at Hogwarts.

Finally, the rip near the brim opened and shouted:

_"SLYTHERIN!"_

The Slytherin house burst into applause as Aiden made his way towards them, Phoebe could just make out Ashlyn cheering from beside Adrian, she stood slightly and made room for Aiden on the bench beside her, mostly to welcome him to Slytherin house, but also so that he didn't have to sit alone.

Phoebe smiled although Slytherin wouldn't have been the first choice she would have made for Aiden.

"Well, that was a surprise," James muttered.

Phoebe nodded. "I agree,"

"Stream, Jackson!" Professor McGonagall called, once the cheering from Slytherin had calmed down.

Just like Aiden had done, Jackson made his way down isle from the back of the room, and sat down upon the three-legged stood as the hat was placed over his head.

"Decision time," James whispered. "Gryffindor or Slytherin?"

"I don't know," Phoebe answered, watching her best friend apprehensively. She wanted him to be in Gryffindor with her, but she also knew that it wasn't up to her, if the Sorting Hat didn't believe that Jackson had the Gryffindor trait, and then he was subjected to put him somewhere else.

Five minutes passed before the rip in the brim opened wide and shouted:

_"GRYFFINDOR!"_

Phoebe shot to her feet and threw her arms around Jackson as he made his way towards her, whilst the rest of her house cheered and applauded. It wasn't until Jackson and Phoebe had retaken their seats and Dumbledore had risen to his feet did the applause die down.

"To our newcomers," said Dumbledore in a ringing-voice, his arms stretched wide and a beaming smile on his lips, "welcome! To our old hands - welcome back! There is a time for speech-making, but this is not it. Tuck in!"

There was an appreciative laugh and an outbreak of applause as Dumbledore sat down neatly and threw his long beard over his shoulder so as to keep it out of the way of his plate - for food had appeared out of nowhere, so that the five long tables were groaning under joints and pies and dishes of vegetables, bread and sauces and flagons of pumpkin juice.

"Excellent," said Ron from a few seats away, and he seized the nearest plate of chops and began piling them onto his plate, watched wistfully by Nearly Headless Nick.

Ignoring the red head, Phoebe turned to Jackson instead, and decided now was the time to ask why the Sorting Hat had taken so long to sort him.

"Well," started Jackson, "it couldn't work through my traits. It said that my most strong traits screamed Slytherin, but I also had strong traits that screamed Gryffindor. He said that I was rather difficult to place, there had only been one other difficult student and that had been you! Am I to believe that you have traits that could place you within all four houses?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "I expect he said the said to Aiden, too!"

"Why do you say that?" James asked.

"Because Aiden is just like me," Phoebe answered.

James nodded in understanding and went back to his dinner as Jackson and Phoebe spoke, for a short amount of time, in Portugese, it was easier to stop people, who were listening in, from understanding the main part of their conversation, which was solely based upon Draco and Aiden being in the same house and Aiden striking a resemblance to Lucius Malfoy.

"_I haven't told Draco anything,"_ Phoebe said. _"Maybe he will work it out himself."_

_"He'd have to be stupid to not see the resemblance,"_ Jackson said, glancing over his shoulder to where Aiden was sitting chatting with Ashlyn. "_Hey, isn't that Pucey? The one Ashlyn was worried about this past summer?"_

Phoebe followed his gaze, a smile adorning her features as she spotted the familiar dark-haired wizard sitting beside Ashlyn. It was in fact, Adrian Pucey. _"He's looking better than expected,"_

_"Maybe Voldemort didn't harm him?"_

_"I highly doubt that,"_ Phoebe answered. "_I mean, he helped Ashlyn escape, he is probably a traitor now! I just hope he wasn't punished to severely."_

Jackson nodded, before his thoughts switched to Blake. He winced, causing Phoebe to frown at him.

_"Are you okay...?"_

_"Yeah,"_ Jackson nodded. "_I was just thinking about Blake..."_

The smile on Phoebe's face slipped away, and she lowered her head as tears appeared.

"_I'm sorry, Phe,"_ Jackson apologized, taking her hand and squeezing it. "_I didn't mean to upset you. I don't even know why I was thinking about him..."_

Phoebe nodded, brushed away the tears that had formed and then raised her head, her smile back on her face. "_It's okay... I forgive you!"_

Jackson smiled, squeezed her hand again and returned to his food.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When all the students had finished eating and the noise level in the Hall was starting to creep upwards again. Dumbledore got to his feet once more. Talking ceased immediately as all turned to face the Headmaster, and Phoebe had to resist the urge to yawn as she was starting to feel drowsy, with Jackson sitting in front of her, she leaned forward and rested her head comfortably on his shoulder.

"_Tired?"_ he whispered.

"_Extremely,"_

Jackson smiled and shifted slightly so that he was sitting with his back to the Gryffindor table, and Phoebe was able to slid forward and lay her head on his chest, he secured his arm around her shoulders just like he used to do when they were kids.

"Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices," said Dumbledore. "First-years ought to know that the Forest - and a few of our older students ought to know that now, too."

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder at Harry to see him exchanging smirks with Ron and Hermione, normally she would have fallen into that category too, but she had special permission off of Dumbledore to enter the Forest, so she wasn't classed as a rule breaker for that particular rule.

"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four-hundred-and-sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr. Filch's office door."

James glanced across at Phoebe. "Who'd be dull enough to go looking for that list?" he asked.

"Who'd be dull enough to even pay _attention_ to that list?" Phoebe countered.

"True,"

"We have had two changes in staffing this year," Dumbledore continued, "Professor Serefina Blackheart will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons full time, while Professor Hagrid is on leave. We are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."

There was a sound of polite but fairly unenthusiastic applause.

Dumbledore continued, "Tryouts for the house Quidditch teams will take place on the -"

He broke off, looking enquiringly at Professor Umbridge. As she was not much taller standing than sitting, there was a moment when nobody understood why Dumbledore had stopped talking but then Professor Umbridge cleared her throat, "_Hem, hem,"_ and it became clear that she had got to her feet and was intending to make a speech.

Dumbledore only looked taken aback for a moment, and then he sat down smartly and looked alertly at Professor Umbridge as though he desired nothing better than to listen to her talk. Other members of staff were not as adept at hiding their surprise.

Professor Sprout's eyebrows had disappeared into her flyaway hair, Professor McGonagall's mouth was as thin as never before and Professor Blackheart was glaring at Umbridge for her intrusion. No new teacher had ever interrupted Dumbledore before. Many of the students were smirking; this woman obviously did not know how things were done at Hogwarts.

"Thank you, Headmaster," Professor Umbridge simpered, "for those kind words of welcome."

Her voice was high-pitched, breathy and little-girlish and Phoebe felt an instant rush of dislike towards her.

"Well, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts, I must say!" She smiled, revealing very pointed teeth. "And to see such happy little faces looking up at me!"

Phoebe glanced around. None of the faces she could see looked happy. On the contrary, they all looked rather taken-aback at being addressed as though they were five years old.

"I am very much looking forward to getting to know you all and I'm sure we'll be very good friends!"

Students exchanged looks at this; some of them were barely concealing grins.

Professor Umbridge cleared her throat again ('_hem, hem_'), but when she continued, some of the breathiness had vanished from her voice. She sounded much more businesslike and now her words had a dull learned-by-heart sound to them.

"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instructions. The ancient skill unique to the Wizarding community must be passed down the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching."

Professor Umbridge paused here and made a little bow to her fellow staff members, none of whom bowed back to her. Professor McGonagall's dark eyebrows had contracted so that she looked positively hawklike, and Phoebe distinctly saw her exchange a significant glance with Serefina as Umbridge gave another little _'hem, hem'_ and went on with her speech.

"Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts has brought something new to the weightily tasks of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be a stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between performance and change, between tradition and innovation..."

Despite having been approved as a new authority figure at Hogwarts, Phoebe couldn't help but nod-off on Jackson's shoulder. Her eyes had adorned a glassy-look and were starting to slowly close with each word that Umbridge was speaking; and she wasn't the only one who was nodding off or getting distracted.

The quiet that always filled the Hall when Dumbledore was speaking was breaking up as students put their heads together, whispering and giggling.

Over at the Slytherin table, Ashlyn, although like Phoebe had been approved as a new authority figure, was chatting with Adrian, no doubt asking him what had happened at his manor after he had helped her escape.

At the Ravenclaw table, Cho Chang was also chatting with her friends, while over at the Hufflepuff table Amelia Winchester was trying very hard not to fall asleep in her seat, she was finding it rather difficult seeing as Sarah kept poking her in the side every time she dropped off.

Professor Umbridge did not seem to notice the restlessness of her audience. Jackson had the impression that a full-scale riot could have broken out under her nose and she would have ploughed on with her speech.

The teachers, however, were still listening very attentively, and Hermione seemed to be drinking in every word Umbridge spoke, though, judging by her expression, they were not at all to her taste.

"... Because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognized as errors of judgment. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outmoded and outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning whatever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."

She sat down. Dumbledore clapped. The staff followed his lead, though one or two of them only brought their hands together for one or two short claps and then stopped. A few students joined in, but most had been taken unawares by the end of the speech, not having listened to more than a few words of it, and before they could start applauding properly, Dumbledore had stood up again.

"Thank you very much, Professor Umbridge, that was most illuminating," he said, bowing to her. "Now, as I was saying, Quidditch tryouts will be held..."

But Phoebe drowned out the rest of Dumbledore's voice, only to return to her senses as Jackson jostled her awake after the Headmaster had finished speaking.

"Stop moving me," she grumbled.

"Come on, Phe," Jackson chuckled. "You've got to take the first years up to Gryffindor tower. You can sleep then."

Shaking her head, Phoebe rubbed her eyes, nodded and jumped to her feet. "I'll meet you in the common room," she told James, who nodded and made his way towards Harry and Hermione, as Ron followed Phoebe to the end of the Gryffindor table and started to lead the first years out of the Great Hall.

"Hey - hey, you lot! Midgets!" Ron was calling.

"_Ron!"_

"Well, they are, they're titchy..."

"I know," Phoebe agreed, "but you can't call them midgets! - First year Gryffindor's! Follow me, please!"

A group of new students walked shyly up the gap between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables, all of them trying hard not to lead the group. They did indeed seem very small; James was sure he had not appeared that young when he had arrived here. He grinned at them.

"I'll see you later," Harry muttered, grabbing Hermione's arm and pulling her from the Hall.

"Harry!" Phoebe called after him, "Harry, wait!"

Harry stopped and turned back as the elemental approached him. "Yeah...?" he asked, sounding almost hopeful about something.

"You need the password," Phoebe smiled.

"Oh, yeah," Harry nodded, deflating slightly. He didn't know why he was feeling disappointed, but the way she had called his name and chased him from the Great Hall gave him the same feeling he had received when they kissed last year.

Phoebe, however, didn't pick up on any of the signs and simply said, "It's _Mimbulus mimbletonia!_ I'll see you in the common room," she smiled and turned back to the First years who were exiting the Great Hall with Ron and Jackson.

"... but how could you fail to? You've just become a part of the best house in the school!" Ron finished. Phoebe glared at him, although she had not heard the full speech, she knew that it couldn't have been good if he was comparing Gryffindor to the other houses and calling it the best on within the castle.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Gryffindor common room looked as welcoming as ever, a cozy circular tower room full of dilapidated squashy armchairs and rickety old tables. A fire was crackling merrily in the grate and a few people were warming their hands by it before going up to their dormitories; on the other side of the room Fred and George were pining something up on the noticeboard, oblivious to the fact that Phoebe and Ron had arrived with the first years.

"What are you two doing?" Phoebe called to them.

The twins jumped and spun around. "Nothing! Goodnight Phoebe!" they answered together, causing Phoebe to narrow her eyes as they dashed upstairs to their dorm rooms. Crossing the room, Phoebe removed the advertisement they had just put up, rolled it into a ball and tossed it into the fire.

"What was that?" Ron asked.

"They want first years," Phoebe answered.

Jackson frowned. "They want first years for what?" he asked, looking curious.

"For testers," the elemental answered. "I won't allow them to test their products on first years! They can use themselves and Lee Jordan, I can't stop them from doing that, but they will not endanger the lives of new students!"

Ron shook his head. "They're not going to like that," he pointed out.

"Tough," Phoebe answered, turning to the still nervous first years behind the red head. "This is the Gryffindor Common room. My name is Phoebe Blackheart! Now, if throughout the year you are having any trouble adjusting to the school or just need someone to talk to, you are more than welcome to come find myself, I will do everything I can to help you," she smiled. "Now, you all must be tired! Ron, will you show the boys where they will be sleeping? Girls, if you will follow me, then I will show you where your dormitories are."

Euan Abercrombie stepped forward, shyly. "What about our belongings?" he asked.

Phoebe smiled. "You will find that your belongings have already been brought up," she nodded. "Sweet dreams. See you all in the Great Hall for breakfast."

She bid Jackson a goodnight and led the female first years up into the girl's dormitories, leaving Jackson and Ron in the common room with the boys.

"Well, come on then," Ron said, motioning for them to follow him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe yawned as she stripped down to her underwear and slid under the sheets, she was too tired to rummage around in her trunk for her pyjamas.

"What do you make of Umbridge's speech?" Hermione asked she was lying on her back staring at the canopy of her bed.

"If i'm truly honest, Hermione, I kind of blanked her out," Phoebe answered. "Why, was there anything important in her waffles?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes,"

"Like?"

"How about: 'progress for progress's sake must be discouraged'? How about: 'pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited'?"

Phoebe sat up slightly in bed and looked across at her best friend, she may not have paid attention much to Umbridge's speech, but now she understood the basics of what had been said without hearing it all in detail. Hermione painted a very grim picture with just a few words and phrases.

"So, what does it mean?" Parvati, who had sat up and was listening intently, asked.

"It means," Phoebe said, "that the Ministry is interfering at Hogwarts!"

Parvati and Lavender exchanged looks, as Hermione and Phoebe did the same. While none of the latter knew whether or not the former believed Harry when he said that Voldemort had returned, not that they cared if they didn't, at least they were aware that the Ministry had sent an official to basically spy on them!

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile, over in the boy's dorms, things were becoming slightly more heated.

"Hi," said Harry, moving across the room to his trunk and opening it.

"Hey, Harry," said Dean, who was putting on a pair of pyjamas in the West Ham colours. "Good holiday?"

"Not bad," muttered Harry, as a true account of his holiday would have taken most of the night to relate and he could not face it. "You?"

"Yeah, it was okay," chuckled Dean. "Better than Seamus's, anyway, he was just telling me."

"Why, what happened, Seamus?" James asked, pulling his own pyjamas over his head.

Seamus did not answer immediately; he was making rather a meal of ensuring that his poster of the Kenmare Kestrels Quidditch team was quite straight. Then he said, with his back still turned to Harry, "Me mam didn't want me to come back."

"What?" said Harry, pausing in the act of pulling off his robes.

"She didn't want me to come back to Hogwarts."

Seamus turned away from his poster and pulled his own pyjamas out of his trunk, still not looking at Harry.

"But - why?" said Harry, astonished. He knew that Seamus's mother was a witch and could not understand, therefore, why she should have come over so Dursleyish.

Seamus did not answer until he had finished buttoning his pyjamas.

"Well," he said in a measured voice, "I suppose... because of you."

"What d'you mean?" said Harry quickly.

His heart was beating rather fast. He felt vaguely as though something was closing in on him.

"Well," said Seamus again, still avoiding Harry's eye, "she... er... well, it's not just you, it's Dumbledore, too..."

"She believes the _Daily Prophet_?" said Harry. "She thinks I'm a liar and Dumbledore's an old fool?"

Seamus looked up at him.

"Yeah, something like that."

Harry said nothing. He threw his wand down on to his wand down on to his bedside table, pulled off his robes, stuffed them angrily into his trunk and pulled on his pyjamas. He was sick of it; sick of being the person who is stared at and talked about all the time. If any of them knew if any of them had the faintest idea about what it felt like to be the one all these things happened to...

_**Mrs. Finnigan has no idea, the stupid woman!**_ He thought savagely.

"Look... what _did_ happen that night when... you know, when... with Blake Brooks and all?"

Seamus sounded nervous and eager at the same time. James, who had been in the process of pulling the hangings closed around him, went oddly still and Harry knew that he was listening hard.

"What are you asking me for?" Harry retorted. "Just read the _Daily Prophet_ like your mother, why don't you? That'll tell you all you need to know."

"Don't you have a go at my mother," Seamus snapped.

"I'll have a go at anyone who calls me a liar," said Harry.

"Don't talk to me like that!"

"I'll talk to you how I want," said Harry, his temper rising so fast he snatched his wand back from his bedside table. "If you've got a problem sharing a dormitory with me, go and ask McGonagall if you can be moved... stop your mummy worrying -"

"Leave my mother out of this, Potter!"

"What's going on?"

Ron and Jackson had appeared in the doorway. Jackson's eyes were side as they travelled from Harry, who was kneeling on his bed with his wand pointing at Seamus, to Seamus, who was standing there with his fists raised.

"He's having a go at my mother!" Seamus yelled.

"What?" said Ron. "Harry wouldn't do that - we met your mother, we liked her..."

"That's before she started believing every word the stinking _Daily Prophet_ writes about me!" said Harry at the top of his voice.

"Oh," said Ron, comprehension dawning across his freckled face. "Oh... right."

"You know what?" said Seamus heatedly, casting Harry a venomous look. "He's right, I don't want to share a dormitory with him anymore, he's mad."

"That's out of order, Seamus," said Ron, whose ears were starting to glow red - always a danger sign.

"Out of order, am I?" shouted Seamus, who in contrast to Ron was going pale. "You believe all the rubbish he's coming out with about You-Know-Who, do you; you reckon he's telling the truth?"

"Yeah, I do!" said Ron angrily.

Seamus glared and turned on Jackson. "What about you? Do you believe him?"

"One of my best friends was killed that night," Jackson answered. "I know that Harry wouldn't have killed Blake! Blake's death tore Phoebe apart and I know that Harry cares too much about Phoebe to tear her apart like that, so, yes, I too believe Harry when he says that Voldemort has returned."

"Then you're both mad, too," said Seamus in disgust.

Jackson clenched his hands tightly into fists. Blake's death had hit him just as hard as it had done Phoebe, so for Seamus to call him mad in believing that Voldemort had returned and Blake's death was nothing but a mere accident was making him angry.

Thankfully enough, Ron intervened before he could react.

"Yeah? Well, unfortunately for you, pal, I'm also a prefect!" the red head said, jabbing himself in the chest with a finger. "So unless you want detention, watch your mouth!"

Seamus looked for a few seconds as though detention would be a reasonable price to pay to say what was going through his mind; but with a noise of contempt he turned on his heel, vaulted into bed and pulled the hangings shut with such violence that they ripped from the bed and fell in a dusty pile to the floor.

Ron glared at Seamus, and then looked at Dean and Neville.

"Anyone else's parents got a problem with Harry?" he said aggressively.

"My parents are Muggles, mate," said Dean, shrugging. "They don't know anything about any deaths at Hogwarts, because I'm not stupid enough to tell them."

"You don't know my mother," snapped Seamus. "She'd weasel anything out of anyone! Anyway, your parents don't get the _Daily Prophet_. They don't know our Headmaster's been sacked from the Wizengamot and the International Confederation of Wizards because he's losing his marbles -"

"My gran says that's rubbish," piped up Neville. "She says it's the _Daily Prophet_ that's going downhill, not Dumbledore. She's cancelled our subscription. We believe Harry," he added simply. He climbed into bed and pulled the covers up to his chin, looking owlishly over them at Seamus. "My gran's always said You-Know-Who would come back one day. She says if Dumbledore says he's back, then he's back."

Harry felt a rush of gratitude towards Neville.

Nobody else said anything. Seamus got out his wand, repaired the bed hangings and vanished behind them. Dean got into bed, rolled over and fell silent. Neville, who appeared to have nothing more to say either, was gazing fondly at his moonlit cactus that was on his bedside table, James nodded at Harry, Ron and Jackson, pulled back his curtains and settled down for the night.

Harry lay back on his pillows while Ron left the room with Jackson to show him where he would be sleeping.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You're Blackheart's friend, aren't you?" said a boy with dreadlocks. "Jackson Stream, right?"

Jackson nodded. "Yeah. I'm going to take a guess and say you're Lee Jordan!" he answered.

The boy nodded. "How'd you know?"

"Phoebe told me," Jackson explained. "Also I know Fred and George, having just spent the summer with them... who else could you be?"

Lee smirked. "True. So, how come you're not at Durmstrang for your final year?"

"Couldn't handle being there," Jackson answered, "not while everything reminds me of Blake..."

He broke off.

Lee, Fred and George exchanged looks. They knew that the topic of Blake Brook's death was hard on Phoebe, but neither had taken the time to consider how it had affected Jackson. It was a wonder why though, considering Blake and Jackson had never gone anywhere without one another last year, and they were more like brothers than they had been best friends.

"I think i'm going to go to bed now," Jackson told them, nodding politely. "Goodnight."

"Night," the twins and Lee nodded.

Jackson bustled around the room, putting away their things. Jackson's bed was beside Lee's, near the dormitory door and across from George's. He pulled off his robes, stuffed them into his trunk and pulled on his pyjamas, slid under the crisp white sheets and pulled back the hangings.

It was going to take some time getting used to being a Gryffindor as opposed to a Durmstrang, but he knew that if he had Phoebe at his side the change would go exceptionally normal - well, as normal as normal could be!

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, April 01, 2012 at 01:36am**


	93. Chapter 93

**Author's Note: **Don't know what to say here... um... I could say that I do not own Harry Potter except for the OCs and anything you don't recognize. But you already knew that. So... yup... nothing to say... onto the chapter I guess.

**Dedications:** (Fortunately, I do have something to say here...) Chapter goes out to those who reviewed last: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia** and** Fan of Fics**. Never fail to review. Love you guys! Awesome!

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Eldeweiss** for adding this story to their Favourite story. Very much appreciated.

* * *

><p>"Yeah, well why don't you learn to keep your big mouth shut, Brown!" Phoebe snapped, as she stood in the middle of the girls dormitories the next morning. She knew that it wasn't appropriate behavior for a Prefect, but Lavender had been mouthing off about Harry from the moment her eyes had opened and finally worked the elemental's last good nerve.<p>

Lavender paused at the dormitory door, gave Phoebe a cold look, before turning toe and disappearing down into the common room.

"Bitch!" the elemental muttered as she resumed dressing, ignoring both Hermione and Parvati that were left in the room. To hear Lavender siding against Harry and Dumbledore and claiming that Voldemort's return was nothing more than a game that Harry had invented to get more attention was causing tension to build between just about everyone within the Gryffindor tower.

But what was worse? Lavender was claiming that Blake's death had been an accident, that he has miss-judged his magic and been killed with his own wayward spell, that just rubbed Phoebe the wrong way completely.

"Blake didn't die at his own hand!" Phoebe growled, as she grabbed a pair of pyjamas from her trunk and placed them on top of her pillows for that night. "He was murdered! He was a strong wizard; he knew what he was doing when he entered that competition! And he wasn't stupid enough to cast the Killing Curse!"

"Are you sure?" Parvati said awkwardly. "I mean, how can you be certain - he was a Durmstrang, after all - he could've -"

"He was not an imbecile!" Phoebe snapped, as the foundation of the room started to shake. "Blake didn't kill himself! He wasn't a dark wizard! He was my friend!"

Hermione looked panicked before quickly ushering Parvati from the room and slamming the door. "Phoebe, she didn't mean -"

"Yes, she did!" Phoebe yelled, gripping her wand tightly in her hand. "She meant _exactly_ what she had implied! She believes that Blake was a dark wizard because he went to a school for Dark Arts! That he killed himself and let Harry take the fall!"

"I know," Hermione nodded fervently. "But Phoebe -"

"That didn't happen!" Phoebe yelled. "It didn't happen! Blake... Harry... it didn't happen..."

The elemental broke off into a flurry of sobs and sank to her knees; her face buried in her hands as she dropped her wand and allowed it to roll under the bed.

Hurrying across the room, Hermione wrapped her arms around her best friend and held her as she cried. "I know..." the bookworm whispered, as Phoebe continued to mutter 'it didn't...' between her sobs. "I know..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What's the matter?" asked James, five minutes later, as he and Jackson caught up with Phoebe and Hermione halfway across the common room as they headed towards breakfast. "You look absolutely terrible this morning, Pheebs!"

Jackson nodded as he noticed the faint tear tracks on his best friend's face. "You have been crying," he noted, rubbing the pad of this thumb across her cheek.

"She had a bit of a breakdown this morning," Hermione answered. "Lavender started mouthing off about Harry and Dumbledore, and then Parvati made a pass about Blake not knowing what he was doing in the Tournament and that he accidentally cast the Killing Curse... and... killed himself."

James looked astonished while Jackson was shaking in anger. "Blake had too much going for him to even consider killing himself!" he growled, clutching Phoebe and pulling her into him. "_Don't worry, Phe, we know the truth!"_ he added in his native tongue.

Phoebe nodded and buried her face further into Jackson's clothes as she tried to quell the tears that had returned.

"Are you four going to stand around all day or you going down to breakfast?" Ron asked, sticking his head back in through the portrait hole. "C'mon... I'm hungry!"

"No surprise there," James muttered, earning a small smile from Phoebe in the process. "Hey, you smiled!"

Phoebe's smile grew at her friends exclamation and suddenly, she felt world's better.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Upon reaching the Great Hall, Harry and Phoebe were stopped by Angelina Johnson who was on her way out of the Hall.

"Harry, Phoebe," the older Gryffindor called.

"Hi, Angelina," said Harry.

Phoebe smiled. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah. I just wanted to tell you that I've been made Gryffindor Quidditch Captain."

"Nice one," Phoebe grinned.

"Yeah, well, we need a new Keeper and two new Chasers now that Oliver, Katie and Alicia have left. Tryouts are on Friday at five o'clock and I want the whole team there, all right? Then we can see how the new people will fit in."

"Okay," Harry and Phoebe nodded.

Angelina smiled at them and departed.

"I'd forgotten Wood had left," said Hermione vaguely. "But I didn't realize Katie and Alicia where in the same year as him."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, they took their NEWTs during our third year," she answered, as she sat down between James and Jackson and pulled a plate of bacon towards her. "I suppose their departure will make quite a difference to the team?"

"I s'pose," said Harry, taking the bench opposite and sitting between Hermione and Ron. "They were good at their positions. Oliver was an amazing Keeper..."

"And Katie, Alicia and I made a great team!" Phoebe agreed.

James frowned. "I thought you had to be a part of the team to become Captain?" he questioned. Phoebe nodded. "Then how did Johnson get the badge?"

"Well if you remember, Angelia was a reserve after I made the team," Phoebe answered. "Oliver couldn't give the badge to me or Harry because we were too young, and I don't think he trusted Fred or George... Angelina was the only one left."

"True," James nodded.

"Still, it won't hurt to have some new blood, will it?" said Ron.

With a whoosh and a clatter, hundreds of owls came soaring in through the upper windows. They descended all over the Hall, bringing letters and packages to their owners and showering the breakfasters with droplets of water; it was clearly raining hard outside. Athena was nowhere to be seen, but Phoebe still had to move her orange juice quickly as a small, damp tawny owl bearing a sodden envelope in its beak, landed in front of her.

"Who'd be writing to you after only 24 hours?" James asked.

"Terence," Phoebe answered, opening the envelope and reading the contents of the letter. "Esmee's Leukemia has worsened... the doctors have given her 3 months..."

Hermione paused in her reading of the _Daily Prophet_. "To live...?" she asked. Phoebe nodded. "What, can't they find a blood donor?"

"They tried... her body is rejecting the transfusion," Phoebe answered, as her heart sank at the idea of Esmee being dead before Christmas... if she even lasted that long.

Silence fell between the six of them and it was only broken when Professor McGonagall started to move between her students handing out timetables.

"Look at today!" groaned Ron. "History of Magic, double Potions, Divination and double Defence Against the Dark Arts... Binns, Snape, Trelawney and that Umbridge woman all in one day! I wish Fred and George'd hurry up and get those Skiving Snack boxes sorted..."

"Do mine ears deceive me?" said Fred, arriving with George and squeezing on to the bench beside Jackson. "Hogwarts prefects surely didn't wish to skive off lessons?"

"Look what we've got today," said Ron grumpily, shoving his timetable under Fred's nose. "That's the worst Monday I've ever seen."

"Fair point, little bro," said Fred, scanning the column. "You can have a bit of Nosebleed Nougat cheap if you like."

"Why's it cheap?" said Ron suspiciously.

"Because you'll keep bleeding till you shrivel up, we haven't got an antidote yet," said George, helping himself to a kipper.

"Cheers," said Ron moodily, pocketing his timetable, "but I think I'll take the lessons."

"Oh, that reminds me," said Phoebe, rounding on Fred and George. "If you haven't noticed already, I removed your advertisement from the bulletin board. You can't advertise for testers there!"

"Who says?" said George, looking astonished.

"Says me," said Phoebe. "And Ron."

"Leave me out of it," said Ron hastily.

Phoebe glared at him as Fred and George sniggered.

"You'll be singing a different song soon enough, Phoebe," said Fred, thickly buttering a crumpet. "You're starting your fifth year; you'll be begging us for a Snack box before long."

"Why, because fifth year is OWL year?" Phoebe questioned.

The twins nodded. "They'll be keeping your noses so hard to that grindstone they'll be rubbed raw," said Fred with satisfaction.

"Half our year had minor breakdowns coming up to OWLs," said George happily. "Tears and tantrums... Roxanna kept coming over faint..."

"Kenneth Towler came out in boils, d'you remember?" said Fred reminiscently.

"That's 'cause you put Bulbadox powder in his pyjamas," said George.

"Oh yeah," said Fred, grinning. "I'd forgotten... hard to keep track sometimes, isn't it?"

Phoebe smiled. "Well, I hate to break your bubble, boys, but I have already taken OWLs and NEWTs in some subjects."

Fred and George stared at the elemental. "You have?" they asked.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. I took my OWLs and NEWTs in Care of Magical Creatures a year before I came to Hogwarts."

"Well, if you care about exam results, fifth year is a real nightmare," said George. "Fred and I managed to keep our peckers up somehow."

"Yeah... you got, what it, three OWLs each was?" said Ron.

"Yep," said Fred. "But we feel our futures lie outside the world of academic achievement."

"We seriously debated whether we were going to bother coming back for our seventh year," said George brightly, "now that we've got -"

He broke off at a warning look from Harry, who knew George had been about to mention the Triwizard winnings he had given them.

"- now that we've got our OWLs," George said hastily. "I mean, do we really need NEWTs? But we didn't think Mum could take us leaving school early, not on top of Percy turning out to be the world's biggest prat."

"We're not going to waste our last year here, though," said Fred, looking affectionately around the Great Hall. "We're going to use it to do a bit of market research, find out exactly what the average Hogwarts student requires from a joke shop, carefully evaluate the results of our research, and then produce products to fit the demand."

"But where are you going to get the gold to start a joke shop?" Hermione asked skeptically. "You're going to need all the ingredients and materials - and premises too, I suppose..."

There was a clatter as Harry's fork hit the floor and he dived under the table to retrieve it. Phoebe's eyes narrowed as she watched him disappear, before turning to Fred who had spoken once again.

"Ask us no questions and we'll tell you no lies, Hermione. C'mon, George, if we get there early we might be able to see a few Extendable Ears before Herbology."

Phoebe turned to Jackson. "Go with them," she said. "They can show you the way. I'll see you later in the common room,"

Jackson nodded, hugged her once and said, "_Don't think so much about Blake... and don't let anyone get under your skin."_ He then got to his feet and followed the twins out of the Great Hall, each of them carrying a stack of toast.

Harry re-emerged as the twins and Jackson left.

"What did they mean?" said Hermione, looking from Harry to Ron to Phoebe. "'Ask us no questions...' Does that mean they've already got some gold to start a joke shop?"

"You know, I've been wondering the about that," said Ron, his brow furrowed. "They bought me a new set of dress robes this summer and I couldn't understand where they got the Galleons..."

Harry decided it was time to steer the conversation out of these dangerous waters.

"Do you reckon its true this year's going to be really tough? Because of the exams?"

"Oh, yeah," said Ron. "Bound to be, isn't it? OWLs are really important; affect the jobs you can apply for and everything. We get career advice, too, later this year, Bill told me. So you can choose what NEWTs you want to do next year."

"D'you know what you want to do after Hogwarts?" James asked Phoebe, as they left the Great Hall shortly afterwards, and met with Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia at the bottom of the marble staircase.

Adrian was also present.

Now that she was up closer, Phoebe could see that he looked slightly worse for wear. She winced at the dark circles under his eyes. "You're looking better than I expected," she said as soon as she had reached Aiden's side.

"Yes. If my mother had not stepped in," Adrian answered. "I would not be here..."

Ashlyn grabbed his hand and smiled as she turned to Phoebe. "He is covered in scars and bruises... I was wondering if maybe you could..." she trailed off, but she need not finish her sentence as Phoebe knew exactly what she was edging towards.

"Uh," Phoebe hesitated. "I don't know, Ash... that would require telling him the truth..."

"He can keep a secret, Pheebs," Ashlyn promised.

Phoebe looked torn. She wanted to help her best friend as much as possible, but she also knew that it was against the rules to tell _anyone_, other than those who already knew, about her powers. "I'd have to have permission off of Serefina," she answered. "Can you wait until I have seen her?"

"When will you see her next?" Ashlyn asked.

"I'll try and see her tonight," Phoebe answered, consulting her timetable. "If not then I can see her during our lesson tomorrow."

Ashlyn looked towards Adrian, as if silently speculating if he could last until then, she knew that he had nightmares, ones that linked back to the night that he was tortured for helping her escape; the reason she knew this was because he had woken her up last night with his screaming.

Adrian nodded.

"Okay," Ashlyn answered, turning back to Phoebe. "And thank you..."

"Don't thank me yet," Phoebe said, "I will let you know what my godmother says. Then, if she says yes, you can thank me."

Ashlyn nodded. Although she couldn't help the faint feeling of doubt that Professor Blackheart would refuse her request.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You are so tactless!"

"What? I only asked her if -"

"Couldn't you tell she wanted to talk to Harry on her own?"

"So? She could've done, I wasn't stopping -"

"Why on earth were you attacking her about her Quidditch team?"

"Attacking? I wasn't attacking her, I was only -"

"Who _cares_ if she supports the Tornadoes?"

"Who supports the Tornadoes?"

Hermione and Ron paused in their argument and looked up at Ashlyn, Phoebe, Aiden and James who were standing just in front of them, on their way to Potions.

Their morning class, History of Magic, had been so boring that the three friends had decided to nap throughout it, even Phoebe, who was school prefect, had fallen asleep, but it may have had something to do with the fact that she felt emotionally drained from that morning's breakdown.

"Cho," Hermione answered. "We just saw her out on the grounds. She wanted to speak with Harry alone, but Ron started attacking her about a Quidditch pin that was attached to her robes."

"I wasn't attacking -" Ron started to defend.

"She's probably another groupie," James cut across the red head. "Most people wearing those pins have only started supporting the Tornadoes since they beat the Holy head Harpies last season!"

Hermione sighed. "But what does it _matter_?"

"It matters to a Quidditch fan, Hermione," Phoebe said. "It means that they're not real fans, like James said, they are just groupies! Jumping on the band wagon because a low level team suddenly just got better."

The bookworm shook her head. "You're all insufferable! Like it matters whether she supports the Tornadoes, you all have your Quidditch teams!"

"Yeah," Ashlyn nodded, "and our Quidditch teams are high up on the league board. The Tornadoes have only _just_ started to make their way to the top. They're still a bunch of losers, mind you!"

Phoebe and James nodded.

Ron pointed at the three of them. "I hate to agree with them," he said. "But I like their way of thinking!"

Harry rolled his eyes and filed into the Potions room as the door creaked open and Snape ushered them inside.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Settle down," said Snape coldly, shutting the door behind him.

There was no real need for the call to order; the moment the class had heard the door close, silence had fallen and all fidgeting stopped. Snape's mere presence was usually enough to ensure a class's silence.

"Before we begin today's lesson," said Snape, sweeping over to his desk and staring around at them all, "I think it appropriate to remind you that next June you will be sitting an important examination, during which you will prove how much you have learned about the composition and use of magical potions. Moronic though some of this class undoubtedly are, I expect you to scrape in 'Acceptable' in your OWL, or suffer my... displeasure."

His gaze lingered this time on Neville, who gulped.

"After this year, of course, many of you will cease studying with me," Snape went on. "I take only the very best into my NEWT Potions class, which means that some of us will certainly be saying goodbye."

His eyes rested on Harry and his lip curled.

"But we have another year to go before that happy moment of farewell," said Snape softly, "so, whether or not you are intending to attempt NEWT, I advise all of you to concentrate your efforts upon maintaining the high pass level I have come to expect from my OWL students."

Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged looks, both of them wanted to take Potions at NEWT level.

"Today we'll be mixing a potion that often comes up at Ordinary Wizarding Level: the Draught of Peace, a potion to calm anxiety and soothe agitation. Be warned, if you are too heavy-handed with the ingredients you will put the drinker into a heavy and sometimes irreversible sleep, so you will need to pay close attention to what you are doing. The ingredients and method are on the blackboard. You will find everything you need in the store cupboard. You have an hour and a half... start."

The Draught of Peace couldn't have been a more difficult potion, James thought as he set to work alongside Phoebe and Ashlyn. The ingredients had to be added to the cauldron in precisely the right order and quantities; the mixture had to be stirred exactly the right number of times, firstly in clockwise, then in anti-clockwise directions; the heat of the flames on which it was simmering had to be lowered to exactly the right level for a specific number of minutes before the final ingredient was added.

"A light silver vapor should now be rising from your potion," called Snape, with ten minutes left to go.

James, who was sweating profusely, looked desperately around the dungeon. His own cauldron was issuing copious amounts of grey dark steam, while the surfaces of Ashlyn's and Phoebe's potions shimmered mist of silver vapor into the atmosphere of the dungeon.

"Potter, what is this supposed to be?" said Snape, as he swept past Harry's cauldron and looked down at it with a horrible smirk.

The Slytherin's at the front of the class all looked up eagerly; they loved hearing Snape taunt Harry.

"The Draught of Peace," said Harry tensely.

"Tell me, Potter," said Snape softly, "can you read?"

Draco Malfoy laughed causing Phoebe to glare at him.

"Yes, I can," said Harry.

"Read the third line of the instructions for me, Potter."

Harry squinted at the blackboard; it was not easy to make out the instructions through the haze of multi-colored steam now filling the dungeon.

"Add powdered moonstone, stir three times counter-clockwise, allow to simmer for seven minutes then add two drops of syrup of hellebore -"

His heart sank. He had not added the syrup of hellebore, but had proceeded straight to the fourth line of the instructions after allowing his potion to simmer for seven minutes.

"Did you do everything on the third line, Potter?"

"No," said Harry very quietly.

"I beg your pardon?"

"No," said Harry, more loudly. "I forgot the hellebore."

"I know you did, Potter, which means that this mess is utterly worthless. _Evanesco_."

The contents of Harry's potion vanished.

"Those of you who _have_ managed to read the instructions, fill one flagon with a sample of your potion, label it clearly with your name and bring it up to my desk for testing," said Snape. "Homework: twelve inches of parchment on the properties of moonstone and its uses in potion-making, to be handed in on Thursday."

Phoebe emptied her potion into a flagon, waved her wand and muttered _Evanesco_ to clear the rest before making her way towards Snape's desk; she then pushed the rest of her things into her bag and followed Ashlyn and James from the room with Aiden at her side.

They crossed the Entrance Hall and entered the Great Hall for Lunch.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After lunch, Phoebe, James, Aiden and Sarah left the Entrance Hall together and made their way up to the North Tower. Sarah, who had decided to drop Divination that year, left with Amelia out into the grounds for their first Herbology lesson of the year.

"When do you have Defence Against the Dark Arts?" Aiden asked, as he looked over his new timetable and then turned to compare it with Phoebe.

"After Divination," Phoebe answered, showing him Monday's column. "Slytherin's and Gryffindor's usually have that class together..."

Aiden nodded. "Yeah. I have it too."

"Cool," Phoebe smiled, looking up at the silver ladder that led to Sybil Trelawney's classroom. "Tell me again why I haven't dropped this subject?" she complained.

"Because you like to compare her to your grandmother," Sarah answered, "in fairness it is actually quite fun to hear you rambling about her under your breath."

Aiden frowned. "Comparing her to Elena?"

"Grandma," Phoebe corrected. "She is your grandmother, Aiden!"

"Yes, but I haven't been raised around her,"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes, I realize that," she agreed, "but if you think about it, Elena and Jacob Blackheart aren't my biological grandparents! I just call them Grandma and Grandpa because they have been there my entire life! Serefina and her parents have been more family to me than the Malfoy's!"

"True," Aiden agreed. "Anyway, why are you comparing her to your teacher?"

"Because Trelawney is a fake," James answered simply.

Phoebe and Sarah nodded.

Aiden frowned, having been born with the ability to receive visions himself; he couldn't help himself wondering if taking Divination was a good idea at this point. Not now that he was hearing their tutor has being called a fake.

Ascending the silver ladder behind James, Aiden pulled Sarah and Phoebe up through the trapdoor and allowed them to lead the way into the room.

The room was circular and full of tables, chairs and over-stuffed pouffees. In one corner of the room, behind the teacher's desk was a woman with a mane of grey hair, heavily draped in shawls and glittering with strings of beads; she looked like a stick insect, with her glasses hugely magnifying her eyes.

Aiden stared at her for a brief second before turning to Phoebe who was tugging him across the room towards the window seat.

Jumping up onto the windowsill, James opened one of the windows to allow in some fresh air before taking his seat beside Sarah and across from Phoebe and Aiden. Neither of them noticed Harry sitting behind them, until Ron had arrived and made his way over.

"Hermione and me have stopped arguing," the red head said, sitting down beside Harry.

"Good," grunted Harry.

Phoebe frowned and swiveled around in her seat. "Where did you disappear too?" she questioned.

"I couldn't handle their fighting," Harry answered, jabbing a thumb in Ron's direction. "It's enough to drive anyone up the wall!"

"After four years and you're still complaining?" James asked. "You've got to learn to tune them out, Harry! It's the only way! They are like an old married couple; they are never going to stop fighting."

Phoebe nodded in agreement and turned back to Sarah and Aiden, as Ron and Harry continued to converse behind them.

"Hermione says she thinks it would be nice if you stopped taking out your temper on us," said Ron.

"I'm not -"

"I'm just passing on the message," said Ron, talking over him. "But I reckon she's right. It's not our fault how Seamus and Snape treat you."

"I never said it -"

"Good-day," said Professor Trelawney in her usual misty, dreamy voice and Harry broke off. "And welcome back to Divination. I have, of course, been following your fortunes most carefully over the holidays, and am delighted to see that you have all returned to Hogwarts safely - as, of course, I knew you would."

Aiden and Phoebe exchanged look, why, if she knew that they would return to the castle safety, did it sound like she was looking for reassurance that she _was_ correct?

"You will find on the tables before you copies of _The Dream Oracle_, by Inigo Imago. Dream interpretation is most important means of divining the future and one that may very probably be tested in your OWL. Not, of course, that I believe examination passes or failures are the remotest importance when it comes to the sacred art of divination. If you have the Seeing Eye, certificates and grades matter very little. However, the Headmaster likes you to sit the examinations."

Her voice trailed away delicately, leaving them all in no doubt that Professor Trelawney considered her subject above such sordid matters as examinations.

"Turn, please, to the introduction and read what Imago has to say on the matter of dream interpretation. Then, divide into pairs. Use _The Dream Oracle_ to interpret each other's most recent dreams. Carry on."

The one good thing to be said for this lesson was that it was not a double period. By the time they had all finished reading the introduction of the book, they had barely ten minutes left for dream interpretation.

"I never remember my dreams," said James, "what about you, Ash?"

Sarah shook her head. "I haven't had a dream for a while. Aiden?"

"Once i'm asleep I don't know what happens," Aiden answered. "If I dream, then I don't remember them. What about you, Phoebe?"

"Do nightmares count?" Phoebe asked.

Her friends frowned. "Nightmares?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. Every time I close my eyes I see bad things. I mostly dream of Blake... he just appears all the time, he never says anything, he's just - there!"

Her friends stared at her, sympathy adorning their features as they realized that neither of them actually realized how deep Blake's death affected Phoebe.

"Do you have nightmares every night?" Aiden asked.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "The only time I didn't have a nightmare was when were at Headquarters and Terence was with me."

"Was Terence in your dream?" Sarah asked.

"He's always there," Phoebe answered quietly.

Just then, the bell rang, and the group of four quickly packed away their belongings and followed Harry and Ron back down the ladder. Ron was grumbling loudly from the front of the queue.

"D'you realize how much homework we've got already? Binns set us a foot-and-a-half long essay on giant wars, Snape wants a foot on the use of moonstones, and now we've got a month's dream diary from Trelawney! Fred and George weren't wrong about OWL year, were they? That Umbridge woman had better not give us any..."

"It is school, Ron," Phoebe answered, "What did you expect? No homework?"

"Not on the first day back!"

"Summer is over now, Ron," said Phoebe. "It's time to put away the fun and get on with the hard labour!"

Ron glared at the elemental, but didn't retort.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After bidding Sarah a goodbye, Phoebe, James and Aiden made their way down the third floor corridor and entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom where they found Professor Umbridge already seated at the teacher's desk, wearing the fluffy pink cardigan of the night before and the black velvet bow on top of her head.

The class was quiet as it entered the room; Professor Umbridge was, as yet, an unknown quantity and nobody knew how strict a disciplinarian she was likely to be.

"Well, good afternoon!" she said, when finally the whole class had sat down.

A few people mumbled 'good afternoon' in reply.

"Tut, tut," said Professor Umbridge. "_That_ won't do, now, will it? I should like you, please, to reply 'Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge'. One more time, please. Good afternoon, class!"

"Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge," they canted back at her.

"There, now," said Professor Umbridge sweetly. "That wasn't too difficult, was it? Wands away and quills out, please."

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks; the order 'wands away' had never yet been followed by a lesson they had found interesting. Phoebe shoved her wand back inside her bag and pulled out quill, ink and parchment.

Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, extracted her own and, which was an unusually short one, and tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:

_Defence Against the Dark Arts_

_A Return to Basic Principles_

"A return to basics?" Ashlyn whispered, leaning across James to look at Phoebe.

Phoebe shook her head, clearly unsure of what Umbridge was insinuating. They were fifth year students, about to sit their exams in a few months, why would Umbridge want them to return to basics? They didn't have time!

"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented, hasn't it?" stated Professor Umbridge, turning to face the class as her hands clasped neatly in front of her. "The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your OWL year. You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are not to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centered, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."

She rapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by the 'Course Aims'.

_Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic._

_Learning to recognize situations in which defensive magic can legally be used._

_Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use._

For a couple of minutes the room was full of the sound of scratching quills on parchment. When everyone had copied down Professor Umbridge's three course aims she asked, "Has everybody got a copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

There was a dull murmur of assent throughout the class.

"I think I'll try that again," said Professor Umbridge. "When I ask you questions, I should like you to reply, 'Yes, Professor Umbridge', or 'No, Professor Umbridge'. So: has everyone got a copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

"Yes, Professor Umbridge," rang through the room.

"Good," said Professor Umbridge. "I should like you to turn to page five and read 'Chapter One: Basic for Beginners'. There will be no need to talk."

Professor Umbridge left the blackboard and settled herself in the chair behind the teacher's desk, observing them all closely with those pouchy toad's eyes. James, Ashlyn and Aiden turned to page five and started to read.

Phoebe, however, straightened up in her seat and raised her hand into the air, followed, five minutes later, by Hermione's.

Soon, after several more minutes, half of the class were staring at the two Gryffindor's who were mutely trying to get Professor Umbridge's attention.

With more than half the class staring at Hermione and Phoebe rather than at their books, Professor Umbridge seemed to decide that she could no longer ignore the situation.

"Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dearies?" she asked, as though she had only just noticed them.

"Not about the chapter, no," said Hermione.

"Well, we're reading just now," said Professor Umbridge, showing her small pointed teeth. "If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of class. What about you?" she added to Phoebe. "A question about the chapter?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, my question consults your Course Aims," she answered.

Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

"And your name is?"

"Phoebe Blackheart," said Phoebe.

"Well, Miss. Blackheart, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully," said Professor Umbridge in a voice of determined sweetness.

Phoebe nodded. "Oh, I have read them through three times," she answered, "and I still do not believe that they are as clear as you claim them to be. Unlike some of my classmates, save for Hermione, it would seem, I have noticed that there is nothing written up there about _using_ defensive spells."

There was a short silence in which many members of the class turned their heads to frown at the three course aims still written on the blackboard.

"_Using_ defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use defensive spells, Miss. Blackheart. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"

"We're not going to use magic?" Ron exclaimed loudly.

"Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr. -?"

"Weasley," said Ron, thrusting his hand into the air.

Professor Umbridge, smiling still more widely, turned her back on him. Harry, Hermione and Phoebe immediately raised their hands too. Professor Umbridge's pouchy eyes lingered on Harry for a moment before she addressed Phoebe.

"Yes, Miss. Blackheart? You wanted to ask something else?"

"Yes," said Phoebe. "Can you or cannot you not confirm that this _is_ Defence Against the Dark Arts?"

Professor Umbridge frowned at the question. "Yes, dear, it is," she nodded.

"Then surely the whole point of this lesson is to practice defensive spells?"

"Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss. Blackheart?" asked Professor Umbridge, in her falsely sweet voice.

"No,"

"Well, then, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what the 'whole point' of any class is. Wizards much older and cleverer than you have devised our new programme of study. You will be learning about defensive spells in a secure, risk-free way -"

"What use is that?" said Harry loudly. "If we're going to be attacked, it won't be in a -"

"_Hand_, Mr. Potter!" sang Professor Umbridge.

Harry thrust his fist in the air. Again, Professor Umbridge promptly turned away from him, but now several other people had their hands up, too.

"And your name is?" Professor Umbridge said to Dean.

"Dean Thomas."

"Well, Mr. Thomas?"

"Well, it's like Harry said, isn't it?" said Dean. "If we're going to be attacked, it won't be risk free."

"I repeat," said Professor Umbridge, smiling in a very irritating way, "do you expect to be attacked during my classes?"

"No, but -"

Professor Umbridge talked over him. "I do not wish to criticize the way things have been run in this school," she said, an unconvincing smile stretching her wide mouth, "but you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this class, very irresponsible indeed - not to mention," she gave a nasty little laugh, "extremely dangerous half-breeds."

"You mean Professor Lupin?" said James angrily. "He was the best we ever -"

"_Hand_, Mr. -?"

"Black," James answered. "James Black!"

Umbridge stared at him for a second longer, before turning promptly away from him. "As I was saying - you have been introduced to spells that have been complex, inappropriate to your age group and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day -"

"No we haven't," Phoebe said, "we just -"

"_Your hand is not up, Miss. Blackheart!"_

Phoebe put up her hand. Professor Umbridge turned away from her.

"It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he actually performed them on you."

"He was a Death Eater!" said James hotly. "Mind you, we still learned loads."

"_Your hand is not up, Mr. Black!"_ trilled Professor Umbridge. "Now, it is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more than sufficient to get you through your examination, which, after all, is what school is all about."

"Yes! A normal school," Phoebe interrupted. "Last I checked it was _normal_ at this school to study Magic!"

Umbridge glared coldly at Phoebe. "Your hand is not up, Miss. Blackheart! And if you would be so kind, please do not interrupt me again!"

_**Then start listening you overgrown toad!**_ Phoebe thought angrily.

"And your name is?" Umbridge asked.

"Ashlyn Black, and isn't there a practical bit in our Defence Against the Dark Arts OWL? Aren't we supposed to show that we can actually do the counter-curses and things?"

"As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions," said Professor Umbridge dismissively.

"Without every practicing them beforehand?" said Ashlyn incredulously. "Are you telling us that the first time we'll get to do the spells will be during our exam?"

"I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough -"

"And what good's theory going to be in the real world?" said Harry loudly, his fist in the air again.

Professor Umbridge looked up.

"This is school, Mr. Potter, not the real world," she said softly.

"So we're not supposed to be prepared for what's waiting for us out there?"

"There is nothing waiting out there, Mr. Potter."

"Oh, yeah?" said Harry. His temper, which seemed to have been bubbling beneath the surface all day, was reaching boiling point.

"Who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?" enquired Professor Umbridge in a horribly honeyed voice.

"Hmm, let's think..." said Harry in a mock thoughtful voice. "Maybe... _Lord Voldemort?"_

Ron gasped; Lavender Brown uttered a little scream; Neville slipped sideways off his stool. Professor Umbridge, however, did not flinch. She was staring at Harry with a grimly satisfied expression on her face.

"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter."

The classroom was silent and still. Everyone was staring at either Umbridge or Harry.

"Now, let me make a few things quite plain."

Professor Umbridge stood up and leaned towards them, her stubby-fingered hands played on her desk.

"You have been told that a certain Dark wizard has returned from the dead -"

"He wasn't dead," said Harry angrily, "but yeah, he's returned!"

"Mr-Potter-you-have-already-lost-your-house-ten-points-do-not-make-things-worse-for-yourself," said Professor Umbridge in one breath without lookin at him. "As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark wizard is at large once again. _This is a lie_."

"It is NOT a lie!" said Harry. "I saw him. I fought him!"

"Detention, Mr. Potter!" said Professor Umbridge triumphantly. "Tomorrow evening. Five o'clock. My office. I repeat, _this is a lie_. The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizard. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about reborn Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now, you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, 'Basics for Beginners'."

Professor Umbridge sat down behind her desk. Harry, however, stood up. Everyone was staring at him; Seamus looked half-scared, half-fascinated.

"Harry, no!" Hermione whispered in a warning voice, tugging at his sleeve.

"So, according to you, Blake Brooks dropped dead of his own accord, did he?" Harry asked, his voice shaking.

There was a collective intake of breath from the class, for none of them, apart from Ron, Phoebe and Hermione, had ever heard of Harry talk about what had happened on the night Blake had died. James and Ashlyn, however, glanced sideways at Phoebe who was glaring at the table top, waiting for Umbridge's reply.

"Blake Brook's death was a tragic accident," Umbridge said coldly.

"IT WAS MURDER!" Phoebe yelled shooting to her feet, she could feel herself shaking and felt Aiden grab her wrist, but Phoebe jerked her arm out of his reach. "Voldemort killed Blake and you know it!"

"Sit _down_ Miss. Blackheart," Umbridge ordered.

But Phoebe didn't listen.

Instead, she pushed her chair away and stormed away from her table. She could feel the rest of the class watching her, holding its breath. She felt so angry she did not care what repercussions her actions may have caused, reaching the door she wrenched it open and slammed it behind her with such a force that the glass within the windows shattered.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Uh-oh...

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, April 02, 2012 at 09:50pm**


	94. Chapter 94

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the late update.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia** and** Fan of Fics** - Seriously, where have all my readers gone? One minute you were all here and now I can't find you. If you are reading the series and have not reviewed yet, could you please do so? A simple: 'Cool chapter. Update soon' will suffice and please me. Thanks.

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you too **Dramaqueen1917** for adding me to her Author Alert, I appreciate it. And another big thank you too **Usagi0Mori** for adding this story to their Favourite story... could you drop us a review and let us know why it is your favourite? You'll get a dedication... everyone does if they review =)

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><p>Phoebe knew that actions had consequences and her actions were going to cost her some serious consequences once Umbridge had shaken off the initial surprise of a prefect walking out of class without permission. But right now, Phoebe could think of nothing else other than the anger and rage that was coursing through her veins.<p>

Clenching and unclenching her fists, the young elemental stormed through the corridors, down the marble staircase, across the Entrance Hall and out into the open grounds of the courtyard. She didn't have clue as to where she was going, all she did know was that she had to get as far away from the castle as possible.

_**Stupid overgrown toad!**_ She growled angrily. _**Who the hell does she think she is? Accusing Harry of lying and saying that Blake's death was an accident! It was anything but an accident! No one drops dead of their own accord! Especially fit and healthy boys like Blake!**_

Anger flooded her system once more and the surface of the Black Lake started to bubble as it was heated from beneath the surface.

_**Stupid Ministry of Magic! Self-righteous pig-headed, overpaid, brainless, meat-headed bloodhounds! All they care about is their reputation and their image within the office! Like I could care less about the peace that they want to protect, people are in danger, people are going to be dying left, right and centre and what are they going to be doing? Assuring people that there is **__**nothing**__** wrong, when everything and everyone they hold dear is in danger of death!**_

Without even realizing it, Phoebe had slowly started to make her way down from the Black Lake and towards the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest; she was more than a several feet away from the entrance of the dark trees when a hand fell upon her shoulder and steered her backwards away from the welcoming darkness.

"The Forest is a dangerous place for such a small child," said an unfamiliar voice.

"Who says I'm a small child?" Phoebe questioned, twisting out of the grasps of the person that had ahold of her shoulder; and the first thing she noticed as that the hand of the person that rested on her shoulder belonged to the arm of a magnificent creature.

A creature that they had yet to learn about in Care of Magical Creatures, but it was also a creature that could tell her the future better than any Seer.

"Oh, My -" she gasped. "You're a centaur!"

The creature nodded. "Yes. My name is Firenze..."

"I am Phoebe," the Gryffindor answered. "Phoebe -"

"Blackheart,"

Phoebe frowned. "How did you -?"

"I know quite a bit about you," Firenze nodded. "I also know that you are known by another name, belong to a family that strikes hatred into many others, but you also refuse to associate yourself with them, deem yourself pure in the shadow of the great Malfoy's!"

Phoebe nodded. "I may be their blood! But I am nothing like them!"

"No, my dear sister, you are not." Firenze nodded.

"Sister?"

"Would you prefer Princess?"

Phoebe frowned in confusion.

Firenze chuckled. "Your godmother reacted in the same context you have now when we addressed her as such the first time we met her here at Hogwarts."

"We?"

There was a rustling of leaves and four centaurs emerged from the darkened woods beyond where Phoebe stood.

"What is with the human, brother?" hissed a large grey centaur in the centre of the group of four, it was clear he was the alpha of the colony. "Have you been telling her our secrets?"

"I need not tell her what she already knows," Firenze answered. "For it is she, Bane, the one the stars predict will be the downfall of the Dark Lord! It is Phoebe Blackheart!"

Bane seemed skeptical and trotted over to where Phoebe stood, standing in awe at the magnificent creatures standing in front of her. She tenses when Bane touched her chin and lifted her gaze to connect with his. "It is her," he confirmed. "My apologies, my princess."

"What?" Phoebe asked. "I am not your princess..."

"It was foreseen, in the stars fourteen years ago," Firenze answered. "That two dark creatures, a brother and sister, both conductors of the opposite elements would help overthrow the Dark Lord. When we first met your godmother, we believed it to be her, but she confirmed that the two who would lead the Chosen one to victory would be born in the early month of June! We did not make the connection until after..."

Phoebe looked down and then back up. "So, you are telling me that my birth was 'written in the stars' sort to say?"

"Yes," Bane nodded. "Your story is an old tale of many generations ago. It is now _finally_ becoming true!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"You shouted at Professor Umbridge?"_ Serefina cried, as she and Phoebe finished putting away the Hippogriffs. Her third year's lesson had just ended and she was packing up before heading up to Lunch in the Great Hall. Firenze only just left, after bringing Phoebe safely to the edge of the forest and watching as she made her way across the Pumpkin patch to where the third years were returning to the castle.

He waved after he had seen Phoebe reach her godmother and then retreated back into the safety of the trees.

_"I already told you,"_ Phoebe sighed. "_Yes!"_

"_You called her a liar?"_

_"Yes."_

_"You defended Harry and told her that Voldemort was back?"_

_"Yes!"_

Serefina sighed and locked the paddock. "_What provoked you to do this?"_

_"She was talking about Blake! Kept saying that his death was a tragic accident! I was already upset because of Lavender and Parvati this morning and Umbridge was the last person I needed to see!"_

_"Phoebe, you need to be careful,"_ Serefina sighed as she collected her belongings and led the way back up to the castle. _"Misbehavior in Dolores Umbridge's class could cost you much more than house points, detention and your Prefect badge!"_

_"What do you -?"_

_"Phoebe, use your common sense!" _snapped Serefina. "_You have plenty of it! I understand that you are under a lot of stress this year, but you must be careful with what you say! You know where this woman comes from, and I know you know to whom she is reporting."_

Phoebe sighed and hung her head. _"What about my consequences? Can't you waver them?"_

_"I can try,"_ Serefina promised. "_It would be easier if you had something important that you could not get out of!"_

_"Quidditch practice?"_

_"Not good enough!"_

_"Dance recital?"_

Serefina looked thoughtful. "_It could work... Dance is important... and you will be doing a lesson... Umbridge need not know you are having fun! Yes, I will speak with Regina, I will work something out for you, Phoebe, but only if you promise me you will be careful around Umbridge."_

They had reached the Entrance Hall by now and had crossed it to the Great Hall; it was already stuffed with students and teachers. Umbridge was amongst them and she did not look happy to see Phoebe or Serefina.

_"Promise me..."_

_"I promise!"_ Phoebe nodded.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"He says he saw Blake Brooks murdered..."

"He reckons he dueled with You-Know-Who..."

"Come off it..."

"Who does he think he's kidding?"

"Blackheart says it's true..."

"Yeah, I heard she stormed out of class because of it!"

"Pur-_lease_..."

"She's probably defending him!"

"Yeah, after all she is the Gryffindor Whore... she'll defend her lover boy!"

James, who was sat at the Gryffindor table with Henry and Melissa, lay down his knife and fork as his hands shook in anger at the whisperings going on around him. However, he was thankful that Phoebe was not around to hear them because he did not want to see her reaction - if there was one.

"What I don't understand is why everyone believed the story two months ago when Dumbledore told them..." Henry said, looking sideways at his older brother.

"Because I am not sure they did," Melissa answered.

"What d'you mean?" Henry asked, now looking across the table at his sister.

"Well, Potter arrived back in the middle of the lawn clutching Blake's body... none of us saw what happened in the maze... we just had Dumbledore's word for it that You-Know-Who had come back and killed Blake and fought Potter."

"Which is the truth!" James said loudly.

Melissa silenced him with a look. "I know you _want_ to believe that it is the truth, mostly because Phoebe is your best friend and you don't want to upset her about Blake's death possibly being an accident... i'm not saying it was an accident because I, just like you, believe that You-Know-Who has returned, I am just explaining what is going on in other people's heads!"

James fell silent and motioned for his sister to continue.

"Thank you," Melissa nodded. "It's just before the truth could sink in, everyone went home for the summer, where they spent two months reading about how Potter is a nutcase, Phoebe was disturbed and Dumbledore's going senile!"

"Look," Henry whispered, nodding towards the Great Hall doors. "There's Phoebe... she's trying to get your attention, James!"

James looked around, and just as his brother had said, Phoebe was motioning over her shoulder with her head. James nodded and turned back to his siblings. "I'll see you later in the common room," he said quickly, before jumping from his seat and steadily making his way towards the Great Hall doors. Phoebe had vanished, but Sarah, Amelia, Aiden and Ashlyn met him on the threshold.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Rain pounded on the windowpanes as they strode along the empty corridors back to the Gryffindor tower.

_"How_ can Dumbledore let this happen?" Ashlyn cried suddenly, making Phoebe and the others jump. "How can he let that terrible woman teach us? And in our OWL year, too!"

"Well, we've never had great Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers, have we?" said Sarah. "You know what it's like no one wants the job; they say it's jinxed."

"Yes, but to employ someone who's actually refusing to let us do magic! _What's_ Dumbledore playing at?"

"And she's trying to get people to spy for her," said Aiden. "Remember when she said she wanted us to come and tell her if we hear anyone saying You-Know-Who's back?"

"Of course she's here to spy on us, she works for Fudge!" snapped Phoebe. Aiden stared at her anxiously. Phoebe sighed. "Sorry. So, what happened after I left?"

Aiden, Ashlyn and James exchanged looks.

"What?" Phoebe questioned. "C'mon, spit it out, I'm a big girl, I can take it!"

"Well, she kept muttering indecent things about half breeds ruling the roost here at Hogwarts," said Ashlyn, a little uneasily. It was common knowledge between her; James, Sarah and Amelia that Phoebe was a half breed because of her control over the elements and the fact that she was a Wiccan witch, meaning that she did not need the use of a wand to do magic.

James nodded. "She tried to give you detention," he added. "But Harry stepped in before she could write you up... said something about Voldemort and Umbridge shifted her attention to him!"

"And...?"

"Harry has detention Friday evening with Umbridge."

Phoebe slowed to a halt. "Friday evening?" she repeated. Aiden nodded. "No... That's not possible! He can't!"

"Why not?"

"Quidditch practice!" Phoebe yelped, starting off again, but this time at a sprint.

"Where is she going?" Amelia asked.

James shrugged. "Gryffindor common room?" he suggested.

"C'mon..." Aiden said, running after his sister.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After shouting the password at the Fat Lady and scrambling through the portrait hole, Phoebe stood in the entrance of the Gryffindor common room, she was in the middle of looking around the room for Harry, Ron and Hermione when her gaze caught sight of Fred, George and Lee in the corner of the room with a bunch of, what appeared to be, dead First years at their feet.

"What the devil is going on?" she yelled, causing everyone within the common room to jump, at least, a foot out of their seats.

Fred and George looked up in mild surprise.

"Oh, hey, Phoebe," Fred said, raising his arm as he waved.

"Hey?" Phoebe repeated storming over to them. "Don't you 'hey' me Fred Weasley! I specifically told you this morning, you cannot use your rubbish on students!"

"We're paying them!" said Fred indignantly.

"I don't care, it could be dangerous!"

"Rubbish," said Fred.

"Calm down, Phoebe, they're fine!" said Lee reassuringly as he walked from first-year to first-year, inserting purple sweets into their open mouths.

"Yeah, look, they're coming round now," said George.

A few of the first years were indeed starting to stir. Several looked so shocked to find themselves on the floor, or dangling off their chairs, that it would have seemed Fred and George had not warned them what the sweets were going to do.

"Feel all right?" said George kindly to a small dark-haired girl lying at his feet.

"I - I think so," she said shakily.

"Excellent," said Fred happily, but the next second Phoebe had snatched both his clipboard and paper bag of sweets from his hands.

"It is _not_ excellent!"

"'Course it is, they're alive, aren't they?" said Fred angrily.

"You can't do this, what if you make one of them really ill?"

"We're not going to make the ill, we've already tested them all on ourselves, and this is just to see if everyone reacts the same -"

Phoebe growled. "If you want to be stupid and test them on yourselves, then by all means, do so! But if I catch you using First years again, I'll -"

"Put us in detention?" said Fred, in an I'd-like-to-see-you-try-it voice.

"Make us write lines?" said George, smirking.

Onlookers all over the room were laughing, Phoebe drew herself up to her full height; her eyes were narrowed and there were flecks of cobalt blue within the stormy grey irises. Suddenly, Aiden was behind his sister and grabbing her wrist, with every intention to drag her away from the twins. But the moment his hand grabbed hers, the room shook violently.

Several first years screamed and many people dove for the portrait hole and disappeared out in the corridor. The Golden Trio, who was sitting near the fire, whipped around, Hermione gasped and darted forward pulling Phoebe and Aiden apart.

The shaking stopped several seconds later.

Fred and George stared at Phoebe in surprise. They, of course, knew her secret, having been there in the Hospital Wing at the end of last year! They had witnessed what she and her family had done when Fudge had refused to believe Dumbledore and Harry about Voldemort's return.

That and they had spent the last two months with her at Headquarters back in London, they did not, however, believe that she would use her powers against them when they were at school. "I think we've pissed her off," George whispered to his twin.

"Take your stupid sweets," Phoebe snapped, angrily, thrusting the sweets and clipboard back into Fred's hands. "Stay away from the first years and get out of my sight!"

"And if we go near a first year?" Lee asked, not knowing how far he was in the dangerous waters.

Phoebe flashed her angry gaze onto him, causing him to shrink back in slight fear. "Then I will take this to Dumbledore!" she rounded back onto the twins. "And I'll write to your mother!"

Fred and George looked thunderstruck. It was clear that as far as they were concerned, Phoebe's threat was way below the belt. With a last threatening look at them, she turned toe and stalked away, back towards the fire, with Hermione pulling her the length of the way.

"Thank you for the support, Ron," Phoebe spat acidly.

Ron was so low in his seat that his nose was roughly level with his knees. "You handled it fine by yourself," he mumbled.

"I shouldn't have had too," Phoebe snapped. "The first years were already unconscious when I got here! This means that they had to have keeled over with you sitting here, you should have stopped your brothers before they had illustrated the sweets!"

"You don't know Fred and George," Ron said. "Not like I do. They do what they want... they don't listen to anyone else!"

Phoebe glared. "No, it is you're just afraid of them!" she growled. "You've been made Prefect... why you were given the badge, I will never know! You do not have the qualities of a Prefect!"

Ron's ears turned red, but he did not retort, merely turned his head towards the fire and glowered at the flickering flames.

After re-claiming her seat, Hermione stared down at her black piece of parchment for a few seconds, and then said edgily, "Oh, it's no good, I can't concentrate now. I'm going to bed."

She wrenched open her bag and pulled out two misshapen woolly objects, placed them carefully on the table by the fireplace, covered them with a few screwed-up pieces of parchment and a broken quill and stood back to admire the effect.

"What in the name of Merlin are you doing?" Ashlyn asked, as she rested on the back of the sofa.

"They're hats for house-elves," Hermione said briskly, now stuffing her books back into her bag. "I did them over the summer, I'm a really slow knitter without magic, but now i'm back at school I should be able to do lot more."

"You're leaving out hats for the house-elves?" said Ron slowly. "And you're covering them up with rubbish first?"

"Yes," said Hermione defiantly, swinging her bag on to her back.

"That's not fair!" said Ashlyn angrily. "You're trying to trick them into picking up the hats. You're setting them free when they might not want to be free!"

"Of course they want to be free!" said Hermione at once, though her face was turning pink. "Don't either of you touch those hats! Phoebe, are you coming to bed?"

"I'll be up in a bit," Phoebe answered. "I have to remind Harry of something!"

Hermione nodded, turned on her heel and left.

Ron waited until she had disappeared through the door to the girls' dormitories, and then cleared the rubbish off the woolly hats.

"They should at least see what they are picking up," he said firmly. "Anyway..." he rolled up his parchment on which he had written the title of Snape's essay, "There's no point trying to finish this now. I can't do it without Hermione; I haven't got a clue what you're supposed to do with moonstones, have you?"

Harry shook his head.

Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah exchanged looks.

"You have books," Amelia pointed out. "Your answers are in there..."

Sarah nodded. "And they have a whole section on moonstones in the library, why don't you check a few books out to do your essay?"

"Because he is as thick as a post," Phoebe answered, "he would need a brain to look up information in a book."

"What is the point?" Ron snapped. "Hermione knows all the answers!"

"The point is," Phoebe snapped back, "is that Hermione is not your personal library on legs! She's not always going to be there to help you, Ronald!"

The red head glared.

"Can we not argue?" Harry interrupted. "You're both worse than him and Hermione! What did you want to remind me about, Phoebe?"

Phoebe glared at Ron, before turning to Harry. "I wanted to thank you for defending me against Umbridge," the elemental answered, "I also wanted to remind you that we have Quidditch Practice on Friday night..."

"And you've gone and landed yourself in detention," James added in.

Harry's eyes widened as he realized they were right. "Oh no," he whispered. "Angelina is going to kill me!"

Phoebe nodded. "I'll try and explain it to her," she said, "but I don't think she is going to be so quick to trust me, I did take her spot on the team, but I will do my best!"

"Thanks, Pheebs," Harry smiled.

"Yeah. We'll, I think I am going to follow Hermione's example and go to bed," Phoebe said, standing up. She hugged Ashlyn, Aiden, Sarah and Amelia and watched as they each left the common room for their own. She then found Jackson on the otherside of the common room with Peeta Stone, a fellow seventh year Gryffindor, and headed up to bed after Hermione.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The rest of the week passed without much incident, Harry had detention every night with Umbridge, but by the time he made it back to the common room Phoebe and Hermione had gone to bed, having been drained from that nights homework feast that they had initiated, they were probably the only two students that were keeping up to speed with the Professors workloads.

Friday dawned sullen and sodden as the rest of the week.

Outside lessons had been cancelled until the weather had broken, therefore giving students free time to spend inside the castle, initially they were supposed to be spending it catching up on unfinished work, but many students were just lying around in their common rooms waiting for their friends to get out of class or for their next ones to begin.

Phoebe, however, was spending more and more time in the dance studio, it was part of the ploy that she hand Serefina had created to make Umbridge think that Phoebe was more busy with her dancing than she was actually sitting around and spreading 'lies' about Voldemort's return.

At five o'clock Friday evening, Phoebe left the Gryffindor tower with Harry for the Quidditch practice, she had somehow managed to get Angelina to reconsider dropping Harry from the team after she had explained that he had received detention because she had argued with Umbridge in class.

"Meet me at Myrtle's bathroom after your detention," Phoebe said, as she and Harry reached the Defence corridor. "I'll heal your hand for you then!"

Harry nodded and made his way towards the door leading to Umbridge's office, he paused outside and looked back to see Phoebe disappear around the corner, leading to the floor below, her broomstick over her shoulder.

Turning back to the door, he knocked and was told to enter. The blank parchment lay ready for him on the lace-covered table, the pointed black quill beside it.

"You know what to do, Mr. Potter," said Umbridge, smiling sweetly at him.

Harry picked up the quill and glanced through the window. If he just shifted his chair and inch or so to the right... on the pre-text of shifting himself closer to the table, he managed it. He now had a distant view of the Gryffindor Quidditch team soaring up and down the pitch, while half a dozen black figures stood at the foot of the tree high goalposts, apparently awaiting their turn to Keep and Chase. It was impossible to tell them apart.

_I must not tell lies_, Harry wrote.

The cut in the back of his right hand opened and began to bleed afresh.

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

The cut dug deeper, stinging and smarting as blood trickled down his wrist.

He chanced a glance out of the window. Whoever was defending the goalpost now was doing a very poor job indeed. Phoebe scored twice in the few seconds that Harry dared to watch. Hoping very much that the Keeper wasn't Ron, he dropped his eyes back to the parchment shining with blood.

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

He looked up whenever he thought he could risk it; when he could hear the scratching of Umbridge's quill or the opening of a desk drawer. The third person to try out was pretty good, the fourth was terrible; the fifth dodged a Bludger exceptionally well but then fumbled an easy save. The sky was darkening, and Harry doubted he would be able to see the sixth and seventh people at all.

He had to admit, however, whoever was playing third chaser with Phoebe and Angelina was doing an excellent job and would have more than likely ended up as the new chaser because they had yet to have changed Chasers, although it seemed that way to him, mostly because it had only been Angelina or Phoebe to make any real shots of the goalpost.

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

_I must not tell lies_

The parchment was now dotted with drops of blood from the back of his hand, which was searing with pain. When he next looked up, night had fallen and the Quidditch pitch was no longer visible.

"Let's see if you've got the message yet, shall we?" said Umbridge's voice half an hour later.

She moved towards him, stretching out her short ringed fingers for his arm. And then, she took hold of him to examine the words now cut into his skin, pain seared, not across the back of his hand, but across the scar on his forehead.

He wrenched his arm out of her grip and leapt to his feet, staring at her. She looked back at him, a smile stretching her wide, slack mouth.

"Yes, it hurts, doesn't it?" she said softly.

He did not answer. His heart was thumping very hard and fast. Was she talking about his hand or did she know what he had just felt in his forehead?

"Well, I think I've made my point, Mr. Potter. You may go,"

He caught up his Schoolbag and left the room as quickly as he could.

_**Stay calm**_, he told himself, as he sprinted up the stairs. _**Stay calm, it doesn't necessarily mean what you think it means...**_

Mid-way across the fifth corridor, Harry collided with someone who was walking in the opposite direction to the one he was running. The two hit the ground and when his world stopped spinning, Harry became aware that the person had been Phoebe.

"Harry!" Phoebe whined.

"Sorry," Harry apologized. "Where are you going?"

"To meet you!" Phoebe answered, "Or do you not need me to heal your hand?"

Harry clenched his fist as the pain flared up once more. He wanted to speak with her, Hermione and Ron in private, but he also knew that he had the chance to be alone with Phoebe. "Sure," he nodded, allowing her to lead him back down to the second floor and Myrtle's bathroom.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"There!" Phoebe announced ten minutes after they had arrived, she had filled a basin full of cold water and held his hand over the surface for a few seconds as the water churned, slithered over the back of his hand and washed away the pain and blood, he had watched her, out of the corner of his eye, throughout the entire procedure.

She looked even more beautiful, if he even thought that was possible, when her eyes flashed the colour of cobalt.

"You're done," Phoebe smiled, looking up at him. "Just try not to get more detentions! Angelina wasn't terrifically pleased that you couldn't make it tonight!"

"What happened?" Harry asked, watching her closely was she emptied the basin of the blood red water and refilled a clear one. He frowned. "What are you doing?"

Phoebe looked up at him. "Ashlyn is bringing Adrian up here," she answered, "i'm going to fix his cuts and bruises. And if you go up the Gryffindor common room now, you will see who made the team!"

Harry nodded, but didn't move, instead, the only movement he did make was to brush aside a loose strand of hair from her face.

Phoebe tensed at his touch and Harry took this as a sign to continue, slowly, as if he was afraid that she would pull away, Harry rested his forehead against hers and touched her face softly. He then, leaned forward; his lips millimeters from hers, when she turned away and his lips met her cheek.

"Phoebe...?" Harry asked, pulling away looking hurt.

"Harry, we can't - I can't -"

"But I love you!"

Phoebe shook her head. "I don't..." she whispered.

Just then, the door swung inwards revealing Ashlyn and Adrian on the otherside, both Slytherin's stopped short at the sight of the two Gryffindor's.

"Are we interrupting?" Ashlyn asked.

Harry, refusing to acknowledge the two Slytherin's stared at Phoebe. "No," he answered, "we're finished! I was just leaving!"

He stormed out, leaving Phoebe staring into the water basin, as the water churned within the sink. She had prevented him from kissing her, because of her love for Terence... so why? Why was she feeling so guilty?

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Concludes next chapter. Please review… the more reviews I get the fast I update!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, April 07, 2012 at 04:00am**


	95. Chapter 95

**Author's Note: **This will be the last week of updates. I have to take next week off from Fanfiction because I have three deadlines one after another the week after!

**Disclaimer:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Jojia** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.** (I need fresh blood... it is getting way to easy writing these three names. I don't even need to look anymore. C'mon... surprise me with some new names.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Jordan Murphy** for adding this story to their Favourites. Very much appreciated. Would it be too much to ask for your help in reaching at 500 reviews before the end of year five? You'll get a dedication... I promise. I never fail in dedicating this story. You readers are so worth it.

Next update will only be posted if I can get 5 reviews for this chapter. Remember, that is five reviews from five different people. I would LOVE to hear what you think of this story. I want to reach at least 500 reviews or more before the end of Order of the Phoenix. It is my mission. Thank you.

Slight adult theme included in chapter. Rated T for safety.

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><p>"Anything interesting?"<p>

"No, just some guff about the bass player in the Weird Sisters getting married."

"Jenson is getting married?"

Hermione looked over the top of her copy of the _Daily Prophet_ and frowned at her best friend.

"What?" Phoebe asked, biting into her jam on toast. "I'm a huge Weird Sister's fan! I like to keep tabs on what is happening with them... Jenson getting married is huge news! He is the only one of those guys worth drooling over!"

Jackson rolled his eyes and glanced up at Hermione. "She has a shrine dedicated to him back home in Portugal, it is a little disturbing."

Phoebe glared at him. "I have pictures, not a shrine!"

"You worship him!"

"And...?"

Jackson shook his head and turned back to his breakfast, while Hermione opened the paper and disappeared behind it and Phoebe devoted herself to a plate of eggs and bacon.

"Oh no," said Hermione suddenly.

"What?" Phoebe and Harry sat at the same time.

"Sirius!"

"What's happened?" said Harry, snatching the paper so violently it ripped down the middle, with him and Hermione each holding one half.

"_The Ministry of Magic has received a tip-off from a reliable source that Sirius Black, notorious mass murderer... blah, blah, blah... is currently hiding in London!"_ Hermione read from her half in an anguished whisper to Phoebe who was trying to look over her shoulder, as James scuttled around behind Ron and Harry to read the paper himself.

"Lucius Malfoy, I'll bet anything," said Harry in a low, furious voice. "He did recognize Sirius on the platform..."

"What?" said Ron, looking alarmed. "You didn't say -"

"Shh!" snapped James and Harry.

_"Ministry warns Wizarding community that Black is very dangerous... killed thirteen people... broke out of Azkaban..._"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "The usual rubbish then," she said, pouring herself some pumpkin juice. "Well, he just won't be able to leave the house again, that's all! Dumbledore did warn him not to."

Harry looked glumly down at his breakfast, his appetite fading rather quickly.

"Have you finished with that?" Jackson asked, pointing at the paper.

Hermione nodded and passed him the _Daily Prophet_. Jackson nodded his thanks and started to turn to the Quidditch section but stopped when something caught his eye. "Hey, look at this," he said, nudging Phoebe.

"Robes?" Phoebe questioned. "I don't need new -"

"Not that," said Jackson, pointing at the bottom of the column where a small article had been published. "That!"

"'Trespass at the Ministry," Phoebe read.

James and the Golden Trio looked up. "Trespass where?" they repeated.

Phoebe laid the paper out onto the table and started to read.

_"TRESPASS AT THE MINISTRY_

_Sturgis Podmore, 38, of number two, Laburnum Gardens, Clapham, has appeared in front of the Wizengamot charged with trespass and attempted robbery at the Ministry of Magic on 31st August. Podmore was arrested by Ministry of Magic watch wizard Eric Munch, who found him attempting to force his way through a top-security door at one o'clock in the morning. Podmore, who refused to speak in his own defence, was convicted on both charges and sentenced to six months in Azkaban."_

"Sturgis Podmore?" said Ron slowly. "Why does that name look familiar? Wait, isn't he the bloke that looks like his head's been thatched? He's one of the Ord -"

"Ron, _shh_!" said Hermione, casting a terrified look around them.

"Six months in Azkaban!" whispered Harry, shocked. "Just for trying to get through a door!"

"Don't be silly, it wasn't just trying to get through a door. What on earth was he doing at the Ministry at one o'clock in the morning?" breathed Hermione.

"D'you reckon he was doing something for the Order?" Ron muttered.

Hermione, Harry and James turned to Phoebe.

The elemental shook her head. "The only job Podmore had that day was to escort us to Kings Cross."

"Yeah," James nodded. "And Moody was all annoyed because he didn't turn up!"

"It could be a frame up!" Ron exclaimed excitedly. "No - listen!" he went on, dropping his voice dramatically at the threatening looks from Hermione and Phoebe. "The Ministry suspects he's one of Dumbledore's lot so - I dunno - they _lured_ him to the Ministry, and he wasn't trying to get through a door at all! Maybe they've just made something up to get him!"

There was a pause while Phoebe, Hermione and the others changed looks. It was a little far-fetched but it was impressive that Ron had come up with the idea before any of them.

"Do you know, I wouldn't be at all surprised if that were true." Hermione said. "Right, well, I think we should tackle that essay for Sprout on self-fertilizing shrubs first and if we're lucky we'll be able to start McGonagall's Inamiatus Conjurus Spell before lunch."

Phoebe bit her lower lip. "Actually, I have other plans for this morning," she said, guiltily.

Hermione frowned.

"I'm meeting Ashlyn in the Dance studio," Phoebe explained. "We're going over our recital..."

"But that was just a ploy to get out of detention!"

Phoebe shook her head. "Not anymore," she answered. "Our Dance instructor says that we are the two chosen to lead a group in the nationals next month. We've got to practice the routine! And I've got Quidditch Practice after that..."

"So you're not doing essays until tonight?" James asked. Phoebe nodded. "Cool, you can help me with mine!"

"Sarah and Amelia are spending the day in the library," Phoebe said. "Go join them! There are tons of books there that can help you! Hermione you are welcome to join them!"

Hermione nodded. "Thanks," she smiled. "Good luck with your routine."

Phoebe smiled. "Thank you. I best be going, Ashlyn said she'll wait for me in the Entrance Hall. I'll see you later."

And she left the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After a couple of hours Phoebe and Ashlyn returned to the Great Hall for lunch - during which James complained about not being able to find the right books he needed in the library - then Phoebe hurried up the Gryffindor tower to collect her broomstick and made her way down the Quidditch pitch for practice.

"All right, Ron?" said George, winking at him.

"Yeah," said Ron.

"Ready to show us all up, Ickle Prefect?" said Fred, emerging tousle-haired from the neck of his Quidditch robes, a slightly malicious grin on his face.

"Shut up," said Ron, stony-faced, pulling on his own robes for the first time. They fitted him well considering they had been Oliver Wood's, who was rather broader in the shoulder.

Phoebe grinned as she pulled on her own robes and turned to James who was sitting on the bench. "Ready?"

"Yeah," James nodded; he had been the new Gryffindor Chaser because of his ability to work well as a team. He and Phoebe had devised an almost indestructible game plan of keeping the Quaffle to themselves and passing to one another and Angelina without it being intercepted.

"Okay, everyone," said Angelina, entering from the Captain's office, already changed. "Let's get to it; James and Phoebe, if you can just bring out the ball crate for us. Oh, and there are a couple of people out there watching but I want you to just ignore them, all right?"

Something in her voice made Phoebe groan as she knew that the spectators were clearly uninvited, and the moment she stepped out onto the pitch, carrying the ball crate between her and James, she saw that her thoughts had been confirmed. The Slytherin Quidditch team and assorted hangers-on were jeering and cat-calling from the empty stands.

"What's that Weasley's riding?" Draco called in his usual sneering drawl. "Why would anyone put a flying charm on a moldy old log like that?"

Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson guffawed and shrieked with laugher. Ron mounted his broom and kicked off from the ground, followed by Harry, Phoebe and James.

"Ignore them," Harry said, catching up with his best friend. "We'll see who is laughing after we play them..."

"Exactly the attitude I want, Harry," said Angelina approvingly, soaring around them with the Quaffle under her arm and slowing to hover on the spot in front of her airborne team. "Okay, everyone, we're going to start with some passes just to warm up, the whole team please -"

"Hey, Johnson, what's with that hairstyle, anyway?" shrieked Pansy Parkinson from below. "Why would anyone want to look like they've got worms coming out of their head?"

"At least none of us look like a _bitch_," Phoebe retorted, hotly.

James laughed loudly, and much to Phoebe's and the other Gryffindor's surprise, so did Draco.

"Phoebe!" Angelina scolded. "Just ignore them! Spread out, then everyone, and let's see what we can do..."

Harry reversed away from the others to the far side of the pitch. Ron fell back towards the opposite goal post, as Phoebe and James hovered several feet away from one another. Angelina raised the Quaffle with one hand and threw it hard to Fred, who passed to George, who passed to Harry, who passed to Ron, who dropped it.

The Slytherin's, led by Malfoy, roared and screamed with laughter.

Ron, who had pelted towards the ground to catch the Quaffle before it landed, pulled out of the dive untidily, so that he slipped sideways on his broom, and returned to playing height, blushing. Phoebe and James exchanged looks, but kept their thoughts to themselves.

"Pass it on, Ron," called Angelina, as though nothing had happened.

Ron threw the Quaffle to Phoebe, who passed to James, who passed to George...

"Hey, Potter, how's your scar feeling?" called Malfoy. "Sure you don't need a like down? It must be, what, a whole week since you were in the hospital wing, that's a record for you, isn't it?"

George passed to Angelina; she reverse-passed to Harry, who had not been expecting it, but caught it in the very tips of his fingers and passed it quickly to James, who passed it to Ron, who lunged for it and missed by inches.

"Come on now, Ron," said Angelina crossly, as he dived for the ground again, chasing the Quaffle. "Pay attention."

It would have been hard to say whether Ron's face or the Quaffle was a deeper scarlet when he again returned to playing height. Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherin team were howling with laughter.

On his third attempt, Ron caught the Quaffle; perhaps out of relief he passed it on so enthusiastically that it soared straight through Phoebe's outstretched hands and hit her hard in the face.

"Phoebe!" James yelped, zooming forward to see if Ron had done any serious damage. "Way to go, Weasley! You're supposed to pass it to a teammate, not try and knock her off her broom!"

"Get back in position, she's fine!" barked Angelina.

Phoebe's nose was bleeding. Down below, the Slytherin's were stamping their feet and jeering. Fred and George converged on Phoebe.

"Here, take this," Fred told her, handing her something small and purple from out of his pocket, "It'll clear it up in no time."

"No, thanks," Phoebe said, pushing his hand away. "I'd rather use my own devices!"

"Now is not the time to be self-righteous, Phoebe!" George groaned. "Take the damn sweet so we can show Slytherin how really good we are! Don't worry; we won't force you to try anymore! We just want to help!"

Phoebe sighed. "Fine!" she caved, taking the sweet and popping it into her mouth. She swallowed and turned to Angelina who was once again barking orders.

"Fred, George, go and get your bats and a Bludger. Ron, get up to the goalposts. Harry, release the Snitch when I say so. We're going to aim for Ron's goal, obviously."

Harry zoomed off after the twins to fetch the Snitch as James and Phoebe joined Angelina.

When the twins and Harry returned to the air, Angelina blew her whistle, Harry released the Snitch, Fred and George let fly the Bludger and Phoebe, Angelina and James passed the Quaffle back and forth as they zoomed down the pitch towards Ron as the meaningless roaring of the Slytherin's disappeared... but too soon, the whistle brought the practice to a halt.

"Stop - _stop_ - STOP!" screamed Angelina. "Ron - you're not covering your middle post!"

"Sorry..." Ron muttered, as he hovered in front of the left-hand hoop, leaving the other two completely unprotected.

"You keep shifting around while you're watching the Chasers!" said Angelina. "Either stay in centre position until you have to move to defend a hoop, or else circle the hoops, but don't drift vaguely off to one side, that's how you let in the last three goals!"

"Sorry..." Ron repeated, his red face shining like a beacon against the bright blue sky.

"And Phoebe, can't you do something about that nosebleed?"

"It's just getting worse!" said Phoebe thickly, attempting to stem the flow with her sleeve. "Fred, George, what did you do to me?"

Fred, who was looking nervous, started to check his pockets anxiously. He pulled out something purple and examined it, before looking at Phoebe, horror-struck.

"Well, let's try again," said Angelina. She was ignoring the Slytherin's, who had now set up a chant of '_Gryffindor's are losers, Gryffindor's are losers,'_ but there was a certain rigidity about her seat on the broom nevertheless.

This time had been flying for barely three minutes when Angelina's whistle sounded. Harry, who had just sighted the Snitch circling the opposite goalpost, pulled up feeling aggrieved.

"What now?" he said impatiently to James, who was nearest.

"Phoebe," James said shortly, flying off towards his best friend.

Harry turned and saw Angelina, James, Fred and George flying as fast as they could towards Phoebe. Harry and Ron sped towards her, too. It was plain that Angelina had stopped training just in time; Phoebe was chalk white and covered in blood.

"She needs the hospital wing," said Angelina.

"We'll take her," said Fred. "She - er - might have swallowed a Blood Blisterpod by mistake -"

James shook his head. "She's going to kill you!"

"Don't remind us," George muttered, hooking Phoebe's arm over his shoulder and supporting her between himself and his brother. "James, want to grab her broom? She'd kill us, bring us back and kill us again if anything happened to that!"

James nodded and grabbed his friend's broomstick from the ground.

"Well, there's no point continuing with no Beaters and two Chasers gone," said Angelina glumly as Fred and George zoomed off towards the castle supporting Phoebe between them. "Come on, let's go and get changed."

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was past midnight.

Phoebe, who had slid down under her covers, sighed and buried her face into the fluffy pillows... but still... she could not sleep!

_**I hate the Hospital Wing!**_ She complained mentally, pushing herself up into a sitting position and looking around. Her curtains had been pulled back, giving her full view of the entire ward, the door to Madam Pomfrey's office had been closed many hours ago and the door to the wing stood slightly ajar at the far end of the ward.

"Huh...?" Phoebe frowned, snapping her head back to it. Hadn't it been closed the last time she looked? Hadn't Madam Pomfrey closed it herself?

Feeling her heart race a mile a minute, Phoebe clutched her pillow to her chest and slid from her bed. Curiosity was definitely a dangerous thing for her, because the last time she had been this curious she had been kidnapped and tortured - twice!

Reaching the door, the elemental shoved it shut with a rather loud bang, and jumped as a hand landed on her shoulder. A scream raked her throat but did not make it passed her lips as someone's hand covered them preventing her from alerting Madam Pomfrey to the danger.

Struggling in the grips of whoever had hold of her, Phoebe dropped her pillow as she kicked and punched behind her. But her assailant merely wrapped their arms around her waist, their hand still over her mouth and carried her back towards her bed.

With a small bounce the elemental was dropped onto her bed as a voice whispered, "Do not scream! Understand?" into her ear.

_**Idiot! Like I'll follow through!**_ Phoebe thought aggressively as she nodded her eyes wide with fear and anxiety.

Who the hell had come all the way up to the Hospital wing to attack her? And why had they taken the time to carry her back to her bed, why not just kill her near the door? Would that be too much trouble? Or did they want to make it look like she had died in her bed? Maybe if she had keeled over by the door, Madam Pomfrey would have known someone had been in the ward, and then her death would have been planned rather than accidental.

_**Shut up, Phoebe!**_ The elemental scolded herself.

The hand was removed from her mouth and the curtains were drawn around the bed as a silencing charm was cast upon them. Phoebe scrambled up her bed, reached for her wand which lay on the bedside table, but before she could grab it a hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled it away. "Now, now, Phoebe... wouldn't want to do anything drastic, would we?"

Phoebe frowned. _**Wait a minute...**_ she thought annoyingly. _**I know that voice...**_

"Terence!"

Terence Higgs laughed as he removed his robes and sat down on the edge of his girlfriend's bed. "You should see your face!"

"I hate you!"

"Of course you do," he nodded, tugging her by the hand onto his lap. "I'm surprised at you, Phoebe, I thought you'd put up more of a fight!"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "I would have had I not been so freaking scared!" she yelled, punching him hard in the chest. "You're such an idiot! You frightened the life out of me!"

"I'm sorry," Terence apologized, kissing the palm of her hand. "Why are you in here, anyway?"

"How did you know I was in here?"

"Serefina told me," Terence explained. "I'm guessing my last letter went to her when Athena couldn't find you. She wrote back and said that you were in the Hospital wing after taking a Quaffle to the nose! You do know you're supposed to catch it with your hands, right?"

Phoebe glared. "Yes! But Ron was nervous and threw it too enthusiastically and it hit me in the nose! Then Fred gave me one of his stupid sweets which made things worse..."

"Why did you take the sweet?"

"Because I didn't want to be self-righteous!"

Terence rolled his eyes. "You being self-righteous is what people like about you! Your stubbornness is what makes you who you are!"

"Are you just going to sit here and list my personality traits or are you actually planning on kissing me?" Phoebe interrupted.

The former Slytherin smirked, cupped the side of her face and pressed his lips to hers causing every rational thought and feeling to melt way.

Terence's mouth was like fire - urgent, powerful and dominating. But to Phoebe it was intoxicating. Emboldened, she nipped at his lower lip as his hands skirted around her top and slid their up the bare skin of her back, their soft innocent kiss had turned passionate as Terence run his tongue along her's as their lips moved in sync.

Pushing his travelling cloak from his shoulders, Phoebe started to unfasten the front of his shirt, only to groan as Terence's hands clasped around hers and pulled away. "Gotta stop..." he whispered, breathlessly.

"But I don't want too!" Phoebe complained. It had been almost a week since she had last seen him, and she hadn't realized how much she had missed him until now.

"I know," Terence nodded. "And if I wasn't on a time limit... the things I would do to you..."

Phoebe blushed in the dim light. "Then why don't you?" she asked boldly, trying to ignore the quiver in her voice.

"Because I want your first night to be special," Terence told her, kissing her forehead. "There is nothing remotely special about being in the Hospital Wing!"

The Gryffindor sighed. "True... so if you're not here for me... why are you here?"

"Well, I am here for you, just not in _that_ sense," Terence answered. "But i'm also here on Order business... since you can't come to the Order meeting... I offered to bring the meeting to you! There are some things that you need to be warned about, things that we cannot put into a letter, even a foreign letter!"

"Why couldnt Serefina warn me?"

"Because she is being watched," said Terence. "And so are you!"

"By who?"

Terence smiled, half-heartedly. "I think you know the answer to that one..."

Phoebe growled inwardly, there was only one person that she could think off that didn't trust her or her godmother above anyone else within the Castle. And that was the same person that she hated with every fiber of her being.

Professor Dolores Jane Umbridge.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Happy Easter... remember: Five reviews from five different people and you'll get the next update. =)

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 08 April, 2012 at 05:33am**


	96. Chapter 96

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following people: **Fan of Fics, Jojia, Dream Lighting, Princessflag3998, Ladymacaroni, BrightYellowSunflower** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too **Princessflag3998** for adding this story to their Favourite Story and Story Alerts. **Ladymacaroni** for adding this story to their Favourites Story. **AnimexXxGoddess** for adding this story their Story Alerts, and **Dream Lighting** for adding me to their Favourite story, Author alert and Story Alert. Very much appreciated.

**In Responses:** Been a while since we did one of these.

So, first off too: **Fan of Fics:** Nope. The year is never complete with Phoebe ending up in the hospital wing, kind of sucks that it was during the first week back, but I guess she will be in there more the once. She usually is. Thank you for the luck on my deadlines, I cannot wait for them to be over because then I will have until October 2012 to write non-stop, YAY. Happy Easter to yourself as well.

Secondly too **Jojia**: I don't know for certain when the next update will be. But I reached my target review scale of five (went over it actually with six reviews.) But I will try and get the next update out ASAP. I did promise and I will follow through. Happy Easter.

Thirdly too: **Dream Lighting:** Thank you for taking the time to review. I really appreciate it. I will add the next chapter as soon as possible. I'm glad you love the twist. Many people feel sorry for Harry, but he'll get over it. It won't be easy, especially with my Christmas surprise, but if he wants Phoebe to be happy then he will let her go. It will be the only way. Happy Easter.

Fourthly too: **Princessflag3998**: I understand what you mean about Esmee dying so close to Blake's death. But I'm sorry to report that it is not so simple in using magic to save her. Phoebe will do everything she can to save Esmee, but she can't use her magic for everything. It's just not that simple, as she will soon find out. But thank you for your review, it really brightened my day. Happy Easter.

Fifthly too: **Ladymacaroni**: Aww... I love to hear that. It's nice knowing that people actually get excited to see that I have updated. Thank you for making me smile. Happy Easter.

Sixthly too: **BrightYellowSunflower**: I am sure if you put your mind to it then you can write just as good as me. I didn't start off like this! When I started my writing, my stories were all over the place, practice and preservation got me where I am today. Thank you for your kind words and Happy Birthday (although this chapter is a day after. I hope you had a great time.)

**Author's Note:** You are all amazing. I didn't reach my designated five reviews from five different people, there was one new reader that I have acquired that didn't review, but the rest of you are amazing for doing so. Again, I am going to ask for five reviews for this chapter before I post the next one! Come on if you've done it once... I know you can do it again. If you can get me up to 485 reviews by next chapter I will be eternally grateful.

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><p>"Potter sent a cryptid message to Sirius,"<p>

Phoebe paused and stared at her boyfriend in the dim light. "What do you mean he sent a cryptid message? What did he say?"

"It was about his scar,"

"What about -?"

"He said that when he had detention with Umbridge it hurt when she touched him!"

"He never told me," Phoebe frowned. "But I guess now that Voldemort is back, Harry's scar is going to hurt more than ever. It hurt him quite a bit last year, but according to Dumbledore it was only when Voldemort was feeling a powerful emotion."

Terence winced. "Do you have to keep saying his name?"

Phoebe stuck her tongue out at him, but pressed on anyway. "I don't think Harry's scar hurting had anything to do with Umbridge. I know she is foul enough to be a Death Eater and she has an evil reputation, but I don't think she is in league with Voldemort."

"Serefina said the exact same thing," Terence nodded.

"Great minds think alike, I guess,"

"I know Umbridge is a nasty piece of work," said Terence. "The way my mum talks about her and you should hear Remus talk about her."

"Yeah, I bet they aren't likely to be best friends," Phoebe agreed. "Especially after Umbridge drafted that anti-werewolf legislation two years ago..."

"What does she have against werewolves?" Terence asked, slightly confused, this hadn't been a topic that had been covered in the meeting.

Phoebe looked up at him. "Umbridge loathes part-humans; she campaigned to have merpeople rounded up and tagged last year."

"So you're in big trouble this year, then?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, I think it is safe to say that she knows I am an elemental," she answered, "I wouldn't have put it passed Fudge to have warned her about me and my family, especially after the end of last year!"

"So, what are her lessons like? Is she training you to kill half-breeds?"

"No! She's not letting us use magic at all!"

"Figures," said Terence. "My mum has managed to acquire information from inside the Ministry and it's not good. It would seem that Fudge doesn't want you trained in combat."

"_Trained in combat?_" repeated Phoebe. "What does he think we're doing here, forming some sort of wizard army?"

"That's exactly what he thinks you're doing," said Terence, "or, rather, that's exactly what he is afraid Dumbledore's doing - forming his own private army, with which he will be able to take on the Ministry of Magic."

There was a pause, then Phoebe said furiously, "So we're being prevented from learning Defence Against the Dark Arts because Fudge is scared we'll use spells against the Ministry?"

"Yep," said Terence. "Fudge thinks Dumbledore will stop at nothing to seize power. He's getting more paranoid about Dumbledore by the day. It's a matter of time before he has Dumbledore arrested on some trumped-up charge."

Phoebe sighed. "Have you heard anything about Hagrid?" she asked. "He was supposed to have been back by now!"

"Madame Maxime was with him," Terence reassured her, "we've been in touch with her and she says they got separated on the journey home - but there's nothing to suggest he's hurt or - well, nothing to suggest he's not perfectly okay."

Phoebe blanched uncomfortably.

Terence took her face in his hands. "Listen, don't go asking too many questions about Hagrid," he said. "It'll just draw even more attention to the fact that he's not back and I know Dumbledore doesn't want that. Hagrid's tough, he'll be okay."

When Phoebe did not appear convinced by this, Terence kissed her.

"When's your next Hogsmeade weekend?" he asked, pulling away briefly.

"Next month," Phoebe answered, drawing him back in, clearly unsatisfied.

Terence grinned and pulled away. "I have to go..." he whispered. "My time is up..."

"But -"

"Send Athena with a date for your Hogsmeade trip," he said. "I'll come back... I'll bring Bambi, she missed you."

"I miss her too!" Phoebe admitted. "How's Ez?"

Terence shook his head, showing that he did not want to talk about his older sister. "She misses you too," he answered, "so does Philip. They want to see you... I know Serefina and my mum is working on a way to get you out of the castle, but so far nothing!"

Phoebe nodded. "Promise you'll bring Thumper?"

"I promise,"

Phoebe smiled and let him go. Terence stared at her during the whole time as he prepared to leave; he threw his travelling cloak over his shoulders and pulled the hood up over his head. "I'll write as soon as I can..." he promised.

"I'll write to you," Phoebe interrupted. "That way we can use Athena... she is less likely to be interrupted!"

Terence nodded. "Okay. You have no idea how much I miss you, Phoebe,"

"Actually, I think I do," the elemental answered. "I feel like I can't breathe this year... I know it has nothing to do with Blake, although he is a contributing factor! I'm just so used to having you here! It's not the same without you..." she paused, following him into the middle of the ward. "I have no reason to leave Gryffindor tower at night! No reason to use the Astronomy Tower or the Room of Requirement!"

Grabbing her hand, Terence raised its palm to his lips and kissed it. "You'll find a reason..." he whispered, now that they were outside of her closed curtains, the silencing charm no longer worked. They needed to be silent as not to alert Madam Pomfrey to their conversation. "You need to be strong this year, Phoebe! There are dark forces at play... and I fear you are slam-bang in the middle of it all!"

Phoebe smiled and rising up onto her toes, she kissed him. "I'll be safe..." she promised.

Terence responded to the goodbye kiss by sliding his arm around her waist and holding her up, as his free hand slipped through her hair and cradled the back of her head, while he kissed her chin and then moved to her neck. Phoebe sighed and grabbed the front of his shirt as a shiver ran down her spine.

However, unknown to the couple, who were too engrossed with saying goodbye that they failed to notice they were no longer alone. As Terence's lips moved back to Phoebe's and she started to respond a short 'hem' cut through the air which caused them to instantly pull apart.

Breathing heavy, Phoebe turned in the direction of the hospital wing doors, and much to her horror found the grouchy, toad-like face of Professor Umbridge, a sickly-sweet smile plastered on her lips, staring at her.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** This was just a conclusion of the last chapter. That is why it is one scene... and short! Night. Don't forget to review... make my otherwise dull day.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 09 April, 2012 at 03:34am**


	97. Chapter 97

**Author's Note:** Again you guys are truly brilliant. If anyone is interested when I find some time I will be publishing a series of short stories that I have written on Kindle Amazon. I haven't worked out a proper title as of yet and am still coming to grips with what needs to be done. The short stories are all written around the supernatural: Vampires. Werewolves. That type of thing. I will post more on the subject when I have worked everything out and the stories are ready for downloading. Anyway... back to Phoebe.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, HotaruKenobi, Evanescencefan97, Ava-Saphire-Clearwater, BrightYellowSunflower, Dream Lighting**, **Fan of Fics, Victoria** and** SmileySS.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **Evanescencefan97** and **BrightYellowSunflower** for adding this story to their Favourite Story alert and Story Alert, but for also adding me to the Favourite Author and their Author alerts. You are the best. =)

**In Responses: **First too **HotaruKenobi**: Welcome back. I have missed your comments; you never fail in making me smile. I quite agree Umbridge was bad enough reading when she was on her own but adding Phoebe and the rest of Fanfiction to her is just plain worse, it does cause for some interesting twists and turns. And it is more to come; especially with Umbridge's hatred for half-breeds which is what Phoebe and the Blackheart family are (there is more on this in this chapter).

Secondly too **Ava-Saphire-Clearwater**: Thank you. I will update as long as you people keep reviewing... your comments make my day, and considering it is pouring down with rain today and I have nothing to do, reading what you guys think is making my dull day even better. (Plus I have essays to write which are not fun).

Thirdly too: **BrightYellowSummer**: Who doesn't hate Umbitch... I mean Umbridge. Aw thank you. Phoebe/Terence are on their way to becoming my favourite Canon/OC character (and i'm not saying that because I am their creator) they are a close second to my other Canon/OC character (which is Marcus Flint/OC but I won't get into that). Weasley Clan? Cuuuuuuuuuuute! I like it!

Fourthly too: **Dream Lighting**: Haha. Pink Toad. I love it! I know it is not good that they were caught... dun dun dun... but what can Umbridge do? Terence is an adult and allowed to visit the castle whenever he pleases; Umbridge cannot stop Phoebe having a relationship with him (even if she must try. Phoebe doesn't listen to the Ministry of Magic, at least not Fudge and his cronies, anyway).

Fifthly too: **Evanescencefan97**: I'm glad to hear that you are loving the story. Your words are completely awesome that I cannot find anything to say to them, but I can answer your question. The length of the chapter depends on how long it takes to get written; some chapters I have written are 16 pages long and have taken me roughly 8 hours to write... but it is also down to the time that I actually get to start writing. If you haven't noticed at the bottom of each chapter I post the time and date that I update the chapter and most of the time it is in the wee hours of the morning, but that is mostly because I do not start writing until around 11:00pm or sometimes even midnight. Other chapters take short time, but even then it is like 3-4 hours then. I hope this answers your question, enjoy the rest of the story, I love hearing from you. =)

Sixthly too: **Fan of Fics:** Haha. I liked your suggestions for what Phoebe could write on her hand... would you mind if I used one of them? No, Sirius turned up the same time that Terence was in the hospital wing with Phoebe, I wanted to keep that bit but with Phoebe in the Hospital wing it was hard to have him there, so I tweaked it a bit to bring in some fluffy chapters. Oh, don't be jealous, a few more months and the summer time will be on us and we'll all be free!

Seventhly too: **SmileySS**: Yes, Blake died because Voldemort killed him. There is more about Blake's death as you read this chapter. As for the length of the story; it will go all the way to the end of DH. I understand that it means A LOT of chapters, but I think this story will be worth it. Does this answer your questions?

Lastly too: **Victoria**: I'm glad you're enjoying the story. I'm glad that the fact it is during the Golden Trio era hasn't put you off, and while the Golden Trio are a contributing factor I find that replaying their years at Hogwarts as boring which is why I try and include my own ideas and plotlines so it's not an actual repeat. Yay! Another Terence/Phoebe supporter... yup, Harry is making himself very hateable with his pursuit of Phoebe, it all changes after Christmas, mind. I will keep Phoebe/Terence together. Promise. Enjoy the rest of the story.

Thank you to everyone, I had a fab Easter, but I now have a sweet tooth because of all the chocolate I received... my front teeth are killing me every time I bite down on something, so I just have to let the chocolate melt in my mouth. It is better that way, anyway.

It has taken me the majority of two days to write this chapter… I hope it was worth it.

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><p><em>MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM<em>

_DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED_

_FIRST EVER HIGH INQUISITOR_

"High Inquisitor?" James questioned. "What does _that_ mean?"

Phoebe shrugged and read aloud:

_"In a surprise move last night the Ministry of Magic passed new legislation giving itself an unprecedented level of control at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_"__**The Minister has been growing uneasy about goings-on at Hogwarts for some time,"**__ said Junior Assistant to the Minister, Percy Weasley. "__**He is now responding to concerns voiced by anxious parents, who feel the school may be moving in a direction they do not approve of."**_

_This is not the first time in recent weeks that the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, has used new laws to effect improvements at the Wizarding School. As recently as 30th August, Educational Decree Number Twenty-two was passed, to ensure that, in the event of the current Headmaster being unable to provide a candidate for a teaching post, the Ministry selected an appropriate person._

_**"That's how Dolores Umbridge came to be appointed to the teaching staff at Hogwarts,**__" said Weasley last night. "__**Dumbledore couldn't find anyone so the Minister put in Umbridge, and of course, she's been an immediate success -**__"_

"Is he blind or just plain stupid?" James asked, looking up at Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia, Jackson, Aiden and Phoebe.

"Wait, there's more," said Sarah grimly.

_"- __**and immediate success, totally revolutionizing the teaching of Defence Against the Dark Arts and providing the Minister with on-the-ground feedback about what's really happening at Hogwarts."**_

_It is this last function that the Ministry has no formalized with the passing of Educational Decree number Twenty-three, which creates the new position of Hogwarts High Inquisitor._

_**"This is an exciting new phase in the Minister's plan to get to grips with what some are calling the **_**falling standards**_** at Hogwarts."**__ said Weasley. "__**The High Inquisitor will have powers to inspect the fellow educators and make sure that they are coming up to scratch. Professor Umbridge has been offered this position in addition to her own teaching post and we are delighted to say that she has accepted."**_

_The Ministry's new moves have received enthusiastic support from parents of student at Hogwarts:_

_**"I feel much easier in my mind now that I know Dumbledore is being subjected to fair and objective education,"**__ said Mr. Lucius Malfoy, 41, speaking from his Wiltshire mansion last night. "__**Many of us with our children's best interests at heart have been concerned about some of Dumbledore's eccentric decisions in the last few years and are glad to know that the Ministry is keeping an eye on the situation."**_

_Among those _eccentric_ decisions are undoubtedly the controversial staff appointments previously described in this newspaper; which have included the employment of werewolf Remus Lupin, half-giant Rubeus Hagrid, delusional ex-Auror, 'Mad-Eye' Moody and elemental Half-breed Serefina Blackheart."_

Phoebe and Aiden paused and looked up at one another.

As their friends, who had also stopped reading, exchanged nervous looks. Phoebe's _second_, and possibly the most _dangerous_ secret of all, had been released to the public.

"Oh," Aiden moaned. "This is bad... if they know about Serefina -"

"Then everyone is going to know about us!" Phoebe whispered. "As if this year couldn't get any worse!"

"And it's not even mid-way through yet!" Ashlyn cried.

"What are we going to do?" Amelia questioned.

"Keep reading," Aiden prompted. "Don't let Umbridge have the satisfaction of catching us off guard... we have to find out more information about her!"

Sarah nodded. "Go on, Phoebe, keep reading!"

Phoebe looked around at her friends and then back down at the article, she took a deep breath and continued, "Rumors abound, of course, that Albus Dumbledore, once Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, is no longer up to the task of managing the prestigious school of Hogwarts..."

_"__**I think the appointment of the Inquisitor is a first step towards ensuring that Hogwarts has a headmaster in whom we can all repose our confidence,"**__ said a Ministry inside last night._

_Wizengamot elders Griselda Marchbanks and Tiberius Ogden have resigned in protest at the introduction of the post of Inquisitor to Hogwarts._

_"__**Hogwarts is a school, not an outpost of Cornelius Fudge's office,"**__ said Madam Marchbanks. "__**This is a further, disgusting attempt to discredit Albus Dumbledore."**_

_(For a full account of Madam Marchbanks's alleged links to subversive goblin groups, turn to page seventeen.)"_

Phoebe finished reading and looked up at her friends.

"So now we know how we ended up with Umbridge!" Amelia said. "Fudge passed this 'Educational Decree' and forced her on us! And now he's given her the power to inspect the other teachers!" she was breathing fast and her eyes were very bright. "I can't believe this. It's _outrageous!_"

"I know it is," said Aiden

But a grin was unfurling on James's face.

"What?" said Phoebe and the others together, staring at him.

"Oh, I can't wait to see McGonagall inspected," said James happily. "Umbridge won't know what's hit her."

"Well, come on," said Ashlyn, jumping up, "we'd better get going, if she's inspecting Binns class we don't want to be late..."

Phoebe nodded, rolled up the paper and stuffed it into her bag, and while she, Ashlyn, James and Aiden made their way towards History of Magic, Sarah and Amelia hurried off for Charms.

**~*Phoebe*~**

But Professor Umbridge was not inspecting their History of Magic lesson, which was just as dull as the previous Monday, nor was she in Snape's dungeon when they arrived for double Potions, where Phoebe's moonstone essay was handed back to her with a large black 'O' scrawled in an upper corner.

"I have awarded you the grades you would have received if you presented this work in your OWL," said Snape with a smirk, as he swept among them, passing back their homework. "This should give you a realistic idea of what to expect in the examination."

Snape reached the front of the class and turned on his heel to face them.

"The general standard of this homework was abysmal. Most of you would have failed had this been your examination. I expect to see a great deal more effect for this week's essay on the various varieties on venom antidotes, or shall have to start handing out detentions to those dunces who get a 'D'."

Phoebe and Ashlyn turned to James who shook his head and pointed at the scrawly 'A' that was on his paper.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Well, that wasn't as bad as last week, was it?" said Aiden, as they climbed the steps out of the dungeon at the end of the lesson and made their way across the Entrance Hall towards lunch.

"... I mean, all right, I didn't expect the top grade, not if he's marking to OWL standard, but a pass is quite encouraging at this stage, wouldn't you say?" Hermione was saying as Phoebe and James joined her, Harry and Ron at the Gryffindor table.

"Who didn't get top marks?" Phoebe asked.

"I was just saying," Hermione smiled. "That the homework was a baseline, so was the grades, aren't they something we can build on..."

"Hermione," said Ron sharply, "if you want to know what grades we got, ask."

"I don't - I don't mean -"

"All right," James jumped in. "What grade did you get, Weasley?"

"I got 'P'," said Ron, ladling soup into his bowl. "Happy?"

"Well, that's nothing be ashamed of," said Fred, who had just arrived at the table with George, Roxanna and Lee Jordan and down on Harry's right. "Nothing wrong with a good healthy 'P'."

"But," said Hermione, "doesn't 'P' stand for..."

"'Poor', yeah," said Lee Jordan. "Still, better than 'D', isn't it? 'Dreadful'?"

Harry coughed into his roll, causing Phoebe to look at him quizzically, before turning back to the twins and Hermione.

"So top grade's 'O' for 'Outstanding'," Hermione was saying, "and then there's 'A' -"

"No, 'E'," George corrected her, "'E' for 'Exceeds Expectations'. And I've always thought Fred and I should've got 'E' in everything, because we exceeded expectations just by turning up for the exams."

They all laughed except Hermione and Phoebe, the bookworm ploughed on. "So, after 'E' it's 'A' for 'Acceptable', and that's the last pass grade, isn't it?"

"Yep," said Fred, dunking an entire roll in his soup, transferring it to his mouth and swallowing it whole.

"Then you get 'P' for 'Poor' -" Ron raised both his arms in mock celebration - "'D' for 'Dreadful'."

"And then 'T'," George reminded him.

"'T'?" asked Hermione, looking appalled. "Even lower than a 'D'? What on earth does 'T' stand for?"

"'Troll'," said Phoebe promptly, spooning some soup into her mouth and swallowing. She shuddered as her entire body ignited with warmth.

Roxanna and Lee stared at her. "Um, Phoebe," Roxanna said, nervously, "did you see the paper this morning?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, looking up at them. "What about it?"

"What it said about your godmother..." Roxanna continued, carefully. "Was it true? Is she an elemental half-breed?"

Phoebe's eyes darkened. "You do know that the term 'half-breed' is just as offensive as 'Mudblood', right?"

"Uh... what I meant -"

"I know what you meant," Phoebe interrupted. "But yes, my godmother is an elemental!"

"And her parents?"

Phoebe sighed. "Put it this way," she replied, "an elemental cannot be created... they are born!"

"So, that's a yes?"

Phoebe simply raised her eyebrows at Lee.

"It's a yes!" Roxanna said, dropping her gaze and going back to her food.

"You lot had an inspected lesson yet?" Fred asked, trying to divert the conversation into safer waters.

"No," said Hermione at once. "Have you?"

"Just now, before lunch," said George. "Charms."

"What was it like?" James and Phoebe asked together.

Fred shrugged.

"Not that bad, Umbridge just lurked in the corner making notes on a clipboard. You know what Flitwick's like, he treated her like a guest, didn't seem to bother him at all. She didn't say much."

Roxanna nodded. "Asked me a couple of questions about what the classes are normally like," she shrugged, "just told the truth!"

"I can't see old Flitwick getting marked down," said George, "he usually gets everyone through their exams all right."

"Who've you got this afternoon?" Fred asked Harry.

"Trelawney -"

"A 'T' if ever I saw one."

"- and Umbridge herself."

"Well, be a good boy and keep your temper with Umbridge today," said George. "Angelina will do her nut if you miss any more Quidditch practices."

**~*Phoebe*~**

But they did not have to wait for Defence Against the Dark Arts to meet Professor Umbridge. Phoebe was in the middle of pulling out her dream diary in her usual seat near the window in the Divination room when James elbowed her in the ribs, and, looking round, she saw Professor Umbridge emerging through the trapdoor in the floor.

The class, which had been talking cheerily, fell silent at once.

The abrupt fall of noise level made Professor Trelawney, who had been wafting about handing out copies of _The Dream Oracle_, look round.

"Good afternoon, Professor Trelawney," said Professor Umbridge with her wide smile. "You received my note, I trust? Giving the time and date of your inspection?"

Professor Trelawney nodded curtly and, looking very disgruntled, turned her back on Professor Umbridge and continued giving out books. Still smiling, Professor Umbridge grasped the back of the nearest armchair and pulled it to the front of the class so that it was a few inches behind Professor Trelawney's seat. She then sat down, took her clipboard from her flowery bag and looked up expectantly, waiting for the class to begin.

Professor Trelawney pulled her shawls tight about her with slightly trembling hands and surveyed the class through her hugely magnifying lenses.

"We shall be continuing our study of prophetic dreams today," she said in a brave attempt at her usual mystic tones, though her voice shook slightly. "Divide into pairs, please, and interpret each other's latest night-time visions with the aid of the _Oracle._"

She made as though to sweep back to her seat, saw Professor Umbridge sitting right beside it, and immediately veered left towards Parvati and Lavender, who were already in deep discussion about Parvati's most recent dream.

Aiden opened his copy of _The Dream Oracle_ and turned to Phoebe. "Any dreams recently?"

"One," Phoebe nodded. "But I don't think you'll be interested in deciphering it..."

"Why not?"

Phoebe chewed her lower lip as her face burned in remembrance of her dream.

Sarah, who had looked up, grinned, "Oh, you naughty girl, Phoebe..." she teased.

"Watch it, Puffer!"

The Hufflepuff shrugged and turned back to James, who was mid-way through explaining a dream he had had the previous night. It included a Dragon, Golden Fleece and a Lightning Bolt.

"OK, we've got to add your age to the date you had the dream," Sarah nodded, consulting her _Dream Oracle_. "The number of letters in the subject..."

Phoebe glanced at Aiden shrugged and went back to her own work, jotting down a few key points that she thought would come in handy if Trelawney were to ever pass their table. As if reading her mind, the over-sized bat swooped down upon the group of four several minutes after Sarah had finished counting the number of letters in James's subjected dream.

"Now," said Umbridge, before Trelawney could ask the group if they needed assistance, "you've been in this post how long, exactly?"

Professor Trelawney scowled at her, arms crossed and shoulders hunched as though wishing to protect herself as much as possible from the indignity of the inspection. After a slight pause in which she seemed to decide that the question was not so offensive that she could reasonably ignore it, she said in a deeply resentful tone, "Nearly sixteen years."

"Quite a period," said Professor Umbridge, making a note on her clipboard. "So it was Professor Dumbledore who appointed you?"

"That's right," said Professor Trelawney shortly.

Professor Umbridge made another note.

"And you are the great-great-granddaughter of the celebrated Seer Cassandra Trelawney?"

"Yes," said Professor Trelawney, holding her head a little higher.

Another note on the clipboard.

"But I think - correct me if I am mistaken - that you are the first in your family since Cassandra to be possessed of the Second Sight?"

"These things often skip - er - three generations," said Professor Trelawney

Professor Umbridge's toad like smile widened.

"Of course," she said sweetly, making yet another note. "Well, if you could just predict something for me, then?" And she looked enquiringly, still smiling.

Professor Trelawney stiffened as though unable to believe her ears. "I don't understand you," she said, clutching convulsively at the shawl around her scrawny neck.

"I'd like you to make a prediction for me," said Professor Umbridge very clearly.

"The Inner Eye does not See upon command!" Aiden said, defensively.

Phoebe glanced sideways at Aiden, as the rest of the class stopped what they had been doing and turned in the direction of their table.

Umbridge and Trelawney paused and turned to the student sitting behind them.

"Isn't that right, Professor?" Aiden added, looking towards Trelawney for confirmation.

Seemingly catching herself, Trelawney blinked and nodded. "Yes, the boy is correct," she said, looking back at Umbridge.

"I see," said Professor Umbridge softly, making yet another note on her clipboard.

"I - but - but - _wait_!" said Professor Trelawney suddenly, in an attempt at her usual ethereal voice, though the mystical effect was ruined somewhat by the way it was shaking with anger. "I... I think I _do_ see something..."

Suddenly, Aiden stiffened as his eyes clouded over.

_"Noooooo! Nooooooo... I am Senior Undersecretary... you cannot - Unhand me, you animals... nooooo!"_

_He lifted his head and saw that Umbridge had been seized from behind and lifted high into the air, wriggling and yelling with fright. She was then borne away through the trees. Screaming non-stop, her voice growing fainter and fainter until it could no longer be heard._

"Aiden..." Phoebe whispered, urgently shaking her brother's shoulder hard. "Aiden, snap out of it! Class is over!"

Aiden blinked as his eyes refocused and he saw Phoebe staring back at him with wide eyes full of worry. "What did you say?"

"I said class is over," Phoebe repeated.

Looking around the room, Aiden realized that she was right and that they were the only ones left within the classroom. "Uh, sorry..." he muttered, shaking his head, spaced out.

"C'mon, we're going to be late for Defence!"

Nodding, Aiden packed away his belongings and followed Phoebe through the throng of tables towards the Trapdoor. He paused, however, and turned to Professor Trelawney.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Professor Umbridge," he said. "She is amongst those that will never understand the Seeing Eye... I for one, believe, that she will suffer terribly for what she is inflicting upon this castle, its students and its staff! But those within the castle possess one thing that she does not... and that's loyalty."

Trelawney and Phoebe stared at him in confusion.

"Well, have a nice evening, Professor," Aiden finished, before leading Phoebe through the trapdoor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Umbridge was sitting behind her desk humming to herself when Phoebe and Aiden entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom ten minutes after the lesson had started.

"Sorry we are late," Aiden apologized. "Did we miss anything?"

"Nothing that you can't make up for in Detention," Umbridge answered in her sickly sweet voice. "After school. Today."

Phoebe sighed and turned to Aiden, as she led the way to an empty table at the back of the room.

Still smiling her wide, self-satisfied smile, Umbridge sat back down at her desk and the class returned to what they were doing as Aiden and Phoebe pulled out their copies of _Defensive Magical Theory_ when Hermione stuck her hand into the air.

And they weren't the only two that had noticed either, Professor Umbridge had noticed, too, and what as more, she seemed to work out a strategy for just such an eventuality. Instead of trying to pretend she had not noticed Hermione she got to her feet and walked around the front row of desks until she was face-to-face with the bookworm, then bent down and whispered, so that the rest of the class could not hear what she had to say.

There was a slight pause while the two conversed in silent whispers, before Hermione said, very clearly and loudly, catching the attention of the rest of the class.

"Yes, I do. Mr. Slinkhard doesn't like jinxes, does he? But I think they can be very useful when they're used defensively."

"Oh, you do, do you?" said Professor Umbridge, forgetting to whisper and straightening up. "Well, I'm afraid it is Mr. Slinkhard's opinion, and not yours, that matters within this classroom, Miss. Granger.

"But -" Hermione began.

"That is enough," said Professor Umbridge. She walked back to the front of the class and stood before them. "Miss. Granger, I am going to take five points from Gryffindor house."

There was an outbreak of muttering at this.

"What for?" said Harry angrily.

"For disrupting my class with pointless interruptions," said Professor Umbridge smoothly. "I am here to teach you using a Ministry-approved method that does not include inviting students to give their opinions on matters about which they understand very little. Your previous teachers in this subject may have allowed you more license, but as none of them - with the possible exception of Professor Quirrell, who did at least appear to have restricted himself to age-appropriate subjects - would have passed a Ministry inspection -"

"Yeah, Quirrell was a great teacher," said Harry loudly, "there was just that minor drawback of him having Lord Voldemort sticking out of the back of his head."

This pronouncement was followed by one of the loudest silences Phoebe had ever heard. Then -

"I think another week's detentions would do you some good, Mr. Potter," said Umbridge sleekly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I still don't understand why you don't let Phoebe heal your hand for you," Hermione said, as she led the way into Transfiguration on Tuesday morning.

"Because I don't need her help, Hermione!" said Harry. "Umbridge has already questioned me on how my hand has healed miraculously overnight. I don't want to drop Phoebe in the middle of it all by saying she is using elemental magic to heal my hand for me!"

Ron frowned. "You don't think Umbridge knows Phoebe's secret?" he asked. "She already destroyed it for Professor Blackheart..."

"Phoebe and Serefina aren't biologically related," Hermione reminded them.

"What has that got to do with anything?" Ron questioned.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't you retain any information?"

Ron stared at her blankly.

"It is like Phoebe said," Hermione sighed, "Elementals are born!"

"What does that mean?"

"It means that Serefina's family is an elemental family," Hermione explained. "Phoebe is not biologically related to Serefina, despite withholding the Blackheart surname..."

Ron shook his head. "I'm still confused..."

"It means that Umbridge probably does know that I am an elemental," Phoebe answered, sliding into the seat in front of Ron. "And she probably thought that people would turn against me if she printed that stuff about my Godmother, what she _didn't_ realize was that Serefina and I are not biologically related which means there is no link between us to pass on the elemental gene."

"So..."

Phoebe sighed in annoyance. "You really are thick!" she snapped. "_So_... if there is no biological link between me and Serefina, then there is no connection elementally between us either... people are not going to consider that I am an elemental because no one else in my family is one."

"Aiden..." James whispered.

"Aiden is my _half_-brother," Phoebe corrected. "He _is_ biologically related to Serefina! But no one other than us know that!"

James nodded. "Good point."

"That will do," Professor McGonagall called and silence fell immediately. "Mr. Finnigan, kindly come here and hand back the homework - Miss. Brown, please take this box of mice - don't be silly, girl, they won't hurt you - and hand one to each student -"

"_Hem, hem,_" said Professor Umbridge, who was stood in the corner of the room.

Professor McGonagall ignored her. Lavender handed over a mouse which trembled as it was dropped onto the wooden table in front of Phoebe, seeing Lavender couldn't look the elemental in the eye as she passed.

"Right then, everyone, listen closely - Dean Thomas, if you do that to the mouse again I shall put you in detention - most of you have now successfully Vanished your snails and even those who were left with a certain amount of shell have got the gist of the spell. Today, we shall be -"

"_Hem, hem,"_ said Professor Umbridge.

_"Yes?_" said Professor McGonagall, turning round, her eyebrows so close together they seemed to form one long, severe line.

"I was just wondering, Professor, whether you received my note telling you of the date and time your inspec -"

"Obviously I received it, or I would have asked you what you are doing in my classroom," said Professor McGonagall, turning her back firmly on Professor Umbridge. Many of the students exchanged looks of glee. "As I was saying: today, we shall be practicing the although move difficult Vanishment of mice. Now, the Vanishing Spell -"

_"Hem, hem,"_

"I wonder," said Professor McGonagall in cold fury, turning on Professor Umbridge, "how you expect to gain an idea of my usual teaching method if you continue to interrupt me? You see, I do not generally permit people to talk when I am talking."

Professor Umbridge looked as though she had been slapped in the face. She did not speak, but straightened the parchment on her clipboard and began scribbling furiously.

Looking supremely unconcerned, Professor McGonagall addressed the class once more.

"As I was saying: the Vanishing Spell becomes more difficult with the complexity of the animal to be Vanished. The snail, as an invertebrate, does not present much of a challenge; the mouse, as a mammal, offers a much greater one. This is not, therefore, magic you can accomplish with your mind on your dinner. So - you know the incantation; let me see what you can do..."

Professor Umbridge did not follow Professor McGonagall around the class as she followed Professor Trelawney; perhaps she realized Professor McGonagall would not permit it. She did, however, take many more notes while sitting in her corner, and when Professor McGonagall finally told them all to pack away, she rose with a grin expression on her face.

"Well, it's a start," said James, holding up a long wriggling mouse-tail and dropping it back into the box Lavender was passing around.

As they filed out of the classroom, Harry saw Professor Umbridge approach the teacher's desk; he nudged Ron, who nudged Hermione, who caught Phoebe's arm in turn, and the four of them, along with James, Aiden and Ashlyn fell back to eavesdrop.

"How long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?" Professor Umbridge asked.

"Thirty-nine yeas this December," said Professor McGonagall brusquely, snapping her bag shut.

Professor Umbridge made a note.

"Very well," she said, "you'll receive the results of your inspection in ten days' time."

"I can hardly wait," said Professor McGonagall, in a coldly indifferent voice, and she strode towards the door. "Hurry up, you lot," she added, sweeping the group of five Gryffindor's and two Slytherin's before her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Come now, come now," said Serefina calling for order as the Slytherin's and Gryffindor's hurried across the lawn towards Hagrid's cabin, she was vaguely aware of Professor Umbridge standing near the pumpkin patch, but she ignored her with ease. "Phoebe... could you please sprinkle a few woodlice out for the Bowtruckles... watch your fingers."

Phoebe nodded, dropped her backpack down onto the floor and hurried forward to take the container of woodlice from her godmother. She carefully threw a handful of the grey-shelled lice into the trestle and giggled as the bowtruckles scrambled over one another to get at the food.

"I wonder how long Professor Blackheart will be here after her secret was revealed." Pansy Parkinson whispered, rather loudly to her friend, as they passed where Phoebe was standing. "Elementals are classed as Dark Creatures in the UK, you know? They're almost as bad as werewolves!"

Millicent Bulstrode, the person who Pansy was whispering, nodded.

Phoebe turned her head in an attempt to ignore them, she knew that they were only trying to get her to snap in front of Umbridge, but she refused to give them the satisfaction.

"You do not usually take this class, is that correct?" asked Professor Umbridge as she approached Serefina.

"I have an assistant," Serefina nodded. "Professor Hagrid. He is away on leave for the time being."

"Hmm," said Professor Umbridge. "The Headmaster seems strangely reluctant to give me any information on the matter - and since, as you say, Professor Hagrid is your assistant, maybe you could shed a little light on this strange extended leave of absence?"

Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe saw Parkinson and Bulstrode look up eagerly, watching Umbridge and Serefina closely.

"Sorry," said Serefina, shaking her head. "I am afraid Professor Hagrid's leave of absence is strictly a need to know basis!"

"Meaning...?"

"Meaning," Serefina replied, in a cool and steady voice. "The headmaster and I know... and you will know when we see it fit to tell you!"

And without waiting for a reply, Serefina turned back to the class and Phoebe could not help giving her godmother a faint smile and received one in return.

Umbridge took a different tack in this class and wandered amongst the students, questioning them on magical creatures. Most people were able to answer well and Phoebe's spirits lifted as she realized that the class was not letting either Hagrid or her godmother down in any way, shape or form.

"And how many years have you been teaching at Hogwarts?" said Professor Umbridge, returning to Serefina side after a lengthy interrogation of James.

"Nineteen years," Serefina answered.

"And you are from Portugal, correct?"

"Yes," Serefina nodded her tone curt and forceful.

"So, tell me," said Umbridge, looking up from her clipboard, "overall, how do you, a foreigner, I suppose you could say - how do you find Hogwarts? Do you feel you receive enough support from the school management?"

Phoebe saw Serefina's eyes darkened slightly and a slight tremor ripped across the pumpkin patch, upsetting the Bowtruckles.

_"Serefina!"_ both Aiden and Phoebe hissed.

The tremor stopped and Serefina turned to face Umbridge. "After nineteen years of working here," she said in a hearty voice, "I am _very_ happy with the way things are run, very happy indeed. Dumbledore is an excellent headmaster... non-judgmental, if you know what I mean," she smiled sweetly and turned her back on Umbridge once more.

Looking politely incredulous. Umbridge made a tiny note on her clipboard and went on, "And what are you planning to cover with this class this year?"

"I'll take them through the creatures that most often come up in OWL," said Serefina. "Not much left to do - they've covered Unicorns and Nifflers, I thought we'd cover Porlocks and Kneazles, make sure they can recognize Crups and Knarls, you know..."

"Well, it would seem that you know what you're doing," said Umbridge, somewhat unsatisfied as she made a very obvious tick on her clipboard, and turned to question Pansy. "Now, I hear there have been injuries in this class?"

Phoebe felt her heart drop.

Pansy grinned, turning to Draco. "Yes, my poor -"

Draco caught Phoebe's heartbroken look and hastened to answer Umbridge's question. "The only injuries that are worth recording are those that were caused by human error," he said. "After all... these are _magical_ creatures we are dealing with, there is bound to be injuries."

"Thank you," Phoebe mouthed as she caught her brother's eye.

Draco nodded subtly and turned to glare at Pansy as Umbridge walked away.

"I think that is all I need here," Umbridge said. "You will be receiving the results of your inspection within ten days."

"Perfect," said Serefina, and Professor Umbridge set off back across the lawn to the castle. "_Bitch!"_

Phoebe grinned at her godmother and exchanged a look with Aiden, before breaking out into a fit of giggles.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was nearly midnight when Harry returned to the Gryffindor common room later that evening; his hand was bleeding so severely that it was staining the scarf he had wrapped around it. He wasn't that surprised to find Hermione and Ron sitting near the fireplace, waiting for his return, he was, however, very surprised to find Phoebe, James and Jackson also present when he returned.

"Here," said Phoebe scooting closer to Jackson and pulling him down onto the sofa beside her. She placed his hand in a small bowl of clear water and felt a familiar pull inside her chest as the liquid coiled around Harry's hand causing the words to disappear. "Hermione's right, Harry, you should have let me heal this before it got worse! You could have blood poisoning if you're not careful!"

"I didn't want to bother you," Harry answered, trying to ignore the shiver that run down his spine at her touch.

"You're not a brother, Harry," Phoebe said. "In fact... it's my job to look after you, how can I do that if you hide these things from me?"

"I don't need looking after!"

Phoebe smiled softly but did not reply.

"I still reckon you should complain about this," said Ron in a low voice.

"No," said Harry flatly.

"McGonagall would go nuts if she knew -"

"Yes, she probably would," said Harry dully. "And how long do you reckon it'd take Umbridge to pass another decree saying anyone who complains about the High Inquisitor gets sacked immediately?"

Ron opened his mouth to retort but nothing came out and, after a moment, he closed it again, defeated.

"She's an awful woman," said Hermione in a small voice. "_Awful_. We've got to do something about her,"

"But what can we do?" Jackson asked.

"I suggest poison," said Ron grimly.

"Suffocation?" suggested James.

Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"No... I mean, something about what a dreadful teacher she is, and how we're not going to learn any Defence from her at all," said Hermione.

"Well, what can we do about that?" said Ron, yawning. "'S too late, isn't it? She's got the job, she's here to stay. Fudge will make sure of that."

Phoebe shook her head. "Not if we show him that we do not _need_ her anymore!"

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, looking confused.

"Well, what if we took a stand against the Ministry?" Phoebe suggested. "I have been thinking for some time now - that maybe the time has come when we should just do it ourselves!"

"Do what ourselves?" said Harry.

"Learn Defence Against the Dark Arts," said Phoebe.

"Come off it," groaned James. "You want us to do extra work? D'you realize how far behind I am on homework as it is?"

Ron nodded in agreement. "And it's only the second week back!"

"But this is much more important that homework!" said Phoebe.

Harry, Ron and James goggled at her.

"I didn't think there was anything in the universe more important than homework!" said Ron.

"Don't be silly, of course there is," said Phoebe. "It's about preparing ourselves for what's waiting for us out there. Voldemort is about to just give up and disappear. We don't stand a chance against him if we're not prepared... and how do you expect us to defend ourselves if we don't learn anything for a whole year -"

"We can't do it ourselves," said Ron in a defeated voice. "I mean, all right, we can go and look jinxes up in the library and try and practice them, I suppose -"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "If you'd shut up and let me finish," she snapped. "Maybe you'd realize that I wasn't referring to us sitting in the library doing research! We need a teacher, a proper teacher, and one that can show us how to use the spells accordingly and correct us if we're going wrong."

"Where are we going to find one of them?" James asked. "The only teacher I know who'd be perfect for the job is Professor Lupin..."

"No, no, I'm not talking about Professor Lupin," said Phoebe. "He's too busy with the Order and, anyway, the most we could see him is during Hogsmeade weekends and that's not nearly often enough."

"Well, what about you, Phe?" Jackson asked. "You've got the brain capacity... I'm sure you could pull off teaching a class."

"Not a chance in hell!" Phoebe said quickly. "I don't have the patience to be a teacher! No, I was thinking more along the lines of _you_, Harry."

There was a moment's silence. A light night breeze rattled the windowpanes behind Ron, and the fire guttered.

"About me what?" said Harry.

"I'm talking about _you_ teaching us Defence Against the Dark Arts."

Harry stared at her.

Hermione grinned. "That's a brilliant idea, Pheebs," she nodded.

"What's an idea?" said Harry.

"You," said Hermione. "Teaching us to do it."

"But..."

Harry was grinning now, sure Phoebe and Hermione had cooked this up as a beforehand joke and they were pulling his leg.

"But I'm not a teacher, I can't -"

"Harry, you're the best in the year at Defence Against the Dark Arts," said Hermione.

"Me?" said Harry, now grinning more broadly than ever. "No I'm not; you and Phoebe have beaten me in every test -"

"Phoebe has been homeschooled since she was five years old," said Jackson quickly. "So she is going to be slightly better than you. But I am certain that they are not talking about tests!"

Phoebe nodded. "We're not. Think about what you have _done_, Harry!" she smiled.

"How d'you mean?"

"You know what, I'm not sure I want someone this stupid teaching me," James said to Phoebe, smirking slightly. He turned to Harry. "Let's think... first year - you saved the Philosopher's Stone and rescued Phoebe from Voldemort."

"But that was luck," said Harry, "it wasn't skill -"

"Second year," James interrupted, "you killed the Basilisk, destroyed Riddle and saved Ginny and Phoebe from the Chamber of Secrets!"

"Yeah, but if Fawkes hadn't turned up, I -"

"Third year," said James, louder still, "you fought off about a hundred Dementors at once -"

"You know that was a fluke, if the Time Turner hadn't -"

"Last year," James said, almost shouting now, "You fought of Voldemort _again -_"

"Listen to me!" said Harry, almost angry, because Ron, Hermione, Phoebe, Jackson and James were all smirking now. "Just listen to me, all right? It sounds great when you say it like that, but all that stuff was luck - I didn't know what I was doing half the time, I didn't plan any of it, I just did whatever I could think of, and I nearly always had help -"

Phoebe and James grinned at one another.

"Don't sit there grinning like you know better than I do, I was there, wasn't I?" Harry snapped. "I know what went on, all right? And I didn't go through any of that because I was brilliant at Defence Against the Dark Arts, I got through it all because - because help came at the right moment, or because I guessed right - but I just blundered through it all, I didn't have a clue what I was doing - STOP LAUGHING!"

He was on his feet before he even realized it.

The smiles vanished from the other's faces.

"_You don't know what it's like!_ You - neither of you - you've never had to face him, have you? You think it's just memorizing a bunch of spells and throwing them at him, like you're in class or something? The whole time you're sure you know there's nothing between you and dying except your own - your own brain or guts or whatever - like you can think straight when you know you're about a nanosecond from being murdered, or tortured, or watching your friends die -"

Phoebe's breath caught in her throat and tears blurred her vision. Harry hadn't actually said Blake's name... but she knew that is who he was referring too.

Hearing Phoebe's gasp, Jackson pulled her onto his lap and cradled her against him, as Harry blundered on.

"- they've never taught us that in their classes, what it's like to deal with things like that - and you lot sit here acting like i'm a clever little boy to be standing here, alive, like Blake was stupid, like he messed up - you just don't get it, that could just as easily been me - Blake didn't _have_ to take that spell for me!"

Phoebe and Jackson snapped to attention. "He - what?" they asked together.

"Blake saved _my_ life," Harry repeated, staring helplessly at Phoebe, whose face was stricken.

"Harry," Hermione said timidly, "neither of us were having a go and Blake... you've got the wrong end of the - don't you see, Harry? This... this is exactly why Phoebe suggested you... we need you... we need to know what it's r-really like... facing him... facing V-Voldemort."

It was the first time she had ever said Voldemort's name and it was this, more than anything else that calmed Harry. Still breathing hard, he sank back into the sofa, fully aware that Phoebe was still staring at him, her stormy grey eyes full of unshed tears.

"Well... think about it," said Hermione quietly.

Harry could not think of anything else to say. He was feeling ashamed of his outburst already. He nodded, hardly aware of what he was agreeing to.

Hermione stood up.

"Well, I'm off to bed," she said, in a voice that was clearly as natural as she could make it. "Phoebe... you coming?"

Phoebe, who was still staring at Harry, said, "I'll be up in a minute..."

"OK," Hermione nodded. "Well, goodnight..."

Ron and James had got to their feet, too.

"Coming?" Ron said awkwardly to Harry.

"Yeah," said Harry. "In... in a minute."

James exchanged looks with Phoebe, before following Ron up to the boys' dormitories.

Silence fell in the common room as Jackson put his arm around Phoebe and led her towards the stairs leading to the girls' dormitories. "C'mon Phe," he said quietly. "You need to sleep..."

"Wait..." Phoebe said in a low voice, turning back to Harry. "What you said about Blake..."

"I meant it," Harry said, quickly. "Blake gave his life to save mine... He didn't have too! He could have made it out alive... he was right next to the Portkey, he could have taken it and came straight back, been crowned winner of the Tournament... instead he got between me and Voldemort... made me promise that if anything happened to him, that I would bring his body back to Hogwarts... back to you!"

Phoebe swallowed, tears falling freely from her stormy grey eyes. "H-he died fighting?"

Harry nodded.

"He didn't just stand there and die?"

"No," Harry said, shaking his head. "He went down with a fight - I'm sorry I couldn't save him!"

Phoebe shook her head. "He wouldn't have let you," she said. "Blake would have known... he would have known from the moment you arrived at the Graveyard..."

"Known... what?"

Jackson drew Phoebe in as she sobbed into his chest, while he looked up at Harry.

"He would have known that he wouldn't have been leaving…"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** This is the longest chapter yet - 21 pages - 8,847 words - show your support by leaving a review. Thank you.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 4:35am**


	98. Chapter 98

**Author's Note: **Sorry that I missed the update last night! I have been busy with my Writer's Journal for University... you would think that on a Creative _Writing_ course you would be expected to do a folder of stories, which is essential, but I also have to include workshop logs and diary entries. You'd think I was doing an Arts and Crafts course! Ah, well, been a fun night creating character profiles. I'm not very artsy... but when it comes to designing things on a computer I am pretty good. Going to stop rambling now.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **HotaruKenobi, BrightYellowSunflower, Evanescencefan97, Dream Lighting, Princessflag3998, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartNerd** and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **This-Is-A-Pen** for adding this story to their story alerts. It is very much appreciated.

**In responses:** First too **BrightYellowSunflower:** Sirius's Death? I haven't quite decided on whether or not I will be killing him... but in canon it is his death that pushes Harry to become the warrior that he is in Deathly Hallows. But, like I said, i'm not sure what is happening yet, I want to redeem Kreacher, but he is the reason Harry ends up in the Ministry in the first place, if I decide to redeem him then there is a chance that Sirius will survive, no promises though.

Secondly too **Dream Lighting:** Phoebe's Patronus has already been chosen, along with Terence, James, Sarah, Ashlyn and Amelia's. I hope you like them.

Thirdly too **Princessflag3998:** I will try and work more Phoebe/Draco scenes in especially for you, considering you like them so much. =)

If there are any questions that you really need answering, give me a shout, or just repeat the question at the bottom of your new review. I'll answer it next chapter. Thanks.

Terence and Bambi return...

* * *

><p>No one made no mention of Harry giving Defence Against the Dark Arts lessons for two whole weeks after the suggestion had been posed. Detentions with Umbridge were finally over, for everyone, and Phoebe had healed the cuts on the backs of their hands.<p>

Ron and James had had four more Quidditch practices and Ron had managed to get through the last two without being shouted at, before the subject was broached again, on a wild, blustery evening at the end of September, when Phoebe had joined the Golden Trio in the back of the library after her Dance rehearsal, they were researching potion ingredients for Snape.

"How did your rehearsal go?" Hermione asked as the elemental pulled out a chair and sat down, dropping her backpack onto the floor with a soft _thud_.

"Fine," Phoebe answered. "We met with the team we will be leading today... they are not that bad, but taking orders is lost on them!"

Hermione smiled sympathetically. "They do realize that this is yours and Ashlyn's routine, right?"

"Well, if they didn't at first," said Phoebe, "they do now! I don't think I have ever seen Ashlyn explode at anyone before... she was pretty scary."

The Muggleborn smiled. "As long as they know their place," she nodded.

Phoebe grinned and looked across at Ron and Harry, both of whom were staring at their books, brows creased in concentration. "Harry, I was wondering," she said, uncertainly, "whether you'd thought any more about Defence Against the Dark Arts."

"Course I have," said Harry grumpily, "can't forget it, can we, with that hag teaching us -"

"I meant the idea I had - about you teaching us."

Harry did not answer at once. He pretended to be perusing a page of _Asiatic Anti-Venoms_.

"Harry," Phoebe pressed. "I know you're not reading that..."

"Of course I am," Harry said, without looking up.

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks. "It's upside down, Harry," the bookworm pointed out, reaching across the table, turning the book so that it was the right way up, and then sliding it back to her friend.

"Oh..." Harry murmured, looking sheepish.

Phoebe and Hermione giggled into their hands.

"Well, yeah, I - I've thought about it a bit," Harry nodded; looking up from the book, there was no point in pretending anymore, he had already been caught out.

"And?" said Hermione eagerly.

"I dunno," said Harry, playing for time. He looked up at Ron.

"I thought it was a good idea from the start," said Ron, who seemed keener to join in the conversation now that he was sure that Harry was not going to start shouting again.

Harry shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

"You did listen to what I said about a load of it being luck, didn't you?"

"Yes, Harry," said Phoebe gently, "but all the same, there's no point pretending that you're not good at Defence Against the Dark Arts, because you are. You were the only person last year who could throw off the Imperious Curse - I add help!" she added quickly, as Harry opened his mouth to argue.

Ron looked quizzical. "You did?"

Phoebe nodded. "Salazar, Godric, Rowena and Helga called out to me," she answered, "and I have been able to throw off the imperious curse since I was a child. It may seem like child abuse, but Serefina and my grandparents thought it would be safer if I knew how to fight of the Imperious curse so that my powers would never be used without my consent."

Her friends nodded in understanding.

"Besides," Phoebe continued, "you can produce a Patronus, Harry. You can do all sorts of stuff that full-grown wizards can't, Blake always said that the spells you were using were nothing he had learned at Durmstrang, and he was in his final year!"

Hermione smiled faintly at her best friend as she knew, better than anyone, other than Jackson, how hard it was for Phoebe to talk about Blake.

"So, what do you think? Will you teach us?" Phoebe asked.

"Just you three and James, yeah?"

"Well," said Phoebe, looking a mite anxious again. "Well... now, don't fly off the handle again, Harry, please... but I really think you ought to teach anyone who wants to learn. I mean, we're talking about defending ourselves against Voldemort. Oh, don't be pathetic, Weasley. It doesn't seem fair if we don't offer the chance to other people."

Harry considered this for a moment, then said, "Yeah, but I doubt anyone except you three and James would want to be taught by me. I'm a nutter, remember?"

"And I'm distraught," Phoebe countered. "But you'd be surprised at how many people would be interested in hearing what you've got to say. Look," she leaned towards him - Ron and Hermione also leaned forwards to listen - "you know the first weekend in October's a Hogsmeade weekend? How would it be if we tell anyone who's interested to meet us in the village and we can talk it over?"

"Why do we have to do it outside school?" said Ron.

"Because," said Phoebe, leaning back in her chair and flipping absently through her potions book, and jotting down a few notes onto her parchment. "I don't think Umbridge would be very happy if she found out what we were up to."

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Dear Terence,_

_Hogsmeade this weekend._

_I can't wait to see you and Bambi._

_Give my love to Philip, Esmee and your mum, I hope to see them all soon._

_Love,_

_Phoebe._

"Good luck," Phoebe whispered, as she watched Athena take off through the open window into the dawn that was breaking the morning sky. She had decided to start sending any post before the sun, or any students and/or staff had risen within the castle because she didn't want to risk her letters being intercepted.

Once Athena had disappeared from sight, Phoebe turned and hurried down the spiral staircase and back towards the Gryffindor common room to wait for her friends to rouse from their slumber. She knew they would not be late today because it was the first Hogsmeade trip of the year and everyone had been looking forward to it for so long.

And could anyone blame them? They were in much need of a well-deserved break.

"Well, you can't blame him for wanting to get out and about," said Ron, as Phoebe scrambled back through the portrait hole, he was sat in front of the fireplace with James, Harry and Hermione. "I mean, he's been on the run for over two years, hasn't he, and I know that can't have been a laugh, but at least he was free, wasn't he? And now he's just shut up all the time with that ghastly elf."

Hermione scowled at Ron, but otherwise ignored the slight on Kreacher.

"The trouble is," she said to Harry, "until V-Voldemort - oh for heaven's _sake_, Ron - comes out into the open, Sirius is going to have to stay hidden, isn't he? I mean, the stupid Ministry isn't going to realize Sirius is innocent until they accept that Dumbledore's been telling the truth about him all along. And once the fools tart catching the real Death Eaters again, it'll be obvious Sirius isn't one... I mean, he hasn't got the Mark, for one thing."

"Yeah, but the Ministry do not want Sirius because they believe he is a Death Eater," Phoebe said, approaching the back of the couch. "They want him because they believe he is a murderer, and without Pettigrew alive, we have no proof that Sirius didn't kill anyone! You remember what Dumbledore said, no one is going to believe us, we're just a couple of children in the face of the Ministry!"

James sighed in defeat. "Hey, where have you been?"

"Owlery," Phoebe answered. "I have worked out a strategy to get my mail out without it being intercepted!"

Her friends looked curious.

"Well, I'm not about to tell you, am I?" said Phoebe. "We don't know who could be listening... Umbridge could have ways of listening in on us, even in our common rooms!"

"That sounds creepy," Hermione shuddered.

Phoebe smiled grimly. "I wouldn't put it past the Ministry to eavesdrop on private conversations; they have already got Umbridge checking our mail!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After breakfast Phoebe, Jackson and James found Ashlyn, Amelia, Aiden and Sarah amidst the rest of the students that were going to Hogsmeade. Filch was stood at the great oak doors matching their names to a long list of students who had permission from their parents or guardians to visit the village.

Once the group of seven made it into the courtyard, they set off at a brisk pace down the wide drive to the gates.

They walked between the tall stone pillars, topped with winged boars and turned left onto the road into the village, the wind whipping their hair into their eyes.

"So, Phoebe, what is happening today?" Amelia asked.

"We're meeting the others at the Hogs Head for our meeting," Phoebe answered. "And then I am meeting Terence and Bambi... I don't know about the rest of you!"

Sarah grinned. "Aw, are you going to play happy families with Terence?" she teased.

"Bambi happens to be his sister," Phoebe corrected.

"How old is she?"

"Five,"

"Then you can get away with it,"

"Hardly!" Phoebe answered. "Not unless I had her when I was ten!"

The Hufflepuff frowned, before grumbling. "Damn it!"

Phoebe giggled into her gloved hands and pulled her coat up around the back of her neck to try and block out the harsh winds.

They walked down the main street past Zonko's Wizarding Joke Shop, where they were not surprised to see Fred, George and Lee Jordan, past the past office, from which owls issued at regular intervals, and turned up a side-street at the top of which stood a small inn.

A battered wooden sign hung from a rusty bracket over the door, with a picture on it of a wild boar's severed head, leaking blood on the white cloth around it. The sign creaked in the wind as they approached. All seven of them hesitated outside the door.

"Best get it over with," said Phoebe, leading the way inside.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was not at all like the Three Broomsticks, whose large bar gave an impression of gleaming warmth and cleanliness. The Hog's Head bar comprised one small, dingy and very dirty room that smelled strongly of something that might have been goats.

The bay windows were so encrusted with grime that very little daylight could permeate the room, which was lit instead with the stubs of candles sitting on rough wooden tables. The floor seemed at first glance to be compressed earth, though as they stepped onto it, the friends realized that there was stone beneath what seemed to be the accumulated filth of centuries.

There was a man sitting at the bar, his whole head was wrapped in dirty grey bandages, though he was still managing to gulp endless glasses of some smoking, fiery substance through a slit in his mouth; two figures shrouded in hoods sat at a table in one of the windows and in a shadowy corner beside the fireplace sat a witch with a thick, black veil that fell to her toes.

"I don't know about this, Phoebe," Jackson muttered, as they crossed to the bar.

"This may not be the _best_ place for comfort," Phoebe answered, "but it is the only place that we can be without getting caught. Besides, even if Umbridge does come in here there's nothing she can do to stop us. I triple-checked the school rules. We're not out of bounds; Hermione specifically asked Professor Flitwick whether students were allowed to come in the Hog's Head, and he said yes. And I looked up everything I can think of about study groups and homework groups and they're definitely allowed. I just don't think it's a good idea if we _parade_ what we're doing."

"Especially as it's not exactly a homework group you're planning, is it?" said James.

The barman sidled towards them out of the back room. He was a grumpy-looking old man with a great deal of long grey hair and beard. He was tall and thin and looked vaguely familiar to every, expect Phoebe, who knew _exactly_ who the man in front of her was.

_**Aberforth Dumbledore**_ she thought, a faint smile tracing her lips as he connected his gaze with hers.

"What?" he grunted.

"Seven Butterbeers, please," said Phoebe.

The man reached beneath the counter and pulled up seven very dusty, very dirty bottles, which he slammed on the bar.

"Fourteen Sickles," he said.

"I'll get them," said Phoebe quickly, passing over the silver. The barman's eyes travelled over the elemental for a fraction of a second. Then he turned away and deposited her money in an ancient wooden till whose drawer slid open automatically to receive it. "Thank you."

The barman grunted as he watched the seven of them turn away and make their way over to the furthest table from the bar and sat down, looking around. The man in the dirty grey bandages rapped the counter with his knuckles and received another smoking drink from the barman.

The door opened and as cold wind swept around the dingy bar three others stepped foot inside.

Harry, Hermione and Ron had arrived.

Spotting them, Phoebe raised her hand and waved them over, after they had paid for three bottles of Butterbeer.

"So, who did you say is supposed to be meeting us?" Harry asked, wrenching open the rusty top of his Butterbeer and taking a swig.

"Just a couple of people," Phoebe said, checking her watch and looking anxiously towards the door. "I told them to be here about now and I'm sure they all know where it is - oh, look, this might be them now."

The door of the pub had opened. A thick band of dusty sunlight split the room in two for a moment and then vanished, blocked by the incoming rush of a crowd of people.

First came Neville with Dean and Lavender, who were closely followed by Parvati and Padma Patil with Cho and her usually-giggling girlfriends, then came Luna Lovegood; then Angelina Johnson and Roxanna Lilienthal, Colin and Dennis Creevey, Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, Cedric Diggory; Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner and Terry Boot. Ginny, Henry and Melissa Black, closely followed by Zacharias Smith, Fred and George Weasley, Lee Jordan and, bringing up the rear, Adrian Pucey and Morgan Jenson.

"A couple of people?" said Harry hoarsely. "_A couple of people?"_

"Yes, well, the idea seemed quite popular," said Phoebe happily. "Ron, James, do you want to pull up some more chairs?"

The barman had frozen in the act of wiping out a glass with a rag so filthy it looked as though it had never been washed. Possibly he had never seen his pub so full.

"Hi," said Fred, reaching the bar first and counting his companions quickly, "could we have... twenty-nine Butterbeers, please?"

The barman glared at him for a moment, then, throwing down his rag irritably as though he had been interrupted in something very important, he started passing up dusty Butterbeers from under the bar.

"Cheers," said Fred, handing them out. "Cough up, everyone; I haven't got enough gold for all of these..."

Harry watched numbly as the large chattering group took their beers from Fred and rummaged in their robes to find coins. He could not imagine what all these people had turned up for until the horrible thought occurred to him that they might be expecting some kind of speech, at which he rounded on Phoebe.

"What have you been telling people?" he said in a low voice. "What are they expecting?"

"I've told you, they just want to hear what you've got to say," said Phoebe soothingly; but Harry continued to look at her so furiously that she added quickly, "you don't have to do anything yet, I'll speak to them firs."

"Hi, Harry," said Neville, beaming and taking a seat opposite him.

Harry tried to smile back, but did not speak; his mouth was exceptionally dry. Cho had just smiled at him and sat down on Ron's right. Her friend, who had curly reddish-blonde hair, did not smile, but gave Harry a thoroughly mistrustful look which plainly told him that, given her way, she would not be here at all.

In twos and threes the new arrivals settled down, some looking rather excited, others curious. Luna Lovegood gazing dreamily into space. When everybody had pulled up a chair, the chatter died out. Every eye was upon Harry.

"Hi," said Phoebe happily. "Right, well, there is no point beating around the bush, you all know why we are here... I had the idea that it might be good if people who wanted to study Defence Against the Dark Arts - and I mean, really learn it, you know, not that Ministry-approved crap that Umbridge has sprung onto us, because I don't know how anyone can call that Defence! Anyway, I thought it would be good if we took matters into our own hands."

She paused, glanced sideways at Harry, and then pressed on. "And by that I mean learning how to defend ourselves properly, not just in theory but doing the real spells!"

"You want to pass Defence Against the Dark Arts OWL too, though, I bet?" said Michael Corner, who was watching her closely.

"Of course I do," said Phoebe. "But I hardly think any of us are going to pass the practical without proper knowledge of the spells beforehand. The theory is brilliant and everything... but there is very little you can do with it! I want to be properly trained in defence because, if you haven't noticed, Lord Voldemort has returned!"

The reaction was immediate and predictable. Cho's friend shrieked and slopped Butterbeer down herself; Terry Boot gave a kind of involuntary twitch; Padma Patil shuddered, and Neville gave an odd yelp that he managed to turn into a cough. All of them, however, looked fixedly, even eagerly at Harry.

"Oi, over here," Phoebe called. "I haven't finished! That is the plan; anyway, if you want to join us, we need to decide how we're going to -"

"Where's the proof that You-Know-Who's back?" said Zacharias Smith in an aggressive voice.

"Dumbledore believes it -"

"You mean, Dumbledore believes _him,"_

Phoebe glared. "The meeting isn't about discussing Voldemort's return," she snapped, "It's about protecting ourselves from outside dark forces!"

"It's OK, Phoebe," said Harry.

It had just dawned on him why there were so many people there. Some of these people - maybe even most of them - had turned up in the hopes of hearing Harry's story firsthand.

"What makes me say that You-Know-Who is back?" Harry repeated, looking straight at Smith. "I saw him. But Dumbledore told the whole school what happened last year, and if you didn't believe him, you won't believe me, and I'm not wasting an afternoon trying to convince anyone."

The whole group seemed to have held its breath while Harry spoke. Harry had the impression that even the barman was listening. He was wiping the same glass with the filthy rag, making it steadily dirtier.

Zacharias said dismissively, "All Dumbledore told us last year was that Blake Brooks got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought his body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us exactly how Brooks got murdered, and I think we'd all like to know -"

"I saw Blake's body when they brought him up to the Hospital wing," said Jackson getting steadily to his feet. "There wasn't a scratch on his body... there is only one curse that I know of that kills instantly and doesn't leave a scratch on the victim. I could show it to you, if you'd like, not that _you'd_ see anything, but anyone else who doesn't believe Harry will!"

The look on Zacharias's face remained indifferent.

"_Jackson,_" Phoebe whispered, tugging at his hand and speaking in Portuguese. "_Please - please don't... we have nothing to prove to them! If they don't want to believe then that is their choice! But we are the ones that are going to be prepared!"_

Still glaring at the Hufflepuff, Jackson allowed Phoebe to guide him back to his seat, slip her hand into his and rest against his shoulder.

"I don't want to talk about Blake," said Harry, trying very hard not to look at Phoebe. "So if that's why your here, you might as well clear out now!"

He cast a look at Hermione, Ron and the others, all of which had taken Phoebe's approach and cast their gazes downwards. This was starting to turn out to be a very bad idea.

Seeing as Phoebe had withdrawn at the mention of Blake, Hermione stood and addressed the group before her. "So," she started her voice very high-pitched. "So... like Phoebe was saying... if you want to learn some defence, then we need to work out how we're going to do it, how often we're going to meet and where we're going to -"

"Is it true," interrupted Susan Bones, looking at Harry, "that you can produce a Patronus?"

There was a murmur of interest around the group at this.

"Yeah," said Harry slightly defensively.

"A corporeal Patronus?"

"Er - you don't know Madam Bones do you?" Harry asked, the phrase stirring something within his memory.

Susan smiled.

"She's my auntie," she said. "You probably don't know me, but I know Phoebe does. I'm Susan... Susan Bones. My auntie told me about your hearing. So - is it really true? You make a stag Patronus?"

"Yes," said Harry.

"Blimey, Harry!" said Lee Jordan, looking deeply impressed. "I never knew that!"

"Mum told Ron not to spread it around," said Fred, grinning at Harry. "She said you got enough attention as it was."

"She's not wrong," mumbled Harry, and a couple of people laughed.

The veiled witch sitting alone shifted very slightly in her seat.

"And did you kill a Basilisk with that sword in Dumbledore's office?" demanded Terry Boot. "That's what one of the portraits on the wall told me when I was in there last year..."

"Er - year, I did, yeah," said Harry.

Justin Finch-Fletchley whistled; the Creevey brothers exchanged awestruck looks and Lavender Brown said "Wow!" softly.

"And in our first year," said Neville to the group at large, "he saved that Philological Stone -"

"Philosopher's," corrected Hermione.

"Yes, that - from You-Know-Who," finished Neville.

Hannah Abbott's eyes were as round as Galleons.

"And that's not to mention," said Cedric, "all the those tasks, last year, getting past dragons and merpeople and that Acromantula, they weren't easy!"

There was a murmur of impressed agreement around the table.

"Look," Harry said, and everyone fell silent at once. "I... I don't want to sound like I'm trying to be modest or anything, but... I had a lot of help with all that stuff..."

"Not with the dragon, you didn't," said Michael Corner at once. "That was a seriously cool bit of flying..."

"Yeah, well -" said Harry, feeling it would be churlish to disagree.

"And nobody helped you get rid of those Dementors this summer," said Susan Bones.

"No," said Harry, "no, OK, I know I did bits of it without help, but the point I'm trying to make is -"

"Are you trying to weasel out of showing us any of this stuff?" said Zacharias Smith.

"Here's an idea," said Ron loudly, before Harry could speak, "why don't you just shut your mouth?"

Perhaps the word 'weasel' had affected Ron particularly strongly. In any case, he was no looking at Zacharias as though he would like nothing better than to thump him.

Zacharias flushed. "Well, we've all turned up to learn from him and now he's telling us he can't really do any of it," he said.

"That's not what he said," snarled Fred.

"Would you like us to clean your ears out for you?" enquired George, pulling a long and lethal-looking metal instrument from inside one of his Zonko's bags.

"Or any part of your body, really, we're not fussy where we stick this," said Fred.

A shrill whistle cut through the air and everyone turned to find Phoebe on her feet. "The _point_ of this meeting is to agree or not on whether to take these lessons! If you _don't_ agree to taking lessons from Harry -" she narrowed her eyes at Zacharias, "then you may as well clear off now! Those of you, who _are_ in agreement, remain seated."

No one moved.

"So, we're all in agreement?"

There was a murmur of general agreement. Zacharias folded his arms and said nothing; though perhaps this was because he was too busy keeping an eye on the instrument in Fred's hands.

"Right," said Phoebe. "Well, then, the next question is how often do we meet. I really don't think there's any point in meeting less than once a week... and then there is the fact that most of us our Quidditch players, we need to make sure that the times don't clash with our Quidditch practices."

Those who were Quidditch players, and even Quidditch captains, nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure we can find a time that suits everyone," said Hermione, slightly impatiently, "but you know, this is rather important; we're talking about learning to defend ourselves against V-Voldemort's Death Eaters -"

"Well said!" barked Ernie Macmillan, who had been expected to speak long before this. "Personally, I think is this really important, possibly more important than anything else we'll do this year, even with our OWLs coming up!"

He looked around impressively, as though waiting for people to protest. When nobody spoke, he went on, "I, personally, am at a loss to see why the Ministry has foisted such a useless teacher on us at this critical period. Obviously, they are in denial about the return of You-Know-Who, but to give us a teacher who is trying to actively prevent us from using defensive spells!"

"There is conformational evidence that Umbridge doesn't want us trained in Defence Against the Dark Arts," said Phoebe, "she has this insane idea that Dumbledore could use the students in the school as a kind of private army. She thinks he'd mobilize us against the Ministry."

Nearly everyone looked stunned at this news.

"How do you know that?" Zacharias Smith demanded.

"I know quite a bit about the English Wizarding Government, Smith," Phoebe answered. "But I have a loyalty to my sources and i'm not about to reveal them, especially to the likes of you!"

"Well, it makes sense," said Luna Lovegood. "After all, Cornelius Fudge has got his own private army."

"What?" said Harry, completely thrown by this unexpected piece of information.

"Yes, he's got an army of Heliopaths," said Luna solemnly.

"No, he hasn't," snapped Hermione.

"Yes, he has," said Luna.

"What are Heliopaths?" asked Neville, looking blank.

"They're spirits of fire," said Aiden, "great tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of -"

"They don't exist, Neville," said Hermione tartly.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Hermione, some creatures _do_ exist," she told her best friend. "Just because you haven't seen them doesn't mean they don't!"

"But it's ridiculous, Phoebe," Hermione protested. "Even the name -"

"Some creatures have several different names," Phoebe cut across the bookworm. "But we're getting off topic here... we need to decide how often we're going to meet and have defence lessons!"

"Well, once a week sounds cool," said Lee Jordan.

"As long as -" began Angelina.

"Relax, Ange," Phoebe smiled. "I'll be sure that it doesn't clash with any Quidditch schedules. You Quidditch captains will just have to warn me of when you plan to take practice so that I can create a suitable timetable..."

Angelina nodded.

"Okay, so the times are out of the way," said Hermione, "what about a place? We need somewhere big enough to train!"

This was rather more difficult; the whole group fell silent.

"Library?" suggested Roxanna Lilienthal after a few minutes.

"I can't see Madam Pince being too chuffed with us doing jinxes in the library," said Ashlyn.

"Maybe an unused classroom?" said Henry Black.

"Yeah," said Ron, "McGonagall might let us have hers, she did when Harry was practicing for the Triwizard."

"I don't think McGonagall will be so accommodating this time," said Phoebe. "We're not exactly a study or homework group... we're more of a rebellion, if anything!" she paused, a distant memory surfacing slowly -

_Terence nodded. "Okay. You have no idea how much I miss you, Phoebe,"_

_"Actually, I think I do," the elemental answered. "I feel like I can't breathe this year... I know it has nothing to do with Blake, although he is a contributing factor! I'm just so used to having you here! It's not the same without you..." she paused, following him into the middle of the ward. "I have no reason to leave Gryffindor tower at night! No reason to use the Astronomy Tower or the Room of Requirement!"_

"Right, well, we'll try and find somewhere," said Hermione, snapping Phoebe from her thoughts.

"I have somewhere," said Phoebe, quickly. "A place that will accommodate our every need! It is a place I never thought that I would actually use again, not since the end of last year!"

"What's so special about the end of last year?" Jackson asked.

Phoebe lowered her gaze. "Nothing..."

Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah giggled. "Terence left last year!" they said together, grinning teasingly at the elemental.

"Ooooh," chorused a few others.

Phoebe's face burned crimson. "Moving on..." she said her gaze still locked on the table top. "I'll send a message to everybody once I've got a time for the first meeting, it will also include directions for the meeting place."

"So, that's it?" Zacharias asked, getting to his feet and looking ready to leave.

"No," Phoebe stopped him. "I also think that everybody should sign this parchment," she pulled a bottle of ink, a quill and long sheet of parchment from her bag. "Just so we know who was here, it is also an agreement that we won't go shouting about what we're doing around the school."

James looked questionable. "So it's like signing a contract?" he asked.

Phoebe glanced his way. "If you wish to think of it that way, then yes," she nodded. "If you sign, you're agreeing to not tell Umbridge or anybody else what we're up to."

Fred reached out for the parchment and cheerfully wrote his signature, along with George, James, Jackson, Ashlyn and the rest of Phoebe's friends. But there were several people that looked less than happy at the prospect of putting their names on the list.

"Er..." said Zacharias slowly, not taking the parchment that Lee Jordan was trying to pass to him, "well... I'm sure Ernie, Cedric, Amelia or Sarah will tell me when the meeting is."

"No we won't," said Amelia, "either sign the paper, or leave, we're not your parents, Zach, you make your own choices!"

But Ernie was looking rather hesitant about signing, too. Sarah raised her eyebrows at him.

"I - well, we are _prefects_," Ernie burst out. "And if this list was found... well, I mean to say... Blackheart said herself, if Umbridge finds out -"

"You just said this group was the most important thing you'd do this year," Sarah reminded him.

"I - yes," said Ernie, "yes, I do believe that, it's just -"

"Ernie, do you really think I'd leave this list lying around?" said Phoebe testily.

"No, No, of course not," said Ernie, looking slightly less anxious. "I - yes, of course I'll sign."

Nobody raised objections after Ernie, though Cho's friend did give her a reproachful look before adding her own name. When the last person - Zacharias - had signed, Phoebe took the parchment back and slipped it carefully into her bag.

"Well, time's ticking on," said Fred briskly, getting to his feet. "George, Lee and I have got items of a sensitive nature to purchase; we'll be seeing you all later."

In twos and threes the rest of the group took their leave, too.

Cho made rather a business of fastening the catch on her bag before leaving, her long dark curtain of hair swinging forwards to hide her face, but her friend stood beside her, arms folded, clicking her tongue, so that Cho had little choice but to leave with her.

As her friend ushered her through the door, Cho turned back to wave to Harry, and resulted in walking directly into someone who was coming into the Hogs Head.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" Cho snapped.

Looking round to see what the commotion was all about, Phoebe grinned and run to the door, brushing past Cho and her friend, and swallowing a blonde man in a hug.

"Any particular reason you wanted to meet at the Hogs Head?" Terence asked, as he and Phoebe pulled away.

"I'll tell you later," Phoebe answered, kissing him once, fully aware of Cho glaring icily at her from behind.

"Phoebe!" a small voice squealed as the door inched open a bit more and a small infant toddled inside, her cheeks flushed pink.

Phoebe giggled, scooped up Bambi Higgs and sprinted out of the door. "MY BABY!" she yelled, over her shoulder.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Sorry for another late update. Just hasn't had the energy to do pretty much anything since Wednesday.

**A/N:** Yes, Cedric Diggory was mentioned in this chapter! Mostly because, if you read the Harry Potter wiki and the Goblet of Fire closely, you will see that Cedric died when he was 17, but he was only in his sixth year of Hogwarts! Proving that if he hadn't died, he would have been in Order of the Phoenix!

**A/N:** REVIEW… please?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, April 13, 2012 at 5:31am**


	99. Chapter 99

**Author's Note:** I hated this chapter! No matter how many ways I tried to write it... it would not work... in the end I tried an approach I have never written from before. I hope you like it.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **HotaruKenobi, BrightYellowSunflower, Kankananime123, Dream Lighting, Fan of Fics, Princessflag3998** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**In responses: **First too: **HotaruKenobi:** Thank you. I cannot believe that this story has made it over 500 reviews or that it has nearly 100 chapters. Longest story I have ever written and first story to have more than 200 odd reviews. I'm eternally grateful to everyone that has made this story worth writing! When I started writing it, I never stopped to think it would do so well. I hope you enjoy what is to come...

**BrightYellowSunflower:** First off, you put an 'e' instead of a 'w' in your name. But I knew it was you. I quite agree, I never did like Zacharias either; may decide to end his miserable life before the end of DH. I will do a chapter of Phoebe and the four founders if you wish, it may not be for some time, but I will try and fit it in somewhere. It has been a while since they were last mentioned and seen, so I think it's time we went back to them.

**Kankananime123:** Yep! Bambi has returned! Couldn't keep her away forever. Some teasing... and some serious trouble... if she's not careful. Cho's problem will come to light after Christmas this year and Harry... well, he's a boy in love with someone who is in love with someone else... who knows what goes on inside that head of his?

**Dream Lighting: **Oh, everyone loves Bambi... I'm glad you do too

**Fan of Fics: **If I remember correctly, in MWS I had Cedric graduate after the Goblet of Fire. He didn't come back for Order of the Phoenix... nope he didn't. Apparently Zacharias only got into Hufflepuff because he was a descendant of hers, I don't know, I don't dig that far into family histories, I like to tear them apart and add my own storyline to them. Yep, Harry is more focused on Phoebe than Cho; I wonder how that will play out? Because Cho doesn't seem to like Phoebe very much, either. I actually didn't think of that to be honest, I just put Marietta in because she was a part of the canon, ah well... she'll play her part. And, i'm majoring in three different modules: History, English Literature and Creative Writing. Doing all Creative Writing next year, mind.

**Princessflag3998:** Yeah. There are more Draco/Phoebe scenes to come, I will try and slot some in this year, but there will be a lot next year! Thank you for the luck, I will need it.

Just because I have reached my 500 review goal... doesn't mean I want to lose you lovely reviewers... please continue reviewing and make this the best story I have ever written. My sanity rests in your hands.

* * *

><p><em>BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS<em>

_All student organizations, societies, teams, groups and clubs are henceforth disbanded._

_An organization, society, team, group or club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students._

_Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge)._

_No student organization, society, team, group or club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor._

_Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an organization, society, team, group of club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled._

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four._

_Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor._

Sarah and Amelia read the notice twice over the heads of some anxious-looking second year Hufflepuff's.

"Does this mean they're going to shut down the Gobstones Club?" one of them asked, turning to the Prefect.

"I reckon you'll be OK with Gobstones," Sarah replied, softly. "I don't think we're going to be so lucky though, do you?"

Amelia shook her head. "Do you think Phoebe, James and Ashlyn have seen this yet?"

"I don't know," Sarah whispered, "should we go see? Maybe send Athena to Phoebe with a note asking her to meet us somewhere private?"

"I'll go speak with Cedric," Amelia said. "I'll get him to keep the rest of Hufflepuff away from the Gryffindor's at breakfast, the last thing we need is for Umbridge to think we have something to hide!"

And she hurried off in search of her boyfriend.

"I'm going to write to Phoebe," Sarah called, as he turned toe and left the Hufflepuff common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ashlyn read the notice through for the third time.

"This isn't a coincidence," she said, looking over her shoulder at Aiden and Adrian. "She knows."

"She can't," said Aiden at once.

"There were people listening in that pub," said Adrian. "And let's face it, we don't know how many of the people who turned up we can trust... any one of them could have run off and told Umbridge."

"Smith!" said Ashlyn, punching a fist into her hand. "Wait until I get my hands on him! You do realize that this Decree blows mine and Phoebe's plans for the nationals out of the water? We can't participate because it's a _group_ of more than three people!"

Adrian squeezed her shoulder. "Quidditch is included too," he said, harshly.

"I wonder if Phoebe has seen it yet?"

"I think we would have known by now," Aiden whispered. "Phoebe's elemental powers are growing stronger by the day... she would have unleashed an earthquake on the castle by now, if she had read it."

"Unless she's not as worried about it as we are," Ashlyn whispered back. "If I know Phoebe, she would have had a back-up plan in place way before the meeting was underway."

Adrian frowned. "What are you talking about?" he asked. "How could she have -?"

"C'mon," Ashlyn said, grabbing her backpack from the leather two seated sofa and heading for the portrait hole. "We'll see the others at breakfast, we can discuss it then!"

Adrian and Aiden exchanged looks before quickly following Ashlyn up to the Entrance Hall, leaving behind a very suspicious Pansy Parkinson in their wake.

"What are you three up too, I wonder?" Parkinson purred devilishly to herself, as her gaze landed on the noticeboard and the Decree Number Twenty-Four.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe's eyes slid rapidly over the notice.

"Someone must have blabbed to her!" James said angrily.

"They can't have done," said Phoebe in a low voice.

"You're so naive," said Ron, "you think just because you're all honorable and trustworthy -"

"No, they can't have done, because I put a jinx on that piece of parchment we all signed," said Phoebe grimly. "Believe me, if anyone's run off and told Umbridge, we'll know exactly who they are and they will regret it."

"What'll happen to them?" said Terence questionably. He had been granted an extended stay at the castle for the remainder of the week by the Headmaster, Bambi too, and the young infant was currently cuddled into Phoebe's shoulder, thumb in her mouth.

"Well, put it this way," said Phoebe, "it'll make Eloise Midgeon's acne look like a couple of cute freckles. Come on; let's go down to breakfast... I have a feeling this has been posted in every house, and who wants to bet the others are looking for me... besides, someone has to calm Ashlyn down before she goes on a rampage..."

It was immediately apparent on entering the Great Hall that Phoebe's theory was true and Umbridge's sign had been posted in every house, not just Gryffindor. There was a peculiar intensity about the chatter and an extra measure of movement in the Hall as people scurried up and down their tables conferring on what they had read.

Phoebe, Terence, Jackson, James and the Golden Trio had barely taken their seats when Neville, Dean, Fred, George, Ginny, Ashlyn, Amelia, Sarah and Aiden descended upon them.

"Did you see it?"

"D'you reckon she knows?"

"What are we going to do?"

They were all looking at Harry. He glanced around to make sure that there were no teachers near them.

"We're going to do it anyway, of course," he said quietly.

"Knew you'd say that," said George, beaming and thumping Harry on the arm.

"The prefects as well?" said Fred, looking quizzically at Ron and Phoebe.

"This was my idea," said Phoebe coolly. "I'm not abandoning you guys, even if I could lose my badge over this... besides, it would only go to Hermione, so I got hardly anything to worry about!"

Hermione smiled, feeling elated that Phoebe trusted her enough that she would relinquish her Prefect's badge to her.

"Ginny, could you tell Michael and his friends to stay away from the Gryffindor table?" Phoebe asked, as she spotted a few Ravenclaws glance in their direction. "The last thing we want is to alert Umbridge to us!"

Ginny nodded, swinging herself off of her bench and hurrying towards her boyfriend.

"Sarah, can you keep the Hufflepuff's -"

"Already taken care of," Sarah smiled. "Amelia talked to Cedric this morning after we found the notice, and I have already talked with Ernie."

Phoebe nodded.

"Out of curiosity," said James, in a low voice, "any of them supporting various spots?"

Sarah and Amelia looked confused.

"No," Sarah said, with a shake of her head, "why?"

"No reason!" James beamed.

Amelia turned to Phoebe. "What did you do?"

"I'll tell you later," Phoebe whispered. "Go back to your table, all this inter-house mingling is going to give Umbridge something to be suspicious off. Ashlyn, you and Aiden go back to the Slytherin's, everything will be fine, I promise!"

With the other houses being kept at bay, Phoebe looked down at Bambi who was eating a bowlful of cereal, before looking up at Terence who was staring at her from the corner of his eye. "You seem to be taking on too much," he said, dropping his voice to a whisper. "I'm starting to worry..."

"Please don't," said Phoebe, grabbing his hand. "I have everything under control!"

"Are you sure?"

Phoebe smiled and nodded. "Yes, please don't worry,"

Terence hesitated before leaning in and kissing her, right there in front of everyone.

Fred and George, who were sitting a few seats away, wolf-whistled, alerting a lot more students and professors to the intimate scene, Blushing a deep crimson, Phoebe pulled away a grin adorning her face as Terence chuckled at the colour rising within her cheeks, and Bambi looked between her brother and his girlfriend, a confused expression on her child-like features.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Who _hasn't_ Umbridge inspected yet?" James asked, leading the way into History of Magic. "Binns and who else?"

"Snape," Phoebe answered, following her friend and taking a seat at the back of the room. Having permission from the headmaster to stay an extra week also meant that Terence and Bambi could attend Phoebe's lessons with her, which was why the elemental was sitting at the back of the room as opposed to her usual seat in the middle.

"At least she isn't in here!" said Ashlyn, looking around as she unpacked her items before the lesson could begin. The only teacher that was present was Professor Binns, who was floating an inch or so above his chair as usual and preparing to continue his monotonous drone on giant wars.

It wasn't until mid-way through the lesson did anything remotely interesting happen.

Phoebe, who had been squirming in her seat because of Terence's continuous poking her in the side, looked up at the sound of a knocking at the window beside her.

"What the -?"

"Is that -?" Terence whispered.

Phoebe nodded. "Hedwig!"

Spinning around in her seat, Phoebe reached over the table and prodded Harry between the shoulder blades.

_"What?"_

Phoebe pointed at the window. Harry looked round. Hedwig was perched on the narrow ledge, gazing through the thick glass at him, a letter tied to her leg. Harry could not understand it; they had just had breakfast, why on earth hadn't she delivered the letter then, as usual? Many of his classmates were pointing out Hedwig to each other, too.

"Oh, I've always loved that owl, she's so beautiful," Lavender sighed to Parvati.

Harry glanced around at Professor Binns who continued to read his notes, serenely unaware that the class's attention was even less focused upon him than usual.

"Go!" Phoebe whispered as Harry looked around at her. "Go, now!"

Harry nodded and slipped quietly from his seat, crouched down and hurried along the row to the window, where he slid the catch and opened it very slowly.

He had expected Hedwig to hold out her leg so that he could remove the letter and then fly off to the Owlery, but the moment the window was open wide enough she hopped inside, hooting dolefully. Harry closed the window with an anxious glance at Professor Binns, crouched low again and sped back to his seat transferred Hedwig to his lap and made to remove the letter tied to her leg.

"Wait..." Phoebe whispered, leaning over his shoulder and breathing down his neck. Harry resisted the urge to shiver at the close contact. "Look at her wing..."

Hedwig's feathers were oddly ruffled; some were bent the wrong way, she was holding one of her wings at an odd angle, and there were small droplets of red dots all over her.

"She's hurt!" Harry whispered Hermione and Ron leaned in closer. "Look - there's something wrong with her wing -"

"Is that blood?" said Ron, pointing at the red droplets that contrasted against her white feathers.

Hedwig quivered when Harry made to touch her wing, she gave a little jump, all her feathers on end as though she was inflating herself, and gazed at him reproachfully.

Phoebe scowled and clipped Harry across the back of his head. "Don't do that!" she scolded, reaching over his shoulder and smoothing the feathers along Hedwig's face and over her head. "It's alright, precious," she whispered. "Give her here..." she added, wrapping her free arm around Harry's other shoulder and lifting the owl into her hands.

Harry tensed slightly as Phoebe enveloped him in her arms.

"She needs to see Serefina," said Phoebe.

"Doesn't she have a lesson?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, she is in the Teacher's lounge. Go now..."

"What about the blood?" said Harry.

"It's not hers," said Phoebe, with a small shake of her head. "It's splattered against her... whosever it is, is the person who attacked her."

Harry nodded slightly, before looking up.

"Professor Binns," said Harry loudly, and everyone in the class turned to look at him. "I'm not feeling well."

Professor Binns rose from his notes, looking amazed, as always, to find the room in front of him full of people.

"Not feeling well?" he repeated hazily.

"Not at all well," said Harry firmly, getting to his feet with Hedwig concealed behind his back. "I think, I need to go to the hospital wing,"

"Yes," said Professor Binns, clearly very much wrong-footed. "Yes... yes, hospital wing... well, off you go, then, Perkins..."

Phoebe ducked her head to hide her grin at the only ghost Professor, she then watched as Harry left the classroom and Professor Binns carried on with his droning.

Bambi yawned and her head dropped down onto the desk beside her.

"I think we've lost her," whispered Terence.

"I think you're right," Phoebe nodded, lifting the infant onto her lap and cradling her close. With a flick of his wand, Terence conjured up a blanket and wrapped it around his younger sister as Phoebe rocked her. "This lesson sucks!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once outside the room, Harry returned Hedwig to his shoulder and hurried off up the corridor towards the staff room.

Two stone gargoyles flanked the staff-room door. As Harry approached, one of them croaked, "You should be in class, Sonny Jim."

"This is urgent," said Harry curtly.

"Ooooh, _urgent_, is it?" said the other gargoyle in a high-pitched voice. "Well, that's put _us_ in our place, hasn't it?"

Harry knocked. He heard footsteps, then the door opened and he found himself face to face with Professor Serefina Blackheart.

"You haven't been given another detention, have you?" she said at once.

"No, Professor!" said Harry hastily.

"Well then, why are you out of class?"

"It's _urgent_, apparently," said the second gargoyle.

Serefina raised an eyebrow at the gargoyle. "Thank you, Lydia! What is it, Potter?"

"It is my owl," said Harry. "She's injured. She turned up after the other post owls and her wings all funny, look -"

Serefina took Hedwig carefully in her hands and examined the damage done to the wing, and the droplets of blood that stained her white feathers. "Looks like she's been attacked. Can't think what would have done it, though. Thestrals will sometimes go for birds, of course, but Hagrid's got the Hogwarts Thestrals well-trained not to touch owls. Where has she travelled too?"

"London," said Harry, knowing that Serefina would know that he meant Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place.

"I should be able to sort this out if you leave her with me," said Serefina, "she shouldn't be flying long distances for a few days, in any case."

"Er - right - thanks," said Harry, just as the bell rang for break.

Serefina unhooked the letter from Hedwig's leg and handed it back to her goddaughter's friend. "Potter -" she added, pulling the letter back before he could take it from her. "Bear in mind that channels of communication in and out of Hogwarts are under watch, be careful to who you are writing and about what!"

"I -" said Harry, but the flood students' rolling along the corridor was almost upon him. Serefina gave him a curt nod and retreated into the staff room with Hedwig, leaving Harry to be swept out into the courtyard with the crowd.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Someone attacked Hedwig!" said Phoebe, the moment Harry was within earshot of her and the others. They were standing in a secluded part of the courtyard, their cloak collars pulled up around their necks to block out the bitter winds. "And Athena attacked whoever attacked her!"

Harry frowned. "How do you know?"

"Because Athena turned up shortly after you left," said Phoebe. "She was covered in blood!"

"How do you know it's the same blood?" said Ashlyn.

"Because Athena is very territorial and protective," Phoebe explained. "She is a bird of prey and will attack anyone and anything she feel's threatened by. If she was around at the time of Hedwig's attack she would have senses the distress in your owl and attacked the person or thing that was causing the distress!"

Terence wrapped his arms around Phoebe. "She is a bit like her master," he said.

"I like Athena," said Bambi. "She's so pretty!"

"Athena likes you too, Thumper," said Phoebe, kissing the top of her head.

Harry eyed the three of them, before looking down at the letter in his hands. "'Same time, same place?'" he read.

"Who's it from?" Ron asked.

"Snuffles," said Harry quietly.

"So, you think he means fire in the common room?" said James.

"Obviously," said Hermione, also reading the note.

James looked uneasy. "I just hope nobody else has read this..."

"But it was sealed and everything," said Harry, trying to convince himself as much as his godfather's son. "And nobody would understand what it meant if they didn't know where we'd spoken to him before, would they?" said Harry, as they trudged down the steps to the dungeons for Potions.

"I don't know," said Hermione anxiously, hitching her bag back over her shoulder, "it wouldn't be exactly difficult to re-seal the scroll by magic… and if anyone's watching the Floo Network… but I don't really see how we can warn him not to come without _that_ being intercepted, too!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

They trudged down the stone steps to the dungeons for Potions, Bambi still wrapped up in Phoebe's cloak, but as they reached the bottom of the steps, Draco's voice cut through the silence.

"Yeah, Umbridge gave the Slytherin Quidditch team permission to continue playing straightaway; I went to ask her first thing this morning. Well, it was pretty much automatic, I mean, she knows my father really well, he's always popping in and out of the Ministry… it'll be interesting to see whether Gryffindor are allowed to keep playing, won't it?"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes at her brother, as he stood in front of Snape's door, waving and official-looking piece of parchment.

"Don't rise," Ashlyn whispered. "You know he's not aiming it at you!"

"No, but he's aiming it at _my_ teammates!" said Phoebe. "That's just as low as a personal attack!"

"I mean," said Draco, raising his voice a little more, "if it's a question of influence with the Ministry, I don't think they've got much chance… from what my father says, they've been looking for an excuse to sack Arthur Weasley for years… and as for Potter carted off to St Mungo's… apparently they've got a special ward for people whose brains have been addled by magic."

Malfoy made a grotesque face, his mouth sagging open and his eyes rolling. Crabbe and Goyle gave their usual grunts of laughter and Pansy Parkinson shrieked with glee.

Something collided hard with James's shoulder, knocking him sideways. A split second later he realized Neville had just charged past him, heading straight for Malfoy.

"Neville," Phoebe squealed in anxiety. "_No!"_

James leapt forward and seized the back of Neville's robes; Neville struggled frantically, his fists flailing, trying desperately to get at Malfoy who looked, for a moment, extremely shocked.

"Help him!" Hermione shrieked at Harry and Ron, as James managed to get an arm around Neville's neck and drag him backwards, away from the Slytherin's.

Crabbe and Goyle were flexing their arms as they stepped in front of Malfoy, ready for the fight.

Suddenly, the ground started to shake viciously, a large crack split the ground separating the Slytherin's from the Gryffindor's.

There were several screams of surprise, as Ron and Harry seized Neville by the arms, and together they and James succeeded in dragging Neville back into the Gryffindor line.

The shaking stopped.

Neville's face was scarlet; the pressure James was exerting on his throat rendered him quite incomprehensible, but odd words spluttered from his mouth.

"Not… funny… don't… Mungo's… show… him…"

"James, you're cutting off his circulation," said Phoebe, as she dropped to her knees beside Neville.

James relaxed his hold on Neville, and seconds later the Dungeon door opened.

Snape appeared there. "Inside, all of you!"

The Slytherin's filed in first, followed closely by the Gryffindor's, James, Harry and Ron released Neville, who stood panting and glaring at them.

"Neville, listen to me, it was for your own good!" said Phoebe. "Crabbe and Goyle would have torn you apart!"

Neville said nothing; he merely snatched up his own bag and stalked off into the dungeon.

"What in the Merlin," said Ron slowly, as they followed Neville, "was _that_ all about?"

Neither Phoebe nor Harry answered. They knew exactly why the subject of people who were in St Mungo's because of magical damage to their brains was highly distressing to Neville.

Just before she entered the dungeons, Phoebe turned to Terence and Bambi. "Maybe I had best take Potions alone. I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall for lunch."

"I think that would be a good idea," Terence agreed, "considering…" he nodded over her shoulder.

Phoebe turned and spotted Umbridge in the corner of the potions classroom, "I'll see you later," she sighed, reaching up and kissing him once. She kissed Bambi's cheek and watched as they left the dungeon.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You will notice," said Snape, in his low, sneering voice, "that we have a guest with us today."

He gestured towards the dim corner of the dungeon where Professor Umbridge was sitting, clipboard on her knee.

"We are continuing with our Strengthening Solution today. You will find your mixtures as you left them last lesson, if correctly made they should have matured well over the weekend - instructions -" he waved his wand " - on the board. Carry on."

Professor Umbridge spent the first half hour of the lesson making notes in her corner; it would seem that Harry was more interested in hearing her question Snape, so interested, that he was becoming careless with his potion again.

"Salamander blood, Harry!" Hermione moaned, grabbing his wrist to prevent him from adding the wrong ingredient for the third time, "not pomegranate juice!"

"Right," said Harry vaguely, putting down the bottle and continuing to watch the corner.

Phoebe paused in her potion making and turned to face her friend, pretending to want to borrow an instrument from Hermione, she said to Harry, in a low voice, "Maybe you should concentrate on your potion and not on Umbridge!"

Speaking of Umbridge, she had just got to her feet and strode between two lines of desks towards Snape, who was bending over Dean Thomas's cauldron.

"Well, the class seems fairly advanced for their level," she said briskly to Snape's back. "Though I would question whether it is advisable to teach them a potion like the Strengthening Solution. I think the Ministry would prefer it if that was removed from the syllabus."

Snape straightened up slowly and turned to look at her.

"Now... how long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?" she asked, her quill poised over her clipboard.

"Fourteen years," Snape replied. His expression was unfathomable.

"You applied first for the Defence Against the Dark Arts post, I believe?" Professor Umbridge asked Snape.

"Yes," said Snape quietly.

"But you were unsuccessful?"

Snape's lip curled.

"Obviously."

Professor Umbridge scribbled on her clipboard.

"And you have applied regularly for the Defence Against the Dark Arts post since you first joined the school, I believe?"

"Yes," said Snape quietly, barely moving his lips. He looked very angry.

"Do you have any idea why Dumbledore has consistently refused to appoint you?" asked Umbridge.

"I suggest you ask him," said Snape jerkily.

"Oh, I shall," said Professor Umbridge, with a sweet smile.

"I suppose this is relevant?" Snape asked, his black eyes narrowed.

"Oh, yes," said Professor Umbridge, "yes, the Ministry wants a thorough understanding of teachers' - er - backgrounds."

She turned away, walked over to Pansy Parkinson and began questioning her about the lessons. Snape looked around at Phoebe and their eyes met for a second, before Phoebe's gaze dropped back to that of her potion, but after she had given her Professor a faint, sympathetic smile.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was well past midnight when Phoebe and Terence returned to the Gryffindor common room, Bambi was not with them and both were looking slightly disheveled.

"What time do you call this?" said James; he had given up on his Potions essay after making very little progression with it.

"Sorry, dad," said Phoebe as she slumped down on the sofa beside Harry. Terence sat beside her, wound his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap.

"Where is Bambi?" Hermione asked, curious as to where Phoebe would leave the infant. Terence and his sister had been at the castle since Saturday, and not once had the bookworm seen the two without the infant.

Phoebe smiled. "She is safe with my godmother," she answered.

"And where have you been?" said Ron, taking in Phoebe's ruffled hair and Terence's crumpled robes.

Phoebe grinned at the red head. "Oh, you know... just around the castle!"

"Dad!" said James, so suddenly that the others jumped at the sound of his voice.

Harry, who had been holding his quill so tightly it was starting to splinter under the pressure, snapped his head up from his essay. Sirius's untidy dark head was sitting in the fire.

"Hi," he said, grinning.

"Hi," chorused those sitting around the fire.

Crookshanks purred loudly and approached the fire, trying, despite the heat, to put his face close to Sirius's.

"How're things?" said Sirius.

"Not that good," said Harry, as Hermione pulled Crookshanks back to stop him from burning his whiskers. "The Ministry's forced through another decree, which means we're not allowed to have Quidditch teams -"

"Or secret Defence Against the Dark Arts groups?" said Sirius.

There was a short pause.

"How did you know about that?" Harry demanded.

"You want to choose your meeting places more carefully," said Sirius, grinning still more broadly. "The Hogs Head, I ask you."

"Well, it was better than the Three Broomsticks!" said Phoebe defensively. "That's always packed with people -"

"Which means you'd have been harder to overhear," said Sirius. "C'mon, Phoebe, I thought you, of all people, would be brighter than this!"

Phoebe crossed her arms and pouted at her cousin.

"Who overheard us?" Harry demanded.

"Mundungus, of course," said Sirius, and when they all looked puzzled he laughed. "He was the witch under the veil."

"That was Mundungus?" Harry said, stunned. "What was he doing in the Hog's Head?"

"What do you think he was doing?" said Sirius, impatiently. "Keeping an eye on you, of course."

"I'm still being followed?" asked Harry angrily.

"Yeah, you are," said Sirius, "and just as well, isn't it, if the first thing you're going to do on your weekend off is organize an illegal defence group."

But he looked neither angry nor worried. On the contrary, he was looking at Harry with distinct pride.

"Why was Dung hiding from us?" asked Ron, sounding disappointed. "We'd have liked to have seen him."

"He was banned from the Hog's Head twenty years ago," said Sirius, "and the barman's got a long memory. We lost Moody's spare Invisibility Cloak when Sturgis was arrested, so Dung's been dressing as a witch a lot lately... anyway... first of all, Ron - I've sworn to pass on a message from your mother."

"Oh, yeah?" said Ron, sounding apprehensive.

"She says on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group. She says you'll be expelled for sure and your future will be ruined. She says there will be plenty of time to learn how to defend yourself later and that you are too young to be worrying about that right now. She also advises Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, though she accepts that she has no authority over either of them and simply begs them to remember that she has their best interests at heart. She would have written all this to you, but if the owl had been intercepted you'd all have been in right trouble, and she can't say it for herself because she's on duty tonight."

"On duty doing what?" said Ron quickly.

"Never you mind, just stuff for the Order," said Sirius. "So it's fallen to me to be the messenger and make sure you tell I passed it on, because I don't think she trusts me to."

There was another pause in which Crookshanks, mewing, attempted to paw Sirius's head.

"So, you want us to say that we're not going to go through with the Defence group?" said Phoebe, causing everyone's attention to turn to her. "Because, if i'm honest Sirius, that's not going to happen! We need to be able to defend ourselves! But we also need this group to help us pass our exams!"

"I thought you might say that," said Sirius. "With that attitude, I question Dumbledore's reasons in giving you a Prefects badge!"

Phoebe shrugged. "I have a theory on why he gave it to me," before adding, "and it has nothing to do with my responsibility."

"Anyway," said Sirius. "I think this group is an excellent idea!"

"You do?" said Harry, his heart lifting.

"Of course I do!" said Sirius. "D'you think your father and I would've lain down and taken orders from an old hag like Umbridge?"

"But - last term all you did was tell me to be careful and not take risks -"

"Last year, all the evidence was that someone inside Hogwarts was trying to kill you, Harry!" said Sirius impatiently. "This year, we know there's someone _outside_ Hogwarts who'd like to kill us all, so I think learning to defend yourselves properly is a very good idea!"

"And if we do get expelled?" Hermione asked a quizzical look on her face.

"Better to be expelled and able to defend ourselves than sitting safely in school without a clue," said Phoebe. "At least that is what Serefina thinks."

Hermione turned to her best friend. "Professor Blackheart knows?"

"Of course Serefina knows," said Phoebe. "It was she who charmed the parchment for me! It was a jinx that she learned at the elemental academy when she was twelve!"

"So," said Sirius, "how are you organizing this group? Where are you meeting?"

"Well, that's a bit of a problem now," said Harry. "We don't know of a place big enough."

"Phoebe," said James, "didn't you say that you had the perfect place?"

Phoebe nodded. "There is a room on the seventh floor... it is perfect for this type of thing, mostly because if you ask it for something it will give you just what you need! We -" she motioned to Terence and herself, "- used it quite a bit between second and fourth year."

"Oh?" said Sirius.

"It's called the Room of Requirement," said Phoebe. "It is also known as the come-and-go-room... to make the room appear, someone simply has to walk past the second of blank wall three times concentrating hard on what is needed."

"Do we _want_ to know what you and he -" said James, nodding at Terence, "needed on those countless times you spent in there?"

Phoebe chewed her lower lip and shook her head. "Probably not," she answered.

"Sirius?" said Harry anxiously, he was staring at his godfather, who was looking sideways at the solid brick wall of the fireplace, and his face was tense and alarmed.

Suddenly, and without warning, Sirius vanished.

Harry gaped at the flames for a moment, and then turned to look at his friends.

"Why did he -?"

Hermione gave a horrified gasp and leapt to her feet, still staring at the fire.

A hand had appeared amongst the flames, groping as though to catch hold of something; a stubby-fingered hand covered in ugly old-fashioned rings.

"Run!" Phoebe squeaked, making a break for the girls' dormitories.

As Hermione slid past her, Phoebe looked back. Umbridge's hand was still making snatching movements amongst the flames, as though she knew exactly where Sirius's head had been moments before and she was determined to seize it.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **I don't know when I will be able to update after tomorrow night. Next week is the last week before my deadlines are all due and I have been more focused on this story (more than my others) to even bother writing them. But don't worry, after the 27th of April, you will have nothing but updates. I promise.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, April 15, 2012 at 3:45am**


	100. Chapter 100

**Author's Note:** Hey, you have all be exceptionally brilliant in helping me reach over 500 reviews and it's not even Christmas of fifth year yet. But there is more fun and games to come, so please keep reviewing! My goal has now changed: my new target is 750 reviews by the end of Half Blood Prince... and only you can help me achieve it. Help me keep my sanity.

**Author's Note:** I am also successfully apart of Pottermore, and guess what house I made? Yes, that is right, I made SLYTHERIN! *Does happy dance!* Well? What are you waiting for? Get over to and join me! I'm looking forward to seeing you!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Jojia, Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi, Princessflag3998** and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Marisa1698** for adding this story to their favourite story and story alert and another big thank you too **Tallygirl02** for adding this story to their story alert. Appreciate it.

* * *

><p>"Umbridge has been reading your mail, Harry," said Phoebe, the next morning in Charms. "Serefina told me this morning after breakfast that Umbridge was supporting a rather nasty claw mark on her face, just beneath her right eye! According to Madam Pomfrey it came from a rather vicious bird."<p>

"How do you know it was Athena?" said James. "Any bird could have attacked her, she's evil!"

"Remember what I said about Athena being territorial and protective?" said Phoebe. "She would have seen Hedwig was in distress and attacked the person causing it. I managed to get Athena to claw at a dead mouse, which I had caught for her, and showed it to Madam Pomfrey; she confirmed that it was the same scar as Umbridge supported. Watch your frog, it's escaping."

James pointed his wand at the bullfrog that had been hopping hopefully towards the otherside of the table - _"Accio!"_ - And it zoomed gloomily back into his hand.

Charms was always one of the best lessons in which to enjoy a private chat, there was generally so much movement and activity that the danger of being overheard was very slight. Today, with the room full of croaking bullfrogs and crawing ravens, and with a heavy downpour of rain clattering and pounding against the classroom windows, Phoebe, James, Ashlyn, Harry, Ron and Hermione's whispered discussion about how Umbridge had nearly caught Sirius went quite unnoticed.

"It was a very, very close call last night," said Hermione. "I just wonder if Umbridge knows how close it was. _Silencio_."

The Bullfrog on which she was practicing her Silencing Cham was struck dumb mid-croak and glared at her reproachfully.

"If she'd caught Snuffles -" started Phoebe.

Harry finished her sentence for her.

"- He'd probably be back in Azkaban this morning." He waved his wand without really concentrating; his bullfrog swelled like a green balloon and emitted a high-pitched whistle.

"_Silencio!"_ said Phoebe hastily, pointing her wand at Harry's frog, which deflated silently before them.

"Well, the solution is easy, isn't it?" said Ashlyn, silencing her Raven. "He mustn't do it again, that's all."

Hermione nodded. "I just don't know how we're going to let him know. We can't send him an owl."

"Athena is fit to fly," said Phoebe. "There is nothing actually wrong with her... she just got blood all over her talons."

"Aren't you afraid she'll get intercepted?" said James.

"I have a strategy," said Phoebe. "One that Umbridge has not figured out yet!"

Ashlyn nodded. "Great. We'll send Snuffles a message to night..."

"No," said Phoebe, shaking her head. "Get me the letter by tonight and I'll sort everything out in the morning."

**~*Phoebe*~**

They were allowed to remain inside over the break due to the downpour outside. And while the Golden Trio found seats in a noisy and overcrowded classroom on the third floor, James and Ashlyn found Sarah and Amelia in in the library, while Phoebe seeked out Terence and Bambi, both of whom she found in her godmother's quarters.

"Having fun?" the elemental asked, dropping her backpack to the floor and kneeling beside Bambi who was on her knees, drawing with magical crayons that Serefina had conjured up for her the night before. "What are you drawing?"

"A fishy," said Bambi, giggling as the tail of her mermaid flickered upon the page. She added the finishing touches with the crayon she had been using, and seconds later the mermaid sprang to life, dived out of the watery sea, flipped over in the air and disappeared beneath the surface with a splash.

Phoebe smiled, as she tucked a strand of the infant's light brown hair behind her ear. "You like mermaids?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Bambi. "They my favourite!"

"I can make you into a mermaid,"

Bambi dropped her crayons and glanced up at the elemental. "You can...?" she asked, her voice shallow with excitement.

"Yeah," said Phoebe. "I'll show you tonight... in the Prefect's bathroom!"

"Yay!" Bambi exclaimed gleefully, jumping to her feet and hugging Phoebe for all she was worth.

The elemental laughed and hugged the infant back.

"Why don't you go put your drawing on my bed, and we'll go find something fun to do, shall we?" said Phoebe.

Bambi nodded, grabbed her picture and crayons and darted into the bedroom that she shared with Phoebe.

Terence, who had been watching silently, grinned as Phoebe remained on her knees opposite him.

"What?" said Phoebe.

"Nothing," the former Slytherin said. "It's just, for someone who never wants children, you're brilliant with Bambi!"

"I didn't say I never wanted children," Phoebe protested. "I merely stated that I'm unsure of whether or not i'm the mothering type. I'm the youngest of my siblings, I've never had anyone to look after, and I have always been _looked _after!"

Sliding across the floor, Terence pulled Phoebe over so that she was straddling his hips, and his hands rested on her waist. "Well, seeing how you are with Bambi," he said, "I, for one, think you would make a brilliant mother!"

"Yeah?" grinned Phoebe.

Terence smirked. "Yeah. Any guy would be crazy to not want to start a family with you..." he added, stealing a kiss.

"Are you crazy?" whispered Phoebe, stealing a kiss back.

"Crazy about you!"

But anymore retorts, replies or comments after that were cut off as Phoebe silenced him with a long, drawn out and heated kiss. One that turned from soft and gentle to passionate and urgent in under ten seconds.

In several, short hurried movements, Terence had managed to remove Phoebe's robe and jumper, whilst she had managed to remove his robe and was in the process of unbuttoning his shirt when the door to the office burst open and Angelina hurried inside.

"Phoebe - Phe - WHOA!" the Quidditch captain yelled, spinning around and covering her eyes at the scene she had walked in on.

"Angie!" Phoebe yelled in surprise, grabbing her discarded robe and wrapping it quickly around her upper torso. "What are you doing up here?"

With her back turned to the elemental, Angelina said, "I was looking for you!"

"Is it important?" Phoebe asked, quickly redressing and getting off of her, otherwise, disappointed boyfriend.

"I just wanted to tell you that I've got permission to re-form the Quidditch team! So I want you down on the pitch at seven o'clock tonight, all right? And could you pass the message onto James when you're... um... decent."

Phoebe bit the inside her lower lip and nodded. "Yeah," she muttered. "I'll go find James and we'll see you at seven."

Angelina nodded and quickly left the office, leaving Phoebe and Terence alone.

"I... uh... gotta go!" said Phoebe, re-buttoning her shirt, re-doing her tie and stuffing her robe into her backpack. She wrapped her jumper around her waist and got steadily to her feet. "Tell Bambi i'm sorry, and I'll make it up to her tonight!"

Terence nodded and re-dressed himself, watching anxiously as his girlfriend rushed from the room. What the hell had just happen?

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather did not improve as the day wore on, so that at seven o'clock that evening, when Phoebe and James went down to the Quidditch pitch for practice, they were soaked through within minutes, their feet slipping and sliding on the sodden grass. The sky was a deep, thundery grey and it was a relief to gain the warmth and light of the changing rooms, even if they knew the respite was only temporary.

The found Fred, George, Harry and Ron debating whether to use one of the twins own Skiving Snackboxes to get out of flying.

"... but I bet she'd know what we'd done," Fred said out of the corner of his mouth. "If only I hadn't offered to see her some Puking Pastilles yesterday."

"We could try the Fever Fudge," George muttered, "no one's seen that yet -"

"Does it work?" enquired Ron hopefully, as the hammering of rain on the roof intensified and wind howled around the building.

"Well, yeah," said Fred, "your temperature will go right up."

"But you get these massive pus-filled boils, too," said George, "and we haven't worked out how to get rid of them yet."

"I can't see any boils," said Ron, staring at the twins.

"No, well, you wouldn't," said Fred darkly, "they're not in a place we generally display to the public."

"It wouldn't work anyway," said Phoebe, coming into the conversation. "All four of you getting sick, at exactly the same time, with exactly the same symptoms? Suspicious much?"

"All right, everyone, listen up," said Angelina loudly, emerging from the Captain's office. "I know it's not ideal weather, but there's a chance we'll be playing Slytherin in conditions like this so it's a good idea to work out how we're going to cope with them. Harry, didn't you do something to your glasses to stop the rain fogging them up when you played Hufflepuff in that storm?"

"Phoebe did," said Harry, turning the elemental.

Phoebe pulled out her wand, tapped Harry's glasses and said, "_Impervius!"_

"I think we all ought to try that," said Angelina. "If we could just keep the rain off our faces it would really help visibility - all together, come on - _Impervius_! OK. Let's go."

They all stowed their wands back in the inside pockets of their robes, shouldered their brooms and followed Angelina out of the changing rooms.

They squelched through the deepening mud to the middle of the pitch; visibility was still very poor even with the Impervius Charm; light was fading fast and curtains of rain were sweeping the grounds.

"Phoebe, can't you do something?" whispered James.

"Not without drawing attention to myself," said Phoebe.

"But back in third year -"

"Back in third year I had the cover of the crowd," said Phoebe. "No one would suspect that I had eased the rain or caused it! We are the only ones down here and Angelina is the only one who doesn't know about me, she knows pretty much everything about you lot!"

James sighed and mounted his broomstick.

"All right, on my whistle," shouted Angelina.

Phoebe kicked off from the ground, spraying mud in all directions, and shot upwards, the wind pulling her slightly off course. She had no idea how she was supposed to fly in this weather, let alone catch the Quaffle when it was passed to her, or even when she was passing it to a teammate, how was she supposed to know if she was aiming in the correct direction? And even if she was, what happened if the wind pulled it off course?"

Unfortunately, Angelina did not seem to share the same idea as her teammates, each and every one of them were complaining about the practice, but Angelina seemed not able to see anything; none of them had a clue what the others were doing.

The wind was picking up; even at a distance Phoebe could hear the swishing, pounding sounds of the rain pummeling the surface of the lake.

Angelina kept them at it for nearly an hour before conceding defeat. She led her sodden and disgruntled team back into the changing rooms, insisting that the practice had not been a waste of time, though without any real conviction in her voice. Fred and George were looking particularly annoyed; both her bandy-legged and winced with every movement.

"I think a few of mine have ruptured," said Fred in a hollow voice.

"Mine haven't," said George, through clenched teeth, "they're throbbing like bad... feel bigger if anything."

Phoebe shivered as she wrapped a large towel around her and dropped down onto the bench beside James. "I don't really see the point in complaining about the cold and the rain," she said, her teeth chattering, "We have to go back out into it in order to get back to the castle!"

James groaned. "Can't we just camp out in here?"

"What if it is worse in the morning?" Phoebe asked, "May as well get it over with now! C'mon... we can shower and warm up as soon as we're back in Gryffindor Tower!"

"You mean as soon as I am back in Gryffindor tower,"

Phoebe waved him off. "So I can stop by the Prefect's bathroom... sue me!"

"Is Terence meeting you in there?" said Angelina.

"No, why would he?" said Phoebe, fighting back a blush as her mind returned to that eventful sight that Angelina caught a glimpse of earlier that afternoon.

The Quidditch captain smirked. "Just be careful, Phoebe," she said. "Wouldn't want to do something you'll regret, now, would you?"

Fred, George, Harry, James and Ron frowned.

"Are we missing something?" said James.

"A big something," said Angelina, with an amused grin at Phoebe. "But it's none of my business, so I won't get involved. C'mon... let's head back to the castle."

James turned to Phoebe. "What was that about?"

"What was what about?" Phoebe repeated, grabbing her broomstick and pulling the hood of her robes up over her head.

"With Angelina... what don't we know?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about, James," she said. "C'mon... it's wet outside!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Their robes billowed and swirled around them as they splashed across the flooded vegetable patch to double Herbology, where they could hardly hear what Professor Sprout was saying over the hammering of raindrops hard as hailstones on the greenhouse roof.

The afternoon's Care of Magical Creature's lesson was to be re-located from the storm-swept grounds to a free classroom on the ground floor, and to their intense relief, Angelina had sought out her team at lunch to tell them that Quidditch practice was cancelled.

"Good," said Phoebe quietly, "because I have a time for our first Defence meeting. Tonight, eight o'clock, seventh floor opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, being clubbed by those trolls. Can you tell Roxanna, Fred, George and Lee?"

Angelina looked slightly taken aback but promised to tell the others.

Phoebe then returned hungrily back to her sausages and mash. When she looked up to take a drink of pumpkin juice, she found Terence watching her.

"What?" she said.

"I was wondering if we could talk."

"We talked last night,"

"I know," said Terence, "I just want to be sure that -"

Phoebe silenced him with a quick kiss. "What happened has happened," she said when she pulled away. "We can't change that... and if given the chance, I'd probably do it again!"

"But Phoebe -"

"Look, I didn't feel uncomfortable and it didn't feel wrong," said Phoebe, "I'll admit that the timing and place was inappropriate... but things like that just happen!"

When Terence looked reluctant, Phoebe added, "I've made up my mind, I don't want anyone else... I want you!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe spent the rest of the afternoon with her friends seeking out those people who had signed their names to the list in the Hogs Head and telling them where to meet that evening. Phoebe bestowed orders to Ashlyn, Sarah and Ginny to tell those that she couldn't find, like Cedric, Adrian and Anthony; it was easier than tracking people down in an overcrowded castle.

And by the end of dinner she was confident that the news had been passed to everyone who had turned up at the Hogs Head.

At half past seven, Phoebe, James, Jackson, Terence and the Golden Trio left the Gryffindor common room, Harry clutching a piece of aged parchment in his hand. Fifth-years were allowed to be out in the corridors until nine o'clock, but Hermione wanted to bring the Marauder's Map just for an extra sense of security.

"Hermione!" Phoebe snapped for what felt like the tenth time. "We are allowed to be out of our common rooms until nine o'clock. Stop worrying!"

"But what if we're caught by -?"

"She can't do anything," said Phoebe. "We aren't doing any wrong! We're just a group of friends hanging out! Now, please let go of my arm, you're stopping the blood flowing to my fingers!"

Hermione released her grip. "Sorry," she apologized sheepishly.

They hurried along the corridor, following Phoebe who knew where she was going.

"OK," said Phoebe, while a moth-eaten troll paused in his whacking off his supposed to be ballet teacher to watch them. "Watch!"

_**We need somewhere to learn to fight... we need somewhere to learn to fight... we need somewhere to learn to fight...**_

There was a collective gasp from behind her and Phoebe knew it had worked.

A highly polished door had appeared in the wall. Ron was staring at it, looking slightly wary. Phoebe reached out, seized the brass handle, pulled open the door and led the way inside. The room was lit with flickering torches like those that illuminated the dungeons eight floors below.

The walls were lined with wooden bookcases and instead of chairs there were large silk cushions on the floor. A set of shelves at the far end of the room carried a range of instruments such as Sneakoscopes, Secrecy Sensors and a large, cracked Foe-Glass.

"These will be good when we're practicing Stunning," said Ron enthusiastically, prodding one of the cushions with his foot.

"And just look at these books!" said Hermione excitedly, running a finger along the spines of the large leather-bound tomes. "_A Compendium of Common Curses and Counter-Actions... The Dark Arts Outsmarted... Self-Defensive Spellwork..._ wow..." She looked around at Phoebe, her face glowing, and she saw that the presence of hundreds of books had finally convinced Hermione that what they were doing was right. "Phoebe, this is wonderful, there's everything we need here!"

And without further ado she slid _Jinxes for the Jinxed_ from its shelf, sank onto the nearest cushion and began to read.

There was a gentle knock on the door. Phoebe and Harry looked round. Ashlyn, Adrian, Aiden, Amelia and Sarah had arrived.

"Whoa," said Adrian, staring around, impressed. "What is this place?"

Phoebe began to explain, but before she had finished more people had arrived and she had to start all over again. By the time eight o'clock arrived, every cushion was occupied. Phoebe moved across to the door and turned the key protruding from the lock; it clicked in a satisfyingly loud way and everybody fell silent. Hermione carefully marked her page and set the book she had been reading aside.

"Well," said Phoebe. "This is the place that I suggested to practice sessions, and you've obviously found it OK."

"It's brilliant!" said Harry, and several people muttered their agreement. "It's like Hogwarts wants us to fight back!"

Phoebe smiled and nodded.

"It's bizarre," said Fred, frowning around at it. "We once hid from Filch in here, remember, George? But it was a broom cupboard then."

"Hey, Harry, what's this stuff?" said Dean from the rear of the room, indicating the Sneakoscopes and the Foe Glass.

"Dark detectors," said Harry, stepping between the cushions to reach them. "Basically they all show when Dark wizards or enemies are around, but you don't want to rely on them too much, they can be fooled," he then turned his back on the Foe Glass.

Hermione raised her hand.

"What, Hermione?"

"I think we ought to elect a leader," said Hermione.

"Harry's leader," said Cho at once, looking at Hermione as though she were mad.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes at the Ravenclaw. "I agree with Hermione," she nodded. "I think we ought to vote on it properly. It makes it more formal and gives you authority, Harry. So everyone who thinks Harry ought to be leader?"

Everybody raised their hands.

"Er - right, thanks," said Harry. "And - _what_, Hermione?"

"I also think we should have a name," said Hermione brightly, her hand still in the air. "It would promote feeling of team spirit and unity, don't you think?"

"Can't we be the Anti-Umbridge League?" said Angelina hopefully.

"Or the Ministry of Magic are Morons Group?" suggested Fred.

Phoebe shook her head. "They're too long," she said. "I suggest something shorter and easier, something that didn't tell everyone what we were up to, so we can refer to it safely outside meetings."

"DA," said Ashlyn at once.

"Defence Association?" said Cho. "We could call it the DA for short."

Sarah nodded. "DA is a good idea," she agreed, "but the Ministry is afraid of Dumbledore, right?" Everyone nodded. "Well, why not make it stand for Dumbledore's Army?"

There was a good deal of appreciate murmuring and laughter at this.

"All in favour of the DA?" said Phoebe. "Majority rules - sorry Chang, better luck next time -" Cho glared at her, but Phoebe ignored her. "- motion passed! Continue, Harry!"

While Harry continued, Phoebe pinned the piece of parchment with all their signatures on it to the wall and wrote across the top in large letters:

DUMBLEDORE'S ARMY

When she turned back, Phoebe found Harry glaring at Zacharias Smith.

"I turn my back for a second and you're already at each other's throats... what is the problem _now_?"

"He wants us to learn the Disarming Charm," said Smith. "It's a basic tool that we all know how to use! And, I honestly do not think that _Experlliarmus_ is exactly going to help us against You-Know-Who, do you?"

Phoebe sighed impatiently. "Didn't we all just agree that Harry was leader?" she questioned, "so, as leader, he has the authority to suggest what spells we learn! Going back to basics isn't that bad of an idea... just not in the context that Umbridge uses! Disarming Charms are just as good as any advances Jinxes, Curses, Spells and Charms! But before you can learn them we have to be sure that you can handle the basics first."

The room was silent as Phoebe spoke.

"Remember," the elemental said. "You learn to walk before you run! Baby steps!"

Smith opened his mouth stupidly. The rest of the room was very quiet.

"But if you think it's beneath you, there is the door," Harry said.

Smith did not move. Nor did anybody else.

"OK," said Harry, his mouth slightly drier than usual with all these eyes upon him. "I reckon we should all divide into pairs and practice."

It felt very odd issuing instructions, but not nearly as odd as seeing them followed. Everybody got to their feet at once and divided up. Predictably, Neville was left partnerless.

"You can practice with me," Harry told him. "Right - on the count of three, then - one, two, three -"

The room was suddenly filled with shouts of _Experlliarmus_. Wands flew in all directions; missed spells hit books on shelves and sent them flying into the air. Harry was too quick for Neville, whose wand went spinning out of his hand, hit the ceiling in a shower of sparks and landed with a clatter on top of a bookshelf, from which Harry retrieved it with a Summoning Charm.

"_Experlliarmus!"_ said Neville, and Phoebe, who had been practicing with Ashlyn, was caught unaware when her wand flew out of her hand.

"Hey!" the elemental cried in disbelief, looking around for the culprit.

"I DID IT!" said Neville gleefully. "I've never done it before - I DID IT!"

Phoebe's face softened as she went to retrieve her wand. "Well done, Neville," she smiled. "But try aiming for Harry next time!"

Neville grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, Phoebe,"

"Because it's you," said Phoebe, "I'll let you off the hook!"

Neville smiled and turned away from the elemental.

Ashlyn smirked.

"What?" said Phoebe.

The Slytherin shook her head. "You're a nice kid," she teased.

"Kid?"

Ashlyn nodded.

"I'll give you kid!" said Phoebe, flourishing her wand at Ashlyn.

The Slytherin felt her wand tug against her palm and made to grab it tighter, but was too slow and the wand flew out of her hand.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After two hours, Harry was calling for order.

"Well, that was pretty good," said Harry, "but we've overrun, we'd better leave it here. Same time, same place next week?"

"Sooner!" said Dean Thomas eagerly and many people nodded in agreement.

Angelina, however, said quickly, "The Quidditch season's about to start, we need team practices too!"

Phoebe raised her hand.

"What is it, Phoebe?" said Harry.

"I'd like to reinstate my suggestion of all Quidditch captains letting me know when they plan to take a team practice," the elemental said. "I won't use it for any unnecessary ideas; it will strictly go towards working out new times for these meetings."

Harry nodded.

"Sounds like a plan," said Angelina. "I'll get our times to you as soon as possible."

Phoebe smiled and nodded graciously.

Cedric also nodded. "I'll give ours to Amelia... she can pass them on for me!"

"Thanks," said Phoebe.

"Same for us," said Cho. "As long as you don't turn up at our practices..."

"Why would I want to turn up at one of your practices?" said Phoebe. "Why would I want to steal any of your moves? I perfectly good ones myself, thank you!"

Cho glared at the elemental, but Phoebe turned her back on the Ravenclaw.

"I can try and get our times of Montague," said Adrian, "but I can't promise anything!"

Phoebe nodded.

"Then that's it," said Harry. He pulled out the Marauder's Map and checked it carefully for signs of teachers on the seventh floor.

He let them all leave in threes and fours, watching their tiny dots anxiously to see that they had returned safely: the Hufflepuff's to the basement corridor that also led to the kitchens; the Ravenclaws to a tower on the west side of the castle, the Slytherin's to the dungeons and the Gryffindor's along the corridor to the Fat Lady's portrait.

"All done?" said Phoebe.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, c'mon, let's leave!"

He started for the door with Ron, James, Jackson and Hermione.

Phoebe, however, hung back. "I'm not coming," she said when they frowned at her in confusion.

Terence approached her from behind and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"It's his last night in the castle," Phoebe explained. "We're going to get Bambi from Serefina and spend the night here."

"Together?" said James.

Phoebe nodded and lay back into Terence's embrace, a small content smile on her lips. "Yeah, together! Goodnight guys!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, April 17, 2012 at 4:37am**


	101. Chapter 101

**Author's Note:** Anyone else on Pottermore? If so could you please add me: PotionFelicis2544. Also thank you to everyone who congratulated me on getting to the 100th chapter mark. I am a very proud author now :)

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **HotaruKenobi, KingdomHeartsNerd, Princessflag3998, Dream Lighting** and** Fan of Fics**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Supernaturallover1098, Ch4r** and** Jasminahmed** for adding this story to their favourites. I really appreciate it.

**Warning:** Minor edit occurred last chapter. I didn't realize until writing this chapter that Adrian Pucey was a Slytherin chaser. All that was re-edited last chapter was Adrian promising Phoebe that he would try and get Slytherin Quidditch times to her. Nothing massive.

* * *

><p>"Thursday," said Jackson, "Eight o'clock!"<p>

Phoebe run her finger down the Thursday column and traced across to the number eight. "Hufflepuff Quidditch practice," she said.

Jackson sighed and run his hand through his hair.

"Monday," said James, looking up from his Potions essay. "Seven o'clock. That way we will be finished by nine o'clock!"

Nodding, Phoebe proceeded to run her finger down the Monday column, trace it across to nine o'clock and sighed in frustration.

"What?" said Ashlyn.

"Angie has booked the pitch for Gryffindor," said Phoebe. "Our first game is against Slytherin, we need to practice, and I think Angie is making up for lost time."

"Lost time?" repeated Amelia.

James nodded. "Yeah, remember Umbridge refused to give Gryffindor permission to train?"

"But she gave it to Slytherin," said Phoebe.

"What is that supposed to mean?" accused Ashlyn, looking affronted.

Phoebe smiled somewhat tensely. "It doesn't mean anything, Ash; it just looks mighty suspicious that is all."

James nodded. "Yeah, it's not like we are saying that Umbridge favor's the Slytherin's," he added. "Because that would be bias!"

Jackson, Aiden, Amelia and Sarah lowered their gazes as Phoebe slapped her hand to her forehead.

"You seriously need to learn when to shut up," muttered Phoebe, as she watched Ashlyn's eyes flash dangerously.

"What?" said James, looking confused.

"Favour Slytherin?" repeated Ashlyn. "Did you not stop to think that Umbridge is punishing Gryffindor because of Potter?"

"I - I - now wait a minute," James stuttered. "All I said was -"

"She doesn't _favour_ us Slytherin's!" Ashlyn snapped. "She hates all students... she hates children -"

"We aren't children!" protested James.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned to her fellow Gryffindor. "James, as your friend, I am telling you to shut up and let this go!"

"No," said James, "I want to know what I have said that has upset her!"

He nodded at Ashlyn.

"You said Umbridge favored the Slytherin's," said Sarah.

"She does!" defended James. "Why else would she give them permission to continue Quidditch and not give it to the rest of us? We all have a right to practice!"

Phoebe's gaze connected with Ashlyn's and she shook her head, indicating for the Slytherin to not rise to the bait.

They both could understand where James was coming from, and both could understand that it looked dodgy that Slytherin requested permission and got an approval; but James seriously needed to learn to not disrespect the Slytherin house when there was a loyal Slytherin in the vicinity.

"Okay," said Amelia, nodding at James. "We get it! Umbridge is bias... happy?"

James folded his arms and scowled. "Not in the slightest," he answered, "but I will let it drop for now!"

Phoebe, who had returned to drawing up her DA meeting's time table, paused and looked up, "Friday... seven o'clock!" she announced.

**~*Phoebe*~**

While Phoebe had drawn up the timetable for the DA meetings, Hermione, who had been roped into helping her, was coming up with a devisable method of communication. And finally, she had come up with a clever idea of letting each member of the DA know the time and date of the next meeting.

At the end of their meeting on Friday, the bookworm handed out to each member of the group a fake Galleon. (Ron became very excited when he first saw the basket and was convinced that she was actually handing out gold).

"You see the numerals around the edge of the coins?" Hermione said, holding one up for examination. The coin gleamed fat and yellow in the light from the torches. "On real Galleons that's just a serial number referring to the goblin who cast the coin. On these fake coins, though, the numbers will change to reflect the time and date of the next meeting."

"So how will we know if the time and date changes?" asked Cedric Diggory. "I mean, if we keep randomly checking these coins people are going think something is wrong!"

A few people nodded in agreement.

"The coin will grow hot when the date changes," said Hermione, "so if you're carrying them on your person you'll be able to feel them. We take one each, and when Harry sets the date -"

"Actually," said Harry. "I think the date and time changes should be left to Phoebe."

Phoebe paused and looked around at him. "You do?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. You know what you are doing with choosing dates and times," he explained. "It will be easier for you to change the coins once you have selected a certain time and date, rather than coming to look for me in order to change it."

"Sounds like a plan," agreed Jackson. "It would save time!"

Phoebe shrugged and nodded. "If you're sure," she said to Harry.

"I'm sure," the Seeker nodded.

"Okay," said Phoebe.

Hermione nodded. "Okay, so when Phoebe sets the date of the next meeting she's change the numbers on _her_ coin, and because I've put a Protean Charm on them, they'll all change to mimic hers."

A blank silence greeted Hermione's words. She looked around at all the faces upturned to her, rather disconcerted, except for Phoebe who was staring at her suspiciously, as if remembering something extremely important.

"Well - I thought it was a good idea," she said uncertainly. "I mean, even if Umbridge asked us to turn out our pockets, there's nothing remotely odd about carrying a Galleon, is there? But... well, if you don't want to use them -"

"You can do a Protean Charm?" said Terry Boot.

"Yes," said Hermione.

"But that's... that's NEWT standard, that is," he said weakly.

"Oh," said Hermione, trying to look modest. "Oh... well... yes, I suppose it is."

"How come you're not in Ravenclaw?" he demanded, staring at Hermione with something close to wonder. "With brains like yours?"

"I've often wondered about that myself," said Phoebe.

"Well, how come you're not in Slytherin?" asked Cho, butting into conversation.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "Why should I be in Slytherin?" she asked.

"Because you're a Malfoy," said Cho, "and all Malfoy's belong in Slytherin!"

"Is that an attack against my family, Chang?" snapped Phoebe.

"Just a mere implication,"

"I'll have you know that the Sorting Hat had great difficulty in sorting me," explained Phoebe. "He couldn't get over the fact that I had traits that could have placed me in any of the four houses! But my traits for Gryffindor were much stronger... but I wouldn't have cared if I had gone to Slytherin! It is just a good house as any!"

Ashlyn, Adrian and Aiden smiled in pride.

"So," said Hermione brightly, hoping to break the tension that had fallen from the minor argument, "does this mean we're using the Galleons?"

There was a murmur of assent and everybody moved forwards to collect one from the basket. Jackson looked sideways at Phoebe.

"You know what these remind me of?"

"The Dark Marks?"

Jackson nodded.

"Yeah," agreed Phoebe, "I've already had this conversation with Hermione, she admits that the Dark Marks is where she got the idea. But you'll notice that she decided to engrave the date on bits of metal rather than on the forearm of our members'."

**~*Phoebe*~**

As the first Quidditch match of the season, Gryffindor versus Slytherin, drew nearer, their DA meetings were put on hold because Angelina insisted on almost daily practices.

The fact that the Quidditch Cup had not been held for so long added considerably to the interest and excitement surrounding the forthcoming game; the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuff's were taking a lively interest in the outcome, for they, of course, would be playing both teams over the coming year; and the Heads of House of the competing teams, though they attempted to disguise it under a decent pretense of sportsmanship, were determined to see their own side victorious.

McGonagall showed her support to the Gryffindor team in beating Slytherin by not giving them homework in the week leading up the match.

"I think you've got enough to be getting on with at the moment," she said loftily. Nobody could quite believe their ears until she looked directly at Harry, Phoebe, Ron and James and said grimly, "I've become accustomed to see the Quidditch Cup in my study, and I really don't want to have to hand it over to Professor Snape, so use the extra time to practice, won't you?"

"We would," said James. "If Professor Snape wasn't booking the field left, right and centre for the Slytherin team!"

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "They had it last night," she pointed out, "and they have it again tonight!"

"Mhmm," said Professor McGonagall. "We'll just have to do something about that... here, take this to Madam Hooch," she handed Phoebe a note. "Tell her I give my permission for the Gryffindor's to use the pitch this evening after the Slytherin's and tomorrow evening for as long as they need."

Phoebe grinned as she took the note. "Thank you, Professor," she nodded.

McGonagall nodded.

But Professor Snape wasn't only making it difficult for the Gryffindor's to practice, he was also turning a deaf ear to the many reports of Slytherin attempts to hex Gryffindor players in the corridors.

When Angelina turned up in the Hospital wing with her eyebrows growing so thick and fast they obscured her vision and obstructed her mouth, Snape insisted that she must have attempted a Hair-thickening Charm on herself and refused to listen to the fourteen eye-witnesses who insisted they had seen the Slytherin Keeper, Miles Bletchley, hit her from behind with a jinx.

Phoebe, however, was feeling optimistic about Gryffindor's chances; they had, after all, never lost to the Slytherin team.

Admittedly, Ron was still not performing to Oliver's standard, but he was working extremely hard to improve. His greatest weakness was a tendency to lose confidence after he'd made a mistake.

The only thing really worth worry about was how much Ron was allowing the tactics of the Slytherin team to upset him before they even got onto the pitch.

Harry, of course, had endured their snide comments for over four years, so whispers of, "Hey, Potty, I heard Warrington's sworn to knock you off your broom on Saturday," far chilling his blood, made him laugh, especially when Phoebe got involved.

"Oh, so Warrington is up and walking around is he?" she would retort. "Shame, Blake should have hit him harder!"

"I'd watch what you say, Blackheart," snapped Pansy Parkinson. "He hasn't quite given up on you either!"

Phoebe smirked. "Thanks for the head's up," she nodded. "But do pass on a message for me: If he comes near me again... he won't live to tell the tale!"

But Ron had never endured a relentless campaign of insults, jeers and intimidation. When Slytherin's, some of them seventh years and considerably larger than he was, muttered as they passed in the corridors, "Got your bed booked in the hospital wing, Weasley?" he didn't laugh, but turned a delicate shade of green.

When Draco Malfoy imitated Ron dropping the Quaffle, Ron's ears glowed red and his hands shook so badly that he was likely to drop whatever he was holding at the time, caused James to react so defensively that he would have pummeled Draco into the ground, had it not been for Ashlyn and Phoebe restraining him on more than one occasion.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The morning of the match dawned bright and cold.

When James awoke he looked across at Ron's bed and saw him sitting bolt upright, his arms around his knees, staring fixedly into space.

"You all right?" said James.

Ron nodded but did not speak. James exchanged a look with Harry, who had just woken to find his friend in his current state, was reminded forcibly of the time Ron had accidentally put a Slug-vomiting Charm on himself; he looked just as pale and sweaty as he had done then, not to mention as reluctant to open his mouth.

"You just need some breakfast," Harry said bracingly. "C'mon,"

"Yeah," James agreed. "And Phoebe usually has something encouraging to say to players who are nervous... she always manages to cheer Harry up!"

Harry's stomach did a flip-flop as his mind cast him back to Phoebe's prep talks. She always gave them the night before a game and during breakfast on game day. He suppressed a goofy grin at the prospect of what she was going to say this morning, even if it wasn't direction towards him.

The Great Hall was filling up fast when they arrived, the talk louder and the mood more exuberant when they arrived. As they passed the Slytherin table there was an upsurge of noise. James looked round and saw that, in addition to the usual green and silver scarves and hats, every one of them was wearing a silver badge in the shape of what seemed to be a crown.

"Hey, Ron, Harry, James," shouted Phoebe from the Gryffindor table, she was sitting with Fred, George, Angelina, Jackson and Hermione, "over here! We've saved you seats!"

"She is way to chipper," muttered James.

Harry nodded in agreement and watched as Ron made his way towards the elemental and collapsed into the bench next to her.

"I must have been mental to do this," he said in a croaky whisper. "_Mental_!"

"Don't be thick," said Harry firmly, passing him a choice of cereals, "you're going to be fine. It's normal to be nervous."

"I'm rubbish," said Ron. "I'm lousy. Everyone is expecting an Oliver Wood..."

Phoebe, who had just swallowed a mouthful of cereal, turned to the red head. "Then don't try and be like Oliver," she said. "No one is expecting you to be _exactly_ life Oliver, he was a terrific Keeper, and so are you..."

"I can't play to save my life!"

"Just remember," Phoebe smiled, rubbing Ron's back. "There will never be another Oliver Wood... but no one is expecting that... if you just be yourself, you'll be fine! Besides, James, Angie and I are going to do our bests to keep the Quaffle away from your end of the field, alright?"

Ron smiled, somewhat weakly, he and Phoebe had never had a strong friendship, and yet here she sat, trying to convince him that he was just a good player as any.

Phoebe grinned and winked at Harry as she looked up and caught his gaze. Harry's stomach did another flip-flop.

"Hello," said a vague and dreamy voice from behind them. Harry looked up: Luna Lovegood had drifted over from the Ravenclaw table. Many people were staring at her and a few were openly laughing and pointing; she had managed to procure a hat shaped like a life-size lion's head, which was perched precariously on her head.

"I'm supporting Gryffindor," she said pointing at her hat, "watch what this does!"

She reached up and tapped the hat with her wand. It opened its mouth wide and gave an almighty realistic roar that made everyone in the vicinity jump.

"It's good, isn't it?" said Luna happily. "I wanted to have it chewing a serpent to represent Slytherin, you know, but there wasn't time. Anyway... good luck, Ronald!"

She drifted away.

They had not quite recovered from the shock of Luna's hat when Angelina said, "When you're ready, we're going to go straight down to the pitch, check out conditions and change."

"We'll be there in a bit," Harry assured her. "Ron's just got to have some breakfast."

Angelina nodded and turned to Phoebe. "Ready?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, finishing her orange juice, getting to her feet and grabbing her broomstick. She ruffled Jackson's hair and patted James on the head as she left with her Captain.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The frosty grass crunched under their feet as they hurried down the sloping lawns towards the stadium. There was no wind at all and the sky was a uniform of pearly white, which meant that visibility would be good without the drawback of direct sunlight in their eyes.

"Ron's going to be fine," said Phoebe, trying her best to reassure Angelina. "It's his first game; everyone has a right to be nervous!"

"You weren't," said Angelina.

"I'm very good at masking how I am feeling," said Phoebe.

Angelina glanced sideways. "You weren't last year when Higgs broke up with you!"

Phoebe paused. "Yeah, but it wasn't just Terence's rejection that I had to deal with last year," she pointed out. "The whole of Hogwarts turned against me after the revelation of my true family came to light, didn't they? I was locked out of Gryffindor tower, people turned against me! I guess I just couldn't deal with going from being a really popular girl to a nobody in a week!"

"Fair point," Angelina nodded. "And you are very popular, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but reputation doesn't mean all that much to me," explained Phoebe. "Or rather, I don't let my reputation rule me!"

"I noticed,"

Phoebe smiled. "That is what I tried to explain to Ron at breakfast," she added. "He thinks we all expect him to be just like Oliver, but there will never be another Oliver Wood! Ollie's reputation as Keeper will live on forever here at Hogwarts... what Ron has to realize is that Oliver didn't start out as brilliant, he practiced and he got better, just like he will!"

Angelina nodded and pushed open the door to the underground changing rooms. She led the way inside and promptly started to change into her Quidditch robes, Phoebe followed her lead and was already dressed when the boys turned up after Breakfast had ended.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"OK, I've only just found out the final line-up for Slytherin," said Angelina, consulting a piece of parchment. "Last year's Beaters, Derrick and Bole, have left, but it looks as though Montague's replaced them with the usual gorillas, rather than anyone who can fly particularly well. They're two blokes called Crabbe and Goyle -"

James snorted as he pulled his robes on over his head.

"You know them?" said Angelina.

"Oh, we know them all right," James nodded. "They're not very bright!"

Phoebe, Harry and Ron nodded in agreement.

"They are just a couple of muscle-bound meat heads that act like bodyguards for Draco," said Phoebe.

"Is it accustom for the Malfoy's to have bodyguards?" questioned George. "I mean, both you and your brother have them!"

Phoebe smiled. "It does seem that way, doesn't it?"

They could hear hundreds of footsteps mounting the banked benches of the spectators' stand. Some people were singing, and although Phoebe could not hear the words, she had the feeling that they were not good.

It was then that James nudged her, causing her to look around. "What?"

James nodded at Ron, who was sat beside Harry, clutching his stomach and staring straight ahead, his jaw set and his complexion pale grey.

"It's time," said Angelina in a hushed voice, looking at her watch. "C'mon everyone... good luck."

The team rose, shouldered their brooms and marched in single file out of the changing rooms and into the dazzling sunlight. A roar of sound greeted them in which Phoebe could hear the singing, through it was muffled by the cheers and whistles.

The Slytherin team was standing waiting for them. They, too, were wearing those silver crown-shaped badges.

The new Captain, Montague, was built rather large and muscular with massive forearms like hairy hams. Behind him lurked Crabbe and Goyle, almost as large, blinking stupidly in the sunlight, swinging their new Beaters' bats.

Malfoy stood to one side, the sunlight gleaming on his white-blond hair, and Warrington stood alongside Montague, his eyes locked with Phoebe's and remained locked until they were given the order to mount their brooms.

Madam Hooch placed her whistle in her mouth and blew.

The balls were released and the fourteen players shot upwards. Out of the corner of her eye Phoebe saw Ron streak off towards the goalposts and Harry zoomed higher, dodging a Bludger, and set off on a wide lap of the pitch.

"And it's Johnson - Johnson with the Quaffle, what a player that girl is, I've been saying it for years but she still won't go out with me -"

"JORDAN!" yelled Professor McGonagall.

"- just a fan fact, Professor, adds a bit of interest - and she's ducked Warrington, she's passed Montague, she's - ouch - been hit from behind by a Bludger from Crabbe... Montague catches the Quaffle, Montague heading back up the pitch and - nice Bludger there from George Weasley, that's a Bludger to the head for Montague, he drops the Quaffle, caught by James Black of Gryffindor reverse-passes to Phoebe Blackheart and Blackheart's away -"

Lee Jordan's commentary rang through the stadium.

"- dodges Warrington, avoids a Bludger - close call, Phoebe - and the crowd are loving this, just listen to them, what's that they're singing?"

And as Lee paused to listen, the song rose loud and clear from the sea of green and silver in the Slytherin section of the stands.

_"Weasley cannot save a thing,_

_He cannot block a single ring,_

_That's why Slytherin's sing:_

_Weasley is our King._

_Weasley was born in a bin_

_He always lets the Quaffle in_

_Weasley will make sure we win_

_Weasley is our King."_

"- and Phoebe passes back to Angelina!" Lee shouted, and Phoebe knew that he was trying to drown out the words of the song. "Come on now, Angelina - looks like she's got just the Keeper to beat! - SHE SHOOTS - SHE - Aaaah..."

Bletchley, the Slytherin Keeper, had saved the goal; he threw the Quaffle to Warrington who sped off with it, zig-zagging in between Phoebe and James; the singing from below grew louder and louder as he drew nearer and nearer Ron.

_"Weasley is our King,_

_Weasley is our King,_

_He always lets the Quaffle in_

_Weasley is our King."_

"- and it's Warrington with the Quaffle, Warrington heading for goal, he's out of Bludger range with just the Keeper ahead -"

A great swell of song rose from the Slytherin stands below.

_"Weasley cannot save a thing,_

_He cannot block a single ring..."_

"- so it's the first test for new Gryffindor Keeper Weasley, brother of Beaters Fred and George, and a promising new talent on the team -"

"COME ON, RON!" James and Phoebe shouted, as they hovered opposite one another in the air watching Warrington pelt towards Ron.

But a scream of delight came from the Slytherin's end: Ron had dived wildly, his arms wide, and the Quaffle had soared between them straight through Ron's central hoop. Phoebe dived after it.

"Slytherin score!" came Lee's voice amid the cheering and booing from the crowds below, "so that's ten-nil to Slytherin - bad luck, Ron."

The Slytherin's sang even louder.

_"Weasley was born in a bin_

_He always lets the Quaffle in_..."

"- and Gryffindor back in possession and it's Phoebe Blackheart tanking up the pitch -" cried Lee valiantly, though the singing was now so deafening that he could hardly make himself heard above it.

"_Weasley will make sure we win_

_Weasley is our King."_

"- and it's Warrington again," bellowed Lee, "who passes to Pucey, Pucey's off past Black, come on now, Angelina, you can take him - turns out you can't - but nice Bludger from Fred Weasley, I mean, George Weasley, oh, who cares, one of them, anyway, and Warrington drops the Quaffle and Phoebe Blackheart - er - drops it, too - so that's Montague with the Quaffle, Slytherin Captain Montague takes the Quaffle and he's off up the pitch, come on now, Gryffindor, block him!"

_"Weasley cannot save a thing..."_

"- and Pucey's dodged James again and he's heading straight for goal, stop it, Ron!"

But there was a terrible groan from the Gryffindor end, coupled with fresh screams and applause from the Slytherin's. Looking round, Phoebe saw Pansy Parkinson right at the front of the Slytherin stands, her back to the pitch as she conducted the Slytherin supporters with were roaring

_"That's why Slytherins sing:_

_Weasley is our King."_

But twenty-nil was nothing, there was still time for Gryffindor to catch up or catch the Snitch. A few goals and they would be in the lead as usual, Phoebe assured herself, bobbing and weaving through the other players in pursuit of Warrington who had the Quaffle.

But Ron let in two more goals.

"- and James Black of Gryffindor dodged Pucey, ducks Montague, nice swerve, James, and he throws to Blackheart, Phoebe Blackheart takes the Quaffle, she's past Warrington, she's heading for the goal, come on now, Phoebe - GRYFFINDOR SCORE! Its forty-ten, forty-ten to Slytherin and Pucey has the Quaffle."

The sound of Luna's ludicrous lion hat roaring amidst the Gryffindor cheers; only thirty points in it, that was nothing, they could pull back easily.

"- Pucey throws to Warrington, Warrington to Montague, Montague back to Pucey -"

"Sorry, boys," said Phoebe, swerving between then and catching the Quaffle before Adrian had a chance to catch it.

"Blackheart intervenes -"

"Nothing personal..." said Phoebe, before she caught sight of Warrington, "actually... yeah... it's personal!" she dived and soared off back towards the Slytherin end of the field.

"Blackheart takes the Quaffle, Blackheart passes to Black, this looks good - I mean bad - Black's hit by a Bludger from Goyle of Slytherin and it is Pucey in possession again..."

_"Weasley was born in a bin_

_He always lets the Quaffle in_

_Weasley will make sure we win_

_Weasley is our King."_

And then -

The Gryffindor spectators screamed in appraisal.

James, Phoebe, Angelina, Fred and George turned to see what had got them all screaming.

Harry was hovering five or six feet above the ground, his hand in the air, holding a struggling small winged ball in his fists.

"He did it!" Phoebe squealed. "HE DID IT! HE CAUGHT THE SNITCH!"

"We won...?" said James, blinking, his brain unable to process the sudden turn of events.

Phoebe grinned. "WE WON!" she screamed. "WE WON, JAMES! WE WON!"

Madam Hooch's shrill whistle was heard, causing Phoebe and James to look around. Harry was lying flat on his back on the frozen pitch, the Snitch still fighting feebly to get out of his grip.

"What happened?" James asked, as he and Phoebe landed beside Angelina who was helping Harry to his feet.

"It was that thug Crabbe," said Angelina angrily, "he whacked the Bludger at Harry the moment he saw he'd got the Snitch!"

"But we won," said Phoebe, throwing her arms around Harry. "We won, Harry, we won!"

Harry grinned as he wrapped his arms around the elemental and hugged her back. It was then that he heard a snort from behind him and turned around, his arms still around the chaser. Phoebe's twin brother, Draco had landed close by. White-faced with fury, he was still managing to sneer.

"Saved Weasley's neck, haven't you?" he said to Harry. "I've never seen a worse Keeper... but then he was _born in a bin_..." his gaze landed on Phoebe, and he grinned. "Did you like my lyrics, Phoebe?"

Phoebe didn't answer.

"We wanted to write another couple of verses!" said Malfoy, his gaze still on his sister. "But we couldn't find rhymes for fat and ugly - we wanted to sing about his mother, see -"

"Talk about sour grapes," said Angelina, casting Malfoy a disgusted look.

"- we couldn't fit in _useless loser_ either - for his father, you know -"

Fred and George had realized what Malfoy was talking about. Halfway through shaking Harry's hand, they stiffened, looking round at Malfoy.

"Leave it!" said Angelina at once, taking Fred by the arm. "Leave it, Fred; let him yell, he's just sore he lost, the jumped-up little -"

Draco's gaze left Phoebe's and sought out Harry. "But you like the Weasley's, don't you, Potter?" he sneered. "Spend holidays there and everything, don't you? Can't see how you stand the stink, but I suppose when you've been dragged up by Muggles, even the Weasley's' hovel smells okay -"

Harry grabbed hold of George. Meanwhile, it was taking the combined efforts of Angelina and James to stop Fred leaping on Malfoy, who was laughing openly.

"Or perhaps," said Malfoy, leering as he back away, "you can remember what _your_ mother's house stank like, Potter, and the Weasley's pigsty reminds you of it -"

Harry was not aware of releasing George; all he knew was that a second later both of them were sprinting towards Malfoy. He had completely forgotten that all the teachers were watching: all he wanted to do was cause Malfoy as much pain as possible; with no time to draw his wand, he merely drew back the fist clutching the Snitch and sank it as hard as he could into Malfoy's stomach -

"Harry! HARRY! GEORGE! _NO!"_

_"Impedimenta!"_

Next thing, Harry and George were knocked forwards by the force of the spell. Leaping to their feet they turned to see Phoebe standing in front of Draco, her wand drawn and aimed directly at the pair of them. It had been her that had hit them with the Impediment jinx

"What are you doing?" snarled George.

"What am I doing?" snapped Phoebe. "What do _you_ think you're doing?"

"He's a Slytherin!"

"He's my brother!"

"What on earth is going on over here!" screamed Madam Hooch as she finally arrived. "I've never seen such behavior like it - back to the castle, both of you, and straight to your Head of House's office! Go! _Now!"_

Still glaring at Phoebe, Harry and George turned on their heels and marched off the pitch, both panting, neither saying a word to the other.

"Miss. Blackheart," said Madam Hooch, now turning to Phoebe who had fallen to her knees beside Draco. "If you would kindly escort Mr. Malfoy to the Hospital wing..."

"Yes, Madam Hooch," Phoebe nodded, helping her brother to his feet and leading him off the pitch. The howling and jeering of the crowd grew fainter and fainter until the twins reached the Entrance Hall, where they could hear nothing except the sound of their own footsteps.

Draco, bruised, battered and bloody, glanced sideways at his sister. "Thanks..." he said, in a low voice.

"Don't talk to me!" said Phoebe.

"Why?"

"Because i'm mad at you!"

"Why are you mad at _me_?" asked Draco. "They hit me!"

"Because you provoked them!"

Draco huffed in annoyance.

"Be thankful I stepped in," said Phoebe as they rounded the corner onto the seventh floor and approached the hospital wing doors. "If given the chance, Harry and George could have killed you!"

He seemed to ignore her, and only spoke when they had reached the hospital wing doors. "I don't like the way he looks at you," he said.

"Who?"

"Potter!"

Phoebe scoffed. "You don't like the way Harry looks at me?" Draco shook his head. "Funny, because I don't like the way Warrington looks at me! And he is a lot more dangerous than Harry! See you around, Dragon."

"Where are you going?"

"I now have to go face my angry teammates," said Phoebe. "Who wants to bet that they are not going to want to talk to me after this?"

And she turned toe and left the hospital wing. Draco watching her go with a hint of sorrow in his bruised eye.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** **Princessflag3998** wanted more Phoebe/Draco scenes. I hope this suffices.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated** **Wednesday, April 18, 2012 at 11:36pm**


	102. Chapter 102

**Author's Note:** Getting closer to Christmas... so you know what that means, don't you? Yep! That is right! The Christmas surprise is coming up very soon! I hope you are already for it and I have drawn out the anticipation enough! I will be honest, I am excited with you and I am the author! But I am excited to hear your thoughts and opinions on the surprise. One more chapter... might be two... we'll see.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **HotaruKenobi, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Dream Lighting, AnimexXxGoddess** and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn**.

* * *

><p>"Banned," said Angelina in a hollow voice, late that evening in the common room. "<em>Banned<em>. No Seeker and no Beaters... what on earth are we going to do?"

It did not feel as though they had won the match at all. Everywhere James looked there were disconsolate and angry faces; the team themselves were slumped around the fire, all apart from Ron and Phoebe, both of whom had not been seen since the end of the match.

"It's just so unfair," said Roxanna numbly. "I mean what about Crabbe and that Bludger he hit after the whistle had been blown? Has she banned _him_?"

"No," said Ginny miserably; she and Hermione were sitting on either side of Harry. "He just got lines, I heard Montague laughing about it at dinner."

"And banning Fred when he didn't even do anything!" said Roxanna furiously, pummeling her knee with her fist.

"It's not my fault I didn't," said Fred, with a very ugly look on his face, "I would've pounded the little scumbag to a pulp if James and Angelina hadn't been holding me back."

Harry stared miserably out of the dark window. Snow was falling. The Snitch he had caught earlier was now zooming around the common room; people were watching its progress as though hypnotized and Crookshanks was leaping from chair to chair, trying to catch it.

"And what was Phoebe playing at?" said Fred, furiously. "Why would she protect that little ferret?"

"Because it's her brother?" said Jackson.

Fred gave a hollow laugh. "Brother? He didn't even know about her until their third year!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Weasley," said Phoebe as she climbed through into the common room. "But I, just like you, have a loyalty to my family and whether you like it or not, Draco _is_ my family."

Fred opened his mouth to retort, but decided against it and got to his feet. "I'm going to bed!" he said, leaving the common room. George followed after him.

"Me too," Angelina nodded, getting slowly to her feet. "Maybe this will all turn out to have been a bad dream... maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and find we haven't played yet..."

She was soon followed by Roxanna, and Ginny went not long after that. Only Harry, Hermione, Jackson, Phoebe and James were left beside the fire.

"Have you seen Ron?" Hermione asked in a low voice.

Harry shook his head.

"I think he's avoiding us," said James. "Where do you think he -?"

But at that precise moment, there was a creaking sound behind them as the Fat Lady swung forwards and Ron came clambering through the portrait hole. He was very pale indeed and there was snow in his hair. When he saw his friends, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Where have you been?" said Hermione anxiously, springing up.

"Walking," Ron mumbled. He was still wearing his Quidditch things.

"You're," said Phoebe, taking him by the arm and touching his face with her hand. "Come and sit down!"

Ron allowed her to lead him over to the fireplace and push him into a comfy armchair. The stolen Snitch zoomed over their heads. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking at his feet.

"What for?" said Harry and Phoebe.

"For thinking I can play Quidditch," said Ron. "I'm going to resign first thing tomorrow."

"If you resign," said Harry testily, "there'll only be three players left on the team." And when Ron and Phoebe looked puzzled, he said, "I've been given a lifetime ban. So have Fred and George."

"_What?_" the Chaser and Keeper yelped.

Hermione told them the full story; Harry could not bear to tell it again. When the bookworm had finished, Ron looked more anguished than ever.

"This is all my fault -"

"You didn't _make_ Harry punch Draco," said Phoebe, angrily.

"- If I wasn't so terrible at Quidditch -"

"- it's got nothing to do with that," said James.

"- It was that song that wound me up -"

"- it would've wound anyone up," said Harry.

Hermione got up and walked to the window, away from the argument, watching the snow swirling down against the pane.

"Look, drop it, will you!" Harry burst out. "It's bad enough, without you blaming yourself for everything!"

Ron said nothing but sat gazing miserably at the damp hem of his robes. After a while he said in a dull voice. "This is the worst day of my life."

"Join the club," said Harry bitterly, with an angry look in Phoebe's direction.

The elemental caught it. "What?" she asked.

"Why did you protect Malfoy?"

"Because he is my brother!" said Phoebe. "Look, whether I grew up with him or not defeats the purpose, the point is that he is still my flesh and blood!"

Hermione gasped. "Well," she said, interrupting any retort that Harry could have given. "I can think of one thing that might cheer you all up."

"Oh yeah?" said Harry skeptically.

"Yeah," said Hermione, turning away from the pitch-black, snow-flecked window, a broad smile spreading across her face. "Hagrid's back."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry sprinted up to the boys' dormitories to fetch the Invisibility cloak and the Marauders Map from his trunk; he was so quick that he, Ron, James and Jackson were ready to leave five minutes before Hermione and Phoebe hurried back down from the girls' dormitories, wearing scarves and gloves.

"Well, it is cold out there!" said Hermione defensively, as Ron clicked his tongue impatiently.

They crept through the portrait hole and covered themselves hastily in the Cloak - since Ron and Jackson were taller than the other three they needed to crouch to prevent their feet from showing - then, moving slowly and cautiously, they proceeded down the many staircases, pausing at intervals to check on the map for signs of Filch or Mrs. Norris.

They were lucky; they saw nobody by Nearly Headless Nick, who was gliding along absent-mindedly humming something that sounded horribly like 'Weasley is our King'. They crept across the Entrance Hall and out into the silent, snowy grounds.

They crunched excitedly through the thickening snow until at last they reached the wooden front door. When Harry raised his fist and knocked three times, a dog started barking frantically inside.

"Fang," grinned Phoebe.

"Hagrid, it's us!" Harry called through the keyhole.

"Shoulda known!" said a gruff voice.

They beamed at each other under the Cloak; they could tell by Hagrid's voice that he was pleased. "Bin home three seconds... out the way Fang... _out the way_, yeh dozy dog..."

The bolt was drawn back, the door creaked open and Hagrid's head appeared in the gap.

Hermione screamed.

"Merlin's beard, keep it down!" said Hagrid hastily, staring wildly over their heads. "Under the Cloak, are yeh? Well, get in, get in!"

"I'm sorry!" Hermione gasped, as the six of them squeezed past Hagrid into the house and pulled the Cloak off themselves so he could see them. "I just - oh, _Hagrid_!"

"It's nuthin', it's nuthin'!" said Hagrid hastily, shutting the door behind them and hurrying to close all the curtains, but Hermione continued to gaze up at him in horror.

Hagrid's hair was matted with congealed blood and his left eye had been reduced to a puffy slit amid a mass of purple and black bruising. There were many cuts on his face and hands, some of them still bleeding, and he was moving gingerly, which made Phoebe suspect broken rips.

It was obvious that he had only just got home' a thick black travelling cloak lay over the back of a chair and a haversack large enough to carry several small children leaned against the wall inside the door. Hagrid himself, twice the size of a normal man, was now limping over to the fire and placing a copper kettle over it.

"What happened to you?" Harry demanded, while Fang pounced on Phoebe, knocked her over and started licking her face.

"It is nice to see you too, Fang," Phoebe giggled, pulling herself up and hugging the boarhound.

"Told yeh, _nuthin_," said Hagrid firmly. "Want a cuppa?"

"Come off it," said Ron, "you're in a right state!"

"I'm tellin' yeah, I'm fine," said Hagrid, straightening up and turning to beam at them all, but wincing. "Blimey, it is good ter see yeh -" he broke off and frowned at Jackson. "Yeh from Durmstrang!"

Jackson nodded.

"Hagrid," said Phoebe brightly, managing to push Fang off of her and picking herself up from the floor. "You remember Jackson? He was here last year for the tournament, remember? He's my childhood friend!"

Hagrid nodded.

"Well, Dumbledore agreed for Jackson to transfer to Hogwarts for his final year at Hogwarts," Phoebe explained. "Especially after Blake's death last year!"

The half-giant's expression softened. "How's yeh summer's bin?"

"Hagrid, you've been attacked!" said James.

"Fer the las' time, it's nuthin'!" said Hagrid firmly.

"Would you say it was nothing if one of us turned up with a pound of mince instead of a face?" Ron demanded.

"You ought to go and see Madam Pomfrey, Hagrid," said Hermione.

"I'm dealin' with it, all righ'?" said Hagrid repressively.

He walked across to the enormous wooden table that stood in the middle of his cabin and twitched aside a tea towel that had been lying on it. Underneath was a raw, bloody, green-tinged steak slightly larger than the average car tire.

"You're not going to eat that, are you, Hagrid?" said Jackson, leaning in for a closer look. "It looks poisonous."

"It's supposed to look like that," said Phoebe, "it is dragon meat."

Hagrid nodded. "An' I didn' get it ter eat."

He picked up the steak and slapped it over the left side of his face. Greenish blood trickled down into his beard as he gave a soft moan of satisfaction.

"So, are you going to tell us what's happened to you?" Harry asked.

"Can't, Harry. Top secret. More'n me job's worth ter tell yeh that."

"Did the giants beat you up, Hagrid?" asked Hermione quietly.

Hagrid's fingers slipped on the dragon steak and it slid squelchy on to his chest.

"Giants?" said Hagrid, catching the steak before it reached his belt and slapping it back over his face, "who said anythin' abou' giants? Who yeh bin talkin' to?" he looked imploringly at Phoebe.

The elemental held up her hands. "Don't look at me," she said. "I didn't say anything!"

"You knew?" said James.

"Course I knew," said Phoebe. "I _am_ an official member of the Order! Dumbledore told me all about Hagrid's mission at the end of last year! Told me to keep it quiet... and I did!"

Harry and Ron glared at her, but for what reason, Phoebe didn't know.

"How did it go?" said Phoebe.

Hagrid sighed, there was no point in hiding the fact that he had been partying to giants now. "Well, we set off righ' after term ended -"

"Madame Maxime went with you, then?" Hermione interjected.

"Yeah, tha's righ'," said Hagrid, and a softened expression appeared on the few inches of face that were not obscured by beard or green steak. "Yeah, it was jus' the pair of us. An' I'll yeh this, she's not afraid of roughin' it, Olympe. Yeh know, she's a fine, well-dressed woman, an' knowin' where we was goin' I wondered 'ow she'd feel abou' clamberin' over boulders an' sleepin' in caves an' tha', bu' she never complained once."

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks and giggled into the cups.

"You knew where you were going?" Harry repeated. "You knew where the giants were?"

"Well, Dumbledore knew, an' he told us," said Hagrid.

"Are they hidden?" asked Ron. "Is it a secret, where they are?"

"Not really," said Hagrid, shaking his shaggy head. "It is jus' that mos' wizard's aren' bothered where they are, 's'long as it's a good long way away. But where they are's very difficult ter get ter, fer humans anyway, so we needed Dumbledore's instructions. Took us abou' a month ter get there -"

"A _month_?" said James, as though he had never heard of a journey last such a ridiculously long time. "But - why couldn't you just grab a Portkey or something?"

There was an odd expression in Hagrid's unobscured eye as he surveyed Ron; it was almost pitying. "We're bein' watched, Ron," he said gruffly.

"What'd you mean?"

"Seriously, Ron," said Phoebe. "It is the same reason we have been stuck with Umbridge! The Ministry are keeping an eye on Dumbledore and anyone that is in league with him!"

James turned to his best friend. "That is why Umbridge has been doing interviews on the other Professors?" he asked.

Phoebe nodded.

"So you couldn't use magic to get there?" asked Ron, looking thunderstruck, "you had to act like Muggles _all the way_?"

"Well, not exactly all the way," said Hagrid cagily. "We jus' had ter be careful, 'cause Olympe an' me, we stick out a bit -"

James made a stifled noise somewhere between a snort and a sniff and hastily took a gulp of tea.

"- so we're not hard ter follow. We was pretendin' we was goin' on holiday together, so we got inter France an' we made like we was headin' fer where Olympe's school is, 'cause we knew we was bein' tailed by someone from the Ministry. We had to go slow, 'cause I'm not really s'posed ter use magic an' we knew the Ministry'd be lookin' fer a reason ter run us in."

"Should have gone through Portugal," said Phoebe, "the Ministry wouldn't have been able to touch you out there! All Dumbledore had to do was confer with Minister Alexio and he would have allowed you to pass right through, magic or not, as long as you were not seen by Muggles!"

Hagrid nodded. "Yer godmother said the same!" he said. "But we managed ter give the berk tailin' us the slip around abou' Dee-John -"

"Ooooh, Dijon?" said Hermione excitedly. "I've been there on holiday, did you see -?"

She fell silent at the look on Ron's face.

"We chanced a big o' magic after that an' it wasn' a bad journey. Ran inter a couple o' mad trolls on the Polish border an' I had a sligh' disagreement with a vampire in a pub in Minsk, bu' apart from tha' couldn't'a bin smoother. An' then we reached the place, an' we started trekkin' up through the mountains, lookin' fer signs of 'em... we had ter lay off the magic once we got near 'em. Partly 'cause they don' like wizards an' we didn' want ter put their backs up too soon, an' partly because Dumbledore had warned us You-Know-Who was bound ter be after the giant's an all. Said it was odds on he'd sent a messenger off ter them already. Told us ter be very careful of drawin' attention ter ourselves as we got nearer in case there was Death Eaters around."

Hagrid paused for a long draught of tea.

"Go on!" said Harry urgently.

"Found 'em," said Hagrid baldly. "Went over a ridge one nigh' an' there they was, spread ou' underneath us. Little fires burnin' below an' huge shadows... it was like watchin' bits o' the mountain movin'."

"How big are they?" asked James in a hushed voice.

"'Bout twenty feet," said Hagrid casually. "Some o' the bigger ones mighta bin twenty-five."

"And how many were there?" asked Harry.

"I reckon abou' seventy or eighty," said Hagrid.

"Is that all?" said Hermione.

"Yep," said Hagrid sadly, "eighty left, an' there was loads once, musta bin a hundred diff'rent tribes from all over the world. Bu' they've bin dyin' out fer ages. Wizards killed a few, o' course, bu' mostly they killed each other, an' now they're dyin out faster than ever. They're not made ter live bunched up together like tha'. Dumbledore says it's our fault, it was the wizards who forced 'em to go an made 'em live a good long way from us an' they had no choice bu' ter stick together fer their own protection."

"Not really protection if they are killing each other, is it?" said Jackson.

"So," said Harry, "you saw them and then what?"

"Well, we waited till morning, didn't want ter go sneakin' up to 'em in the dark, fer our own safety," said Hagrid. "'Bout three in the mornin' they fell asleep jus' where they was sittin'. We didn' dare sleep. Fer one thing, we wanted ter make sure none of 'em woke up and came up where we were, an' fer another, the snorin' was unbelievable. Caused an' avalanche near mornin'."

Jackson nudged Phoebe. "I always wondered what caused those avalanches,"

Phoebe rolled her eyes and shook her head, but Jackson knew she was joking because of the smile on her face.

"Anyway, once it was light we wen' down ter see 'em."

"Just like that?" said Ron, looking awestruck. "You just walked right into a giant camp?"

"Well, Dumbledore'd told us how ter do it," said Hagrid. "Give the Gurg gifts, show some respect, yeh know."

"Give the _what_ gifts?" asked Harry.

"Gurg," said Phoebe, "it means chief."

"How could you tell which one was the Gurg?" asked James.

Hagrid grunted in amusement.

"No problem," he said. "He was biggest, the ugliest an' the laziest. Sittin' there waitin' ter be brought food by the others. Dead goats an' such like. Name o' Karkus. I'd put him at twenty-two feet an' the weight o' a couple o' bull elephants. Skin like rhino hide an' all."

"And you just walked up to him?" said Hermione breathlessly.

"Well... _down_ ter him, where he was lyin' in the valley. They was in this dip between four pretty high mountains, see, beside a mountain lake, an' Karkus was lyin' by the lake roarin' at the others ter feed him an' his wife. Olympe an' I went down the mountainside -"

"But didn't they try and kill you when they saw you?" asked Ron.

"It was def'nitely one some o' their minds," said Hagrid, shrugging, "but we did what Dumbledore told us ter do, which was ter hold our gift up high an' kee our eyes on the Gurg an' ignore the others. So tha's what we did. An' the rest of 'em went quiet an' watched us pass an' we got right up ter Karkus's feet an' we bowed an' put our present down in front o' him."

"What did you give a giant?" asked Ron. "Food?"

"Nah, he can get food all righ' fer himself," said Hagrid. "We took him magic."

"But I thought -" started James.

"Giants like Magic," said Phoebe. "They just don't like it being used against them. What did you give them Hagrid?"

"A branch o' Gubraithian fire."

Phoebe and Hermione gasped in amazement, while Ron, James and Harry frowned in puzzlement.

"A branch of -?"

"Everlasting fire," said Jackson.

"You ought to know that by now," said Hermione irritably. "Professor Flitwick's mentioned it at least twice in class!"

"Well, anyway," said Hagrid quickly, intervening before Ron could answer back. "Dumbledore'd bewitched this branch to burn fer evermore, which isn't somethin' any wizard could do, an' so I lies it down in the snow at Karkus's feet and says, 'A gift to the Gurg of the giants from Albus Dumbledore, who sends his respectful greetings.""

"And what did Karkus say?" asked Harry eagerly.

"Nothin'," said Hagrid. "Didn' speak English."

"You're kidding!"

"Didn' matter," said Hagrid imperturbably. "Dumbledore had warned us tha' migh' happen. Karkus knew enough to yell for a couple o' giants who knew our lingo an' they translated fer us."

"And did he like the present?" asked Ron.

"Oh yeah, it went down a storm once they understood what it was," said Hagrid, turning his dragon meat over to press the cooler side to his swollen eye. "Very pleased. So then I said 'Albus Dumbledore asks the Gurg to speak with his messenger when he returns tomorrow with another gift.'"

"Why couldn't you speak to them that day?" asked Hermione.

"Dumbledore wanted us ter take it very slow," said Hagrid. "Let 'em see we kept our promises. _We'll come back tomorrow with another present_, an' then we do come back with another present - gives a good impression, see? An' gives them time ter test out the firs' present an' find out it's a good one, an' get 'em eager fer more. In any case, giants like Karkus - overload 'em with information an' they'll kill yeh jus' to simplify things. So we bowed outta the way an' went off an' found ourselves a nice little cave ter spend that night in an' the followin' mornin' we went back an' this time we found Karkus sittin' up waitin' fer us lookin' all eager."

"And you talked to him?"

"Oh yeah. Firs' we presented him with a nice battle helmet - goblin-made an' indestructible, yeh know - an' then we sat down an' we talked."

"What did he say?"

"Not much," said Hagrid. "Listened mostly. Bu' there were good signs. He'd heard o' Dumbledore, heard he'd argued against the killin' o' the last giants in Britain. Karkus seemed ter be quite int'rested in what Dumbledore had ter say. An' a few o' the others, 'specially the ones who had some English, they gathered round an' listened too. We were hopeful when we left that day. Promised ter come back next mornin' with another present. Bu' that night it all wen' wrong."

"What d'you mean?" said James quickly.

"Well, like I say, they're not meant ter live together, giants," said Hagrid sadly. "Not in big groups like that. They can't help themselves; they half kill each other every few weeks. The men fight each other an' the women fight each other; the remnants of the old tribe fight each other, an' that's even without squabbles over food an' the best fire an' sleeping spots. Yeh'd think, seein' as how their whole race is abou' finished, they'd lay off each other, bu'..."

Hagrid sighed deeply.

"That night a fight broke out, we saw it from the mouth of our cave, lookin' down on the valley. Went on fer hours, yeh wouldn' believe the noise. An' when the sun came up the snow was scarlet an' his head was lyin' at the bottom o' the lake."

"Whose head?" gasped Hermione.

"Karkus's," said Hagrid heavily. "There was a new Gurg, Golgomath. Well, we hadn't bargained on a new Gurg two days after we'd made friendly contact with the firs' one, an' we had a funny feelin' Golgomath wouldn't be so keen ter listen to us, bu' we had ter try."

"You went to speak to him?" asked Ron. "After you'd watched him rip off another giant's head?"

"Course we did," said Hagrid, "we hadn' gone all that way ter give up after two days! We wen' down with the next person we'd meant ter give ter Karkus."

Phoebe looked nervous. "I'm guessing it didn't go all that well?"

"Nope. I knew it was no go before I'd opened me mouth," said Hagrid. "He was sitting there wearin' Karkus's helmet, leerin' at us as we got nearer. He's massive, one o' the biggest ones there. Black hair an matchin' teeth an' a necklace o' bones. Human-lookin' bones, some of 'em. Well, I gave it a go - held out a great roll o' dragon skin - an' said, 'A gift fer the Gurg of the giants -" nex' thing I knew, I was hangin' upside-down in the air by me feet, two of his mates had grabbed me."

Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth.

"How did you get out of _that_?" asked Harry.

"Wouldn'ta done if Olympe hadn' bin there," said Hagrid. "She pulled out her wand an' did some o' the fastes' Spellwork I've ever seen. Ruddy marvelous. Hit the two holdin' me right in the eyes with Conjunctivitis Curses an' they dropped me straightaway - bu' we were in trouble then, 'cause we'd used magic against 'em, an' that's what giants hate abou' wizards. We had ter leg it an' we knew there was no way we was going ter be able ter march inter the camp again."

"Blimey, Hagrid," said Ron quietly.

"So, how come it's taken you so long to get home if you were only there three days?" asked Jackson.

"We didn' leave after three days!" said Hagrid, looking outraged. "Dumbledore was relyin' on us!"

"But you've just said there was no way you could go back!" said Hermione.

"Not by daylight we couldn', no. We just had ter rethink a bit. Spent a couple o' days layin low up in the cave an' watchin'. An' wha' we saw wasn' good."

"Did he rip off more heads?" asked Phoebe, sounding squeamish.

"No," said Hagrid. "I wish he had."

"What d'you mean?" asked James.

"I mean we soon found out he didn' object ter all wizards - just us."

"Death Eaters?" said Harry quickly.

"Yep," said Hagrid darkly. "Couple of 'em were visitin' him ev'ry day, bringin' gift's ter the Gurg, an' he wasn' dangling them upside-down."

"How d'you know they were Death Eaters?" said Ron.

"Because I recognized one of 'em," Hagrid growled. "Macnair, remember him? Bloke they sent ter kill Buckbeak? Maniac, he is. Like's killin' as much as Golgomath, no wonder they were gettin' on so well."

"So Macnair's persuaded the giants to join You-Know-Who?" said Hermione desperately.

"Hold yer Hippogriffs, I haven' finished me story yet!" said Hagrid, who, considering he had not wanted to tell them anything in the first place, now seemed to be rather enjoying himself. "Me and Olympe talked it over an' we agreed, jus' 'cause the Gurg looked like favourin' You-Know-Who didn' mean all of 'em would. We had ter try an' persuade some o' the others, the ones who hadn't wanted Golgomath as Gurg."

"How could you tell which ones they were?" asked Ron.

"Well, they were the ones bein' beaten to a pulp, weren' they?" said Hagrid, patiently. "The ones with any sense were keepin' outta Golgomath's way, hidin' out in caves roun' the gully jus' like we were. So we decided we'd go pokin' round the caves by night an' see if we couldn' persuade a few o' them."

"You went poking around dark caves looking for giants?" said Jackson, with awe respect in his voice.

"Well, it wasn' the giants who worried us most," said Hagrid. "We were more concerned abou' the Death Eaters. Dumbledore had told us before we wen' not ter tangle with 'em if we could avoid it, an' the trouble was they knew we was around - 'spect Golgomath told 'em abou' us. At night, when the giants were sleepin' an' we wanted ter be creepin' inter caves, Macnair an' the other one were sneakin' round the mountains lookin' fer us. I was hard put to stop Olympe jumpin' out at 'em," the corners of Hagrid's beard twitched, "she was rarin' ter attack 'em... she's somethin' when she's roused, Olymp... fiery, yeh know... 'spect it's the French in her..."

Hagrid gazed misty-eyed into the fire, while the Gryffindor's exchanged looks, allowing him only thirty seconds of reminiscence before clearing their throats and prompting him to continue.

"So, what happened? Did you ever get near any of the other giants?"

"What? Oh... oh, yeah, we did. Yeah, on the third night after Karkus was killed we crept outta the cave we'd bin hidin' in an' headed back down inter the gully, keepin' our eyes skinned fer the Death Eaters. Got inside a few o' the caves, no go - then, in abou' the sixth one, we found three giants hidin'."

"Cave must have been cramped," said Ron.

"Wasn' room ter swing a Kneazle," said Hagrid.

"Didn't they attack you when they saw you?" asked Hermione.

"Probably woulda done if they'd bin in any condition," said Hagrid, "but they was badly hurt, all three o' them; Golgomath's lot had beaten 'em unconscious; they'd woken up an' crawled inter the nearest shelter they could find. Anyway, one o' them had a bit of English an' 'e translated fer the others, an' what we had ter say didn' seem ter go down too badly. So we kep' goin' back, visitin' the wounded... I reckon we had abou' six or seven o' them convinced at one point."

"Six or seven?" said Ron eagerly. "Well that's not bad - are they going to come over here and start fighting You-Know-Who with us?"

But Phoebe's face had fallen as Hagrid's words sunk in. "What do you mean 'at one point', Hagrid?" she asked.

Hagrid looked at her sadly.

"Golgomath's lot raided the caves. The ones tha' survived didn't wan' no more ter do with us after that."

"So... so there aren't any giants coming?" said Ron, looking disappointed.

"Nope," said Hagrid, heaving a deep sigh as he turned over his steak and applied the cooler side to his face, "but we did wha' we meant ter do, we gave 'em Dumbledore's message an' some o' them heard it an' I 'spect some o' them will remember it. Jus' maybe, them that don' want ter stay around Golgomath'll move outta the mountains, an' there's gotta be a chance they'll remember Dumbledore's friendly to 'em... could be they'll come."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Snow was filling up the window now. Phoebe became aware that the knees of her robes were soaked through: Fang was drooling with his head on her lap.

"Hagrid?" said Hermione quietly after a while.

"Mmm?"

"Did you... was there any sign of... did you hear anything about your... your... mother while you were there?"

Hagrid's unobscured eye rested upon her and Hermione looked scared.

"I'm sorry... I... forget it -"

"Dead," Hagrid grunted. "Died years ago. They told me."

"Oh... I'm... I'm really sorry," said Hermione in a very small voice. Hagrid shrugged his massive shoulders.

"No need," he said shortly. "Can't remember her much. Wasn't a great mother."

They were silent again. Hermione glanced nervously at Phoebe and the others, plainly wanting them to speak.

"But you still haven't explained how you got in this state, Hagrid," Ron said, gesturing towards Hagrid's bloodstained face.

"Or why you're back so late," said Phoebe. "Terence says Madame Maxime got back ages ago -"

"Who attacked you?" said James.

"I haven' bin attacked!" said Hagrid emphatically. "I -"

But the rest of his words were drowned in a sudden outbreak of rapping on the door. Hermione gasped; her mug slipped through her fingers and smashed on the floor; Fang yelped. All seven of them stared at the window beside the doorway. There were two shadows rippled across the thin curtain.

"Hagrid, it's me," said Serefina. "Open the door!"

"It's Professor Blackheart," said Hermione, turning to Phoebe.

"And she's not alone," added Phoebe. "Listen..."

"It was unnecessary for you to accompany me, Blackheart! I am sure your assistant has nothing to hide!"

"He hasn't been home three hours yet," said Serefina, "and you are already wishing to question him! My apologies, Madam Umbridge but I do not see why my presence should cost you an interview! I have lesson plans to discuss with Hagrid!"

Phoebe turned to her friends. "_It's her_!" she whispered.

"Get under here!" Harry said quickly; seizing the Invisibility Cloak, he whirled it over himself and Hermione while Ron tore around the table and dived under the Cloak as well, leaving Phoebe, James and Jackson to duck out into the passage leading to the back door. Pressing their backs against the rough stone wall, they peered around the doorframe.

"Hagrid, hide our mugs!" hissed Phoebe.

Fang was barking madly at the door, as Hagrid seized the mugs that were left on the table and shoved them under the cushion of Fang's basket. Fang was now leaping up at the door; Hagrid pushed him out of the way with his foot and pulled it open.

Professors Umbridge and Blackheart were standing in the doorway.

"So," Umbridge said slowly and loudly, as though speaking to somebody deaf. "You're Hagrid, are you?"

"He's not an imbecile," said Serefina allowing herself entry and casting a look around. Her eyes narrowed as she saw a wisp of black hair disappear around the door frame leading to the back door. _"Phoebe..."_ she hissed.

Phoebe glanced at Jackson as she heard her godmother hiss her name. "_I'm in so much trouble..."_ she whispered.

Jackson nodded.

"Get away," Umbridge snapped as she followed Serefina inside, and she waved her handbag at Fang, who had bounded up to her and was attempting to lick her face.

"Here Fang," called Serefina, patting the sofa beside her. The boarhound bounded over, hopped up onto the seat and curled up into the corner as Serefina scratched behind his ears.

"Er - I don't want ter be rude," said Hagrid, staring at Umbridge, "but who the ruddy hell are you?"

"My name is Dolores Umbridge."

Her eyes were sweeping the cabin. Twice they stared directly into the corner where Harry stood, sandwiched between Ron and Hermione, and once over towards the doorway where Jackson and Phoebe had taken cover.

"Dolores Umbridge?" Hagrid said, sounding thoroughly confused. "I thought you were one o' them Ministry - don' you work with Fudge?"

"I was Senior Undersecretary to the Minister, yes," said Umbridge, now pacing around the cabin, taking in every tiny detail within, from the haversack against the wall to the abandoned travelling cloak. "I am now the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher -"

"Tha's brave of yeh," said Hagrid, "there's not many'd take tha' job anymore."

"- and Hogwarts High Inquisitor," said Umbridge, giving no sign that she had heard him.

"Wha's that?" said Hagrid, frowning.

Serefina opened her mouth to explain but was cut off before she could even start by Umbridge, who had found the shattered pieces of the mug that Hermione had been using. She pointed at them and said, "Precisely what I was going to ask,"

"Oh," said Hagrid, uneasily, "oh, tha' was..."

"Probably Fang," said Serefina quickly. "He's a playful thing... he has been known to break things quite often. Poor thing hasn't seen Hagrid for a while, probably got excited when he came home."

Umbridge turned in her direction and Hagrid let out a sigh of relief.

"I do not believe I was talking to you, Professor," said Umbridge.

"And I do not enjoy the way you are interrogating my assistant," retorted Serefina. "I'm sure you can do an _interview_ without it sounding like Hagrid has done something wrong!"

Umbridge turned back to Hagrid. "I heard voices," she said quietly.

"Probably the radio," said Serefina once again, she was determined to steer the conversation out of dangerous waters. She knew that Phoebe and the others were in the cabin, she had seen her goddaughter and she was determined to make sure that Umbridge did not find them.

Hagrid nodded, grateful for the help he was receiving. "Yeah, I listen ter the radio b'fore bed!" he said.

"There are six sets of footprints in the snow leading from the castle doors to your cabin," said Umbridge sleekly.

Phoebe gasped; Jackson clapped a hand over her mouth. Luckily Hagrid had started speaking at exactly the same time and Umbridge did not appear to have heard.

"Well, I on'y jus; got back," said Hagrid, waving at enormous hand at the haversack. "Maybe someone came ter call earlier an' I missed 'em."

"There were no footprints leading away from your cabin door."

"Well, I... I don' know why that'd..." said Hagrid, helplessly.

Serefina sighed. "Maybe whoever came to call took a detour," she suggested. "There are hundreds of miles of ground leading back to the castle from here."

Umbridge wheeled round and strode the length of the cabin, looking around carefully. She bent and peered under the bed. She opened Hagrid's cupboards. She passed within two inches of where Phoebe and Jackson stood pressed against the wall, in a small alcove behind the passage door.

Serefina and Hagrid exchanged silent looks as Umbridge searched Serefina's eyes held silent questions on where Harry, Ron and Hermione were hidden.

Hagrid glanced subtly in the direction that the Golden Trio were situated, hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak.

After looking carefully inside the enormous cauldron Hagrid used for cooking, she wheeled round again and said, "What has happened to you? How did you sustain those injuries?"

Hagrid hastily removed the dragon steak from his face, which in Phoebe's opinion was a mistake, because the black and purple bruising all around his eye was now clearly visible, not to mention the large amount of fresh and congealed blood to his face.

"Oh, I... had a bit of an accident," he said lamely.

"What sort of accident?"

"I - I tripped."

"You tripped," Umbridge repeated coldly.

"Yeah, that's right. Over... over a friend's broomstick. I don' fly, meself. Well, look at the size o' me, I don' reckon there's a broomstick that'd hold me. Friend o' mine breeds Abraxan horses, I dunno if you've ever seen 'em, big beasts, winged, yeh know, I've had a bit of a ride on one o' them an' it was -"

Phoebe groaned silently and knocked her head against the side of the alcove she was hidden within with Jackson.

"Where have you been?" asked Umbridge, cutting coolly through Hagrid's babbling.

"Where've I -?"

"Been, yes," Umbridge said. "Term started two months ago. Professor Blackheart has had to cover your classes -"

Serefina stepped forward at this point. "In all fairness, Professor Umbridge, the class is technically mine to cover... therefore it does not matter whether or not Hagrid is present!"

"The fact remains, Blackheart," sniffed Umbridge. "Neither you, the Headmaster or any of your colleagues have been able to give me information as to Hagrid's whereabouts. He has left no address. So, I would like for him to inform me, _in his own words_ -" she added with a cold look at the Earth elemental, "where it is he has been!"

There was a pause in which Hagrid stared at her with his newly uncovered eye.

"I - I've been away for me health," he said.

"For your health," repeated Professor Umbridge. Her eyes travelled over Hagrid's discolored and swollen face; dragon blood dripped gently and silently down on to his waistcoat. "I see."

"Yeah," said Hagrid, "bit o' - o' fresh air, yeh know -"

"Yes, as gamekeeper fresh air must be difficult to come by," said Umbridge sweetly. The small patch of Hagrid's face that was not black or purple flushed.

"Well - change o' scene, yeh know -"

"Mountain scenery?" said Umbridge swiftly.

Phoebe's eyes widened as she glanced up at Jackson. "She knows..." she whispered.

"Mountains?" Hagrid repeated, clearing thinking fast. "Nope. South o' France fer me. Bit o' sun... an' sea."

"Really?" said Umbridge. "You don't have much of a tan."

"Yeah... well... sensitive skin," said Hagrid, attempting an ingratiating smile. Chancing a look around the doorframe, Phoebe noticed that two of his teeth had been knocked out. Serefina caught sight of her goddaughter, and her eyes flared, quickly, Phoebe withdrew back into the alcove.

Umbridge looked up at Hagrid coldly; his smile faltered. Then she hoisted her handbag a little higher into the crook of her arm and said, "I shall, of course, be informing the Minister of your late return."

"Righ'," said Hagrid, nodding.

"You ought to know, too, that as High Inquisitor it is my unfortunate but necessary duty to inspect my fellow teachers. So I daresay we shall meet again soon enough. Goodnight."

She turned sharply, marched back towards the door and closed it behind her with a snap.

"Stay where you are!" ordered Serefina, knowing that with the door being closed Umbridge may or may not have left the front porch.

Stumping across the room, Hagrid pulled the curtain back an inch and peered out into the night. "She's goin' back ter the castle," he said in a low voice. "Blimey... inspectin' people, is she?"

"Oh yes," said Serefina, as the Gryffindor's came out of hiding. "The Ministry is determined to weed out unsatisfactory teachers! Trelawney is already on probation. Need I ask what you six are doing down here?" she added as the six Gryffindor's came out of hiding.

"We saw that Hagrid was back," said Phoebe, stepping closer to her godmother.

"And it couldn't have waited until morning?"

Phoebe looked sheepish. "You try stopping these three -" she pointed at the Golden Trio. "They have been worried about him since we started school two months ago, I, of course knew where Hagrid was, but I couldn't very well tell them now, could I?"

Serefina held her goddaughter's gaze before sighing. "Next time you wish to visit Hagrid, and I know this may be difficult for some of you, but keep it within the school hours. Fifth year students have permission to be out of their common rooms until exactly nine o'clock, seventh year students are a little later -" she added staring pointedly at Jackson. "But that does not mean that you will not be asked to return to your common rooms before those designated times! And Umbridge is looking for any excuse to expel any one of you! Especially you and Phoebe, Harry!"

"Why is she looking to expel Phoebe?" James asked.

"Umbridge knows that you are an elemental, Phoebe," said Serefina. "One false move and she will broadcast it to the entire school!"

Phoebe's eyes widened, that had not been something she was expecting. "But... but... but don't I have special permission off Dumbledore to be out of the common room well after hours? I have done for the last four years!"

"During the last four years," said Serefina, "we have not had Umbridge patrolling the corridors! Until she has gone from this school, you will have to abide by the set rules for every other student! Unless, of course, you are within my care!"

"Can we start having lessons in the Forbidden forest again?" asked Phoebe.

Jackson scoffed. "You only want lessons so you can be outside of the tower for longer than necessary."

"No I don't!" exclaimed Phoebe, but her smile gave her away.

Serefina shook her head, a small smile playing on the edge of her lips. "I believe that is enough fun for tonight! All of you, back to your tower, please!"

"Um..." said Hermione, nervously raising her hand into the air.

"Yes, Hermione?" said Serefina.

"I was just wondering what exactly Hagrid is going to be teaching us this term," said the bookworm. "Or will you be continuing the classes?"

"Oh, I will be continuing the glasses," Serefina nodded. "Hagrid will still have to be inspected whether I am there or not! But we will continue on with what we have started. Next will be Kneazles!"

Phoebe's eyes widened. She had always wanted a Kneazle!

"But tha's not very interestin'," said Hagrid. "The stuff we've got's much more impressive."

Knowing full well what Hagrid had been planning on showing the class, Serefina shook her head. "Sorry, Hagrid, but until Umbridge has passed your inspection I am afraid to say we are keeping it very low key," she explained. "Once the inspection is over you can show them!"

"Show us what?" asked James.

"You will see soon enough," said Serefina. "Now, off you go, all of you! Straight back to Gryffindor tower... no detours! Understand?"

The six Gryffindor's nodded.

"Yes, Professor Blackheart," the chorused before shuffling back out into the snow.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I know that this chapter was important… but that does not mean I have to like it! As for the rest of you… I don't know… so, you see that little link at the bottom, yes the one that says 'review this chapter' if you click it you will be able to leave me your thoughts and opinions on the chapter. If you can do that… I will get on with the next chapter.

Awesome. Bye now.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, April 20, 2012 at 3:37am**


	103. Chapter 103

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. Had a little trouble starting this one! But is the beginning of everything. I hope you enjoy it.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi, Princessflag3998, HawkheartandSandflower, DamonLover96** and** KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Shout Outs**: Big thank you too **HawkHeart-and-Sandflower** for adding this story to their Story alerts. Also big thank you too **DamonLover96** for adding this story to their story alerts and favourite stories. Appreciate it.

There are no **in responses** tonight.

On with the chapter.

* * *

><p><em>"Dearest Phoebe,<em>

_I am sorry to have to say this, but I will not be able to attend Care of Magical Creatures this Tuesday morning._

_I have been called away on __**business**__._

_I cannot tell you exactly what it is I have been called away to do, there are some things that not even you do not know about! I know you will be curious, but you must caution your curiosity!_

_You are also probably wondering why I am writing to you! Well, the answer to that is very simple; this Tuesday, Hagrid will be having his inspection with Umbridge and I fear that while I am not there to watch over the lesson myself, he will try and show you something that can put him on Probation._

_Phoebe, you must make sure that everything goes as planned! Please, make sure that Hagrid sticks to the lessons that I have planned._

_With everything that is happening both inside and out of Hogwarts, I fear that I will not be around for much longer; this is why I insist that Hagrid pass this inspection. Not just for my sake, but for yours also._

_I know you will do what I ask._

_With love,_

_Serefina."_

Phoebe frowned as she re-read the letter silently to herself and then looked up at her friends. They were sat in the very back of the library finishing off some work, and, in James's case, starting work that should have been started months ago.

"What is it?" asked Ashlyn, as she looked up from her Transfiguration essay. "Phoebe...?"

"Huh?" Phoebe frowned snapping back to attention and peering at her best friend from over the top of the letter.

Sarah, who had also paused in her work, looked up. "Are you okay?" she questioned.

"Yeah, i'm fine," Phoebe nodded.

"Who's the letter from?"

"Serefina,"

Aiden looked up from the book in which he was consulting a reference. "What did she say?"

"She's been called away on _business_," said Phoebe, stressing on the main word. Her friends nodded as they understood that it was important Order business, "and she is not going to be here for Care of Magical Creatures on Tuesday."

"But that means -" James started, dropping his quill in surprise.

Phoebe nodded, folding the letter and looking around at her friends. "Hagrid could deviate from the lesson plans," she finished James's sentence for him. "And to make matters worse, Umbridge is inspecting him on Tuesday!"

Aiden, Ashlyn and James exchanged looks.

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

"Well, I don't know about you five," said Phoebe, "but I have to go down to Hagrid's hut! I have to be sure that he fully understands the consequences of his actions if he deviates away from the lesson plans!"

Closing his book, Aiden put down his Quill and reached for his backpack, which rested beside his chair. "I'll come with you," he said, pushing everything back into the depths. "I could do with a break!"

Phoebe nodded and zipped up her backpack.

"Do you want us to come?" Ashlyn asked.

"I do not mind," said Phoebe. "Don't feel that you have to come! You are welcome to join us... or I will come find you when I am finished."

James looked down at his work. He had mountains of it to finish and, as much as he wanted to push it aside and forget about it, he knew that he could not. "I really want to come," he pouted.

"You stay," said Phoebe. "You have mountains to do as it is! I will tell you everything when I get back!"

"We'll stay," said Amelia.

Sarah nodded. "We'll make sure that he gets his work finished! Ashlyn, what are you doing?"

"I think I'll go with Phoebe," said the Slytherin. "As long as you don't need me!"

James shook his head. "No, you go," he said. "Enjoy your free day!"

"You'd have a free day too if you actually did your work," said Ashlyn as she packed away her things and shouldered her backpack.

"Meh," James shrugged. "It takes too much energy to do it on time!"

"So you leave it mount up," said Aiden. "And then panic when you have to do it all at the same time?"

"Yep," James nodded. "Sounds about right."

Phoebe rolled her eyes and turned to Aiden. "Don't get him started," she said. "C'mon, let's go before Hagrid decides that he needs to do something that is more important than listen to us!"

Ashlyn and Aiden nodded and followed the Gryffindor from the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Oi!" bellowed Ron, as he stuck his head out of the Gryffindor tower window. "I am a prefect ad if one more snowball hits this window -"

He was cut off as a snowball hit him square in the face. Phoebe, Aiden and Ashlyn laughed amongst themselves as Ron withdrew, his face covered in snow, they then continued to plough their way through two feet of snow towards Hagrid's hut, listening and watching as the rest of the students enjoyed their time in the frozen wonderland that was their school.

Many students had taken to skating on the frozen lake, while others, like Fred and George, had decided to bewitch snowballs that were zooming up and rapping hard on the windows of the Gryffindor tower.

But when they reached Hagrid's hut and knocked the only answer they received was the booming bark of Fang.

"Hagrid," Phoebe called through the keyhole. "Hagrid! Open the door! It's Phoebe... we need to talk!"

Nothing.

"Hagrid!"

"Phoebe..." said Ashlyn, tugging at the back of her best friend's robes.

"Hagrid!" Phoebe yelled, still hammering on the wooden door, causing Fang to boom louder and louder. "Hagrid! I know you're in there!"

Aiden exchanged looks with Ashlyn and rolled his eyes. "Phoebe!" he called, tugging her around by the wrist. "Hagrid is not in there!"

"How do you know?" said Phoebe.

Ashlyn pointed to the trees of the Forbidden Forest. "Isn't that Hagrid's haversack?"

There, hanging from a lonely branch, at the entrance to the forest was the sack that had hung over the back of the sofa the previous night.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, jumping down between her friends and making her way towards the forest.

"You don't think he went inside do you?" asked Aiden, peering into the darkness.

"Knowing Hagrid," said Phoebe, nodding.

"What does he keep in there?"

Ashlyn shrugged. "I'm not sure I want to know," she said in a small whisper, pulling the collar of her cloak higher around her face to block out the slight breeze that had started to pick up.

"Should we go back to the castle?" suggested Aiden. "He could be in there for ages!"

"You guys can go," said Phoebe. "Serefina is counting on me!"

"What are you going to do?" asked Ashlyn. "You'll free if you stay out here and you don't know what he is doing in there to try and follow him!"

Phoebe glanced sideways at her best friend. "I can't just ignore my godmother," she said, "Ash; Serefina wants me to do this because she doesn't know how much longer she is going to be around Hogwarts!"

"What do you mean?" asked Aiden.

"Umbridge hates half-breeds," said Phoebe. "And that is exactly what Serefina and I are! We are half-breeds! There has got to be some talk amongst the staff about Umbridge if Serefina fears her position of Professor here at Hogwarts! Dumbledore would never get rid of Serefina..."

"But Umbridge would," Aiden summarized. "What does that mean for us?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I'm too scared to think about it," she whispered, turning back to the trees. "Hagrid!"

Her voice rebounded in the darkness. But there was no answer, only the rustling of birds in the trees.

After at least half an hour, Hagrid emerged from the trees looking worse than he had done Saturday evening.

"What are yer three doin' down here?" he asked, as he noticed the two Slytherin's and Gryffindor, huddled together on his front doorstep.

"We were waiting for you," said Phoebe, jumping up. "Hagrid, we need to talk!"

"Abou'?"

"Tuesday's Care of Magical Creature's lesson!"

"Oh, don' you worry abou' that, I've got a great lesson planned," said Hagrid enthusiastically. "I've bin keepin' a couple o' creatures saved fer yer OWL year; you wait, they're somethin' really special."

"Special... in what way?" asked Ashlyn tentatively.

"I'm not sayin'," said Hagrid happily. "I don' wan ter spoil the surprise."

Phoebe, Ashlyn and Aiden exchanged looks.

"Look, Hagrid," said Phoebe urgently, dropping all presence, "now that Serefina has been called away on business does not mean that you can skip over the work that she has left! She has informed me that you have an inspection on Tuesday, and Umbridge won't be at all happy if you bring anything to class that's dangerous."

"Dangerous?" said Hagrid, looking genially bemused. "Don' be silly, I wouldn' give yeh anythin' dangerous! I mean, all right, they can look after themselves -"

"Hagrid, you've got to pass Umbridge's inspection, and to do that you really need to be teaching us about how to look after Porlocks," said Phoebe, "or how to tell the difference between Knarls and hedgehogs, stuff like that!" said Phoebe earnestly.

"But tha's not interestin', Phoebe," said Hagrid. "The stuff I've got's much more impressive. I've bin bringin' 'em on fer years, I reckon I've got the on'y domestic heard in Britain."

"Hagrid... please..." said Phoebe, a note of real desperation in her voice. "Umbridge is looking for any excuse to get rid of teachers she thinks are too close to Dumbledore. Please, Hagrid, Serefina's career could be on the line, and not just her's, but yours too! Please, teach us something dull that's bound to come up in our OWL."

But Hagrid didn't seem to be listening anymore. "Look, don' you go worryin' abou' me, I promise yeh I've got really good stuff planned fer yer lessons now I'm back and yer godmother is away... now why don' you lot get back up to the castle, lunch is abou' to start!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hagrid's appearance at breakfast Tuesday morning was not greeted by enthusiasm from all students. Some, like Fred, George and Lee, roared with delight and sprinted up the aisle between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables to wring Hagrid's enormous hand; others, like Parvati and Lavender, exchanged gloomy looks and shook their heads.

"I have to see Draco," said Phoebe, getting up from the Gryffindor table.

"Why do you want to see that little _ferret_!" said Fred, darkly.

"Why do you always have to see George?" asked Phoebe.

Fred blinked. "Because he is my twin brother..."

"Exactly," said Phoebe, shouldering her backpack. "Draco is _my_ twinbrother!"

And turning toe, the elemental swept away, crossed the hall and stopped behind Draco, who was sat between Crabbe and Goyle eating toast. Ignoring the sneering looks she was recieving from the rest of the house, Phoebe motioned to the Entrance Hall and stepped back as Draco got to his feet and followed her out.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was with a certain amount of apprehension that James, Ashlyn and Aidan headed down to Hagrid's, heavily muffled against the cold.

Ashlyn was worried, not only about what Hagrid might have decided to teach them, but also about how the rest of the class, particularly the rest of Parkinson and her gaggle of friends, would behave if Umbridge was watching them, she knew that Draco would possibly behave himself, especially if it meant that Phoebe's place at Hogwarts was at stake.

It was strange to see Draco act the way he did whenever Phoebe was around, in all the years that she had known Draco Malfoy, and she did not know that he had a caring side to his otherwise, arrogant self.

However, the High Inquisitor was nowhere to be seen as they struggled through the snow towards Hagrid, who stood waiting for them on the edge of the Forest. He did not present a reassuring sight; his bruises were tinged with green and yellow and some of his cuts still seemed to be bleeding.

As though to complete the ominous picture, Hagrid was carrying what looked like half a dead cow over his shoulder.

"We're workin' in here today!" Hagrid called happily to the approaching students, jerking his head back at the dark trees behind him. "Bit more sheltered! Anyway, they prefer the dark."

"What prefers the dark?" said Draco sharply as he arrived with Phoebe. "What did he say prefers the dark - did you hear?"

Phoebe shook her head.

"Ready?" said Hagrid, cheerfully, looking around at the class. "Right, well, I've bin savin' a trip inter the Forest fer yer fifth year. Thought we'd go an' see these creatures in their natural habitat. Now, what we're studyin' today is pretty rare, I reckon i'm probably the on'y person in Britain who's managed ter train 'em."

"And you're sure they're trained, are you?" said Draco, and Phoebe could hear panic in his voice. "Only it wouldn't be the first time you'd brought wild stuff to class, would it?"

The Slytherin's murmured in agreement and a few Gryffindor's looked as though they thought Draco had a fair point, too.

"'Course they're trained," said Hagrid, scowling and hoisting the dead cow a little higher on his shoulder.

"So what happened to your face, then?" demanded Draco.

"Mind yer own business!" said Hagrid, angrily. "Now, if yeh've finished askin' stupid questions, follow me!"

He turned and strode straight into the forest. Nobody seemed much disposed to follow, and it wasn't until Harry, Ron and Hermione set off, did any of the rest of the class follow their lead.

They walked for about ten minutes until they reached a place where the trees stood so closely together that it was as dark as twilight and there was no snow at all on the ground. With a grunt, Hagrid deposited his half a cow on the ground, stepped back and turned to face his class, most of whom were creeping from tree to tree toward them, peering nervously as though expecting to be set upon at any moment.

"Gather roun' gather roun'," Hagrid encouraged. "Now, they'll be attracted by the smell o' the meat but I'm goin' ter give 'em a call anyway, 'cause they'll like ter know it's me."

He turned, shook his shaggy head to get the hair out of his face and gave an odd, shrieking cry that echoed through the dark trees like the call to some monstrous bird. Nobody laughed: most of them looked too scared to make a sound.

Hagrid gave another shrieking cry. A minute passed in which the class continued to peer nervously over their shoulders and around the trees for a first glimpse of whatever it was that was coming.

"Oh, an' here comes another one!" said Hagrid proudly. "Now... put yer hands up, who can see 'em?"

"Oh..." Phoebe breathed as her eyes widened as she realized exactly what it was Hagrid was supposed to be showing them, and everything fell into place again when Neville and Harry raised their hands. But they weren't the only two that could see what she couldn't, a Slytherin, whom she recognized as Theodore Nott raised his hand also.

"Excuse me," said Draco in a sneering voice, "but what exactly are we supposed to be seeing?"

Nudging her brother, Phoebe pointed at the cow carcass on the ground.

The whole class stared at it for a few seconds, then several people gasped and Parvati squealed. Bits of flesh were being stripped away from the bones and vanishing into thin air.

"What's doing it?" Parvati demanded in a terrified voice, retreating behind the nearest tree. "What's eating it?"

"Thestrals," said Phoebe.

The whole class turned in her direction, as Hagrid nodded proudly. "Hogwarts has got a whole herd of 'em in here. Now, who knows -?"

"But they're really, really unlucky!" interrupted Parvati, looking alarmed. "They're supposed to bring all sorts of horrible miss-fortune on people who see them!"

"Well, they aren't going to bring you much miss-fortune now, are they?" said Phoebe. "You can't see them! Besides, it's superstition, that they are bad luck! They aren't unlucky! They're dead clever!"

Just then, Parvati let out a high pitched squeal and pressed herself close to another tree. "I think I felt something, I think it's near me!"

"Don' worry, it won' hurt yeh," said Hagrid patiently. "Righ', now, who can tell me why some o' yeh can see 'em an' some can't?"

Phoebe raised her hand. Having already taken her OWLs and NEWTs in Care of Magical Creatures she knew this answer.

"Go on then," said Hagrid, beaming at her.

"The only people who can see Thestrals," said Phoebe, "are people who have seen death."

"Tha's exactly right," said Hagrid solemnly, "ten points ter Gryffindor. Now, Thestrals -"

"_Hem hem_."

Professor Umbridge had arrived. She was standing a few feet away from Harry, wearing her green hat and cloak, her clipboard at the ready. Hagrid, who had never heard Umbridge's fake cough before, was gazing in some concern at the closest Thestral, evidently under the impression that it had made the sound.

"_Hem, hem_."

"Hagrid!" James coughed into his hand and pointing in Umbridge's direction.

"Oh, hello!" Hagrid smiled, smiling, having located the source of the noise. "Glad yeh found the place all righ'! Well, as you can see - or, I dunno - can you? We're doin' Thestrals today -"

"I'm sorry?" said Professor Umbridge loudly, cupping her hand to her ear and frowning. "What did you say?"

"Er - _Thestrals!_" Hagrid said loudly. "Big - er - winged horses, yeh know!"

He flapped his gigantic arms hopefully. Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows at him and muttered as she made a note on her clipboard. "_Has... to... resort... to... crude... sign... language."_

"Well... anyway..." said Hagrid, turning back to the class and looking slightly flustered, "erm... what was I sayin'?"

"_Appears... to... have... poor... short... term... memory,"_ muttered Umbridge, loudly enough for everyone to hear. Pansy Parkinson looked as though Christmas had come a month early; Phoebe, on the other hand, was shaking with suppressed rage.

"Oh, yeah," said Hagrid, throwing an uneasy glance at Umbridge's clipboard, but ploughing on valiantly. "Yeah, I was gonna tell yeh how come we got a herd. Yeh, so we started off with a male an' five females. This one," he pointed at one of the winged-beasts, but to some of the class he was pointing at thin air, "name o' Tenebrus, he's my special favourite, firs' one born here in the Forest -"

"Are you aware," Umbridge said loudly, interrupting him, "that the Ministry of Magic has classified Thestrals as 'dangerous'?"

Hagrid merely chuckled.

"Thestrals aren' dangerous! All righ', they might take a bite outta yeh if yeh really annoy them -"

"_Shows... signs... of... pleasure... at... idea... of... violence,"_ muttered Umbridge, scribbling on her clipboard again.

"No - come on!" said Hagrid, looking anxious now. "I mean, a dog will bite if yeh bait it, won' it - but Thestrals have jus' got a bad reputation because o' the death thing - people used ter think they were bad omens, didn' they? Just didn' understand, did they?"

Umbridge did not answer; she finished writing her last note, then looked up at Hagrid and said, again very loudly and slowly, "Please continue teaching as usual. I am going to walk," she mimed walking (Parkinson and Bulstrode were having silent fits of laughter) "among the students," she pointed around at individual members of the class) "and ask them questions." She pointed at her mouth to indicate talking.

Hagrid stared at her, clearly at a complete loss to understand why she was acting as though he did not understand normal English. Phoebe had tears of fury in her eyes now.

_"You hag, you evil old, toad-like hag!"_ she was muttering furiously in Portuguese._ "I know what you are doing, you awful, sick, twisted, vicious, toad!"_

"Erm... anyway," said Hagrid, struggling to regain the flow of his lesson, "so - Thestrals. Yeah. Well, there's loads o' good stuff abou' them..."

"Do you find," said Professor Umbridge in a ringing voice to Pansy Parkinson, "that you are able to understand Professor Hagrid when he talks?"

Just like Phoebe, Pansy had tears in her eyes, but these were tears of laughter, indeed, her answer was almost incoherent because she was trying to suppress giggles.

"No... Because... well... it sounds... like grunting a lot of the time..."

"Not that much different to when you speak then!" snapped Phoebe, under her breath.

Umbridge, having not heard Phoebe, scribbled on her clipboard. The few unbruised bits of Hagrid's face flushed, but he tried to act as though he had not heard Pansy's answer.

"Er... yeah... good stuff abou' Thestrals. Well, once they're tamed, like this lot, yeh'll never be lost again. 'Mazing sense o' direction, jus' tell 'em where yeh want ter go -"

"Assuming they can understand you, of course," said Millicent Bulstrode loudly, and Pansy Parkinson collapsed in a fit of renewed giggles. Professor Umbridge smiled indulgently at them and then turned to Neville.

"You can see the Thestrals, Longbottom, can you?" she said.

Neville nodded.

"Who did you see die?" she asked, her tone indifferent.

"Don't answer that, Neville!" interrupted Phoebe. "Who gave you the right to ask personal questions? You're inspecting the lesson, not the personal history of its students!"

Umbridge narrowed her eyes at Phoebe. "Watch your tongue, Miss. Blackheart," she snapped, "unless you wish to find yourself in detention with me, tonight!"

Phoebe glowered angrily.

Umbridge smirked and turned back to Neville. "Well... who did you see die?"

Neville glanced nervously in Phoebe's direction. "Um... I'm not sure I want to talk about it..." he said, stumbling over his words as he rushed them.

"Come now, dear," said Umbridge, with a fake smile. "It is only a simple question..."

"Um..."

"When a member of staff asks you a question, Longbottom," said Umbridge, clearly losing her patience, "you are obligated to answer it, as honestly as possible!"

"He doesn't have to answer the question if he doesn't want too," said Phoebe. "The question violates his privacy! But wait, I forgot, the Ministry does not care about the privacy of others, do they? As long as they have what _they_ want, they are happy!"

Umbridge whipped around and pointed her quill at Phoebe. "Now, you listen to me Blackheart," she said in a low venomous voice. "I don't know what rules you follow when you are in Portugal... but while you are in _my_ country, you will abide by my rules! Understand!"

"I abide by no one's rules," said Phoebe, "but my own!"

"Detention!" snarled Umbridge. "8:00pm. my office!"

She turned her back on the elemental.

"Well, Hagrid," she said as she turned to look at him again, speaking once more in that loud, slow voice, "I think I've got enough to be getting along with. You will receive," (she mimed taking something from the air in front of her) "the results of your inspection" (she pointed at her clipboard) "in ten days' time." She held up ten stubby little fingers, then, her smile wider and more toad like than ever before beneath her green hat, she bustled from their midst, leaving Pansy in fits of laughter and Phoebe shaking in actual fury.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"That foul, lying, twisting old gargoyle!"_ stormed Phoebe that evening as she, Jackson and Aiden walked the silent hallways of Hogwarts towards Serefina's office where they knew Athena would be. She was speaking in Portuguese because it was easier to keep the conversation between the three of them private. _"You see what she's up to? It's her thing about half-breeds all over again - she's trying to make out Hagrid's some kind of dimwitted troll, just because he had a giantess for a mother!"_

Aiden nodded. "_It also wasn't that bad of a lesson! Thestrals aren't that bad!"_

_"For Hagrid,"_ said Phoebe, "_they were actually pretty good! Serefina probably would have waited until NEWTs to show us - but you can't really blame her, Hagrid doesn't really have a lesson plan to go by, he just sort of shows us whatever he wants whether or not they come up on the exams -"_

_"Are you doing the exam this year?"_ asked Jackson.

Phoebe shook her head. "_What would be the point? I already have my Qualification in it!"_

_"Then why are you taking the classes?"_

_"Because when I sat the OWL and NEWT exams, I didn't really learn all my knowledge from a lesson!"_ said Phoebe. "_I really want to see what it is like from a lesson's perspective!"_

_"So, you're just doing the extra work?"_ asked Aiden, looking confused.

Phoebe shook her head again. "_If you haven't noticed Care of Magical Creatures is the one lesson that I do not receive any work for! I'm just an observer!"_

They reached the office, pushed open the door and slid inside. Athena looked up from her perch and screeched when she saw them.

"Hey girl," said Phoebe, running her finger over Athena's feathers. "Can you take this to Serefina for us?"

The eagle screeched, nipped Phoebe's finger affectionately, snapped up the letter and took off through the open window and into the evening air.

The three of them watched her disappear, before Phoebe turned to her brothers. "I best get down to Umbridge's office," she said. "Wouldn't want to be late, now, would I?"

"Try and keep your temper," said Jackson watching as she crossed the office. "The last thing you want is another detention!"

"I'll try," nodded Phoebe, waving and disappearing through the door.

**~*Phoebe*~**

On the last day of the holidays, Phoebe arrived at the Room of Requirement after having been down at the Quidditch pitch watching the Gryffindor tryouts.

"Hey, Harry," said Phoebe, as she watched him pull down the last of the decorations, all of which were bearing the legend: 'HAVE A VERY HARRY CHIRSTMAS!'

She giggled.

"I see that Dobby has been here before us,"

Harry nodded. "He is the only person I know that would have put them up," he agreed. "Where've you been?"

"Tryouts,"

"Oh, how – ah – how'd it go?"

"Well, compared to some of the idiots that showed up," said Phoebe, "only three were worth recruiting!"

"Who's got the Seeker position?"

"Ginny Weasley,"

Harry gaped at her.

"Yeah, I know," said Phoebe, "but she's actually pretty good. Nothing on you, of course, but since we can't have you…"

"Do you even stop to think that I don't regret my expulsion from the team?"

Phoebe back tracked. "Oh, Harry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean -"

"Forget it! Who are the Beaters?"

"Andrew Krike," said Phoebe without enthusiasm, "and Jack Sloper. Neither of them are brilliant, but like I said, compared to some of the idiots that showed up…"

Harry nodded.

"Mistletoe," said Phoebe, her gaze now on the clump of white berries that hung between her and Harry.

The Seeker felt his heart beat faster as he looked up and then back at her, maybe now he would get the chance to do something that he had only done once, but dreamed of doing ever since that night a year ago.

However, Phoebe smiled weakly and took a step backwards, away from the mistletoe and turned away as Hermione, Ron, James, Jackson and Neville arrived, and within five minutes the room was full enough to prevent Harry from even thinking about kissing Phoebe again.

"Okay," he said, calling them all to order. "I thought this evening we should just go over the things we've done so far, because it's the last meeting before the holidays and there's no point in starting anything new right before a three week break -"

"We're not doing anything new?" said Zacharias Smith, in a disgruntled whisper loud enough to carry through the room. "If I'd known that, I wouldn't have come."

"We're all really sorry Harry didn't tell you, then," said Fred loudly.

Several people sniggered.

"- we can practice in pairs," said Harry. "We'll start with the Impediment Jinx, for ten minutes, and then we can get out the cushions and try Stunning again."

They all divided up obediently; Harry partnered Neville as usual.

The room was soon full of intermittent cries of "_Impedimenta!_" People froze for a minute or so, during which their partner would stare aimlessly around the room watching other pairs at work, then would unfreeze and take their turn at the jinx.

Neville had improved beyond all recognition.

After a while, when Harry had unfrozen three times in a row, he had Neville join Phoebe and Jackson so that he could walk around the room and watch the others.

After ten minutes on the Impediment Jinx, they laid out the cushions and started practicing the Stunning again. Space was really too confined to allow them all to work this spell at once; half the group observed the others for a while, then swapped over.

At the end of an hour, Harry called a halt.

"You're all getting really good," he said, beaming around at them. "When we get back from the holidays we can start doing some of the big stuff – maybe even Patronuses."

There was a murmur of excitement. The room began to clear in the usual twos and threes; most people wished Harry a 'Happy Christmas' as they went.

Feeling cheerful, Phoebe collected up the cushions and was about to leave when Ashlyn caught her arm and pulled her back.

"What?" Phoebe whispered.

"Look," said Ashlyn, nodded into the room they had just left.

Standing in the middle of the room was Amelia and Cedric, grabbing Sarah and James as they passed the small group of four silently closed the door, leaving an inch open so they could peer back inside.

"Nothing's happening!" said James, as Cedric and Amelia merely stood looking at each other

"Mistletoe," whispered Sarah, pointing to the clump of berries above the two Hufflepuff's. And it seemed she hadn't been the only one who had spotted them, Amelia had too.

From outside the door, the group of four watched as Cedric moved closer and cupped Amelia's face with his hand and lifted her gaze to meet his, leaning closer he pressed his lips against hers eliciting squeals and giggles from Phoebe, Ashlyn and Sarah.

**~*Phoebe*~**

His body felt smooth, powerful and flexible.

He was gliding between shining metal bars, across dark, cold stone… he was flat against the floor, sliding along on his belly… it was dark, yet he could see objects around him shimmering in strange, vibrant colours… he was turning his head… at first glance the corridor was empty… but no… there was someone standing in front of the door behind which held his prize.

"Who's there?" asked the person, they turned, wand drawn and pointed at him.

A spell was cast but it did not hit him as he recoiled and watched as it fizzled out.

With a hiss he reared high from the floor and struck once, twice, three times, plunging his fangs deeply into the flesh, he could feel ribs splinter beneath his jaws and the warmth of blood gushing out of the wounds…

The person was yelling in pain… then they were silent… laying slumped against the wall… blood spattering on to the floor…

He coiled backwards and looked up at the person, dark hair fell into their face, but it wasn't enough to obstruct his vision of the person underneath -

"Harry! HARRY!"

His eyes opened. Every inch of his body was covered in icy sweat; his bed covers were twisted all around him like a strait-jacket; he felt as though a white-hot poker was being applied to his forehead.

"_Harry!"_

Ron was standing over him looking extremely frightened. There were more figures at the foot of Harry's bed, watching as he rolled over and vomited over the edge of the mattress.

"He's really ill," said a nervous voice. "Should we call someone?"

"Harry! _Harry!"_

He had to tell Ron, it was important that he tell him… he could get to Phoebe!

"Professor Blackheart," he panted, his chest heaving. "Professor Blackheart's… been attacked…"

"What?" Ron said.

"Professor Blackheart! She's been bitten, it's serious, there was blood everywhere…"

"I'm going for help," said the same nervous voice, and Harry heard footsteps running out of the dormitory.

"Harry, mate," said Ron uncertainly, "you… you were just dreaming…"

"No!" said Harry furiously; it was crucial that Ron understood. "It wasn't a dream… not an ordinary dream… I was there, I saw it… I think I _did_ it… you have to get to Phoebe… she'll… she'll know what to do!"

He tried to get out of bed, but Ron pushed him back down. "Harry, you're not well. Neville's gone for help."

"I'm fine!" Harry choked, wiping his mouth and shaking uncontrollably. "There's nothing wrong with me, it's Professor Blackheart you've got to worry about – we need to find out where she is – she's bleeding like mad – I was – it was a huge snake."

Whether one minute passed or ten, Harry did not know; he simply sat there shaking… and then there were hurried footsteps coming up the stairs and he heard Neville's voice again.

"Over here, Professor."

Professor McGonagall came hurrying into the dormitory in his usual black robes.

"What is it, Potter?"

Harry had never been so pleased to see his head of house; it was a member of the Order of the Phoenix he needed now, and that was exactly who Professor McGonagall was.

"It's Professor Blackheart!" said Harry, sitting up again. "She's been attacked by a snake and it's serious, I saw it happen."

"What do you mean, you saw it happen?" said Professor McGonagall.

"I don't know… I was asleep and then I was there…"

"You mean you dreamt it?"

"No!" said Harry angrily. "It was real, I didn't imagine it. Professor Blackheart was attacked by a gigantic snake, there was a load of blood, she collapsed, and someone has got to find out where she is…"

Professor McGonagall was gazing at him as though horrified at what she was seeing and hearing.

"I'm not lying and I'm not mad!" Harry shouted. "I tell you, I saw it happen!"

"I believe you," said Professor McGonagall curtly. "Put on your dressing gown – we're going to see the Headmaster!"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, April 23, 2012 at 6:06am**


	104. Chapter 104

**Author's Note:** Glad to know that you enjoyed the change between Mr. Weasley to Serefina being attacked. Also... we are getting closer to the Christmas surprise.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Jojia, Fan of Fics, DamonLover96, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Dream Lighting.**

**Shout Outs: **Big shout out too **LillyLunaK** for adding this story too their Story Alert, Favourite story and for also adding me to their Favourite author and Author Alert. Very much appreciated.

* * *

><p>"Fizzing Whizzbee,"<p>

The gargoyle sprang to life and leapt aside, the wall behind it split in two to reveal a stone staircase that was moving continually upwards like a spiral escalator. The four of them stepped on to the moving stairs; the wall closed behind them with a thud and they were moving upwards in tight circles until they reached the highly polished oak door with the brass knocker shaped like a griffin.

Professor McGonagall pushed open the door and ushered two disheveled looking Gryffindor's and one Slytherin into the room. All three of them looked shocked and were still in their night things.

"Harry - what's going on?" asked Phoebe, looking frightened. "Professor McGonagall says you saw Serefina get hurt -"

"Your godmother has been injured in the course of her work for the Order of the Phoenix," said Dumbledore, before Harry could speak. "She has been taken to St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. I am sending you back to Sirius's house, which is much more convenient for the hospital. You will meet your grandparents there."

"How are we going?" asked Aiden, looking shaken. "Floo powder?"

"No," said Dumbledore, "Floo powder is not safe at the moment, the Network is being watched. You will be taking a Portkey." He indicated to an old kettle lying innocently on his desk. "We are just waiting for Phineas Nigellus to report back... I want to be sure that the coast is clear before sending you -"

There was a flash of flame in the very middle of the office, leaving behind a single golden feather that floated gently to the floor.

"It is Fawkes's warning," said Dumbledore, catching the feather as it fell. "Professor Umbridge must know you're out of your beds... Minerva, go and head her off - tell her any story -"

Professor McGonagall was gone in a swish of tartan.

"He says he'll be delighted," said a bored voice behind Dumbledore; Phineas had reappeared in front of his Slytherin banner. "My great-great-grandson has always had an odd taste in house-guests."

"Come here, then," Dumbledore said to the four students. "And quickly, before anyone else joins us."

Phoebe and the others gathered around Dumbledore's desk.

"You have all used a Portkey before?" asked Dumbledore, and they nodded, each reaching out to touch some part of the black-ended kettle. "Good. On the count of three, then... one... two... three!"

Phoebe felt a powerful jerk behind her naval, the ground vanished from beneath her feet, her hand was glued to the kettle; she as banging into the others as they all sped forwards in a swirl of colours and a rush of wind, the kettle pulling them onwards...

**~*Phoebe*~**

... Until her feet hit the ground so hard her knees buckled, the kettle clattered to the ground.

Jackson scrambled to his feet and looked around; they had arrived in the gloomy basement kitchen of number twelve, Grimmauld Place. The only sources of light were the fire and one guttering candle, which illuminated the remains of a solitary supper.

The door opened and Sirius hurried towards them all, looking anxious. He was unshaven and still in his day clothes; there was also a slightly Mundungus-like whiff of stale drink about him.

"What's going on?" he said, stretching out a hand to help Phoebe up. "Phineas Nigellus said Serefina's been badly injured -"

"Ask Harry," said Aiden.

"Yeah, I want to hear this for myself," said Jackson.

Phoebe, Jackson and Aiden were staring at him.

"It was -" Harry began; this was even worse than telling McGonagall and Dumbledore. "I had a - a kind of - vision..."

And he told them all that he had seen; though he altered the story so that it sounded as though he had watched from the sidelines as the snake attacked, rather than from behind the snake's own eyes. When he had finished, Phoebe, Jackson and Aiden continued to stare at him for a moment, and Harry could not help but notice a slight accusatory in their looks.

Was it possible that they knew? No, they couldn't have... could they?

_**Well, if they are going to blame me just for seeing the attack,**_ thought Harry, as he stared into the frightened eyes of Phoebe, and his heart constricted at the panic that shone back, _**I'm rather glad I did not tell them that I had been inside the snake at the time.**_

"Are Elena and Jacob here?" said Jackson, turning to Sirius.

"They probably don't even know what's happened yet," said Sirius. "The important thing was to get you away before Umbridge could interfere. I expect Dumbledore is writing to your grandparents' right this minute, Phoebe."

"I want to see Serefina," said Phoebe, finally tearing her gaze away from Harry. "I want to go to St. Mungo's! Sirius can you -"

"Hang on, you can't go tearing off to St. Mungo's!" said Sirius.

"'Course we can go to St. Mungo's if we want," said Aiden, with a mulish expression. "She's our mum!"

"And how are you going to explain how you knew Serefina was attacked before the hospital even lets her parents know?"

"What does it matter?" said Phoebe hotly.

"It matters because we don't want to draw attention to the fact that Harry is having visions of things that are happening hundreds of miles away!" said Sirius angrily. "Have you any idea what the Ministry would make of that information?"

"I don't care about the Ministry!" Phoebe yelled. "I want see Serefina!"

The house shook violently in reaction to Phoebe's outburst.

"What you _want_," said Sirius, "and what you _get_ are two different things, Phoebe!"

"You can't stop me from seeing Serefina!" Phoebe yelled, storming past Sirius towards the kitchen door.

Throwing out his hand, Sirius caught her wrist and pulled her back. "Listen, your godmother's been hurt while on duty for the Order and the circumstances are fishy enough without her son and goddaughter knowing about it seconds after it happened, you could seriously damage the Order's -"

"I don't care about the Order!" snapped Phoebe, trying to get out of his grasp. "My godmother is dying!"

"Your godmother knew what she was setting herself up for and she won't thank you for messing things up!" said Sirius equally angry. "This is why there were doubts about allowing you to join the Order - you don't understand - there are things worth dying for!"

"That's easy for you to say!" yelled Phoebe, as she managed to rip her wrist away from Sirius. "I don't see you risking your neck!"

And turning her back on him, Phoebe stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind her in the process.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Upon reaching the bedroom, the same one she used the last time she was at Grimmauld Place, Phoebe collapsed onto the mattress and sank under the duvet, still fully clothed. She was feeling drained, both emotionally and physically, and when she did manage to fall asleep it was to malicious dreams of loss, grief and death.

She saw Blake... she saw Jackson... she saw her grandparents... and she saw Serefina...

They were all dead. Lying motionless at her feet, their eyes wide in terror.

The tears flowed unceremonisly down her cheeks... she tried to stop them, but found that she could not. It was like she was eternally cursed to cry over the ones she had lost - but she hadn't lost them! Blake, yes, she had lost him, but he would be avenged! His death would come with a price and the person who had taken his life would be dealt with accordingly.

But Jackson, her grandparents and Serefina! They were not lost! They were alive... they were safe... they were -

Phoebe's eyes snapped open and she shot up in bed, the room was lit with a bright light, and the young elemental slowly came to realize that she had slept through until morning... or at least until the sun had risen. The bed dipped slightly somewhere near her feet and she became aware of the fact that she was not alone in the room.

"_My dear sweet, Phoebe_," whispered a familiar voice as a soft hand caressed her face, wiping away the tears that had settled into her skin. "_Shh, my child..."_

_"Grandmama,"_ croaked Phoebe, blinking in the early morning light and taking in the appearance of her grandmother. Crawling over the top of the duvet, Phoebe sidled closer to her grandmother and sank into her embrace as tears threatened to fall once again. "_How is Serefina...?"_

Delicately running her fingers through her granddaughter's hair, Elena gave a small wan smile. _"She is going to be all right,"_ she said, her voice weak with tiredness. "_She is sleeping! We can all go see her later. Papa is sitting with her now!"_

Phoebe gave a shaky laugh and finally allowed the last of her tears to spill over one last time.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Their trunks arrived from Hogwarts while they were eating lunch, along with James, Ashlyn, the Weasley's and even Adrian Pucey arrived.

Everyone except Harry was riotously happy and talkative as they changed into jeans and sweatshirts.

When Tonks, Mad-Eye and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley turned up to escort them across London, they greeted them gleefully, laughing at the bowler hat Mad-Eye was wearing at an angle to conceal his magical eye and assuring him, truthfully, that Tonks, whose hair was a short and bright pink again, would attract far less attention on the underground.

Tonks was very interested in Harry's vision of the attack on Serefina, something Harry was not remotely interested in discussing.

"There isn't any _Seer_ blood in your family, is there?" she enquired curiously, as they sat side by side on the train rattling towards the heart of the city.

"No," said Harry.

"No," said Tonks musingly, "no, I suppose it's not really a prophecy you're doing, is it? I mean, you're not seeing the future, you're seeing the present... it's odd, isn't it? Useful, though..."

Harry didn't answer, instead he allowed his gaze to wander, quickly seeking out Phoebe who was sat, a few seats away, conversing with her grandmother in rapid Portuguese.

Fortunately, they got out at the next stop, and Harry lost sight of Phoebe in the crowded station as he allowed Fred and George to get between himself and Tonks who was leading the way. They followed her up the escalator, Moody clunking along at the back of the group, his bowler titled low and one gnarled hand stuck in between the buttons of his coat, clutching his wand.

"Wasn't easy to find a good location for a hospital," said Mr. Weasley, after Phoebe had asked him exactly where St. Mungo's was situated. "Nowhere in Diagon Alley was big enough and we couldn't have it underground like the Ministry - wouldn't be healthy. In the end they managed to get hold of a building up here. Theory was, sick wizards could come and go and just blend in with the crowd."

Phoebe nodded and turned back to her grandmother.

Elena smiled fondly, and brushed Phoebe's fringe from her face. "_Not far from here,_" she reassured her. _"Oh, Aiden, watch yourself, dear!"_

Aiden, who was just about to step off the curb, spun around and almost became lost in a gaggle of shoppers who were plainly intent on nothing but making it into a nearby shop full of electrical gadgets.

"Here we go," said Moody a moment later.

They had arrived outside a large, old-fashioned, red-brick department store called Purge & Dowse Ltd. The place had a shabby, miserable air; the window displays consisted of a few chipped dummies with their wigs askew, standing at random and modeling fashions at least ten years out of date.

"Right," said Tonks, beckoning them towards the window displaying nothing but a particularly ugly female dummy. Its false eyelashes were hanging off and it was modeling a green nylon pinafore dress. "Everybody ready?"

They nodded, clustering around her. Elena clutched her grandchildren by the wrists, as Phoebe clung to Jackson's arm, rather tightly.

"Wotcher," said Tonks, "we're here to see Serefina Blackheart."

The dummy gave a tiny nod and beckoned with its jointed finger, during which Elena seized Phoebe and Aiden by the elbows; stepped right through the glass, Phoebe pulling Jackson along with her, and next second, they had vanished.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They were standing in a crowded reception area where rows of witches and wizards sat upon rickety wooden chairs, some looking perfectly normal and perusing out of date copies of _Witch Weekly_, others sporting gruesome disfigurements such as elephant trunks or extra hands sticking out of their chests.

The room was scarcely less quiet than the street outside, for many of the patients were making very peculiar noises; a sweaty-faced witch in the centre of the front row, who was fanning herself vigorously with a copy of the _Daily Prophet_, kept letting off a high pitched whistle as steam came pouring out of her mouth; a grubby-looking warlock in the corner clanged like a bell every time he moved and, with each clang, his head vibrated horribly so that he had to seize himself by the ears to hold it steady.

Witches and Wizards in lime-green robes were walking up and down the rows, asking questions and making notes on clipboards.

"Are they doctors?" asked Harry.

James, who was closest, shook his head. "Doctors? Those Muggle nutters that cut people up? Nah, they're Healers."

"This way!" said Elena, taking Phoebe and Aiden once more and leading the way towards the queue in front of a plump blonde witch seated at a desk marked _Enquiries_.

"Next!"

Elena moved forward to the desk.

"Hello," she said in her usual elegant voice, "my daughter, Serefina Blackheart, was supposed to be moved to a different ward this morning, could you tell us -?"

"Serefina Blackheart?" said the witch, running her finger down a long list in front of her. "Yes, she has been moved to the Dark Creatures wing. If you go to the end of this corridor, turn left and it's the second set of silver doors."

Elena nodded. "Thank you."

And she led the way down the long corridor.

Harry frowned. "Dark Creature's ward?" he whispered to James.

"Professor Blackheart is an elemental," answered James. "She can control magic without using a wand... that is classed as Dark Magic over here! This is why she has been put in the Dark Creature's ward."

"But doesn't that mean Phoebe -?"

"Would end up in there too," Ashlyn nodded. "Yes, it does!"

Harry continued to look confused the rest of the journey.

They all followed Elena through the double doors and along the narrow corridor beyond, which was lined with portraits of famous Healers and lit by crystal bubbles full of candles that floated up on the ceiling, looking like giant soapsuds.

Finally, they reached the end of the corridor behind the double doors, where a ward opened up to them. The words right above the opening read: _'Dark and Dangerous creatures!'_

"We'll wait outside, Elena," Molly said. "Serefina won't want too many visitors at once... it ought to be just family first."

Mad-Eye growled his approval of this idea and set himself with his back against the corridor wall, his magical eye spinning in all directions. The Weasley's, James, Ashlyn and Adrian drew back and when Harry made to follow them, Phoebe grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the ward.

"Serefina would want to thank you," she said, maintaining a firm grip on his hand.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The ward was rather small and rather dingy, as the only window was narrow and set high in the wall facing the door. Most of the light came from more shining crystal bubbles clustered in the middle of the ceiling. The walls were of paneled oak and there was a portrait of a rather vicious-looking wizard on the wall.

There were only three patients. Serefina was occupying the bed at the far end of the ward beside the tiny window. Harry was pleased to see that she was propped up on several pillows and reading a book, Jacob Blackheart was sat in the chair beside the bed, his chin resting on his chest as he snoozed.

"_Serefina!"_ Phoebe squealed in delight, breaking away from her grandmother and running the full length of the ward.

Serefina looked up as her goddaughter reached her, scrambled up onto the bed and fell into the warm embrace of the woman who had raised her from the moment she had been born.

"Well, hello!" said Serefina, putting the book on her bedside cabinet and hugging Phoebe back. She smiled as Aiden reached her side and reached out to take his hand. "I heard you all had a slight scare..."

Aiden nodded. "Yeah, we thought you were dead," he admitted. "Phoebe - she was the worst!"

"I thought I had lost you!" Phoebe said, her voice breaking and tears formed instantly behind her stormy grey eyes.

"Oh," said Serefina hugging her goddaughter again and kissing her forehead. "You are not going to lose me, Phoebe; it takes more than a giant snake to take me down!"

Phoebe grinned and snuggled closer to her godmother, basking in the warmth of her embrace, just like she used to do as a child.

"How are you, Serefina?" asked Elena, after she had awoken her husband from his slumber. "You're still looking a bit peaky."

"I feel absolutely fine, Mother," said Serefina, holding out his arm to give Jackson a hug, seeing as Phoebe had occupied the other arm. "If they could only take the bandages off, I'd be fit to go home."

"Why can't you take them off?" asked Aiden.

"Well, I start bleeding like mad every time they try," said Serefina, reaching across for her wand, which lay on her bedside cabinet, and waving it so a few extra chairs appeared at her bedside to seat them all. "It seems there was some rather unusual kind of poison in that Snake's fangs that keeps wounds open. They are sure they will find an antidote, though; they say they have had much worse cases than mine, and in the meantime I just have to keep taking a Blood-Replenishing Potion every hour!"

Phoebe frowned. "Can they not bring Catrin in?" she asked. "She will know what to do... especially since she is a Healer in our kind!"

Serefina nodded. "They have messaged her, she is supposed to be arriving sometime this afternoon," she explained.

The young elemental nodded.

"So, are you going to tell us what happened?" asked Aiden, pulling his chair closer to the bed.

"Well, you already know, don't you?" said Serefina, with a significant smile at Harry. "It is very simple - I was on duty, sensed that I was not alone, turned to investigate and found a dirty great snake slithering towards me, I attacked, but was not quick enough to avoid the return attack! Nothing serious!"

"So, where were you when it happened?" asked Phoebe.

"That's my business," said Serefina, though with a small smile.

"When you say you were 'on duty'," Aiden interrupted in a low voice, "what were you doing? I know it was Order business... but what where you guarding? Was it that weapon... the one Voldemort is after?"

Aiden looked around at Harry. "Didn't you say that Voldemort had a snake, Harry?" he asked, looking for a reaction within his mother. "A massive one? You saw it the night he returned, didn't you?"

"That's enough," said Jacob crossly.

"I quite agree," said Elena, equally as angry. "Molly, Arthur, Mad-Eye and Tonks are outside, Serefina, they want to come and see you. And you lot can wait outside," she added to her grandchildren, Jackson and Harry. "You can come and say goodbye afterwards. Go on."

**~*Phoebe*~**

They trooped back into the corridor. Mad-Eye, Tonks and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley went in and closed the door of the ward behind them.

Fred raised his eyebrows and turned to Phoebe. "What happened?"

"We started to question Serefina on what she was doing at the Ministry," said Phoebe, "Papa and Mama intervened and sent us back out here! I don't know what it is they are talking about now... but I can bet it's to do with what happened!"

"Then why aren't they including you?" asked George, "I thought you were a member of the Order?"

Phoebe nodded. "I am. But, remember what Sirius said," she said, turning to Harry, Jackson and Aiden. "There are something's that not even _I_ understand..."

"And Serefina's letter at the beginning of the week," added Aiden. "'There_ are something's that not even you know about..._'"

Again, Phoebe nodded.

"I wish I knew what they were saying," said Aiden, after a while.

"Let's see if St. Mungo's puts Imperturbable Charms on its ward doors, shall we?" said George, holding out what looked like a tangle of flesh-coloured string.

"You read my mind," said Fred, grinning.

He and George disentangled the string and separated five Extendable Ears from each other. Fred and George handed them around. Harry hesitated to take one.

"Go on, Harry, take it!" said Aiden. "You saved Serefina's life. If anyone's got the right to eavesdrop on her it's you."

Phoebe nodded and inserted the end of the string into her ear.

"Okay, go!" Fred whispered.

The flesh-coloured strings wriggled like long skinny worms and snaked under the door. At first, Phoebe could hear nothing, and then she jumped as she heard Tonks whispering as clearly as though she was standing right beside her.

"... They searched the whole area but couldn't find the snake anywhere. It just seemed to have vanished after it attacked you, Serefina... but You-Know-Who can't have expected a snake to get in, can he?"

"I reckon he sent it as a lookout," said Jacob Blackheart, "because he is not had any luck so far, has he? No, I reckon he is trying to get a clearer picture of what he's facing and if Serefina had not been there the beast would have had a lot more time to look around. It is a good thing that you do not tire so easily, Serefina."

There was a pause, and Phoebe could imagine her godmother and grandmother nodding in agreement with her grandfather.

"So, Potter says he saw it all happen?" growled Mad-Eye.

"Yes," said Mrs. Weasley. She sounded rather uneasy. "You know, Dumbledore seems almost to have been waiting for Harry to see something like this."

"Yeah, well," said Moody, "there's something funny about the Potter kid, we all know that."

"Dumbledore seemed worried about Harry when I spoke to him this morning," whispered Elena.

"'Course he's worried," growled Moody. "The boy's seeing things from inside You-Know-Who's snake. Obviously, Potter doesn't realize what that means, but if You-Know-Who's possessing him -"

Phoebe pulled the Extendable Ear out of his own, her heart hammering very fast as she swung around to face Harry. He was staring at her, at _them_, like a dear caught in headlights.

"You," Phoebe whispered, as Aiden wrapped his arms around her waist to hold her up. "Y- You attacked - you attacked Serefina!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 3:06am**


	105. Chapter 105

**Author's Note:** Sorry for not updating in the last week, it has been silly week in University, what with deadlines and everything. I managed to get two out of three essays in on time but the last one completely got to be and I went to pieces, therefore I missed the deadline but am going for Mitigating Circumstances in order to get extra time. Fingers crossed they award me two weeks extra time.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Jojia, Evanescencefan97, Fan of Fics, Dream Lighting, KingdomHeartsNerd, Princessflag3998** and **HawkHeart-and-Sandflower**. You're all amazingly awesome. Love each and every one of you!

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you too **MiraclesHappen94** for adding this story to their story alert and for adding me to their Favourite authors, and also thank you to **Den1** for adding this story to their story alerts. Very much appreciated to you both.

It is part one of the Christmas Surprise

* * *

><p>"Phoebe, come out!"<p>

"Go away!"

"Phoebe, we just want to talk!"

"I don't want to talk!"

"Phoebe!"

Phoebe closed her eyes and rolled over, away from the banging fists on her bedroom door. She rolled onto her stomach and hugged her pillow with the last ounces of strength she had, it had been over an hour since everyone, except Serefina, had returned to Headquarters, and during that hour Phoebe had locked herself away in the depth of her room.

She didn't feel the need to be around anyone at the moment, especially after learning that it had been Harry who had attacked her godmother - her mother - the only woman, other than her grandmother, who had made any sort of impact on her life! It wasn't like Narcissa Malfoy was anything to go by; the woman had birthed her but had been forced to give her up in order to protect her 14 years previous.

_"Phoebe Avalon Blackheart, you open this door right now!"_ the voice of Jacob Blackheart shouted as he hammered on the bedroom door, downstairs, muffled against the covers of her bedspread, Phoebe could hear the screaming of Mrs. Black; but no one seemed to be paying her attention, they were more focused on trying to get Phoebe out of the bedroom where she had locked herself away.

Burying her face into her pillow, Phoebe squeezed her eyes shut against the tears that threatened to fall. She didn't know why she was crying, all she did know was that crying seemed like the only option right now.

She was so tired... but was scared to sleep... ever since Serefina had been attacked, she had been subjected to the same nightmares that had plagued her mind over the summer, Blake was back and he was hauntingly following her, he never spoke, just stood and stared at her with lifeless eyes.

When she tried to reach out to him, touch him, comfort him in any way that she knew possible, he would pull away and step backwards, away from her.

Whenever she called out his name, he would act like he had not heard her... her dreams and nightmares were becoming confusing, and she was often left wondering, after she had woken up, if there had been some meaning behind them.

_**So tired...**_ she thought miserably, her eyes aching with the resistance she was showing in giving in. _**But so scared to face him... For the first time in my life I don't want to see him...**_

She was sinking into shadows...

_It was total and utter chaos._

_Screams echoed loud and clear around the immediate area, popping noises followed by shouts of 'Stupefy!', 'Avada Kedavra!' and 'Crucio!' resounding in the midst of the raging battle._

_Yet, she stood, out of sight and out of mind of everyone, except for the select few that knew where she was situated._

_"We have to get out of here!" he said, skidding to a halt beside her. He grabbed her arm and tried to pull her out of the alcove and down the deserted hallway behind them. But she dug her heels into the ground and refused to budge. "Phoebe! Now!"_

_"No," she argued. "Not yet!"_

_Spinning around, she returned her attention to the battle and scanned the fighting mass of numbers for the familiar head of blonde hair. Her eyes raked the fighting, and landed on his unmistakable general frame._

_Shaking his hand off of her wrist, she hurried out into the battle, weaved her way through the fighters, wrapped her arms around Terence, and leaned in to whisper. "Enough play, my love, we are needed elsewhere right now."_

_Fear flashed across Terence's face at the sight of her, and he parted his lips, possibly to tell her to get the hell out of the castle. But before he could utter a single word, a blinding green light whizzed over her shoulder and hit him square in the chest._

_He was momentarily lifted up and illuminated eerily against the night sky._

_"Nooooooooooooo!" she screamed, dropping to her knees as his body finally collapsed in a heap at her side, she reached out and clutched his body against hers, probing the side of his neck, looking for signs of life._

_Glancing over her shoulder, she saw a wizard with his wand pointed in their direction. His eyes gleamed with malice as he stared at them._

_Two others appeared either side of her as the wizard took off in the opposite direction._

_Distraught, she shot several curses at his retreating form, but missed due to the in balance of her aim, once the man was out of sight she turned her attention back to Terence._

_"Terence, wake up!" she shouted. "Please, Terence! Please, wake up! You cannot leave me!"_

_"We have to go," said a female voice, grabbing her arm and trying to haul her up off the floor. "Phoebe... leave him!"_

_"No! I refuse to leave him!"_

_"Your life is worth more! You are no good to us dead!"_

_But she was determined to not leave Terence behind. "He has to wake up!" she sobbed. "Ter, please, wake up!"_

_Terence did not move._

_Someone grabbed her securely around the waist and dragged her upright. She struggled ruthlessly against her captor, kicking, punching and screaming to be released. But their hold was permanent and she was soon being pulled away from his lifeless body._

_"No! Terence... please... wake up!"_

_But he did not stir._

_"Go! Take her!"_

_Then, whoever had hold of her, turned on the spot and Disapparated._

Phoebe's eyes snapped open and she shot up in bed, vomit rose in her throat, and holding her mouth, the young elemental threw herself at the adjoining door that connected her bedroom to the bathroom.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Can we get on with it?" snapped Harry as he sat on his bed, watching as Hermione crossed the room to the door.

"Not yet," the bookworm quelled. "I want Phoebe to be present... where did you say she was?"

"Good luck trying to get her out of her bedroom," said James. "No one has seen her since yesterday afternoon when we got back from St. Mungo's,"

Ashlyn nodded in agreement.

Hermione huffed. "What room is she in?"

"The same one she was in the last time we were here," answered James.

"Okay," Hermione nodded. "I'm going to go see if I can coax her out... maybe she needs a friend to talk to... someone who knows and understand her?"

"Well, I am her best friend," Ashlyn pointed out. "And not even I could get her to come out of her room!"

"This is why all women are mad," Ron commented; Hermione and Ashlyn, who were glaring at one another from across the room, rounded on him and subsequently narrowed their eyes even further, Ron, shrunk backwards way from the looks of death, and wisely, shied away.

Smirking at Ron, Jackson turned to Ashlyn and Hermione. "Phoebe thinks highly of you both, and you can have more than one best friend, but..." he added, "as Phoebe's eldest best friend! I suggest that you both go and get her... before I do so myself!"

Exchanging looks, both Gryffindor and Slytherin, shuffled out of the room and disappeared down the hallway.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"We know you're in there, Phoebe," said Hermione as she knocked on the wooden door in front of her. "Will you please come out? I want to talk to you."

Lying, curled up in a ball, Phoebe frowned and rolled over onto her back and stared at the door suspiciously. "What are _you_ doing here?" she called back. "I thought you were going skiing with your mum and dad?"

"Well, to tell the truth, skiing's not _really_ my thing," said Hermione. "So, I've come here for Christmas."

"What about your mum and dad?"

Hermione sighed, "Can you at least open the door?" she asked. "I can't help you if I can't see you!"

Rolling her eyes at the sense of Deja vu, Phoebe rolled off the bed and shuffled across to unlock the bedroom door. She turned the handle and pulled it open, and found herself face-to-face with not only Hermione, but Ashlyn too.

"Well," the Slytherin teased, "aren't you a sight for sore eyes!"

And she ambled past the elemental, further into the room. "Have you been in bed this whole time?"

"No," said Phoebe, closing the door and turning her back on it. "So, what did you tell your parents?" she repeated, turning to Hermione.

"I just told them that everyone who is serious about the exams is staying at Hogwarts to study," explained Hermione. "They want me to do well, they'll understand."

"They are not disappointed?"

"Oh, they are very disappointed," Hermione nodded. "But like I said, they'll understand."

Phoebe nodded and dived back into bed. "So, is there any other reason that you came here?"

"Yes," said Ashlyn. "We want you to come back to Harry's room with us, we are going to discuss what happened the night Serefina was attacked, and we believe that you need to hear the whole story from start to finish, along with the facts. Seriously, Phoebe, you're supposed to be the smart one... do you honestly think that Potter knew what was happening the night he attacked Serefina?"

The elemental lowered her gaze, sighed and shook her head. "I can't face him," she murmured.

"Aiden, Adrian, Jackson, James and I will also be there," said Ashlyn. "You don't have to talk to Potter, just turn up, hear the story and the facts and we'll work from there."

Hermione nodded. "Just think of it as another case,"

Phoebe sighed and looked thoughtful. "Fine," she caved. "But if Harry did attack Serefina, then I have the right to not talk to him... at all... for the rest of the holiday and term!"

Hermione and Ashlyn exchanged looks, that was a steep price to pay, but grudgingly they found that they were reluctant to agree, if they didn't agree, Phoebe would not return with them.

"Deal!" Ashlyn nodded, jumping off the bed and approaching the door. Phoebe and Hermione following, obediently, behind her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once back in Harry's room, Hermione sat down next to Ginny, while Phoebe crossed the room with Ashlyn and practically collapsed into Jackson's arms.

The older Gryffindor could tell, just by the way that she hugged him, that something was bothering her, but he didn't dare voice his concerns with everyone present, even if he started speaking Portuguese or French they would know something was wrong and demand to know what was going on.

"How are you feeling?" asked Aiden, reaching over and gently tugging on a strand of hair, which was hanging in his sisters' face.

"Fine," said Phoebe.

"Yeah," Ashlyn nodded. "That is why you have locked yourself away in your room for the past 24 hours!"

"I wanted to be alone!"

"We noticed," Aiden nodded. "But you do realize that in locking yourself away, you missed dinner, breakfast and lunch! You haven't eaten a full meal since 48 hours ago! That is not healthy, Phoebe!"

"I haven't been hungry!"

Again, Aiden nodded, "But, as a four core elemental, you need all the energy you can get!"

He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

With a small puff of scarlet flames, a house-elf appeared in the middle of the bedroom. She blinked and looked around, her bright, emerald green eyes scanned those present, before landing on Aiden and she dropped into a very low bow, her ears sweeping the dusty floor of the bedroom.

"What can Blossom do for Master Aiden?" she squeaked.

"Blossom, I would like some sandwiches..." said Aiden. "As many as you can, any filling will be necessary!"

"Of course, Master," squeaked Blossom as she disappeared in another burst of flame.

Hermione squeaked her eyes wide and her hands cupping her mouth. "You - you have a house-elf?"

"Yeah," Aiden nodded. "No, I don't pay her and her clothes are crafted by her parents! I do not give her clothes, personally. She has been linked to me ever since I can remember."

"How did you summon her?"

"Fire-teleportation," said Aiden. "It is one of the first things I started learning when I was old enough to walk, talk and read! It is easy to contact her with fire-teleportation, all I have to do is think of her, snap my fingers and _poof_ -" he snapped his fingers another flame appeared, and when it died, Blossom stood there carrying a rather large silver platter, full of sandwiches.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"So," said Hermione after she and the others had been fed, watered and were now clustered around the small fire that had been created in the fireplace - compliments of Aiden. Sometimes having an elemental for a friend was a good thing. "How have things been here? Dumbledore told me what happened the night you disappeared, he let James and the others return home a day early, but I was returned to my parents and then decided that I would be better off here!"

"But you don't know e_verything_?" questioned Phoebe.

Hermione shook her head. "Which is why I am hoping someone could explain it to me,"

"It is very simple," said Phoebe, quickly, "Harry told me that he _witnessed_ Serefina's attack... although he failed to mention _how_ he had witnessed it! For you see, Hermione, it was _Harry_ who had attacked Serefina! He was the snake!"

The bookworm frowned as she looked between Harry and Phoebe, why did she have the feeling that things had changed between her friends? Phoebe was accusing Harry of attacking her godmother, and from what she had heard from the others, Harry seemed to think he had been possessed, but no one was sure if he had been or not.

"There is only one simple solution to figure out both sides of this incident," said Hermione, "both of you confirm that Serefina had been attacked by a Snake! Phoebe, you say that Harry had done the attacking -"

"I don't say anything," interrupted Phoebe. "It was Harry's own words! He told Ron that he had been the snake that had attacked Serefina... and Alastor confirmed it yesterday when he was talking with Serefina at the Hospital! That is how we know! But now Harry is trying to convince me and everyone else that he was not the snake!"

"Well, think of it logically, Phoebe," said Hermione, "how could Harry have been the snake?"

"He was possessed!"

"Then how did he get to London?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't care how he did it," she answered. "I just want the truth! I just want to know if he did or did not attack Serefina!"

"How are we going to work that one out?" asked James. "We don't know anyone who has actually been possessed by You-Know-Who!"

Ginny looked nervous. "Actually," she said, "I can tell you how it feels to be possessed by You-Know Who... I _have_ been possessed by You-Know-Who!"

"Oh," said James. "Um... well... could you help us work out this mystery?"

"I could," Ginny nodded.

"We just have to be careful," warned Ashlyn. "It is possible, that if Potter did attack Professor Blackheart, then he could lose Phoebe's friendship!"

Harry did not remove his gaze from Phoebe. "I've already lost her trust..." he said, "Hopefully this will help me gain it back! Because, even if I did attack Professor Blackheart, I did not do it intentionally, I would _never_ do it intentionally!"

Hermione nodded and turned to Ginny. "What do you remember from when you were possessed by V-Voldemort?"

Everyone, save for Hermione, Harry, Phoebe and Aiden, flinched at the mention of his name.

"Honestly?" said Ginny, "nothing!"

The other occupants frowned, how was this supposed to help them?

"When I was possessed I couldn't remember what I'd been doing for hours at a time. I'd find myself somewhere and not know how I got there," explained Ginny, before looking at Harry. "Do you remember everything that you did? Are there any big blank periods where you don't know what you've been up to?"

Harry racked his brains.

"No," he said.

"Then You-Know-Who hasn't ever possessed you," Ginny said simply.

"That dream I had about Professor Blackheart and the snake, though -"

"Harry, you've had these dreams before," Hermione said. "You had flashes of what Voldemort was up to last year."

"This was different," said Harry, shaking his head. "I was _inside_ that snake. It was like I w_as_ the snake..."

"That is all the proof I need!" said Phoebe, getting to her feet and starting for the door. "That is as good as any confession!"

With the reflexes of a cat, Aiden reached out, grabbed Phoebe's wrist and pulled her backwards into him, before she could leave the room. "We have not finished!" he told her. "You will sit through this meeting, then, and only then, will you be permitted to leave!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Yes, Father," she grumbled.

"So, how do you explain me even being able to get to London?" asked James. "Is it possible that Voldemort teleported me there?"

"One day," said Hermione, sounding thoroughly exasperated, "you'll read _Hogwarts: A History_ and perhaps it will remind you that you can't Apparate or Disapparate inside Hogwarts. Even Voldemort couldn't just make Harry fly out of your dormitory!"

"You didn't leave your bed, mate?" said Ron. "I saw you thrashing around in your sleep for at least a minute before we could wake you up."

From Aiden's arms, Phoebe blinked, "So, Harry isn't the weapon?" she questioned.

Ginny shook her head. "No, he's not..." she answered, truthfully.

Harry sighed in relief and glanced subtly at the elemental from the corner of his eye. "Phoebe..." he started.

"I'm sorry..." Phoebe interrupted, looking up at him with saddened eyes. "I'm..." she paused, her voice breaking too much for her to try and put her thoughts into words, "I'm just sorry..."

With a small smile, Harry drew her into a hug, and allowed her to cry silently into his shoulder. "It's okay... I forgive you!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ashlyn and Phoebe laughed as they were lifted effortlessly into the air, by Elena Blackheart, being a conductor of the Air element; the elder witch was able to hover both girls in the air to allow them to decorate the chandeliers with garlands of holly and gold and silver streamers.

"Excellent!" Elena smiled as she lowered both girls back to the floor once they had finished. "Now, I think Molly said that there were more boxes in the basement. Pheebs, why don't you and Jackson go and collect them? Ashlyn -"

"I'll start putting tinsel around the fireplace and start setting up the tree," the Slytherin smiled.

Elena nodded. "Perfect!"

"Remember," said Phoebe turning to her best friend. "Make sure that you don't leave anywhere uncovered, okay?"

The Slytherin winked. "I promise..."

"Hey, Adrian," Phoebe said as she followed her grandmother from the room, leaving the two Slytherin's to decorate without her.

"Hey," Ashlyn grinned, picking up a string of beads and started to hang them on the wall.

Adrian reached for a strand of green beads at the same time as Ashlyn and they touched them at the exact same time.

Ashlyn looked up at her childhood friend and smirked, tugging on the beads lightly. Adrian raised an eyebrow and tugged back.

Soon, they were laughing and trying to take the beads from each other, despite the fact that there was a whole box full beside them.

Adrian pulled on the beads a little too hard, and Ashlyn stumbled forwards, tripped over the box and landed with a soft thump against his chest.

She glanced up at him and the beads fell back into the forgotten box.

Ashlyn's hands were splayed out on his chest and Adrian felt them burning against his chest.

He raised one hand and gently brushed the hair out of her eyes.

"Adrian," Ashlyn whispered gently. "What are we doing?"

Adrian didn't have to ask what she meant. What were they doing? They had been dancing around each other and pretending not to know about the other's feelings and trying to deny their own.

But they now realized that they could not do that forever.

Adrian took a deep breath and gently placed his hand on Ashlyn's jaw, bringing their lips together in a gentle kiss.

That was all it was, a soft, sweet and innocent kiss.

Outside the door, Phoebe squealed excitedly into her hands.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Christmas surprise part 2 is next chapter.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 3:23am**


	106. Chapter 106

**Author's Note:** This was supposed to be the Christmas surprise part 2… but things have occurred and therefore the part 2 has been put back another chapter. It **should** appear next chapter.

**Author's Note Two: ***Hides behind Pillar*DO NOT HATE ME WHEN YOU GET TO THE END OF THIS CHAPTER.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out too: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Fan of Fics, Evanescencefan97, Princessflag3998****,**** Daydream-Away95** and **Dream Lighting**.

**Shout outs: **Big thank you too **Daydream-Away95** for adding this story to their Story Alert.

* * *

><p>Phoebe awoke on Christmas morning to find a stack of presents at the foot of her bed and Ashlyn already halfway through opening her own pile.<p>

"Good morning," the Slytherin chirped, happily tossing a present across the room at her best friend. "Are you alright? It's not like you to sleep in on Christmas!"

"I didn't go to sleep until late last night," answered Phoebe. "I was writing to Terence!"

"How is he?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know," she answered, ripping into her first present. "He hasn't written back to any of my letters."

"Hey, thanks for Locket," smiled Ashlyn. "If I can ask, where did you get the pictures?"

"Sirius had a picture of your parents in his room," answered Phoebe. "I just told him that I was struggling for a Christmas present for you and he allowed me to use what he had left. Now, you will always have a piece of them wherever you go."

Ashlyn smiled. "Well, thanks, it's beautiful!"

"No problem," Phoebe nodded, ripping into another present. She grinned and pulled out a copy of _'The Tales of Beedle the Bard'_. "Oh, James..."

"What?"

Phoebe held up the book that James had bought her for Christmas.

Ashlyn smirked. "He purchased '_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_' for myself," she pointed out.

"I think he had help," said Phoebe. "James is no good with Presents!"

"Tell me about it," Ashlyn nodded, digging into her pile of Chocolate Clusters that she had received from Mrs. Weasley.

The two friends were silent throughout the rest of their unpacking. Phoebe had received a heart-shaped bracelet, with her name engraved on it from Ashlyn, '_Tales of Beedle the Bard_' from James; a homework diary from Hermione, assortment of sweets from Harry and Ron, _'Myths and Legends'_ and '_Mythical Creatures_' from Aiden, a Weasley Jumper from Mrs. Weasley, with a box of Cauldron cakes and from her grandparents, she received '_Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons._'

"Uh..." the elemental frowned as she got to the end of her presents. "Serefina and Terence's gifts aren't here!"

"Maybe they forgot to send them?" suggested Ashlyn. "I mean, Serefina is in the hospital... she'll probably give her's to you when we go see her today."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, probably."

Ashlyn eyed her best friend for a few minutes from across the room. "Don't worry so much about Terence," she said, "he'll write back and he'll have a decent explanation as to why he has not."

"Yeah, I know," said Phoebe. "C'mon, let's go down to breakfast. I can't wait to go see Serefina!"

The Slytherin nodded and the two dressed before heading downstairs and into the kitchen.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once they had eaten their Christmas lunch, the Blackhearts, the Weasley's, Harry, Hermione, Ashlyn, Adrian, Jackson and James were planning to pay another visit to Serefina escorted by Mad-Eye, Lupin and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Mundungus turned up in time for Christmas pudding and trifle, having managed to 'borrow' a car for the occasion, as the Underground did not run on Christmas Day.

The journey to St. Mungo's was quite quick as there was very little traffic on the roads. A small trickle of witches and wizards was creeping furtively up the otherwise deserted street to visit the hospital. Once free of the confined car, Phoebe dashed across the road towards the dummy that sat in the window, wearing a green nylon dress.

"Serefina Blackheart," said the fifteen year old.

The dummy nodded and beckoned the elemental forward with her finger.

Phoebe grinned and stepped through the glass.

The others, who had finally made it across the road, followed the teenager through into a pleasantly festive looking reception area.

The crystal orbs that illuminated St. Mungo's had been coloured red and gold to become gigantic, glowing Christmas baubles; holly hung around every doorway; and shining white Christmas trees covered in magical snow and icicles glittered in every corner, each one topped with a gleaming gold star.

It was less crowded than the last time they had been there.

They found Serefina propped up in bed with the remains of her turkey dinner on a tray on her lap.

"Feliz Natal, Serefina," Phoebe smiled as she reached her godmother's bedside.

"Feliz, what?" repeated Ron, looking mystified.

"It means 'Merry Christmas!' in Portuguese," answered Aiden. "Do remember to speak English, Pheebs; it gets tedious to have to translate everything."

Phoebe looked sheepish. "Sorry, it is just so easy to slip back," she explained. "I am used to being home for Christmas."

"But you are home," said Hermione.

"My real home," said Phoebe. "While I am educated here in England... Portugal will always be my home!"

Elena, who had swept around to the otherside of the bed, leaned down and kissed her daughter lightly on the forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"Bored," answered Serefina. "I am ready to go home!"

"How long do you have to stay here?" asked Aiden.

_"Another week and she should be right as rain,"_ said a voice from behind. The party of visitors turned and Phoebe smiled at the familiar face of Catrin Holloway. _"Hello, Phoebe, nice to see you looking bright and well."_

_"Hello, Catrin,"_ said Phoebe. "_It is a pleasure to see you! However, our meetings always seem to be when something dreadful has happened!"_

Catrin chuckled. "_Yes, that does seem to be the case,"_ she agreed. "_However, I am quite relieved that it is not you I am treating this time. Tell me, how are your powers coming along? Are you resting?"_

_"I am doing everything you have asked,"_ Phoebe reassured. "_I have not needed to use my powers for a while... it is quite nerve-wracking, if I do say so, myself! I am used to training every week... now it does not happen anymore."_

_"Yes, well, a young lady like yourself can do without the whole 'being-thrown-around-like-a-rag-doll' scenario,"_ Catrin explained. "_You will find a reason to use your powers. But now... I fear, I must ask a few of you to leave, only three to a bed at the moment!"_

Elena, who had been listening intently to the conversation, nodded and turned to those who did not understand. "There is a rule," she spoke, "no more than three to a bed. Why don't some of you go and venture a look around the Hospital and then when we will switch visitors in half an hour."

"How about some tea?" suggested Hermione, making her way back across the ward to the double doors. The others moved to follow her.

"Oh, Phoebe," Serefina called out. "Could I see you for a moment... you can rejoin your friends after."

Phoebe nodded and motioned for her friends to go on without her, she then returned to her godmother's side.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I bet you are wondering why I did not get you anything for Christmas," said Serefina, once the others had retreated from the ward, leaving her and her goddaughter alone.

"You don't have to get me anything," said Phoebe.

Serefina smiled. "Nonsense! You are my goddaughter - my daughter - it would be against the rules to not shower you in the gifts that you so rightly deserve."

Phoebe couldn't help the small smile that appeared on lips. "Well, in that case, what did you get me?"

"What makes you think that I did?" chuckled Serefina.

"For starters," said Phoebe. "You just said that I deserve to be showered in gifts... but I also know you well enough by now, you never miss out on a chance to give a present. So, what did you get me?"

Serefina smirked. "Curious as always," she commented, removing a small box from the drawer of her bedside table.

Phoebe smiled. "I am living proof of the old saying 'Curiosity killed the cat'" she added.

Serefina nodded. "This once belonged to my mother," she explained as she removed a dragon pendant from inside the sapphire blue box. The dragon was made of sterling and the claws at the base were clutching a small, clear circular stone. "The gem -" she indicated to the stone, "is charmed, so that it will change colour depending on the type of power you are using."

Phoebe's eyes widened in amazement. "That's incredible," she breathed.

Serefina nodded. "Yes. The pendant itself is also protected," she continued. "Warded off against a number of evil curses and spells..."

"So you mean?"

"Yes, Phoebe," Serefina smiled, "as long as you wear this pendant, no harm can come to you! You will be protected wherever you go!"

Phoebe smiled and hugged her godmother, allowing her to slip the chain around her neck and clipping it in place. "Thank you," she whispered, wrapping her arms around Serefina's neck.

"You are most welcome," Serefina replied. "Merry Christmas, _Little Star!"_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What floor is this?" demanded Ron, rounding on the others, who were all keeping determinedly straight faces.

"Fourth," Phoebe said as she popped up between Aiden and Jackson. "Spell Damage!"

"Uh, Phoebe... you're not going to believe this!" called Ashlyn from the landing.

Harry and Phoebe frowned, hurried out onto the same floor as Ashlyn and Adrian, but stopped dead in front of the double sets of doors. A man was peering out at them all with his nose pressed against the glass. He had wavy blond hair, bright blue eyes and a broad vacant smile that revealed dazzlingly white teeth.

"Blimey!" said Ron, appearing behind his friends and staring at the man.

"Oh, my goodness," said Hermione suddenly, sounding breathless. "Professor Lockhart!"

Their ex-Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher pushed open the doors and moved towards them, wearing a long lilac dressing gown.

"Well, hello there!" he said. "I expect you'd like my autograph, would you?"

"Hasn't changed much, has he?" Jackson muttered to Phoebe, who grinned.

"Er - how are you, Professor?" said Ron, sounding slightly guilty. It had been Ron's malfunctioning wand that had damaged Professor Lockhart's memory so badly that he had landed in St. Mungo's in the first place, though as Lockhart had been attempting to permanently wipe Harry and Ron's memories at the time, the friend's sympathy was limited.

"I'm very well indeed, thank you!" said Lockhart exuberantly, pulling a rather battered peacock-fathered quill from his pocket. "Now, how many autographs would you like? I can do joined-up writing now, you know!"

"Er - we don't want any at the moment, thanks," said Ron, raising his eyebrows at Ashlyn, who had asked, "Professor, should you be wandering around the corridors? Shouldn't you be in a ward?"

The smile faded slowly from Lockhart's face. For a few moments he gazed intently at Ashlyn, who took a step backwards into Phoebe, as Adrian stood between her and their ex-Professor. "Haven't we met?" asked Lockhart.

"Er... yeah, we have," said Phoebe, looking over Ashlyn's shoulder. "You used to teach us at Hogwarts, remember?"

"Teach?" repeated Lockhart, looking faintly unsettled. "Me? Did I?"

And then the smile reappeared upon his face so suddenly it was rather alarming.

"Taught you everything you know, I expect, did I? Well, how about those autographs, then? Shall we say a round dozen, you can give them all to your little friends then nobody will be left out!"

But just then a head poked out of the door at the far end of the corridor and a voice called, "Gilderoy, you naughty boy, where have you wandered off to?"

A motherly-looking Healer wearing a tinsel wreath in her hair came bustling up the corridor, smiling warmly at the cluster of friends.

"Oh, Gilderoy, you've got visitors! How _lovely_, and on Christmas Day, too! Do you know, he _never_ gets visitors, poor lam, and I can't think why, he's such a sweetie, aren't you?"

"We're doing autographs!" Gilderoy told the Healer with another glittering smile. "They want loads of them, won't take no for an answer! I just hope we've got enough photographs!"

"Listen to him," said the Healer, taking Lockhart's arm and beaming fondly at him as though he were a precocious two-year-old. "He was rather well known a few years ago; we very much hope that this liking for giving autographs is a sign that his memory might be starting to come back."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, here's hoping... they come back too!" she said, although her friends could tell that it was a forced comment. After hearing that Lockhart was willing to sacrifice her and Ginny down in the Chamber she had lost all forms of respect for him.

"Well, if you would like to step this way," said the Healer. "He's in a closed ward, you know, he must have slipped out while I was bringing in the Christmas presents, the doors usually kept locked... not that he's dangerous! But," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "he's a danger to himself, bless him... doesn't know who he is, you see, wanders off and can't remember how to get back... it is, nice of you to come and see him."

"Er," said Ron, gesturing uselessly at the floor above, "actually, we were just - er -"

But the Healer was smiling expectantly at him, and Ron's feeble mutter of 'going to have a cup of tea' trailed away into nothingness. They looked at each other helplessly, and then followed Lockhart and his Healer along the corridor.

"Let's not stay long," Ron said quietly.

The Healer pointed her wand at the door of the Janus Thickery Ward and muttered _"Alohomora_". The door swung open and she led the way inside, keeping a firm grasp on Gilderoy's arm until she had settled him into an armchair beside his bed.

"This is the long-term residents' ward," she informed the students in a low voice. "For permanent spell damage, you know. Of course, with intensive remedial potions and charms and a bit of luck, we can produce some improvement. Gilderoy does seem to be getting back some sense of himself; and we've seen a real improvement in Mr. Bode, he seems to be regaining the power of speech very well, though he isn't speaking any language we recognize yet. Well, I must finish giving out the Christmas presents; I'll leave you all to chat."

The friends nodded as she walked away, leaving them alone with their delusional ex-Professor, who had just pulled out a stack of photographs.

"You can put them in envelopes," he said to Ginny, throwing the signed pictures into her lap one by one as he finished them. "I am not forgotten, you know, no, I still receive a great deal of fan mail... Gladys Gudgeon writes _weekly_... I just wish I knew _why_..." He paused, looking faintly puzzled, then beamed again and returned to his signing with renewed vigor. "I suspect it is simply my good looks..."

Phoebe exchanged a subtle look with Ashlyn and Hermione, the three of them, at one point had all been smitten with the man that now sat in front of them.

"If I had known _this -_" Ashlyn nodded in Lockhart's direction, "three years ago! I would have chosen a new role model to drool over!"

Hermione nodded. "There were millions of male celebrities in the Muggle world I could have chosen!"

"Antonio Cyrus," said Phoebe. "Seeker for the Salem Warriors! Now there is a guy I would not mind waking up too every morning!"

"I bet Granger is thinking the same about Krum," teased Ashlyn, nudging her best friend.

Phoebe giggled as Hermione's face turned a faint red; while Ron, Harry, James and Adrian looked revolted - and if not a little jealous - at their 'girl talk'.

"Oh, Mrs. Longbottom, are you leaving already?"

Phoebe's head span around. The curtains had been drawn back from the two beds at the end of the ward and two visitors were walking back down the aisle between the beds: a formidable-looking old witch wearing a long green dress, a moth-eaten fox fur and a pointed hat decorated with what was unmistakably a stuffed vulture and, trailing behind her looking thoroughly depressed - _Neville._

_**Oh no...**_ were the first thoughts that came to mind, as Phoebe realized that the end beds must have been occupied by Neville's parents, both of whom had been tortured into insanity by Bellatrix Lestrange, and she cast around for some sort of distraction, something that would help Neville escape unnoticed by the rest of her companions, but Ron had also looked up at the sound of the name 'Longbottom', and before Phoebe could stop him had called out, _"Neville!"_

Neville jumped and cowered as though a bullet had narrowly missed him.

"It's us, Neville!" said Ron brightly, getting to his feet. "Have you seen -? Lockhart's here! Who've you been visiting?"

"_Ron!"_ hissed Phoebe.

"Friends of yours, Neville, dear?" said Neville's grandmother graciously, bearing down upon them all.

Neville looked as though he would rather be anywhere in the world but here. A dull purple flush was creeping up his plump face and he was not making eye contact with any of them.

"Ah, yes," said his grandmother, looking closely at Harry and sticking out a shriveled, clawlike hand for him to shake. "Yes, yes, I know who you are; of course, Neville speaks most highly of you."

"Er - thanks," said Harry, shaking hands. Neville did not look at him, but surveyed his own feet, the colour deepening in his face all the while.

"And you two are clearly Weasley's," Mrs. Longbottom continued, proffering her hand regally to Ron and Ginny in turn. "Yes, I know your parents - not well, of course - but fine people, fine people... and you two are obviously a part of the Black family," she added to Ashlyn and James, "and you two must be Hermione Granger and Phoebe Blackheart!"

Hermione looked rather startled that Mrs. Longbottom knew her name, but shook hands with her all the same.

"Yes, Neville's told me all about you. Helped him out of a few sticky spots, haven't you? He's a good boy," she said, casting a sternly appraising look at her grandson, "but he hasn't got his father's talent, I'm afraid to say." And she jerked her head in the direction of the two beds at the end of the ward.

"What?" said James, looking amazed. "Is that your _dad_ down then end, Neville?"

Phoebe's eyes flashed blue, a clear sign that she was becoming agitated. "_James_!" she hissed, jabbing him between the shoulder blades.

"Ow!" James yelped. "What? It was an honest question -"

"What's this?" said Mrs. Longbottom sharply. "Haven't you told your friends about your parents, Neville?"

Neville took a deep breath, looked up at the ceiling and shook his head.

Phoebe could not remember the last time she had felt so helpless, there had never been a time that she had not been able to control a situation and help a friend, but for the life of her, she had no idea how to take control of the things that were transpiring before her eyes.

"Well, it's nothing to be ashamed of!" said Mrs. Longbottom angrily. "You should be _proud_, Neville, _proud_! They didn't give their health and their sanity so their only son would be ashamed of them, you know!"

"I'm not ashamed," said Neville, very faintly, still looking anywhere but at his school-mates. Ron and James were now standing on their tiptoes to look over at the inhabitants of the two beds.

"Well, you've got a funny way of showing it!" said Mrs. Longbottom. "My son and his wife," she said, turning back haughtily to the other students, "were tortured into insanity by You-Know-Who's followers."

Hermione, Ginny and Ashlyn all clapped their hands over their mouths. Ron and James stopped craning their necks to catch a glimpse of Neville's parents and looked mortified, while Jackson and Adrian looked furious.

"They were Aurors, you know, and very well respected within the Wizarding community," Mrs. Longbottom went on. "Highly gifted the pair of them. I - yes, Alice dear, what is it?"

Neville's mother had come edging down the ward in her nightdress. Her face was thin and worn, her eyes seemed overlarge and her hair, which had turned white, was wispy and dead-looking. She did not seem to want to speak, or perhaps she was not able to, but she made timid motions towards Neville, holding something in her outstretched hand.

"Again?" said Mrs. Longbottom, sounding slightly weary. "Very well, Alice dear, very well - Neville, take it, whatever it is."

But Neville had already stretched out his hand, into what his mother dropped an empty Drooble's Best Blowing Gum wrapper.

"Very nice, dear," said Neville's grandmother in a falsely cheery voice, patting his mother on the shoulder.

But Neville said quietly. "Thanks, Mum."

Phoebe felt tears in the corner of her eyes, as she watched his mother trot away, back up the ward, humming to herself. Neville looked around at the others, his expression defiant, as though daring them to laugh, but Phoebe did not think she'd ever seen anything as sweet as to what she had just witnessed. Despite not knowing her son, Alice Longbottom seemed genuinely concerned about him.

"Well, we'd better get back," sighed Mrs. Longbottom, drawing on her long green gloves. "Very nice to have met you all. Neville, put that wrapper in the bin, she must have given you enough of them to paper your bedroom by now."

But as they left, Neville pocketed the sweet wrapper.

Phoebe smiled as the door closed behind them.

"I never knew," said Hermione, who looked tearful.

"Nor did I," said Ron rather hoarsely.

"Nor me," whispered Ginny.

"Us either," said Ashlyn and James.

They all looked at Harry, Phoebe and Aiden.

"We did," said Harry glumly. "Dumbledore told me, Aiden and Phoebe but we promised we wouldn't tell anyone... that's what Bellatrix Lestrange got sent to Azkaban for, using the Cruciatus Curse on Neville's parents until they lost their minds."

"Bellatrix Lestrange did that?" whispered Jackson, looking horrified. "Hang on, isn't that -"

He looked at Phoebe.

The elemental nodded. "Yeah, Bellatrix Lestrange is my maternal aunt!"

"She is also the woman Kreacher's got a photo off in his den," said Hermione. "She's a nutcase!"

"Most of the Blacks are," agreed Adrian.

James and Ashlyn frowned. "Hey!" they exclaimed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The moment the front door had closed - with a snap, I might add - Walburga Black's curtains flew open, causing the new arrivals to quickly cover their ears with their hands.

Phoebe turned on the spot and blinked at Ashlyn. "Better go to work," she said, and despite the shrieking noise, Ashlyn heard her plain as day.

"Sad but true," Ashlyn sighed walking swiftly down the hallway, taking the stairs two at a time and coming to a halt in front of her grandmother's portrait. Ever since her arrival the summer, Ashlyn - and up until the Slytherin's arrival, Phoebe - was able to calm the 'witch' down.

Edging further into the room, Phoebe leaned on the lower banister and waited for her best friend to cool Walburga down, long enough so they could escape everyone else and discuss what had happened the previous evening with Adrian, and what was to come off the platonic relationship now.

"Grandmother!" Ashlyn called, smiling sweetly.

"Oooh!" Walburga squealed. "My dear sweet Ashlyn has returned to her home."

Phoebe and James exchanged glances.

"You are by far the _fairest_ of our blood," cooed Walburga. "So pure."

"What am I?" whispered James.

"The son of a blood-traitor?" suggested Phoebe. "No offence, Sirius!"

Sirius, who had arrived up from the kitchen, waved his hand airily. "None taken, Phoebe!"

Suddenly - there was silence.

Whipping around, Phoebe grinned as she caught sight of the curtains closing and Ashlyn standing on the first floor landing, her hands on her hips and a smug smirk on her lips.

"And who says Slytherin's aren't useful," she grinned.

**~*Phoebe*~**

For the rest of the day, Ashlyn and Phoebe spent it upstairs in the bedroom that they shared together. It had been the only time during their stay at Headquarters that they could have to themselves, without the infiltration of James, Jackson, Adrian or any of the Golden Trio.

That was the only downside to Phoebe having friends on both sides; she was always surrounded by people.

Reaching across her bed, Phoebe picked up the small alarm clock and checked the time. It was almost 7:30pm, she would have to leave soon there was an Order Meeting this evening. "So," she said, putting the alarm clock down and turning back to her best friend. "What is happening between you and Adrian?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play dumb, Ash," said Phoebe. "I know about the kiss! I witnessed it!"

Ashlyn's eyes widened. "You saw?"

"I squealed!"

"Oh, god..." Ashlyn breathed, burying her face in her hands. "Who have you told?"

"I haven't told anyone," Phoebe said promptly. "But I will be telling Sarah and Amelia as soon as we get back to school."

"What about James?" asked Ashlyn, thinking of her cousin. Did she tell him or not?

Phoebe shrugged. "Do you want to be teased endlessly?" she asked. "Or do you want to keep it between your girlfriends?"

"I don't know," said Ashlyn. "He wouldn't tease me endlessly. I'm older than him!"

"So am I," nodded Phoebe. "And he still - no, wait a minute, he didn't tease me about Terence, because he knew that I would drowned him in half the second it took for him to think of a taunt."

Ashlyn giggled. "Could we threaten to drown him if he teases me?"

"I could," Phoebe grinned. "If that is what you wish! Or we could just keep it between us... wouldn't want the others to think that I have picking favourites, now, would we?"

Ashlyn smirked and shook her head. "But if you _had_ to pick a favourite... who would you pick?"

"You, of course," exclaimed Phoebe. "After all, you are my wife!"

"A wife for life!" nodded Ashlyn. "Unless, of course, Terence proposes within the next two years!"

Phoebe smirked. "Same goes for Adrian!"

"Shut up!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

An hour later there came a sharp bang on the door, followed by the voice of James Black.

"Oi, you two! Get your asses downstairs!" he shouted. "I'm starving, but Mrs. Weasley refuses to let us eat until everyone is present!"

Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks and giggled into their hands, they hadn't realized how long they had exactly been cooped up in their bedroom, but it seemed it had been long enough to disrupt the natural order of things within Grimmauld Place.

"Geeze, sorry to upset your stomach, Jamie!" said Ashlyn as she unbolted the door and led the way out onto the landing.

"You should know by now, Ash," said Phoebe, patting James's stomach patronizingly. "Never come between a man and his food!"

James nodded. "Yep! Now, come on! I really am starving!"

"Why doesn't that surprise me?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Maybe because he is always starving!"

"Hey!" James pouted. "Why the sudden need to pick on me?"

"Because we're allowed -" said Ashlyn.

"And because we're older -" Phoebe nodded.

"Which gives us -"

"- The authority -"

"- To pick on our cousins -"

"- Strictly for our amusement -"

" - Wherever -"

"- And whenever -"

"- we see fit!"

James scowled. "Women. Hate 'em," he complained. "Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ron scowled at the three friends when they entered the kitchen.

"Well, it's about time!" he exclaimed. "Can we eat now, mum?"

Phoebe and Ashlyn wrinkled their nose in disgust. "You have absolutely revolting table manners," commented Ashlyn as she took her usual seat between Adrian and Phoebe, while Phoebe squeezed in between her and Jackson. "Do you ever think of anything other than your stomach?"

"We can't all be well-mannered and ladylike, now, can we?" said George.

"Maybe not ladylike," Phoebe interrupted. "But you do have manners!"

Ron groaned from down the table. "Enough with the Pureblood supremacy talk! I want food!"

"It is not Pureblood supremacy talk, Ronald!" snapped Phoebe. "It is proper etiquette.

Ron looked rebuffed, opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off when his mother gave him a sharp tap with the wooden spoon that was in her hand. He withdrew, looking sullen.

Phoebe giggled into her hand at the gesture, but quickly composed herself as dinner was handed out.

Towards the end of Dinner, the kitchen door eased open and Josephine Higgs stepped into the kitchen; perched, delicately on Joey's hips, her head resting on her mother's shoulders and thumb in her mouth was a sleepily looking Bambi Higgs.

She perked up, however, when she spotted Phoebe and was instantly out of her mother's arms and into the elementals.

"Phoebe!" the toddler exclaimed, throwing her arms around the Gryffindor and hugging her tightly.

"Hey, Thumper," chuckled Phoebe as she wrapped arms around the toddler and hugged her back. "I have missed you!"

"I've missed you too!" said Bambi. "When can I come back to the castle?"

Phoebe looked thoughtful. "I don't know yet, Princess," she smiled. "We'll work something out, alright?"

Bambi nodded and snuggled closer to Phoebe, bringing a smile to the faces around the table. Josephine, however, sank low into a chair that had been conjured up for her, and smiled tiredly at Molly who placed a bowl of broth in front of her.

"Thank you, Molly," Josephine said, humbly.

"Is everything alright, dearie?" asked Mrs. Weasley, noting the tiredness in Josephine's voice.

Josephine dunked a piece of bread into her meal and bit into it, swallowed and then looked up, however, she did not look at Mrs. Weasley, but rather sought out Phoebe. "It is Esmee..."

Phoebe's stomach dropped like a stone. What had happened? Esmee could not have... she couldn't have... Phoebe shook her head, she could not bring herself to finish her rather morbid thought.

Esmee had been given two weeks left to live, but then after several more checks the Doctors had bumped her up to at least another 12 months, that had been three months ago, she still had another nine months to go.

"Is everything alright?"

"Yes and no," answered Josephine.

"Do you want to talk about it?" suggested Phoebe. "In private, maybe?"

Josephine shook her head. She couldn't bear to talk about it anymore, she had already had to go through it once with her husband and then again with Philip and Terence, she did not believe that she had the energy or will-power to go through it for a third time.

"Is Terence here?" asked Phoebe, feebly. She was now worried about Esmee, and what she knew that she could not get out of Josephine, she could get out of her boyfriend.

"He is upstairs," said Josephine. "He wishes to speak with you... in private!"

Phoebe nodded, got to her feet, kissed Bambi on the forehead and placed her down on the empty chair to eat the rest of her dinner. Then, without a sound, Phoebe fled the kitchen, took the stairs two at a time and reached the Family room with seconds to spare.

Inside, sitting with his back to the door, staring aimlessly into the flickering flames inside the fireplace, was Terence Higgs.

Phoebe crossed the room silently and draped her arms around her boyfriend as she leaned over the back of sofa.

"What is it?" she whispered.

"Esmee..." answered Terence, his gaze remaining locked with the flickering flames within the grate.

For some reason Phoebe felt her heart rate excel... she did not like the silence that had fallen.

"What about her?"

"She's dead..."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **If you wish to see a visual of the pendant Serefina gave Phoebe, you will find it at this link: http: / / www. dragonsfire. co. uk /C5197. gif (without the spaces of course).

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, May 01, 2012 at 3:18am**


	107. Chapter 107

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update! Between Essay writing, planning a new story and watching a Grimm marathon, I have been swamped.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Dream Lighting, Fan of Fics, Princessflag3998** and** BrightYellowSunflower.**

**In Responses:** (Haven't done one of these in a while)

First too - **Dream Lighting**: I have recently come across a quote that I have taken a great liking too, and it goes like this: "As author's it is our job to create loveable, enticing characters and then do horrible, evil things to them." ~ By Sheree Rehema, and that is exactly what I had to do to Esmee. But she was dying anyway, there was no point in prolonging it... there is, however, a deleted scene coming up where Phoebe goes see her in the Hospital at least a week before she dies, I just couldn't find a place to put it in the main story, what with Serefina being attacked and everything.

Secondly too - **Fan of Fics**: There will hopefully be a happier side to Christmas. I know it has all been really sad start, but I am hoping it will warm up as the holidays come to an end.

Thirdly too - **Princessflag3998:** It is a relief to know that Terence didn't die, but it is also a shame that Esmee did. But as I stated above, it is our job as author to create characters and then do evil things to them. But I agree with you about Bambi, she will never know the truth until she is older, but I guess that is a good thing, imagine how heartbroken she would be if she knew the truth now at the tender age of five?

Fourthly too - **BrightYellowSunflower:** First, I would to welcome you back, sucks that you were grounded. My grandparents would have to kick me out of my house if they wanted to ground me, or at least take the computer away, although they know I would literally be heartbroken if they did that :/ - Secondly, I am sorry that you had to come back to such a sad cliffhanger! Esmee and Neville, both incredibly sad elements that happened close together the Christmas of fifth year.

I bring you this next chapter while watching series Grimm from Watch and planning my new story. Any Grimm fans out there?

* * *

><p>It had been almost a week since the revelation of Esmee Higgs death had sunk in, Phoebe, who was close with the Higgs family was taking the news harder than any of her friends, but was trying to put on a brave face for her boyfriend; the same boyfriend that she had not seen since he had told her of Esmee's untimely departure from this world.<p>

Phoebe, who had spent the rest of her holidays with her grandparents, didn't actually want to leave them; in fact, for the first time in her life, she was not looking forward to returning to Hogwarts.

Going back to school would mean placing herself once again under the tyranny of Dolores Umbridge, who had no doubt managed to force through another dozen decrees in their absence; there was no dance club to look forward to now that the _toad_ had cancelled all clubs; of course she had Quidditch to deal with, but she wondered how long that would last.

No, the only thing that she was looking forward to going back to school for was the upcoming DA lesson that was planned to take place the Monday after the holidays ended. Otherwise, Phoebe would have begged her grandparents to take her back home to Portugal with them, where she knew that Serefina was being returned to when she was discharged from St. Mungo's.

"Harry, dear," said Mrs. Weasley, poking her head into the room that Harry shared with Ron, where the pair of them were playing wizard chess watched by Hermione, Ginny, Phoebe, Ashlyn, James, Bambi and Terence's cat, Banshee, "could you come down to the kitchen? Professor Snape would like a word with you."

Harry did not immediately register what she had said; one of his castles was engaged in a violent tussle with a pawn of Ron's and he was egging it on enthusiastically.

"Squash him - _squash him,_ he's only a pawn, you idiot."

Phoebe, who was sat behind him, holding Banshee away from the chess board, rolled her eyes and hit him upside the head.

"Ow!" Harry cried, turning to glare at the elemental. "Oh, sorry, Mrs. Weasley, what did you say?"

"Professor Snape, dear. In the kitchen. He'd like a word."

Harry's mouth fell open in horror. He looked around at the others, all of whom were gaping back at him. Banshee, whom Phoebe had been restraining, leapt gleefully on to the board and set the pieces running for cover, squealing at the top of their voices.

"Snape?" said Harry blankly.

"_Professor_ Snape, dear," said Mrs. Weasley reprovingly. "Now come on, quickly, he says he can't stay long."

"What's he want with you?" said James, looking unnerved as Mrs. Weasley withdrew from the room. "You haven't done anything, have you?"

"No!" said Harry indignantly.

"Well, you better go and see what he wants," said Ashlyn. "He doesn't like to be kept waiting!"

Phoebe nodded. "Do you want me to come with you?" she asked.

"Uh, no, I should be okay..." said Harry, "but if I'm not back in half an hour - send a search party!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You're only going downstairs; he is not going to do anything with a house full of witnesses! He'll wait until he can get you alone..." she grinned, "and then he will strike! Like a true snake!"

Harry glared at her. "That makes me feel so much better!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Harry in the kitchen with Snape, Phoebe ventured down into the hallway and the rooms that lined it. She didn't exactly know why she was down here; she was just looking for something to do... Sirius had failed to tell her which room that she and Ashlyn could use to practice their dance routine - they still had a dance competition to prepare for, despite not knowing if the dance club had been disbanded.

"I cannot see Umbridge disbanding dance," said Ashlyn, as she followed her friend. "It's not a club... it is a lesson!"

"A lesson where we have fun," nodded Phoebe, turning to face her best friend.

Ashlyn nodded, she couldn't argue with that. "Did you talk to Sirius about us using a room to practice?"

"He said he would get back to me," said Phoebe, "but he hasn't! Either he has forgotten or -"

"He wouldn't just dismiss us," said Ashlyn. "He knows how important this is to us!"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, but he is more focused on the fact that he is going to be trapped in this house for the rest of the year," she pointed out, "Than he is about anything else! I think, if given the chance, he would try and prevent Harry from returning to Hogwarts!"

Ashlyn frowned as she pondered her best friend's words. "You think?"

"I don't know," said Phoebe. "It would seem like a thing he would do!"

"Well, why not try and stop James?"

Phoebe shrugged. "James doesn't remind him of his dead best friend," she pointed out. "Harry is a carbon copy of his father... I think Sirius feels that he has his best friend back when Harry is around. What can James offer him?"

Ashlyn shook her head. "It's sad to think about what he is going through right now," she said. "I don't know what I would do if I were to lose you!"

"I'd go insane," said Phoebe, "if I were to lose you! You're my best friend, Ash! I don't think I'd be able to function without you!"

Ashlyn smiled, before the opening of the front door caused both teenagers to whip around. A grin replaced Ashlyn's smile as a muffled squeal escaped Phoebe's lips and she flew across the hallway, into the arms of her finally cured, godmother!

**~*Phoebe*~**

Jacob Blackheart chuckled as he watched Phoebe extract herself from his daughter and step back.

"Shall we go down into the kitchen so that everyone can see that I have been cured," smiled Serefina, placing her arms around both Ashlyn and Phoebe and herding them towards the door leading to the basement. "Then you can all tell me what has been happening in my absent! I want a detailed account!"

"How detailed?" asked Phoebe.

"As detailed as possible,"

Phoebe exchanged a saddened look with Ashlyn, the only thing that Serefina had really missed out on was the death of Esmee Higgs; and neither of them really wanted a detailed replay of what Terence had told them.

But before either teenager could voice their concerns, the kitchen door burst open and Snape swept past them, looking furious. He climbed the stairs, stormed across the first floor landing and they heard the opening and closing of the front door from where they stood.

"What in the blazin' hell is going on?" exclaimed Serefina, following her family into the kitchen to find Sirius looking equally as murderous and Harry looking confused.

"What has been going on?" asked Ashlyn, looking between her uncle and his godson.

"Nothing that you need to worry about," said Sirius, who was breathing heavily as though he had just run a long distance. "Just a friendly little chat between two old school friends." With what looked like an enormous effort, he smiled. "So... you're cured then, Serefina? That's great news, really great!"

"Yes, isn't it?" said Elena Blackheart, leading her daughter forward to a chair. "Catrin worked her magic in the end; found an Old Portuguese antidote to whatever that snake's got in its fangs. She said, Phoebe that if you had been strong enough, you could have used your control over water to flush the venom from Serefina's system."

Phoebe's eyes widened. "Really?"

Elena nodded. "Yes, but she did not wish to over exert you," she explained. "She is still not completely satisfied that you are at full strength again... despite being able to control both Water and Air! She knows that soon you will come into your Earth and Fire elements... but first, you must go through a ritual."

"A ritual?" Phoebe questioned. "What kind of ritual!"

"One that will bond you to Aiden," answered Serefina. "He is your other half! He needs your help to control his Water and Air powers... just like you need his help to control your Earth and Fire!"

"Wait a minute! Stop!" said Phoebe. "Are you telling me that I am not the only four core elemental in existence?"

Serefina paused and exchanged looks with her parents. "Yes, sweetheart," she nodded. "Aiden, who was born with the gift to control Earth and Fire, also has unlocked controls over Water and Air!"

"You are the twin cores," said Jacob, surveying his granddaughter cautiously. "With your control over Water and Air -"

"- and Aiden's control over Fire and Earth," continued Elena.

"Together! You are indestructible!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

That night's meal should have been a more cheerful one, with Serefina back amongst them. Phoebe could tell Sirius was trying to make it so, yet when her cousin was not forcing himself to laugh loudly at Fred and George's jokes or offering everyone more food, his face fell back into a moody, brooding expression, that she associated with their departure the following morning.

"Dumbledore wants you to stop having these dreams about Voldemort," said Phoebe in a whispered tone, as Harry relayed the whole epidemic that had occurred with Snape that afternoon. "Well, you won't be sorry not to have them anymore, will you?"

"Extra lessons with Snape?" said Ron, sounding aghast. "I'd rather have the nightmares!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Snape is going to be showing you how to repel people from your mind, Harry," she said. "You will need it. Especially if Voldemort knows about this connection... he could use it against you!"

"What do you mean?"

"Occlumency is the act of magically closing one's mind against Legilimency. It can prevent a Legilimens from accessing one's thoughts and feelings, or influencing them."

Harry frowned in confusion.

Phoebe sighed in frustration. "Would it kill you to open a book?" she asked. "The most basic form of Occlumency involves clearing your mind - making it 'blank and empty' - in order to prevent a Legilimens from perceiving one's emotions and thoughts. I could go into it deeper, but your brain might explode with too much information!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After dinner, Phoebe was the first to rise. "I think I will retire for this evening," she said. "Early morning tomorrow... I wish to see that I have packed everything. I also have to write to Terence; I do not know what he wishes for me to do with Banshee! If you will all excuse me."

She smiled at them, kissed her grandparents and godmother goodnight, before leaving the kitchen and taking the stairs two at a time. She reached the hallway and hurried up to the second floor landing, before swiftly moving down the dim corridor to the bedroom she shared with Ashlyn.

The door was slightly ajar, a notion that did not go unnoticed by Phoebe, who was positive that she and Ashlyn had closed the door completely when they had gone down to dinner. Reaching into her cloak, Phoebe pulled out her wand, gripped the handle of the door and breathed deeply and steadily.

Grasping her wand tightly in her hand, the elemental's eyes glowed a cobalt blue as the dragon around her neck blazed pure white; and with a gust of wind, as fierce as a tornado, she blasted open the door and aimed her wand at the silhouetted person near the window.

"Really, Phoebe?" said a familiar voice. "Blowing the doors off of frames in a house that is not your own?"

Phoebe relaxed instantly. "You'd make a lousy intruder," she quipped. "One must make sure that the door is fully closed if they wish to surprise their intended victim."

"Have personal experience in that sort of thing, do you?"

"Of course," grinned Phoebe, lowering her wand. "I did grow up with two boys! Anyway, what do you think you're playing at? Sneaking into my room in the dead of night? I could have easily hurt you!"

She turned her back on him as she approached her bed, shed her cloak and placed her wand on the bedside table. Suddenly, she felt arms wrap around her waist, holding her still as lips kissed her neck.

Phoebe rolled her eyes with a grin and turned to face Terence. "You're the only person in the world who greets me like that."

"I better be." He grinned, capturing her lips with his own before releasing her and taking a seat on the bed beside her.

Phoebe frowned slightly as she fully took in his expression. He looked... nervous. "Everything alright, Ter?"

"Perfect." He was avoided eye contact.

Phoebe studied him for a moment longer, before shrugging, scooping up her cloak and kneeling down in front of her trunk which was situated at the bottom of the bed. She worked in silence for a moment, collecting her things from all over the bedroom and stuffing them back into her trunk, she scooped up essay papers, re-ordered them and placed them into a folder for safe keeping, and then she re-arranged her books in the trunk and placed her clothes in on top of it.

Once she was done, the elemental straightened up proudfully, closed the lid of her trunk and turned back to her boyfriend.

"Hey, Phe, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," said Phoebe. "What's going on?"

"Uh, well, do you believe that there is some special person out there for everyone, that sometimes you just have to look around to find them?"

Phoebe frowned, what kind of question was that?

"Um, I'm not sure," said Phoebe. "I've never been asked that question before... but I guess, if you believe in love at first sight and that special connection, then yeah, maybe there is someone special out there for everyone. Why?"

Terence shook his head. "It's just; I didn't believe them," he answered, "not until that night, three years ago when you found me in the Astronomy tower!"

Phoebe frowned, but the smile he was giving her now was so full of love and devotion that it would have made even the coldest of hearts melt, and then, he did something that Phoebe had only ever read about in fairytales.

Holding one of her hands in his own, Terence dropped to one knee and reached into his pocket, taking out a small box.

"I can't imagine my life without you in it, Phoebe," he said, causing tears of confusion, surprise and love to dampen her stormy grey gaze. "We've been through hell and back and I love you more than words can say... so, Phoebe Avalon Blackheart, will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Here is Christmas surprise! I hope you enjoyed it... and do tell me if you shed a few tears... because I did!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, May 07, 2012 at 5:21am**


	108. Chapter 108

**Author's Note: **I would like to dedicate this story to my grandfather; it is his birthday today and I am lucky to still have him in my life. These past three years have not been easy on him, but I respect him enough to keep fighting. He has been nothing but supportive of me in my stories, on Fanfiction and the rest of my life – especially when I got into University and suffered through the ups and down struggles of being a student - I would like to wish him a Happy Birthday and I hope he as many more after this one.

_Happy Birthday Grampa,_

_Lots of love._

_Kara xx_

**Author's Note 2: **To those of you who believe Phoebe is too young to be married, I would just like to say that with legal consent you can be as young as 12 to marry!

**Dedication:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Jojia, HotaruKenobi, Ava-Saphire-Clearwater, Evanescencefan97, BrightYellowSunflower, Fan of Fics, Princessflag3998, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** HawkheartandSandflower.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **I Am Nymphadora Tonks** for adding this story to their Favourite Story. Really appreciate it.

* * *

><p>They were to return to Hogwarts on the Knight Bus the following day, escorted once again by Tonks, Lupin and Josephine Higgs, both of whom were eating breakfast in the kitchen when Phoebe, Ashlyn and James came down next morning. The adults seemed to have been mid-way through a whispered conversation as Phoebe opened the door; all of them looked around hastily and fell silent.<p>

"Good morning, Phoebe," smiled Josephine Higgs. "I see you got Terence's Christmas gift?"

She was looking at the ring that adorned Phoebe's engagement finger. It was in the shape of a dragon's head, wound into three coils embedded with several different coloured jewels.

Phoebe smiled and nodded. "Yes, Mrs. Higgs," she said.

"We are going to be family, dear," said Josephine. "Call Joey!"

"Yes, Joey," said Phoebe, as she took her seat beside Ashlyn at the breakfast table.

Tonks, who was sat across from her, smiled brightly and leaned forward. "Congratulations, Miss. Blackheart - or should I say, Mrs. Higgs?"

"Miss. Blackheart," said Phoebe. "I do not know if Serefina or my grandparents have mentioned it but the women keep their names in my family! Either that or they are hyphenated!"

"So you will be Blackheart for the rest of your life?" questioned James. "And if you have children... will they be -?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, if Terence and I are lucky to have children - I am not saying we shall or we shall not, I am still only fifteen - but they will take his surname."

"Mhmm, I wonder if I were to marry Adrian, would I be able to keep my surname?" said Ashlyn.

"Well, the Blackhearts only keep their surnames because it is recognized with power!" explained Phoebe. "My family is a very powerful family; the Blackheart name brings both fear and hope to those who hear it! Fear to those who challenge us... and hope to those who heed our protection!"

James and Ashlyn exchanged looks, smiled and returned to their breakfast as the Golden Trio arrived; Hermione spotted Phoebe's engagement ring, squealed and rushed to hug her friend in congratulations, while Harry hung back looking sullen.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After a hurried breakfast, they all pulled on jackets and scarves against the chilly grey January morning.

Phoebe had an unpleasant constricted sensation in her chest; she did not want to say goodbye to Terence, not after last night.

She did not know when they would next see each other and she felt that going back to school was the wrong decision, not only would she be away from him, but she would also be putting herself under the tyranny that was Dolores Jane Umbridge, and that was not something she was looking forward too.

"Hey," said Terence, wrapping his arms around Phoebe's waist as he snuck up behind her. She was twirling the ring that she was wearing, a sure sign that she was not used to wearing one. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," nodded Phoebe. "I just - I just don't really see the point in returning!"

"Why do you say that?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Well, think about it," she said, "how much longer do you think I am going to be a student? I have a strange feeling that Umbridge is going to -"

"What?" asked Terence. "Expel you? Suspend you? Phoebe, she needs evidence to do any of those things... and besides, all rights to expel or suspend reside with the Headmaster! As long as Dumbledore is in charge you're safe!"

Unfortunately, he was right, which was why after a rather heartfelt goodbye with Bambi Higgs, Phoebe found herself being shunted out into the icy winter air, with Harry, Ashlyn and Tonks (today heavily disguise as a tall, tweedy woman with iron-grey hair) chivvying him down the steps.

The door of number twelve slammed shut behind them. They followed Lupin down the front steps. As he reached the pavement, Harry looked round. Number twelve was shrinking rapidly as those on either side of it stretched sideways, squeezing it out of sight. One blink later, it had gone.

"Come on, the quicker we get on the bus the better," said Tonks, nervously glancing around the square.

Reaching for her wand, Josephine was prevented from summoning whatever it was that was returning them from Hogwarts by Phoebe, grabbing his arm.

"Are you calling, what I think you are calling?" she asked.

"Yes," Josephine nodded.

Phoebe's eyes widened in amazement. "Can I do it?" she asked.

"By all means," said Josephine, motioning for her to take centre stage.

Phoebe squealed happily, reached for her wand and flung it out in front of her.

BANG.

A violently purple, triple-decker bus had appeared out of thin air in front of them, narrowly avoiding the nearest lamppost, which jumped backwards out of its way.

A thin, pimply, jug-eared youth in a purple uniform leapt down on to the pavement and said, "Welcome to the -"

"Yes, yes, we know, thank you," said Tonks swiftly. "On, on, get on -"

And she shoved Harry forwards towards the steps, past the conductor, who goggled at Harry as he passed.

"Ere - aren't choo, 'Arry -!"

"If you shout his name I will curse you into oblivion," muttered Tonks menacingly, now shunting Phoebe and Ashlyn forwards.

"I've always wanted to go on this thing," said Ron happily, joining Harry on board and looking around.

The Knight bus was crammed with an assortment of miss-matched chairs grouped haphazardly around windows. Some of these appeared to have fallen over when the bus stopped abruptly in Grimmauld Place, a few witches and wizards were still getting to their feet, grumbling, and somebody's shopping bag had slid the length of the bus: an unpleasant mixture of frogspawn, cockroaches and custard creams was scattered all over the floor.

"Looks like we'll have to split up," said Joey briskly, looking around for empty chairs. "Fred, George and Ginny, if you just take those seats at the back... Remus can stay with you."

She, Tonks, the Golden Trio, James, Phoebe, Ashlyn, Aiden, Adrian and Jackson then proceeded up to the second deck.

"Harry, Ron and Hermione," said Joey, on the second deck. "You take those seats in the middle... Tonks will stay with you!"

The Golden Trio nodded and took their seats as Joey led the rest of the group up to the very top deck, where there were seven unoccupied seats at the front of the very front of the bus. The group grabbed them quickly and sat down, as the conductor arrived at the top of the stairs behind them.

As the group handed over eleven Sickles each, the bus set off again, swaying ominously. It rumbled around Grimmauld Place, weaving on and off the pavement, then, with another tremendous BANG, they were all flung backwards; James's chair toppled right over and Jackson narrowly avoided falling by seizing a candle bracket.

Phoebe, steadying herself on her seat, glanced out of the window: they were now speeding down what appeared to be a motorway. "Where are we?" she asked, looking up at the conductor.

"Just outside Birmingham," said Stan happily, answering Phoebe's question as James struggled up from the floor.

He handed over their tickets.

The Knight Bus swayed alarmingly, overtaking a line of cars on the inside.

BANG.

Chairs slid backwards again as the Knight Bus jumped from the Birmingham motorway to a quiet country lane full of hairpin bends. Hedgerows on either side of the road were leaping out of their way as they mounted the verges. From here they moved to a main street in the middle of a busy town, then to a viaduct surrounded by tall hills, then to a windswept road between high-rise flats, each time with a loud BANG.

"Oh, I don't feel so good," said James.

"Don't you dare throw up!" warned Ashlyn, as her cousin turned a twinge of green.

James gagged, lurched forward and threw up all over the floor in front of him.

"JAMES!" shrieked Ashlyn and Phoebe, jumping up and moving away from him. Ashlyn perched herself on Adrian's lap, while Phoebe squeezed in between Jackson and Aiden.

"I never want to ride on this thing again." said James weakly, wiping his mouth on his sleeve.

A few minutes later, the Knight Bus screeched to a halt outside a small pub, which squeezed itself out of the way to avoid a collision. They could hear Stan ushering someone off of the bus before they were moving again, gathering speed, until -

BANG.

They were rolling through a snow Hogsmeade. Flecks of snow hit the large window at the front of the bus, and at last they rolled to a halt outside the gates to Hogwarts.

"Can I get off now?" asked James.

"Yes," said Josephine as she helped them down onto the second deck, where they met Tonks and the Golden Trio, before reaching the lower deck where Remus, the twins and Ginny were waiting.

Lupin, Tonks and Josephine helped them off the bus with their luggage, then got off to say goodbye. Phoebe glanced up at the three decks of the Knight Bus and saw all the passengers staring down at them, noses flat against the windows.

"You'll be safe once you're in the grounds," said Tonks, casting a careful eye around at the deserted road. "Have a good term, OK?"

"Look after yourselves," said Lupin, shaking hands all round and reaching Harry last. "And listen..."

Phoebe heard him lower his voice and realized that he wanted to speak mainly to Harry, so, respecting his privacy, she smiled and turned to Josephine, whom she embraced lovingly and tightly.

"Be good this term, Phoebe," said Josephine. "And come summer... we'll start plans for the wedding, alright?"

"Alright," said Phoebe. "Goodbye Joey, i'm going to miss you!"

"I'm going to miss you too, kiddo!"

"Give my love to Philip," added Phoebe. "Tell Bambi I will write when I can... and Terence... tell him I'll send word of my next Hogsmeade trip date!"

Josephine nodded. "Yes, a first date as soon-to-be-newlyweds!"

"There will be plenty of first date as newlyweds after the wedding," said Phoebe, although she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face.

"Yes, i'm sure there will be!"

"See you then," said Harry, ending his conversation with Lupin.

And as the adults climbed back on-board the Knight Bus, while the twelve of them struggled up the slippery drive towards the castle, dragging their trunks.

Hermione was already talking about knitting a few elf hats before bedtime, Phoebe and Ashlyn were discussing how they were going to get permission to use the dance studio this evening, while Harry was half-wishing that he was still onboard the Knight Bus as dread for the following evening dropped like a stone in the pit of his stomach.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **I really wanted to update tonight – but since I kept getting distracted (I won't mention any names! But I have a feeling he will know who he is!) I can only update this small chapter. It is the end of last chapter and next chapter will continue on from when the next morning when they return to school.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, May 09, 2012 at 3:53am**


	109. Chapter 109

**Author's Note:** Thank you too all. I don't really have much to say here... but I just wanted to express my gratitude to you all for making this story undoubtedly one of my best yet! Especially now with Muggleborn Witches coming to an end.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185, BrightYellowSunflower, Princessflag3998** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **AureliaPhoenixAnastasia** for adding this story to their favourites, but for also adding me to their Author Alerts. Very much appreciated.

* * *

><p>Phoebe spent most of the next morning being hunted down by the DA members, asking hopefully if there would be a meeting that night.<p>

"I'll let you know in the usual way when the next one is," Phoebe said over and over again, "but I can't do it tonight, Harry is busy this evening!"

"Doing what?" demanded Zacharias Smith superciliously, having cornered Phoebe in the Entrance Hall after Dinner. "What is more important than what we are doing?"

"Remedial Potions."

"Potter takes _remedial Potions?"_

"Yeah, so what?" asked James.

"Nothing. It is just Potter must be must be terrible at Potions. Snape doesn't usually give extra lessons, does he?"

As Smith strode away in an annoyingly buoyant fashion, James glared after him.

"Shall I jinx him? I can still get him from here," he said, raising his wand and taking aim between Smith's shoulder blades.

"Forget it," said Phoebe. "Harry understands that this is what people are going to expect. He's not stupid... but he can't really say what he is truthfully doing down in Snape's office now, can he?"

"You make it sound so... so... _sexual_!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You're the one with your head in the gutter!"

James smirked. "You're the one that is getting married," he pointed out. "What do you expect to do on your honeymoon?"

"I am not having this conversation with you!"

"But we're already conversing about it," grinned James, as they started up the marble staircase.

"Then drop the subject!" said Phoebe with a smile.

James chuckled. "You drop it!"

"I never started it!"

"But you're going to finish it?"

"Exactly!"

The two chuckled at their own banter and set off for the library to meet Ashlyn and Aiden. Passing Harry who was on his way down for his lesson with Snape.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was around seven when Harry finally joined his friends in the library, where they were working Umbridge's most recent ream of homework. Other students, nearly all of them fifth-years, sat lamp-lit tables nearby, noses close to books, quills scratching feverishly, while the sky outside the mullioned windows grew steadily blacker.

The only other sound was the slight squeaking of one of Madam Pince's shoes, as the librarian prowled the aisles menacingly, breathing down the necks of those touching her precious books.

Phoebe glanced up as Harry sat down opposite her, concern etched into her features. "Are you all right?" she whispered.

"Yeah... fine... I dunno," said Harry, impatiently, wincing slightly. "Listen... I've just realized something..."

And he told them what he had just seen and deduced.

"So... so are you saying..." whispered Ron, as Madam Pince swept past, squeaking slightly, "that the weapon - the thing You-Know-Who's after - is in the Ministry of Magic?"

"In the Department of Mysteries, it's got to be," Harry whispered. "I saw that door when your dad took me down to the courtrooms for my hearing and it's definitely the same one Serefina was guarding when the snake hit her."

Ashlyn let out a long, slow sigh.

"Of course," she breathed.

"Of course, what?" said James rather impatiently.

"James, think about it... Sturgis Podmore was trying to get through a door at the Ministry of Magic... it must have been that one, it's too much of a coincidence!"

"How come Sturgis was trying to break in when he's on our side?" said Ron.

"Well, I don't know," Ashlyn admitted. "That is a bit odd..."

"So, what's in the Department of Mysteries?" Harry asked Phoebe. "Has anyone ever mentioned anything about it?"

"The only thing I know is they call the people who work down there 'Unspeakables'," said Phoebe. "Because no one really seems to know what they do -"

"It's a weird place to have a weapon." said Ron.

"It's not weird at all, it makes perfect sense," said Hermione. "It will be something top secret that the Ministry has been developing, I expect..."

"Harry, are you sure you're all right?"

For Harry had just run both his hands hard over his forehead as though trying to iron it.

"Yeah... fine..." he said, lowering his hands, which were trembling. "I just feel a bit... I don't like Occlumency much."

"I expect anyone would feel shaky if they'd had their mind attacked over and over again," said Hermione sympathetically. "Look, let's get back to the common room; we'll be a bit more comfortable there."

**~*Phoebe*~**

But the Gryffindor common room was packed and full of shrieks of laughter and excitement; Fred and George were demonstrating their latest bit of a joke shop merchandise.

"Headless Hat!" shouted George, as Fred waved a pointed hat decorated with a fluffy pink feather at the watching students. "Two Galleons each, watch Fred, now!"

Fred swept the hat on his head, beaming. For a second he merely looked rather stupid; then both hat and head vanished.

Several girls screamed, but everyone was roaring with laughter.

"And off again!" shouted George, and Fred's hand grouped for a moment in what seemed to be thin air over his shoulder; it then his head reappeared as he swept the pink-feathered hat from it.

"How do those hats work, then?" said Hermione, distracted from her homework and watching Fred and George closely. "I mean, obviously it's some kind of Invisibility Spell, but it's rather clever to have extended the field of invisibility beyond the boundaries of the charmed object."

Phoebe, who was also watching the twins, shrugged. "Yes, but you'd imagine the charm wouldn't have a very long life though."

"I'm going to have to do this tomorrow," Harry muttered, pushing the books he had just taken out his bag back inside it.

"Well, write it in your homework planner then!" said Hermione encouragingly. "So you don't forget!"

Harry and Ron exchanged looks as he reached into his bag, withdrew the planner and opened it tentatively.

_"Don't leave it till later you big second-rater!"_ chided the book as Harry scribbled down Umbridge's homework. Hermione beamed at it.

"I think I'll go to bed," said Harry, stuffing the homework planner back into his bag.

He then walked across the common room, dodging George, who tried to put a Headless Hat on him, and reached the peace and cool of the stone staircase to the boys' dormitories.

Phoebe frowned and looked around her friends. "I'll go check on him," she said, pushing her homework aside and getting carefully to her feet.

**~*Phoebe*~**

He opened the door of his dormitory and was one step inside it when he experienced pain so severe he thought that someone must have sliced into the top of his head. He did not know where he was, whether he was standing or lying down, he did not even know his own name.

"Harry..."

Maniacal laughter was ringing in his ears... he was happier than he had been in a very long time... jubilant, ecstatic, triumphant... a wonderful, wonderful thing that happened...

"Harry?"

Someone had hit him around the face. The insane-laughter was punctuated with a cry of pain. The happiness was draining out of him, but the laughter continued...

"HARRY!"

He opened his eyes and, as he did so, he became aware that the wild laughter was coming out of his own mouth. The moment he realized this, it died away; Harry lay panting on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, the scar on his forehead throbbing horribly.

Phoebe was on her knees beside him, looking scared.

"What happened?" she said.

"I... dunno..." Harry gasped, sitting up again. "He's really happy... really happy..."

"Voldemort is happy?"

"Something good's happened," mumbled Harry. He was shaking as badly as he had done after seeing the snake attack Serefina and felt very sick. "Something he's been hoping for."

The words came, as though a stranger was speaking them through Harry's mouth, yet he knew they were true.

"We're worried about you," said Phoebe in a low voice, helping Harry to his feet. "Your defenses will be low at the moment, after Snape's been fiddling around with your mind... but this will help you in the long run, I know you don't like it! But you have to learn to deal, Harry! People are just trying to help you!"

Harry looked doubtful as he shuffled across the room towards his bed, he nodded without any conviction and slumped back on his pillows, aching all over from having fallen to the floor so often that evening, his scar still prickling painfully.

He could not help feeling that his first foray in Occlumency had weakened his mind's resistance rather than strengthening it, and he wondered, with a feeling of great trepidation, what had happened to make Lord Voldemort the happiest he had been in fourteen years.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Wow! I managed to break one chapter into three little ones. Well... we didn't see Harry's lesson unfold, but I thought that this end piece was rather important... which, obviously it is, because it is the break out of Bellatrix and all the other Death Eaters in Azkaban. So it needed to be kept in the story.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, May 10, 2012 at 04:56am**


	110. Chapter 110

**Author's Note:** Umm... this will be the last update for this month! I have an essay that is due in at the end of May and I really need to concentrate on it more than my stories. I hope you all understand (I know you do), I hope you'll all be patient until I return, although I will try and update whenever I can. But thank you for understanding.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Emily Lily Winchester** for adding this story to their Favourite Story and Story alerts. Very much appreciated.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dream Lighting, Pixiescale1185, Princessflag3998, Fan of Fics **and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

* * *

><p>"Phoebe, we have a problem!" said Aiden, catching hold of his sister's elbow before she could enter the Great Hall the next morning.<p>

"What kind of problem?" asked Phoebe, who had been with James and Jackson. She motioned for the two to continue into the Hall and turned back to her brother.

"I had a vision last night," said Aiden. "And it's bad..."

"How bad?"

"Yellowstone Park exploding, bad!"

"I get the picture," said Phoebe. "So, are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?"

"Right!" Aiden nodded, he was sweating profusely and his throat was dry, but he had stopped her because she was the only person he could confide in. "They're out! He broke them out..."

"Broke who out from where?"

But before Aiden could continue, James stuck his head out of the Great Hall doors and shouted, "Phoebe! Get your ass in here... there is something you need to see!"

Clutching her shoulder strap, Phoebe turned toe on Aiden and hurried into the Hall after James. She spotted her friend standing behind Hermione, reading something over her shoulder, hurrying towards them she dropped her backpack to the ground and leaned in closer, glimpsing the front page of the _Daily Prophet_.

Ten black-and-white photographs filled the whole of the front page, nine showing wizards' faces and the tenth, a witch's. Some of the people in the photograph were captioned with a name and the crime for which the person had been sent to Azkaban

"Antonio Dolohov," whispered Phoebe, reading the legend beneath a wizard with a long, pale, twisted face who was sneering up at them. "Convicted of the brutal murders of Gideon and Fabian Prewett!"

"Algernon Rookwood," said James, reading from the caption below a pockmarked man with greasy hair who was leaning against the edge of his picture, looking bored. "Leaking Ministry of Magic secrets to He Who Must Not Be Named!"

But Phoebe's eyes was no longer listening, instead her eyes had been drawn to that of the woman. Her face leapt out at her the moment she had seen the page. She had long, dark hair that looked unkempt and straggly in the picture, though she had never seen it sleek, thick and shining. She glared through heavily lidded eyes, an arrogant, disdainful smile playing around her thin mouth.

Like Sirius, she retained vestiges of great good looks, but something - perhaps Azkaban - had taken most of her beauty.

"Bellatrix Lestrange," muttered Phoebe. "Convicted of the torture and permanent incapacitation of Frank and Alice Longbottom..."

"Black?" said Harry loudly, startling Phoebe who had not been paying attention. "Not -?"

"_Shh_!" whispered Hermione desperately. "Not so loud - just read it!"

Blinking, Phoebe glanced down at the article.

_The Ministry of Magic announced late last night that there has been a mass breakout from Azkaban._

_"Speaking to reporters in his private office, Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic, confirmed that ten high-security prisoners escaped in the early hours of yesterday evening and that he has already informed the Muggle Prime Minister of the dangerous nature of these individuals._

_"We find ourselves, most unfortunately, in the same position we were two and a half years ago when murderer Sirius Black escaped," said Fudge last night. "Nor do we think the two breakouts are un-related._

_An escape of this magnitude suggest outside help, and we must remember that Black, as the first person ever to break out of Azkaban, would be ideally placed to help others follow in his footsteps. We think it likely that these individuals, who include Black's cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, have rallied around Black as their leader._

_We are, however, doing all we can to round up the criminals, and we beg the magical community to remain alert and cautious. On no account should any of these individuals be approached._

"I don't believe this," snarled James, "Fudging his blaming the breakout of my _father_?"

"What other options does he have?" said Hermione bitterly. "He can hardly say, 'Sorry everyone, Dumbledore warned me this might happen, the Azkaban guards have joined Lord Voldemort" - stop _whimpering_ Ron - 'and now Voldemort's worst supporters have broken out, too." I mean, he's spent a good six months telling everyone Harry and Dumbledore are liars, hasn't he?"

Just then, as James dug into a plate of bacon and eggs, Athena landed on the table in front of Phoebe.

"Hey girl," said Phoebe, stroking the eagle's feathers. "What do you have for me this morning?"

Athena cooed and nudged Phoebe's fingers with her beak, seconds after she had dropped a letter onto the table in front of her mistress. The writing on the front was from her grandfather, and the contents, after she had ripped the envelope open, consisted of an article, cut from the _Daily Prophet_ and titled: _Tragic Demise of Ministry of Magic Worker_

"Oh, no..." whispered Phoebe, as she skimmed the article.

"What is it?" said Harry quickly, he was feeling jumpy.

"Bode is dead!" answered Phoebe, looking up from the clipping.

"Bode?" questioned Hermione. "The man that is in Mungo's?"

Phoebe nodded.

"How did he die?" asked James.

Scanning the article, Phoebe quickly located the cause of death. "He was strangled..."

"By who?"

"Not who," answered Phoebe. "Ministry of Magic worker Broderick Bode, 49, was discovered dead in his bed, at St. Mungo's hospital this morning, it would seem he had been strangled to death by a pot plant."

"Do they say what kind of plant?" asked Harry.

Phoebe nodded. "The Healer, Miriam Strout, says; "We have strict guidelines on the decorations permitted on our wards but it appears that Healer Strout, busy over the Christmas period, overlooked the dangers of the plant on Mr. Bode's bedside table. As his speech and mobility improved, Healer Strout encouraged Mr. Bode to look after the plant himself, unaware that it was not an innocent Flitterbloom, but a cut of Devil's Snare which, when touched the convalescent Mr. Bode, throttled him instantly."

"How come we didn't we recognize Devil Snare?" asked Harry, remembering seeing Mr. Bode when they had been with Lockhart. "We've seen it before... we could've stopped this from happening."

"Who expects Devil Snare to turn up in a hospital disguised as a pot plant?" said James sharply. "It's not our fault, whoever sent it it to the bloke is to blame! They must be a real prat, why didn't they check what they were buying?"

Phoebe and Hermione stared at the boy with strange expressions.

"What?" snapped James.

"You're seriously not considering that whoever sent this did not know what they were sending in the first place?" asked Hermione.

"People are idiots!" said James.

Phoebe nodded. "Apparently so..."

"What is that supposed to mean?" spat James, angered at her unspoken accusations.

"Oh, come on, James!" snapped Phoebe. "You cannot put Devil's Snare in a pot and not realize it tries to kill whoever touches it! This was murder... a clever murder, as well... if the plant was sent anonymously, how's anyone ever going to find out who did it?"

But Harry wasn't listening, instead he had blanked out the conversation long enough to gather his own thoughts, now he was facing Ron. "I've met Bode," he said slowly. "I saw him at the Ministry with your dad."

Ron's mouth fell open.

"I've heard Dad talk about him at home! He was an Unspeakable - he worked in the Department of Mysteries!"

They looked at each other for a moment, and then Phoebe leaned closer to Hermione and whispered. "We have to expose Fudge... we are the only ones who can!"

"What do you want me to do?" asked Hermione. "Fudge controls the _Daily Prophet_! He'll never publish an article where its contents contradict him..."

"I didn't say anything about the_ Daily Prophet_," replied Phoebe. "I have an idea... I don't know whether it will work... but it's worth trying... but you have to send the letter... you're the only one who can!"

Confused on what Phoebe was muttering about, Harry, James, Jackson and Ron exchanged looks, before Hermione jumped to her feet and hurried out of the Great Hall.

"What did you tell her?" asked Ron.

"You'll find out soon enough," said Phoebe, getting to her feet, grabbing a piece of toast as the last of the breakfast disappeared, snapping up her backpack, she then turned towards the door of the Great Hall and led the way out.

Ron frowned and turned to the others. "I hate when they do that!" he grumbled. "Would it kill them to tell us what they're up to for once? It'd take about ten seconds!"

"Especially when only one of this is running off," nodded James. "Hey, Hagrid!"

Hagrid was standing beside the doors into the Entrance Hall, waiting for a crowd of Ravenclaws to pass. He was still as heavily bruised as he had been on the day he had come back from his mission to the giants and there was a new cut right across the bridge of his nose.

"All righ', you lot?" he said, trying to muster a smile but managing only a kind of pained grimace.

"Are you OK, Hagrid?" asked Harry, following him as he lumbered after the Ravenclaws.

"Fine, fine," said Hagrid with a feeble assumption of airiness; he waved a hand and narrowly missed concussing a frightened-looking Professor Vector, who was passing. "Jus' busy, yeh know, usual stuff - lesson ter prepare - couple o' salamanders got scale rot - an' I'm on probation," he mumbled.

_"You're on probation_?" said Ron very loudly, so that many of the passing students looked around curiously. "Sorry - I mean - you're on probation?" he whispered.

"Yeah," said Hagrid. "S'no more'n I expected, ter tell yeh the truth. Yeh migh' not've picked up on it, bu' that inspection didn' go too well, yeh know... anyway," he sighed deeply. "Bes' go an' rub a bit more chili powder on them salamanders or their tails'll be hangin' off 'em next. See yeh..."

He trudged away, out of the front doors and down the stone steps into the damp grounds. Phoebe watched him go, wondering how much more bad news they would have to endure before all this would go away.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The fact that Hagrid was now on probation became common knowledge within the school over the next few days, but nobody seemed to be that upset about it, indeed, some people, Pansy Parkinson prominent among them, seemed positively gleeful, and she was doing everything within her power to get Draco Malfoy back on her side.

As for the freakish death of an obscure Department of Mysteries employee in St. Mungo's, the Golden Trio, James, Jackson, Aiden, Ashlyn and Adrian seemed to be the only people who knew or cared.

There was only one topic of conversation in the corridors now: the ten escaped Death Eaters, whose story had finally filtered through the school from those few people who had read the newspaper. Rumors were flying that some of the convicts had been spotted in Hogsmeade, that they were supposed to be hiding in the Shrieking Shack and that they were going to break into Hogwarts, just as Sirius Black had done.

"The article said that they looked to Black has a leader," said an annoyed Phoebe, one evening in the Library. "Not that they were all going to become copy cats!"

"What do cats have anything to do with it?" asked Adrian in confusion.

"It's a Muggle term," explained Jackson. "It means when a criminal act is modeled or inspired by a previous crime that has been reported in the media or described in fiction. Black broke out of Azkaban and broke into Hogwarts two and a half years ago and everyone things that these ten convicts are going to do the same!"

Phoebe nodded. "Exactly. And they are not copycats... because they are not following Snuffle's actions... they are following Voldemort's! And he is not going to allow them out of his sight until he needs them!"

Those who came from Wizarding families had grown up hearing the names of these Death Eaters spoken with almost as much fear as Voldemort's; the crimes they had committed during the days of Voldemort's reign of terror were legendary.

There were relatives of their victims among the Hogwarts students, who now found themselves the unwilling objects of gruesome sort of reflected fame as they walked through the corridors: Susan Bones, whose uncle, aunt and cousins had all died at the hands of one of the ten, said miserably during Herbology that she now had a good deal what it felt like to be Harry,

"And I don't know how you stand it - it's horrible," she said bluntly, dumping far too much dragon manure on her tray of Screechsnap seedlings, causing them to wriggle and squeak in discomfort.

It was true that Harry was the subject of much renewed muttering and pointing in the corridors these days, yet he thought he detected a slight difference in tone of the whisperers' voices. They sounded curious rather than hostile now, and once or twice he was sure he overheard snatches of conversation that suggested that the speakers were not satisfied with the _Prophets_ version of how and why ten Death Eaters had managed to break out of the Azkaban fortress.

In confusion and fear, these doubters now seemed to be turning to the only other explanation available to them: the one that Harry and Dumbledore had been expounding since the previous year.

It was not only the students' mood that had changed. It was now quite common to come across two or three teachers conversing in low, urgent whispers in the corridors, breaking off their conversations the moment they saw students approaching.

"Well, they obviously can't talk freely in the staff room anymore," said Ashlyn in a low voice, as she, Phoebe, Aiden, James, Amelia and Sarah huddled together outside the Charms classroom one day. "Not with Umbridge there."

"Reckon they know anything new?" said James, gazing back over his shoulder at the three teachers.

"If they do, we're not going to hear about it, are we?" said Phoebe. "Not after Decree Number Twenty-Six"

New notices had appeared on the house noticeboards the morning after news of the Azkaban breakout:

_BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS_

_Teachers are hereby banned from giving students any information that is not strictly related to the subjects they are paid to teach._

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-six._

_Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor._

The latest Decree had been the subject of a great number of jokes among the students. Jackson had pointed out to Umbridge that by the terms of the new rule she was not allowed to tell Fred and George off for playing Exploding Snap in the back of the class.

"Since when does Exploding Snap have anything to do with Defence Against the Dark Arts, Professor? The information regarding the game does not relate to your subject... therefore, you have no authority over their actions within the game!"

That evening, the back of Jackson's hand which had been bleeding rather badly, was submerged beneath a bowl of clear liquid, with Phoebe sitting alongside him looking furious.

"That woman!" she growled. "And you, how much of an idiot do you have to be to question her?"

"I was just making a point!"

"A stupid point!" snapped Phoebe, letting go of his hand as the bleeding stopped and the cuts healed. "Next time keep your mouth shut!"

Jackson sighed, "Sorry..." he apologized, drawing her in for a hug. "You're right! I shouldn't have said anything... i'm sorry!"

Aiden had thought the breakout from Azkaban might have humbled Umbridge a little, that she might have been abashed at the catastrophe that had occurred under the nose of her beloved Fudge. It seemed, however, to have only intensified her furious desire to bring every aspect of life at Hogwarts under her personal control.

She seemed determined at the very least to achieve a sacking before long, and the only question was whether it would be Professor Trelawney or Hagrid who went first.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Every single Divination and Care of Magical Creatures lesson was now conducted in the presence of Umbridge and her clipboard. She lurked by the fire in the heavily perfumed tower room, interrupting Professor Trelawney's increasingly hysterical talks with difficult questions about ornithomancy and heptomology, insisting that she predicted students' answers before they gave them and demanding she demonstrate her skill at the crystal ball, the tea leaves and the rune stones in turn.

Aiden thought that Professor Trelawney might soon crack under the strain. Several times he passed her in the corridors - in itself a very unusual occurrence as she generally remained in her tower room - muttering wildly to herself, wringing her hands and shooting terrified glances over her shoulder, and all the while giving off a powerful smell of cooking sherry.

"Has she been drinking?" asked Sarah as she and Aiden made their way down to the library.

"Seems like it," nodded Aiden glancing back over his shoulder at Trelawney. "It's sick, you know? Umbridge is just picking on Trelawney because she doesn't understand the concept of Divination... just because something is difficult to process doesn't make it bad!"

Sarah smiled. "You're protective," she said. "I like that..."

Aiden glanced sideways, and then nodded down the hallway. "C'mon, the others are waiting in the library... Phoebe says she has a plan to stop Fudge and Umbridge, better not keep her waiting!"

"Aiden," said Sarah, as he walked away. "Why did you come meet me from the Hospital Wing?"

"Because it is not safe to walk around the corridors by oneself," explained Aiden. "At least... not anymore! Why?"

Sarah shook her head. "I just thought maybe that you..." she paused, before shaking her head. "Never mind... you're right, we better not keep the others waiting!"

She set off at a set place.

Aiden watched her for a few minutes, before following her quickly.

Unfortunately, Hagrid was not putting up a better show than Trelawney. Though he seemed to be following Phoebe's advice and had shown them nothing more frightening than a Crup - a creature indistinguishable from a Jack Russell terrier except for its forked tail - since before Christmas, he too seemed to have lost his nerve.

He was oddly distracted and jumpy during lessons, losing the thread of what he was saying to the class, answering questions wrongly, and all the time glancing anxiously at Umbridge. He was also more distant with the Golden Trio and Phoebe than he had ever been before, and had expressly forbidden them to visit him after dark.

"If she catches yeh, it'll be all our necks on the line," he told them flatly, and with no desire to do anything that might jeopardize his job further they abstained from walking down to his hut in the evenings.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Even after the announcement of the ten Death Eaters escaping, Phoebe was pleased to see that all of them, even Zacharias Smith, had been spurred on to work harder than ever before, but nobody was more willing to worker harder than Neville. The news of his parents' attackers' escape had wrought a strange and even slightly alarming change in him.

He had not once mentioned his encounter with Harry, Phoebe and the others on the closed ward and, taking their lead from him, they kept quiet about it too. Nor had he said anything on the subject of Bellatrix and her fellow torturers' escape.

In fact, Neville barely spoke during the DA meetings anymore, but worked relentlessly on every new jinx and counter-curse Harry taught them, his plump face screwed up in concentration, apparently indifferent to injuries or accidents and working harder than anyone else in the room.

He was improving so fast it was quite unnerving and when Harry taught them the Shield Charm - a means of deflecting minor jinxes so that they rebounded upon the attacker - only Hermione, Phoebe and Ashlyn mastered the charm faster than Neville.

Harry would have given a great deal to be making as much progress at Occlumency as Neville was making during the DA meetings. Harry's sessions with Snape, which had started badly enough, were not improving. On the contrary, Harry felt he was getting worse with every lesson.

Before he had started studying Occlumency, his scar had prickled occasionally, usually during the night, or else following one of those strange flashes of Voldemort's thoughts or mood that he experienced every now and then. Nowadays, however, his scar hardly ever stopped prickling, and he often felt lurches of annoyance or cheerfulness that were unrelated to what was happening to him at the time, which were always accompanied by a particularly painful twinge from his scar.

He had the horrible impression that he was slowly turning into a kind of aerial that was tuned in to tiny fluctuations in Voldemort's mood, and he was sure he could date this increased sensitivity firmly from his first Occlumency lesson with Snape. What was more, he was now dreaming about walking down the corridor towards the entrance to the Department of Mysteries almost every night, dreams which always culminated in him standing longingly in front of the plain black door.

"Maybe it's a bit like an illness," said Hermione, looking concerned when Harry confided in her, Ron and Phoebe. "A fever or something. It has to get worse before it gets better."

"The lessons with Snape are making it worse," said Harry flatly. "I'm getting sick of my scar hurting and I'm getting bored with walking down that corridor every night." He rubbed his forehead angrily. "I just wish the door would open, I'm sick of standing staring at it -"

"You're not supposed to be having these dreams anyway!" said Phoebe sharply. "Voldemort is seeing what you are seeing... if that door opens then than means he has got into the Department of Mysteries and then it is all over! You have to try harder at these lessons, Harry! It won't be just your life at stake if Voldemort gets what he wants!"

"I am working!" said Harry, nettled. "You try it sometime - Snape trying to get inside your head - it's not a bundle of laughs, you know!"

"Maybe..." said Ron slowly.

"Maybe what?" said Hermione, rather snappishly.

"Maybe it's not Harry's fault he can't close his mind," said Ron darkly.

"What do you mean?" said Phoebe.

"Well, maybe Snape isn't really trying to help Harry..."

Harry, Hermione and Phoebe stared at him. Ron looked darkly and meaningfully from one to the other.

"Maybe," he said again, in a lower voice, "he's actually trying to open Harry's mind a bit wider... make it easier for You-Know -"

"Shut up, Weasley," said Phoebe angrily. "How many times have you suspected Snape, and when have you _ever_ been right? Dumbledore trusts him; he works for the Order that ought to be enough."

"He used to be a Death Eater," said Ron stubbornly. "And we've never seen proof that he _really_ swapped sides."

"_Dumbledore trusts him_!" hissed Phoebe. "And if we can't trust Dumbledore, who can we trust?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

With so much to worry about and so much to do - startling amounts of homework that frequently kept the fifth-years working until past midnight and secret DA meetings - January seemed be passing alarmingly fast. Before Phoebe knew it, February had arrived, bringing with it wetter and warmer weather and the prospect of the second Hogsmeade visit of the year and Sarah had no idea has to how she was spending it, yet.

On the morning of the fourteenth she dressed particularly carefully. She, Jackson and James arrived at breakfast just in time for the arrival of the post owls, Athena was amongst them, and she was dropping a letter in front of Phoebe's seat as the elemental took her place.

"Thanks girl," cooed Phoebe, offering a strip of bacon to the eagle.

"Who's it from?" asked Hermione as she tugged a letter from the beak of an unfamiliar brown owl.

"Serefina," answered Phoebe. "She wants to know how school is going... warning me to watch out for Umbridge... and to be safe, you know, since she isn't here at the moment to keep an eye on me!"

"When will she be returning?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't think she will be," she answered with a low sigh.

"Why do you think that?"

"My grandmother had a vision over Christmas," she explained, "she saw Umbridge sitting in Dumbledore's chair at the High table! And we all know what is going to happen if that is true!"

"Professor Blackheart will be sacked," said Ron.

Phoebe nodded. "What about you?" she asked, looking up at Hermione. "Did you get a reply?"

"Yes, and it's about time! If it hadn't come today..." she said, looking at Harry. "Listen, Harry, this is really important. Do you think you could meet me in the Three Broomsticks around midday?"

"Why?" Harry asked looking suspicious.

"I haven't got time to tell you now, I've got to answer this quickly," said Hermione. "Phoebe, could I borrow Athena?"

Phoebe nodded. "Sure. She should be up in Gryffindor common room, she has made a nest on the canopy on my bed... come on, and I'll come with you!"

"Aren't you meeting Terence?"

"No," said Phoebe, playing with her engagement ring. "I can't go to Hogsmeade at all; Angelina wants a full day's training. Like it's going to help; we're the worst team I've ever seen. You should see Sloper and Kirke, they're pathetic!"

"She's right," nodded Ron. "They're even worse than I am." He heaved a great sigh. "I dunno why Angelina won't just let me resign."

"It's because you're good when you're form," said James. "Anyway, have fun in Hogsmeade... I'm gonna go change. Phoebe, you walking up?"

Phoebe nodded and got to her feet. "Yeah. See you later, Jackson, Harry... have fun in the village. Ron, see you in the field!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Hey Aiden," smiled Sarah as she and Amelia made their way into the Entrance Hall after breakfast.

Aiden, who was accompanied by Ashlyn and Adrian, paused and turned to the Hufflepuff. "Hey, Sarah, Amelia!"

"Hey," Amelia smiled. "Have you seen Phoebe?"

"Yeah, she's not going to Hogsmeade."

"She's not?"

"No, she has Quidditch Practice!"

Amelia nodded. "I understand... well, Sarah, I have to go, Cedric is waiting for me! I'll see you later, yeah?"

Sarah smiled and watched as her friend crossed the Entrance Hall and left the castle with Cedric.

Ashlyn and Adrian, who also were spending the day together in Hogsmeade, parted ways with Aiden leaving him alone with Sarah, who seemed to be nervously playing with the cuffs of her jacket.

"Sarah, are you okay?" asked Aiden.

"Yeah," nodded Sarah. "I'm fine... I was just wondering if... you were spending the day with anyone. It's kinda the reason that Amelia asked if Phoebe was attending today?"

Aiden paused as he realized that since Phoebe, Ashlyn and Amelia were now taken by respective others, Sarah was singled out; she had no one to spend Valentine's Day with... well, there was James, but at the moment he seemed not to be interested in the little blonde Hufflepuff.

"Hey, Sarah," started Aiden. "Listen, since Phoebe can't make it today... do you, maybe, want to spend the day with me?"

Sarah's eyes widened. "You mean like a date?"

"If you want to put a label on it then, sure, like a date!"

"Sounds fun," Sarah smiled.

"Excellent," said Aiden, offering her his arm. "M'lady..."

Sarah gigged as she slipped her arm through his and allowed him to escort her passed Filch and out into the fresh air.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"So... where d'you want to go?" Aiden asked as they entered Hogsmeade. The High Street was full of students ambling up and down, peering into the shop windows and messing about together on the pavements.

"Oh... I don't mind," said Sarah, shrugging. "Um... shall we just have a look in the shops or something?"

They wandered towards Dervish and Banges. A large poster had been stuck up in the window and a few Hogsmeaders were looking at it. They moved aside when Aiden and Sarah approached and Aiden found himself staring once more at the pictures of the ten escaped Death Eaters.

The poster, 'By Order of the Ministry of Magic', offered a thousand-Galleon reward to any witch or wizard with information leading to the recapture of any of the convicts pictured.

"It's funny, isn't it," said Sarah in a low voice, gazing up at the pictures of Death Eaters, "remember when Snuffles escaped? There were Dementors all over Hogsmeade looking for him, and now ten Death Eaters are on the loose and there are no Dementors anywhere..."

"Yeah," said Aiden. "But do remember that I was not enrolled at Hogwarts when Black escaped!"

Sarah nodded. "Oh, yes, I remember. Which school did you come from?"

"The Salem Institute,"

"In America?"

"Salem, Massachusetts."

"Oh," Sarah gasped. "So... um... this is going to sound like a stupid question... but -"

"Yes," said Aiden. "They did exist... the Salem Witch trials. Hasn't Phoebe ever mentioned them?"

Sarah shook her head. "At least not to me or Amelia... it is better to ask Ashlyn that sort of question... she is closer to Phoebe than any of us!"

Aiden nodded. "I will keep that in mind."

The ten escaped Death Eaters were staring out of every shop window Aiden and Sarah passed. It started to rain as they passed Scrivenshaft's; cold; heavy drops of water kept hitting Aiden's face and the back of his neck.

"Do you want to get a Butterbeer?" said Sarah tentatively, as the rain began to fall more heavily.

"Yeah, all right," said Aiden. "Listen, Phoebe and Hermione step up a meeting this afternoon with Harry and Skeeter -"

"Rita Skeeter?" interrupted Sarah. "Why her? You do realize that she ruined Phoebe and Harry's lives last year, right?"

"Yes," said Aiden. "But this is about putting all that back on track. If Harry gives his full account of the story and Rita publishes it, then -"

"People will start believing him!" Sarah finished. "But how does Phoebe fit into all this? How will this benefit her?"

Aiden shook his head. "Phoebe has already started to turn her life around," he explained. "Last year was only heartbreaking because Terence broke up with her, but now they're engaged..."

"It's like a dream come true," smiled Sarah. "Too bad Phoebe doesn't believe in such trivial things."

Aiden shrugged. "She doesn't believe in fairytales, no," he agreed. "But she believes in her love for Terence and I know, for a fact, that she is making the right choice by marrying him!"

"But how will people know Harry is telling the truth?" Sarah asked. "The _Prophet_ won't print the story because Fudge won't let them!"

"I understand that," nodded Aiden.

"Then how does Phoebe expect to get Harry's story out to the public?"

"They aren't looking to publish in the _Prophet_! Phoebe had a connection with another student, whose father is the editor of a magazine known as The _Quibbler -"_

_"_Lovegood?"

Aiden nodded.

Sarah giggled slightly.

"What?"

"The_ Quibbler?"_ Sarah repeated. "Aiden... I don't know... what makes you think that anything published in the _Quibbler_ is going to be 'important'"

Aiden frowned. "I take it you're not a fan of the magazine?"

"I like Luna," nodded Sarah. "She's different... strange... but she is kind and eccentric, but the magazine her father edit's... it is not _normal_!"

"Only time will tell, Sarah," said Aiden, catching her hand. "And it is times like these that you just have to hold your breath... and take the plunge! Maybe the story will sell..." he nodded.

"And what if it doesnt?" asked Sarah in a low voice.

"At least then we can say we tried!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, May 14, 2012 at 02:19am**


	111. Chapter 111

**Author's Note:** This has taken me forever and a day to write. But we are getting close to the fun bits!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following:** KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, **and **Pixiescale1185**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Kai'ika95** and **ZX7-495** for adding this story to their Favourite Stories. Also thank you too **ZX7-495** for adding me to their Favourite author's, and once again thank you too **SoPhiE-sUNsHine-girl** for adding this story to their Favourite story and Story alert and for adding me to their Favourite Authors. Appreciate it mates.

* * *

><p>"How was Quidditch practice last night?"<p>

"It was a nightmare,"

"Oh come on," said Jackson. "I'm sure it wasn't that -"

"Yes, it was," said Phoebe. "It was appalling. Angelina was nearly in tears by the end of it."

They entered the Great Hall for breakfast at exactly the same moment as the post owls on Monday morning. Hermione was not the only person eagerly awaiting her _Daily Prophet_: nearly everyone was eager for more news about the escaped Death Eaters, who, despite many reported sightings, had still not been caught. She gave the delivery owl a Knut and unfolded the newspaper.

Phoebe had only just sat down, when a barn owl landed in front of Harry.

"Who're you after?" he asked it, removing his orange juice from underneath its beak and leaning forwards to see the recipient's name and address.

_Harry Potter_

_Great Hall_

_Hogwarts School_

Frowning, he made to take the letter from the owl, but before he could do so, three, four, five more owls had fluttered down beside it and were jockeying for positions, treading in the butter and knocking over the salt as each one attempted to give him their letter first.

"What's going on?" Ron asked in amazement, as the whole of Gryffindor table leaned forwards to watch and another seven owls landed amongst the first ones, screeching, hooting and flapping their wings.

"Harry!" said Phoebe, plunging her hands into the feathery mess and pulling out a screech owl bearing a long, cylindrical package. "Open this one first!"

Harry ripped off the brown packaging. Out rolled a tightly furled copy of the March edition of _The Quibbler_. He unrolled it to see his own face grinning sheepishly at him from the front cover. In large red letters across this picture were the words:

_HARRY POTTER SPEAKS OUT AT LAST:_

_THE TRUTH ABOUT HE WHO MUST NOT BE NAMED_

_AND THE NIGHT I SAW HIM RETURN_

"It's good, isn't it?" said Luna, who had drifted over to the Gryffindor table and now squeezed herself on to the bench between Jackson and Phoebe. "It came out yesterday, I asked Dad to send you a free copy. I expect all these," she waved a hand at the assembled owls still scrambling around on the table in front of Harry, "are letters from readers."

"That's what I thought," said Hermione eagerly. "Harry, d'you mind if we -?"

"Help yourself," said Harry.

Hermione and Phoebe exchanged grin's and then started ripping open envelopes.

"This one's from a bloke who thinks you're off your rocker," said Ron, who had seized a letter, and ripped it open.

"This woman recommends you try a good course of Shock Spells at St. Mungo's," said Hermione, looking disappointed and crumpling up a second.

"This one looks okay, though," said Harry slowly, scanning a long letter from a witch in Paisley. "Hey, she says she believes me!"

"This one's in two minds," said Jackson, who had joined in the letter-opening with enthusiasm. "Says you don't come across as a mad person, but he doesn't really want to believe that Voldemort is back so he doesn't know what to think now. Blimey, what a waste of parchment."

"Here's another one you've convinced, Harry!" said Phoebe excitedly. "_Having read your side of the story, I am forced to the conclusion that the_ Daily Prophet_ has treated you very unfairly... little though I want to think that He Who Must Not Be Named has returned I am forced to accept that you are telling the truth..._ Oh, this is wonderful!"

"Another one who thinks you're barking," said Ron, throwing a crumpled letter over his shoulder "... but this one says you've got her converted and she now thinks you're a real hero - she's put in a photograph, too - wow!"

"What is going on here?" said a falsely sweet, girlish voice.

Harry looked up with his hands full of envelopes. Professor Umbridge was standing behind Jackson and Luna, her bulging toad's eyes scanning the mess of owls and letters on the table in front of Harry. Behind her, many students were watching them avidly.

"Why have you got all these letters, Mr. Potter?" she asked slowly.

"Is that a crime now?" said Phoebe loudly. "Getting mail?"

"Be careful, Miss. Blackheart, or I shall have to put you in detention," said Umbridge. "Well, Mr. Potter?"

Harry hesitated, but he did not see how he could keep what he had done quiet; it was surely only a matter of time before a copy of _The Quibbler_ came to Umbridge's attention.

"People have written to me because I gave an interview," said Harry. "About what happened to me last June."

For some reason, Phoebe noticed, that Harry glanced up at the staff table as he explained the current situation. Following his gaze, Phoebe found it locked onto Dumbledore, but for what reason, she did not know.

"And interview?" repeated Umbridge, her voice thinner and higher than ever. "What do you mean?"

"I mean a reporter asked me questions and I answered them," said Harry. "Here -"

And he threw the copy of _The Quibbler_ to her. She caught it and stared down at the cover. Her pale, doughy face turned an ugly, patchy violet.

"When did you do this?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"Last Hogsmeade weekend," said Harry.

She looked up at him, incandescent with rage, the magazine shaking in her stubby fingers.

"There will be no more Hogsmeade trips for you, Mr. Potter," she whispered. "How dare you... how could you...?" She took a deep breath. "I have tried again and again to teach you not to tell lies. The message, apparently, has still not sunk in. Fifty points from Gryffindor and another week's worth of detentions."

She stalked away, clutched _The Quibbler_ to her chest, the eyes of many students following her.

By mid-morning enormous signs had been put up all over the school, not just on house noticeboards but in the corridors and classrooms too.

_BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS_

_Any student found in possession of the magazine _The Quibbler_ will be expelled._

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-seven._

_Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor._

But for some reason, every time Hermione and Phoebe caught sight of one of these signs they beamed with pleasure.

"What exactly are you so happy about?" Jackson asked.

"Don't you see?" Phoebe breathed. "Umbridge has just made it easier to get everyone within the castle to read the article! By banning _The Quibbler_ people are going to read it _just_ to see what she finds so offensive!"

And it seemed that Phoebe had been right. By the end of the day not as much of a corner of _The Quibbler_ had been seen anywhere in the school, but yet, the whole place seemed to be quoting the interview to each other.

They could be heard whispering about it as they queued up outside classes, discussing it over lunch and in the back of lessons, while Hermione even reported that she had been bombarded by questions when she had slipped into the girl's bathroom just before Ancient Runes!

"Harry, it's wonderful!" she exclaimed that evening in the Gryffindor common room. "I actually think that the Article worked! I think they believe you, Harry!"

Meanwhile, Professor Umbridge was stalking the school, stopping students at random and demanding that they turn out their books and pockets. It was plainly obvious that she was determined to catch; at least one, student with a copy of the Quibbler, but the students of Hogwarts were always one step ahead.

The pages carrying Harry's interview had been bewitched to resemble extracts from textbooks if anyone but themselves read it; or else wiped magically blank until they wanted to peruse it again. Soon it seemed that every single person in the castle had read it.

The teachers were, of course, forbidden from mentioning the interview by Educational Decree Number Twenty-six, but they found ways to express their feelings about it all the same.

Professor Sprout awarded Gryffindor twenty points when Harry passed her a watering can in Herbology; a beaming Professor Flitwick pressed a box of squeaking sugar mice on him at the end of Charms, said, 'Shh!' and hurried away; and Professor Trelawney broke into hysteria during Divination and announced that Harry was _not_ going to suffer an early death, but would live to a ripe old age, become Minister for Magic and have twelve children.

Much to the displeasure of Umbridge.

But the best news of all came just before Transfiguration, when Seamus stepped out of the queue to face Harry.

Phoebe, who had been outside the classroom before any of the other students had arrived, looked around to watch the scene unfold, she, of course, already knew what it was about because Seamus had wanted her to pass on a message; but Phoebe had felt that Harry could do with hearing this news himself and told Seamus that she was not a messenger bird and that if he wanted a message delivered, it would do him well to do it himself.

"I just wanted to say," he mumbled, squinting at Harry's left knee, "I believe you. And I've sent a copy of that magazine to me mam."

It was all Harry needed to complete his happiness.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry was a hero in the Gryffindor common room that night.

Daringly, Fred and George had put an Enlargement Charm on the front cover of _The Quibbler_ and hung it on the wall, so that Harry's giant head gazed down upon the proceedings, occasionally saying things like 'THE MINISTRY ARE MORONS' and 'EAT DUNG, UMBRIDGE' in a booming voice.

Hermione did not find this very amusing and said that it was interfering with her concentration before going up to bed early out of irritation.

Phoebe waved her off, promised that she would not be long herself, and then turned back to Harry, Ron, Jackson and James. "I met with Draco in the Library earlier," she said.

"Oh?" said Jackson. "What did he have to say?"

"Yes, what did the little _ferret_ have to say?" demanded Ron.

Phoebe glared. "If you keep calling him ferret, then he is going to continue calling you 'Weasel King'!" she snapped.

Ron ignored her and James prodded her to continue.

"He didn't say anything," said Phoebe. "He knew all along that it was only a matter of time before everyone knew the whole truthful story -"

"He is not angry that I named his father - _your_ father - as a Death Eater?" Harry asked.

"Why would he?" asked Phoebe. "Lucius Malfoy _is_ a Death Eater, there is no denying that!"

"Malfoy is loyal to his father," James pointed out.

"Yes, he is," Phoebe agreed, nodding. "But he also knew that by contradicting the whole article he would be admitting that he has read it!"

"Of course he read it!" exclaimed James, "he confronted you about it! What did he say exactly?"

Phoebe sighed. "I told you -"

"No," said James, shaking his head and cutting her off. "His exact words to you!"

"I can't remember everything," said Phoebe. "He just wanted me to know that he was not impressed that father was mentioned, but he also understands that it is for the best that people know the truth!"

Ron, James and Harry gaped at her.

"Malfoy, the same Malfoy that as tormented us since first year," whispered Ron, "said that he _agreed_ with what Harry had written and that _he_ thinks it is for the best that everyone knew the truth?"

Phoebe nodded.

Ron glanced at Harry and James, then reached over and pinched the skin on his forearm, letting out a painful yelp.

Jackson frowned. "You are awake, Weasley," he commented.

"I just had to make sure," muttered Ron, rubbing his arm. "But what world have we crossed into?"

Phoebe shrugged and got to her feet. "I guess Draco is not as _evil_ as you thought!" she said, collecting her homework and heading up to bed.

"Goodnight."

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next evening, after Harry had gone off to his extra lessons with Professor Snape, Phoebe also left the Gryffindor tower and silently made her way down towards the Entrance Hall; slipped out of the great oak doors and hurried off through the night towards the Forbidden Forest.

In her hand she was holding the Marauders Map, and was checking it every few minutes to make sure that there was no one was following her, especially the likes of Umbridge.

Reaching the edge of the forest, Phoebe pulled the hood of her cloak over her head and hurried into the darkness. She folded the map in three and slipped it into the pocket of her robes, held her wand out in front of her and muttered "_Lumos_!" a bright light spilled out in front of her and lit up the path that she was following.

Leaves and twigs crunched beneath her feet, low branches caught at her robes, but still Phoebe hurried on into the thicket. She had a job out here this evening, and while she knew that was she was attempting to do was dangerous, she was doing it for Dumbledore and she also knew that the people with whom she was meeting were less dangerous to her than they were anyone else.

Suddenly, thunderous footfalls rebounded across the earth's floor and Phoebe stopped short.

"Who goes there?" boomed a deep voice.

Phoebe swallowed, took a deep breath and replied, "Phoebe Blackheart!"

The trees seemed to open up in front of her, and there, contrasted against the darkness behind them and the brightness of her wand tip, stood the herd of Centaurs that had made their home in the Forbidden Forest.

"Princess!" several of them murmured, bowing at her feet.

Phoebe smiled wearily. She was still not used to be addressed as 'Princess' amongst other half-creatures.

"May I ask what it is you are doing in the Forest so late, princess?" asked the Centaur, Magorian.

"I have come to ask for your help," answered Phoebe.

Bane, the same centaur that Phoebe had met once before, stepped forward. "Help?" he questioned. "What kind of help do you need, Princess?"

Again, Phoebe swallowed, it was now or never.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Sarah felt her face burn as she reached for the Transfiguration book that lay opposite her, and realized, a second too late that it was the same book that Aiden had been intending to use. Their hands touched as both reached the book at the same time.

Looking up, Sarah realized how close they actually where and was startled when she noticed that Aiden's face was not that far away from her own, when did they get _this_ close?

"Sorry," she whispered, "I didn't realize you were using it!"

Aiden smiled. "I'm almost finished!"

Sarah nodded, but instead of pulling away and returning to her homework, the young Hufflepuff inched closer and then brushed her lips against his. It was the boldest move that she had made in her entire life, but she couldn't hide the fact that she harbored deep feelings for the Slytherin beside her, they had grown closer over the past few months and her feelings for him had developed at some point during the previous year.

Aiden gasped, startled by her actions.

Feeling her heart drop, Sarah pulled away, slightly hurt that she had put her heart on the table, only to realize that she had been wrong to assume that Aiden liked her in the same way that she liked him. But as she moved to pull away, she was surprised, however, when Aiden slipped his hands through her hair and cradled the back of her head.

The kiss was short, but it was also soft and sweet. Kind of like Aiden in general.

Then - a woman screamed from somewhere outside the library.

Aiden's head jerked upwards, breaking the kiss.

"What the -?" he muttered.

Sarah could hear a muffled commotion coming from somewhere beneath them... way down beneath them. She looked to Aiden, frowning.

"Did you see anything unusual on your way here?"

Aiden shook his head. Somewhere beneath them, the woman screamed again. Jumping to his feet, Aiden grabbed his backpack and shoved his parchment and books back into it, Sarah copied his actions and then, together, they hurried from the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The screams were indeed coming from the Entrance Hall; they grew louder as Ashlyn and Adrian ran towards the Marble staircase. When they reached the top they almost crashed into Sarah and Aiden who were running from the opposite direction.

"What is going on?" demanded Sarah, slightly out of breath from running.

"I don't know," answered Ashlyn. "We heard a scream - where are Phoebe, James and Amelia?"

Sarah shrugged. "I have no clue!"

"Oh no," whispered Adrian. He wasn't paying attention to either of the two girls beside him, but instead was looking down into the Entrance Hall where the majority of the whole school had congregated, all of which had created a giant ring, some of them looking shocked, others even frightened.

Professor McGonagall was stood in the middle of the Entrance Hall; she looked as though what she was watching made her feel faintly sick.

Professor Trelawney was standing in the middle of the Entrance Hall with her wand in one hand and an empty sherry bottle in the other, looking utterly mad. Her hair was sticking up on end, her glasses were lopsided so that one eye was magnified more than the other; her innumerable shawls and scarves were trailing haphazardly from her shoulders; giving the impression that she was falling apart at the seams.

Two large trunks lay on the floor beside her, one of them upside-down; it looked very much as through it had been thrown down the stairs after her. Professor Trelawney was staring, terrified at Umbridge.

"No!" she shrieked. "NO! This cannot be happening... it cannot... I refuse to accept it!"

"You didn't realize this was coming?" said Umbridge, she sounded callously amused. "Incapable though you are of predicting even tomorrow's weather, you must surely have realized that your pitiful performance during my inspections, and lack of any improvement, would make it inevitable that you would be sacked?"

"You c - can't!" howled Professor Trelawney, tears streaming down her face from behind her enormous lenses, "you c - can't sack me! I've b - been here sixteen years! H - Hogwarts is m - my h - home!"

"It _was_ your home," said Professor Umbridge, "until an hour ago, when the Minister for Magic countersigned your Order of Dismissal."

Professor Trelawney sank, sobbing uncontrollably, on to one of her trunks.

"Order of Dismissal!" shouted Aiden, from the top of the stairs.

The spectators in the Hall looked around; Sarah and Ashlyn were both staring at Aiden as if he had grown a second head.

"What are you doing?" Sarah whispered furiously. "Stand down, Aiden! She'll expel you!"

"She can't," said Aiden, loudly. "She doesn't have the _authority_ to expel me! That power resides with the Headmaster! Just as the authority to _banish_ teachers from the castle grounds still resides with Professor Dumbledore!"

"Professor Dumbledore?" repeated Umbridge. "You, my dear boy, are treading on dangerously thin ice... stand down _at once_!"

Aiden merely shook his head, descended the stairs into the Entrance Hall and approached Professor Trelawney and Professor McGonagall.

"Now, see here, Mr. Chamberlain," seethed Umbridge. "You are neither a Professor nor a selected student here at Hogwarts! So I understand that you may not realize my position, I have here -" she pulled out a parchment scroll from within her robes "- an Order of Dismissal signed by myself and the Ministry of Magic. I have decided that Professor Trelawney is not up to scratch. I have dismissed her."

"You have dismissed her because of your lack of understanding in Divination!" spat Aiden.

Just then the great oaken front doors swung open. Students beside them scuttled out of the way as Dumbledore appeared in the Entrance Hall, but he wasn't alone, Phoebe was alongside him.

What they had been doing out in the grounds Aiden could not imagine, but there was something impressive about the sight of Dumbledore framed in the doorway against an oddly misty night. Leaving the doors wide open behind them, the Headmaster strode through the circle of onlookers towards Professor Trelawney, tear-stained and trembling on her trunk. Professor McGonagall alongside her.

"Professor McGonagall, might I asked you to escort Sybil back upstairs?" asked Dumbledore.

"Of course," said McGonagall. "Up you get, Sybil..."

Professor Sprout came hurrying forwards out of the crowd and grabbed Professor Trelawney's other arm. Together, they guided her past Umbridge and up the marble staircase. Professor Flitwick went scurrying after them, his wand held out before him; he squeaked "_Locomotor trunks!_" and Professor Trelawney's luggage rose into the air and proceeded up the staircase after her, Professor Flitwick bringing up the rear.

Professor Umbridge was standing sock still, staring at Dumbledore, who was smiling benignly.

"And what," she said, in a whisper that carried all around the Entrance Hall, "are you going to do with her once I appoint a new Divination teacher who needs her lodgings?"

"Oh, that is not going to be a problem," said Dumbledore pleasantly. "You see, Miss. Blackheart, here -" he motioned to Phoebe to come forward. The young elemental did so, and took her place alongside Aiden. "- has already found us a new Divination teacher, and he will prefer lodgings on the ground floor."

"Blackheart has found -?" said Umbridge shrilly, glaring at the Gryffindor. "_Blackheart_ has found? Might I remind you, Dumbledore, that under Educational Decree Number Twenty-two -"

"The Ministry has the right to appoint a suitable candidate if - and only if - the Headmaster is unable to find one," interrupted Phoebe. "Thankfully enough, I had a feeling that Professor Trelawney would not last much longer as a Professor, seeing that you lacked a certain understanding in her teachings, and did not like her in general, so I informed the headmaster of a suitable replacement. Would you like to meet him?"

She turned to face the open front doors, through which night mist was now drifting.

Hooves were heard.

There was a shocked murmur around the Hall and those nearest the doors hastily moved even further backwards, some of them tripping over in their haste to clear a path for the newcomer.

Through the mist came a figure with white-blond hair and astonishingly blue eyes; the head and torso of a man joined to the palomino body of a horse.

"Professor Umbridge," grinned Phoebe, backtracking to stand alongside the centaur, "I would like to introduce Hogwarts' new Divination professor... Firenze."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 5:30am**


	112. Chapter 112

**Author's Note: **So, who is going to be my lucky SIXTH HUNDRED reviewer? That is correct, you read that right... SIXTH HUNDRED! I cannot believe it! Although I would not be asking for this if it hadn't been for a good friend of mine who is currently only now starting third year in this series and has managed to review without fail since he started reading.

**Dedication: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, HotaruKenobi, Dream Lighting, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185, Princessflag3998, BrightYellowSunflower** and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn.**

* * *

><p>"I'll bet you wish you hadn't given up Divination now, don't you, Hermione?" asked Parvati, smirking.<p>

It was breakfast time a few days after the sacking of Professor Trelawney, and Parvati was curling her eyelashes around her wand and examining the effect in the back of her spoon.

They were having their first lesson with Firenze that morning.

"Not really," said Hermione indifferently, who was reading the _Daily Prophet_. "I've never really liked horses."

She turned the page of the newspaper, scanning its columns.

"He's not a horse, he's a centaur!" said Lavender, sounding shocked.

"A _gorgeous_ centaur…" sighed Parvati.

"And unavailable to humans," Phoebe quipped, watching as Lavender applied a small amount of lip gloss to her already shimmering mouth. "Seriously, what is with the make-up?"

Parvati and Lavender exchanged looks.

"We have to look our best," answered Lavender.

Parvati nodded. "Isn't that the reason your hair is braided this morning?" she questioned, indicating to the long braid that lay across Phoebe's shoulder, stopping at the knot in her tie.

"No," answered Phoebe, flicking her hair over her shoulder. "I have dance practice this afternoon… and my hair always gets in my way when I'm dancing, so I decided that I would throw it up today, makes things easier!"

Neither Parvati nor Lavender looked like they believed her, but Phoebe brushed them off and turned to Hermione who had once again spoken.

"Either way, he's still got four legs," the bookwork shrugged. "Anyway, I thought you two were all upset that Trelawney had gone?"

"We are!" Lavender assured her. "We went up to her office to see her, we took her some daffodils – not the honking ones that Sprout's got, nice ones…"

"How is she?" asked Harry.

"Not very good, poor thing," said Lavender sympathetically. "She was crying and saying she'd rather leave the castle forever than stay here if Umbridge is still here, and I don't blame her. Umbridge was horrible to her, wasn't she?"

"Something tells me that this is just the calm before the storm," said Phoebe, "Umbridge hasn't even started to be horrible yet!"

"Impossible," said James, who was tucking into a large plate of eggs and bacon. "She can't get any worse than she's been already."

Phoebe looked at her best friend in disgust. "James, you're an animal!" she snapped. "But you mark my words; she's looking for revenge… Dumbledore appointed a new teacher without consulting her… and what is worse, that new teacher is a half-human, half-creature…"

"There is also the fact that a student suggested him for the job," pointed out Jackson. "You saw her reaction when Dumbledore told her that it was you that had found the perfect candidate!"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, this is why I am watching my back!"

"What is the worst she can do?" asked Ron. "It's not like she can give you detention… make you write lines for selecting a teacher without her approval!"

Phoebe, Jackson and Harry exchanged looks.

"Knowing Umbridge," said Harry, "her revenge doesn't include lines!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After breakfast Hermione departed for her Arithmancy class and Phoebe the way towards Divination.

"Aren't we going up to the North Tower?" asked Ron, looking puzzled, as Phoebe bypassed the marble staircase.

The elemental glanced over her shoulder.

"How do you expect Firenze to climb that ladder? We're in classroom eleven now, it was on the notice board yesterday."

Ron frowned and looked around at Harry and James, but followed Phoebe and the others in silence.

Classroom eleven was situated in the ground-floor on the opposite side to the Great Hall.

It was one of the classrooms that was rarely every used, and had that slight neglected feeling of a cupboard or storeroom.

However, when the Gryffindor's entered it, they found themselves right in the middle of a forest clearing.

Feeling momentarily stunned, Phoebe turned in a complete circle, her eyes trying to take in everything at once.

"Wow," she breathed in amazement at the sheer beauty.

The classroom floor had become springily mossy and trees were growing out of it; their leafy branches fanned across the ceiling and windows, so that the room was full of slanting shafts of soft, dappled, green light.

"It's beautiful…"

A low chuckle caught her attention, and Phoebe spun around to see Firenze standing behind her.

"Phoebe Blackheart," he said. "You have the sight of beauty…"

Parvati and Lavender sniffed in annoyance and approached Seamus and Neville, who were already present, eyeing Firenze nervously.

"Thank you," Phoebe smiled, as she sidestepped and took a seat beside Sarah on the mossy floor. It was then that Firenze spotted Harry.

"Harry Potter," he said, holding out a hand.

"Er – Hi," said Harry. "Er – good to see you…"

"And you," said the centaur, inclining his white-blond head. "It was foretold that we would meet again."

When the door was closed and the last student had sat down upon a tree stump beside the wastepaper basket, Firenze gestured around the room.

"Professor Dumbledore has kindly arranged this classroom for us," said Firenze, when everyone had settled down, "in imitation of my natural habitat. I would have preferred to teach you in the Forbidden Forest, which is my natural home… but this is not possible."

"Please – er – sir -" said Parvati breathlessly, raising her hand, "why not? We've been in there with Hagrid, we're not frightened!"

"It is not a question of your bravery," said Firenze, "but we are in dangerous times… the rest of my herd do not tolerate humans in the forest, and while I am sure they will not hurt Foals, such as yourselves, I do not wish to chance their wrath… they are already upset that I agreed to teach you…"

Phoebe lowered her gaze as she remembered Bane's anger at her request, that one of them provide service to Dumbledore and teach them Divination, mostly so they would not have to deal with another 'Ministry approved' professor.

"Herd?" said Lavender in a confused voice. "What – oh!" Comprehension dawned on her face. "There are _more of you_?" she said, stunned.

"Did Hagrid breed you, like the Thestrals?" asked Dean eagerly.

Firenze turned his head very slowly to face Dean, who seemed to realize at once that he had said something very offensive.

"I didn't – I meant – sorry," he finished in a hushed voice.

"Centaurs are not the servants or playthings of humans," said Firenze quietly.

There was a pause, and then Firenze continued.

"Let us begin," said Firenze. He swished his long palomino tail, raised his hand towards the leafy canopy overhead the lowered it slowly, and as he did so, the light in the room dimmed, so that they now seemed to be sitting in a forest clearing by twilight, and starts emerged upon the ceiling.

There were _oohs_ and gasps, and Ron said audibly, "Blimey!"

"Lie back upon the floor," said Firenze in his calm voice, "and observe the heavens. Here is written, for those who can see the fortune of our races."

Phoebe stretched out on her back and gazed upward at the ceiling. She knew, quite well, that she had no clue how to grasp the understanding of Divination, and while it was a subject that gave her quite a headache, she did find it relatively interesting.

It gave her a connection to not just her grandmother, but it also gave her a connection to Aiden these days.

Speaking of Aiden…

Phoebe craned her neck slightly to find her brother lying vertically to her. He caught her eye, smiled and winked before looking back up at the stars.

Phoebe grinned and mimicked his actions.

"I know that you have learned the names of the planets and their moons in Astronomy," said Firenze's calm voice, "and that you have mapped the stars' progress through the heavens. Centaurs have unraveled the mysteries of these movements over centuries. Our findings teach us that the future may be glimpsed in the sky above us…"

"Professor Trelawney did Astrology with us!" said Parvati excitedly, raising her hand in front of her so that it stuck up in the air as she lay on her back. "Mars causes accidents and burns and things like that, and when it makes an angle with Saturn, like now -" she draw a right angle in the air above her "- that means that people need to be extra careful when handling hot things -"

"That," said Firenze calmly, "is human nonsense."

Parvati's hand fell limply to her side.

"Trivial hurts, tiny human accidents," said Firenze, as his hooves thudded over the mossy floor. "These are of no more significance than the scurrying's of ants to the wide universe, and are unattached by planetary movements."

"Professor Trelawney -" began Parvati, in a hurt and indignant voice.

"– is human," said Firenze simply. "And is therefore blinkered and fettered by the limitations of your kind."

Phoebe turned her head to look at her roommate. Parvati looked offended and so did several other people.

"Sibyll Trelawney may have Seen, I do not know," continued Firenze, and his tail swished lavishly as he walked up and down before them, "but she wastes her time, in the main, on the self-flattering nonsense humans call fortune-telling. I, however, am here to explain the wisdom of centaurs, which is impersonal and impartial. We watch the skies for the great tides of evil or change that are sometimes marked there. It may take ten years to be sure of what we are seeing."

Firenze passed by where Phoebe lay, staring at the flickering of a small golden star directly above her.

"For example: on the 5th of June, fifteen years ago, the world welcomed the most powerful witch into existence…" continued Firenze, and Phoebe tensed at his story. "The name of the child will remain a secret… but she is known to centaurs and all other creatures as princess!"

Phoebe blinked and glanced around, her gaze caught Sarah's and she smiled weakly.

She knew that the Hufflepuff would piece together the puzzle, but then again, Sarah knew the truth, so her knowing that Phoebe was the one Firenze was referring to did not come as much of a surprise.

Now, Firenze pointed to the red star directly above Harry.

"In the past decade, the indications have been that Wizard-kind is living through nothing more than a brief calm between two wars. Mars, bringer of battle, shines brightly above us, suggesting that the fight must break out again soon. How soon, centaurs may attempt to divine by the burning of certain herbs and leaves, by the observation of fume and flame…"

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was the most unusual lesson anyone had ever attended.

They did indeed burn sage and mallowsweet there on the classroom floor, and Firenze told them to look for certain shapes and symbols in the pungent fumes, shapes and symbols, that it seemed, Aiden was the only one able to see.

But Firenze did not seem concerned when no one, other than the Slytherin, announced that they could not see anything of what he had described.

He simply explained that not everyone could see them, that it took centaurs years and years to become competent, and finished by telling them that it was foolish to put too much faith in such things anyway, because even centaurs sometimes read them wrongly.

"He's not very definite on anything, is he?" said James in a low voice, as they put out his mallowsweet fire. "I mean, I could do with a few more detail about this war we're about to have, couldn't you?"

"But that is the whole point," said Phoebe. "He just said that not even centaurs and 100% sure that there will even be a war! He is just going by his interpretations…"

"What if there is a war?"

Phoebe gave her friend a pointed look. "This is what the DA is for…" she said, "we are training for a war, whether or not we get one is insignificant; if we don't, at least we are prepared for OWLs, if we do, then we are prepared for whatever the dark side throw at us!"

The bell rang right outside the classroom door and everyone jumped.

The class filed out, looking slightly perplexed; Phoebe and Aiden were at the back of the queue, and were about to follow Harry and Ron out into the corridor when Firenze called, "Phoebe Blackheart, a word, please."

Phoebe turned. The centaur advanced a little towards her. Aiden hesitated.

"You may stay," Firenze told him. "But close the door, please."

Aiden nodded, but Phoebe grabbed his arm as she flicked her hand towards the door and it closed with a snap.

"Show off," the Slytherin muttered.

Phoebe grinned. "Jealous!"

"Of what?"

"Of the fact that your Air powers have made little to no appearance since the beginning of last year,"

Aiden shook his head. "I'll have you know, that the appearance of your Fire and Earth powers would not have appeared had it not been for me!"

Firenze, who had been seemingly forgotten by the two elementals, smiled. "So the stars speak the truth…" he said, startling the siblings. "There is another…"

"Oh, my apologies," said Phoebe, quickly. "Firenze, I would like to introduce my brother, Aiden…"

"Brother?" questioned Firenze.

Phoebe nodded, "Half-brother," she corrected. "But brother nonetheless. He is the eldest of Draco and me. And, yes, you are correct to assume that he is just like me…"

Firenze stared at the two students in front of him, as if studying them for the first time, and then, a smile crossed his face. "The twin cores…" he muttered.

"Uh… not exactly," said Aiden, "at least… not yet…"

"You are not bound?" questioned the centaur.

"Not yet," answered Aiden.

Phoebe frowned. "Uh… am I the only one who is still confused on this whole 'binding' business?"

"You must hurry and bind your powers," said Firenze, "the future of our world resides on it! If you do not do it soon… then I fear terrible things will happen!"

"What does _that_ mean?" Phoebe asked.

"We were supposed to bind our powers on the next full moon," explained Aiden, "it can only work during that time… but Serefina has not returned to the castle, and we cannot do it without her!"

Phoebe blinked and looked towards Aiden, why did she get the feeling that she was the only person without the knowledge of the twin cores? _**Oh, that is right… because you are!**_

"You must not delay," pressed Firenze. "The sooner you are bound… the safer you will be!"

Aiden nodded. "Yes, we know -" he glanced at Phoebe, who was looking confused, "- well, I understand! Phoebe on the other hand…"

He gestured to the Gryffindor.

"… Has no clue!"

Firenze chuckled.

Phoebe frowned and turned to Aiden.

"Are you making fun of me?" she pouted.

"Of course not," smiled Aiden. "But, we are late for class!" he added, consulting his wrist watch.

Firenze nodded in understanding.

"Oh, and Phoebe Blackheart?" he added as they hurried out into the corridor.

Phoebe paused and backtracked. "Yes?"

"Congratulations," Firenze smiled, touching the second to last finger on his left hand. Phoebe touched her own and smiled as she brushed her engagement ring.

"Thank you,"

**~*Phoebe*~**

In other Hogwarts news, the teachers were persistent in reminding their students that the OWLs were drawing ever nearer.

All the fifth years were suffering from stress to some degree, but Sarah-May Prentiss became the first to receive a Calming Draught from Madam Pomfrey after she burst into tears during Charms with the Slytherin's and sobbed that she simply was not intelligent enough to pass her OWLs.

"Sarah!" scolded Phoebe, that evening in the Room of Requirements. "Stop being silly! You are one of the most intelligent people I know!"

"But -"

"No, buts!" interrupted Phoebe. "Look, if I can pass OWLs and NEWTs at the age of nine, I am sure you can do it now at fifteen!"

"That is a bad example," argued Sarah. "You are a brainiac!"

The elemental sighed in annoyance and turned to Aiden. "Sort your girlfriend out!" she said, walking away. "I give up!"

"Your charm not working?" asked Amelia.

Phoebe scowled. "Shut up!"

"Aw, is little Phoebe broken?" teased the Hufflepuff. "Someone is actually immune to her charm?"

"I'm warning you, Puffer!"

Amelia grinned. "Phoebe is broken…" she sang.

"That's it!" Phoebe yelled, lunging for the Hufflepuff.

Amelia sidestepped the Gryffindor and sprinted across the room towards Cedric; she ducked behind the seventeen year old, and appeared around him to see where Phoebe had gotten too.

She grinned, as she spotted the lion being held back by Ashlyn and James. "Thanks guys," she panted, feeling safe enough to venture out from behind her boyfriend.

However, the moment Amelia was in full view, Phoebe broke away from her best friends and lunged herself at the Hufflepuff, knocking them both to the floor,

Amelia screamed in surprise. "Ashlyn! James!"

"Sorry," the cousins apologized; as they pulled Phoebe off of their friend. "She may be small, but you have no idea how strong Phoebe actually is!"

Meanwhile, Aiden had managed to calm Sarah down, and had returned to help pull his sister off of the second Hufflepuff, and hold her at bay.

In the meantime, the DA lessons were getting better and better with each meeting.

They had finally progressed onto Patronuses, which everybody had been very keen to practice, though as Harry kept reminding them, producing a Patronus in the middle of a brightly lit classroom when they were not under threat was very different to producing it when confronted by something like a dementor.

"What we need is a boggart or something," said Harry, he was standing alongside Phoebe, watching as her bright silvery Snow Leopard bound around the Room of Requirement. "This is how I learned; I had to conjure a Patronus while the boggart was pretending to be a dementor -"

"But that would be really scary!" said Lavender, who was shooting puffs of silver vapor out of the end of her wand. "And I still – can't – do it!" she added angrily.

Neville was having trouble too. His face was screwed up in concentration, but only feeble wisps of silver smoke issued from his wand tip.

"You've got to think of something happy," Harry reminded him.

"I'm trying," said Neville miserably, who was trying so hard his round face was actually shining with sweat.

"Harry, I think I'm doing it!" yelled Seamus, who had been brought along to his first ever DA meeting by Dean. "Look – ah – it's gone… But it was definitely something hairy, Harry!"

Sarah's Patronus, a small shining silver Door mouse, was gamboling around her.

"Aw, mine's _cute_!" she squealed.

The door of the Room of Requirement opened and then closed again; Harry looked around to see who had entered, but there did not seem to be anybody there.

It was a few moments before he realized that the people close to the door had fallen silent. Next thing he knew, Phoebe was scooping up the terrified looking House-elf, Winky, into her arms.

"Pheebs?" he asked, drawing closer.

Winky was shaking from head to foot, as she sat in Phoebe's arms.

"What is wrong, Winky?" asked the Elemental.

"Phoebe Blackheart, miss…" squeaked Winky, "Phoebe Blackheart, miss… Winky has been sent to warn you… but the House-elves have been warned not to tell…"

She sprang up from Phoebe's arms, but the elemental, knowing full well that house-elves would punish themselves repeatedly for disobeying a direct order, grabbed her instantly and held her close.

"What happened, Winky?" Phoebe asked, holding the elf at arm's length.

"Phoebe Blackheart has been so kind to Winky," the elf squeaked. "Winky had to warn her…"

"Warn me of what?"

"Phoebe Blackheart… she… she…"

"Who's 'she', Winky?" asked Harry.

But Phoebe thought she knew – surely only one 'she' could induce fear in Winky? The elf looked up at them, slightly cross-eyed, and mouthed wordlessly.

"Umbridge!"

Winky nodded.

"What about her?" asked Ashlyn, "does she know – she hasn't found out about this – about us – about the DA, has she?"

But the terror in Winky's eyes was enough to confirm her suspicions.

"Is she coming?" Aiden asked quietly

Winky let out a how, and began to sob into her hands. "Yes, Phoebe Blackheart, yes!"

Phoebe drew the house elf in and turned to Harry, and then looked around at the motionless, terrified people gazing at her.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?" Phoebe yelled. "RUN FOR IT!"

They all pelted toward the exit at once, forming a scrum at the door, then people burst through; Phoebe could hear them springing along the corridors.

_**I hope they have the sense not to try and make it back to their common **_**rooms **she thought desperately, as she allowed Jackson to pull her from the room.

"Winky – I know we are equals – but this is an order – get back down to the kitchen with the other house elves, and if anyone asks whether you warned me, I want you to lie and say no!" said Phoebe.

Winky blinked her large brown eyes and nodded.

Phoebe stopped and placed the elf on the floor at the corner of the corridor.

"And I forbid you to hurt yourself!" she added.

"Yes, Phoebe Blackheart!" squeaked Winky, and she streaked off.

Phoebe glanced left and right, the others were all moving so fast that she caught only glimpse of flying heels at either end of the corridor before they vanished.

She started to run, if she could make it to the library, everything would be fine.

Silence had fallen as the rest of the DA members disappeared, Phoebe had lost sight of James and Jackson in the mad rush to get to safety, plus she had to deal with Winky, so where her friends had disappeared to she had no idea.

Rounding the corner, two corridors away from the Room of Requirements, Phoebe slammed into something solid, something which sent her sprawling backwards onto the floor.

It had been a person, a huge person built like a bear. He wore green and black robes with the Slytherin crest embroided onto them.

"Well, what do we have here?"

Phoebe froze in horror as the familiar voice assaulted her senses.

"Warrington!"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, May 20, 2012 at 5:35am**


	113. Chapter 113

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, HotaruKenobi, Evanescencefan97, Dream Lighting, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185**, **Princessflag3998** and anonymous reviewer: **Aria-****Chan.**

**Shout Outs: **Big shout out to **Starrynightsky01** for adding this story to their story alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Special shout out:** And a special shout out too **KingdomHeartsNerd** for being my lucky sixth hundred reviewer. Congratulations.

**Author's Note:** You have no idea how proud I am to have reached over six hundred reviews. Maybe, just maybe, with your help, I will reach 750 reviews by the end of Halfblood Prince, if not higher.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me so far... keep them coming.

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><p><em>"Warrington!"<em>

Phoebe swallowed as she pushed herself carefully to her feet.

Warrington sneered, his eyes boring darkly into her stormy ones.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"You," came the answer.

Phoebe gasped and took a step back. Warrington didn't sound angry or surprised, in fact he sounded rather amused.

He took a step towards her.

Phoebe turned and dashed down the hallway, back towards the Room of Requirements. There was only one thing she could do but she had to do it now.

"Don't make me hurt you, Phoebe," Warrington yelled, as he leapt after her.

But Phoebe had already reached the corridor leading to the Room of Requirements, she was cursing herself for not thinking her exit strategy first, if she had thought of this beforehand then there was the chance that she would not have run into Warrington at all.

Swinging around the corner, Phoebe caught hold of the candle bracket on the wall just above her head; she threw her weight against it and watched as the hidden door in the wall opened allowing her to slip through. As she slipped through, Phoebe slammed the palm of her hand onto the cool surface of the tunnel wall and watched as the door slid close behind her.

The last thing she saw, before she was plunged into darkness was Warrington's sneering face through the disappearing gap.

She leaned against the wall, breathing hard. She couldn't stay here. He'd find the catch any moment and, besides, she had to get back to Gryffindor tower and out of danger, she had to find Jackson.

Reaching into her robes, Phoebe pulled out her wand and muttered, "_Lumos!"_ as a light ignited from the tip, spilling bright white light all over the passage. It was times like this that she loved being in a castle that had secret passageways; they definitely came in handy.

She was halfway through already. The only problem with this passageway was that it went down several floors instead of straight across the seventh floor and out onto the same corridor as the Gryffindor Tower. This passage only went as far as the fourth floor, and there was no other way out except for the opening on the seventh and fourth floors.

Finally, Phoebe reached the end of the passageway. She felt around the paneling and found the catch. Behind her came a crash, a sound of stumbling. Warrington had found his way into the passage. Phoebe let herself out onto the fourth floor and closed the opening behind her; with any luck he wouldn't find his way out this end and have to go back to the seventh floor.

That would give her all the time she needed to get back to the Gryffindor tower.

Phoebe ran towards the Grand staircase as fast as she could. Why did this feel like a game? A chess game... what if she was just a pawn? It was obvious that Warrington was the Queen, but the only way to win at chess was to check the King.

_**So who is the King?**_

"Blackheart!"

Phoebe whirled around; Warrington had found his way out of the tunnel and was now thundering down the corridor towards her. She had wasted precious time consumed by her own thoughts, and now she was a sitting duck ready to be snatched.

"Shit!" Phoebe swore, as she hurried down the Grand staircase instead of up, there was no way she would avoid him if she were to climb the stairs, he was much bigger than her and could take the stairs two at a time, reaching the landing above before she even had a chance; but she may have had a chance if she were to go down. Maybe there was someone on the floor below that could help her.

She heard his sneers of her name as she jumped the last few steps and landed in a crouch at the base of the staircase. Looking back over her shoulder, Phoebe darted off down the corridor on the second floor, grappled with the handle of the nearest door and, much to her relief, it opened.

Hurrying inside, Phoebe pressed herself against the wall and waited. She could hear footsteps creeping along the corridor outside. She slid to the side of the door so that she would be behind it if it opened. There was a long silence, and then the door opened a fraction. She sensed a huge form behind it; she sensed eyes peering, ears straining. She held herself rigid.

The door opened wider and Warrington entered the room.

He took a step forward and stood just in front of where she was situated.

Taking her chance, Phoebe jumped out and pushed him hard in the back. He fell to his knees, almost catching his head on the corner of the desk, but he missed and quickly recovered.

Phoebe cursed and raced through to the corridor and tore back down the Grand staircase. Behind her came the pounding of his footsteps. She reached the Entrance Hall and charged towards the Great Oak doors in the white-heat of terror.

A hand seized her robes and tugged her back.

She screamed at the top of her voice as he threw her to the floor and watched as she slid to the base of the Marble staircase.

Getting back to her feet, Phoebe looked around desperately for an escape route. Her mind had gone blank with fear, so blank that she had forgotten that she was a witch... forgotten that she had elemental powers at her disposal... that she had a wand in her hand and a memory capacity to remember over a hundred spells.

No, right now, she was a terrified fifteen year old, facing off against a monster... the same monster that had tried to rape her a year previous.

"I got you now," Warrington hissed.

He wasn't running now, he didn't need to run; they both knew she couldn't escape. There was nowhere for her to go now... she couldn't get refugee anywhere, she had no access to the Slytherin or Hufflepuff common rooms, and he would be able to follow her into the kitchens. The only true place of safety she had was seven floors above her.

"No one here to save you now, Blackheart," Warrington sneered. "Brooks is dead! He can't save you this time... and I don't see Stream coming to the rescue! Your knights have abandoned you... and your Prince Charming has no clue of your situation!"

"What do you want with me?" asked Phoebe.

He did answer and simply moved closer.

Phoebe closed her eyes, shook her head, and willed herself to wake up. This had to be a dream.

There was no way this was happening... it was a horrible, horrible dream... a nightmare! Her minds were playing tricks on her... and when she opened her eyes, she was going to be in her bed in her dorm room; Hermione, Lavender and Parvati were going to be in their beds beside and opposite her. She was going to be safe.

But it was happening. She had to escape. He mustn't catch her, touch her or hurt her. She raised her hand, and her gaze caught sight of her wand... her mind reeled... she had magic! She was a witch! She wasn't helpless...

"_DIFFINDO_!" She yelled. The spell was past her lips and out of her wand before she could even blink.

Warrington raised his wand.

"_Protego!"_ he shouted, blocking her spell, although the force behind it sent him stumbling, but it did not provide enough time for her to make a break up the Marble staircase.

He caught her by the waist and picked her up like a doll.

"Leave me alone!" Phoebe screamed, pounding her fists into his back. "Leave me -"

Warrington dropped her to the ground, rolled her onto her back and straddled her hips; he gripped her wrists in his free hand and pinned them above her head. Phoebe struggled but Warrington squeezed her wrists to the point where her hands where numb and her wand was no longer in her possession.

"What are you going to do to me?" Phoebe cried.

"We were rudely interrupted last year," answered Warrington. "I want to finish what was started..."

"No! Please..." Phoebe shrieked. "You can't!"

Warrington smirked darkly. "Oh, but you see... I can... I'm the one with the wand... I have the upper hand, the higher advantage..."

Tears were streaming down Phoebe's face! She wanted him off of her... but the only way she could have done that now was to expose her Elemental magic to him, and she had been forewarned that exposure was not an option.

_**But what choice do you have?**_ Phoebe questioned herself. _**Grandpa will understand... He will understand exposure in self-defense... it is either that or -**_

Phoebe cringed as Warrington's hand - the same one that held his wand - brushed across her chest area. He was touching her in her places that he shouldn't have been.

It was time to make a choice.

Exposure or rape.

Phoebe swallowed her tears and fears. _**I am sorry, Grandpa,**_ she said mentally. _**But it was the only way.**_

Closing her eyes, Phoebe focused all of her energy on the elements. She could create them only control them... water was out of the question, she couldn't create a body of water, but if there was one around the she could do wonders with it. It was the same with air, unless there was a window open somewhere, she was in trouble.

However, she wasn't concentrating on just her Air and Water, no, desperate times called for desperate measures.

Warmth erupted inside her. Phoebe could feel her elemental magic charging its way through her system... her eyes snapped open, and Warrington frowned in confusion; her eyes were no longer stormy grey, except they were bright cobalt - almost electric - blue.

"What - what are you doing?" he demanded.

Phoebe didn't answer.

Instead, she parted her lips and let out a high pitched scream. One that rebounded all over the Entrance Hall and echoed for miles and miles around the castle; Warrington was sure that _someone_ would have heard it - but would they have been stupid enough to venture out after hours?

The scream was almost like a banshee's cry.

But it didn't last long. As soon as Phoebe had started screaming, she had stopped. Silence fell... and eerie silence... but still Phoebe's eyes remained cobalt blue.

"What did you do?" Warrington snarled, making a grab for her shoulders. The moment his huge fists curled around her shoulders, there was a silent explosion, one that emitted from Phoebe's chest.

Having been caught in the blast, Warrington was thrown high into the air, arching as he was tossed over and then hit the wall behind him with a sickening crunch.

He slid down, so that he was sitting at the base, his wand fell from his hand and rolled away. There was blood dripping down from his mouth and nose, a clear sign that something was broken, but after the hit he had taken, there was no doubt that something had been damaged.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Aiden stopped outside the Hufflepuff common room, breathing hard. It had been a whole half hour since he and Sarah had 'escaped' the Room of Requirement and his labored breathing wasn't from the fact that he had been running, no, it was more to do with the fact that he and Sarah had spent the last half an hour making sure that one another were alright.

"_Making sure you're both alright?"_ Aiden could hear Phoebe's laughing voice in his own head, as he made his way back along the corridor towards the door, which led out into the Entrance Hall. _"Yeah, right! Sucking one another's face off is more like it!"_

As he climbed the stairs to the Entrance Hall, Aiden couldn't help but smile lightly. That would have been exactly the same words that Phoebe would have used if she had known how he had spent the last half an hour.

But then again, she was a fine one to talk, the number of times she had been caught with Terence… and if rumors are true, then she's gone one step further than Sarah and he had.

Shaking his head of all thoughts, Aiden wrenched open the door blocking his access to the Entrance Hall and the Slytherin dungeons beyond.

He had to get back to his common room before anyone, especially Snape and Umbridge, realized that he was missing.

However, the moment he stepped foot into the Entrance Hall, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He could sense that magic had been used, rather recently, and not every day, normal magic that was expected of students at Hogwarts… he knew that elemental magic had been used, so that was either himself, Phoebe or Serefina.

_**It can't be Serefina**_ he thought wearily, stepping further into Entrance Hall.

All was silent in the Entrance Hall, but he could just make out the silhouette of two bodies; a few feet apart. One was lying in the middle of the Hall and the other was thrown against the wall on the opposite side. Both were motionless.

"Phoebe?"

Aiden paused as he recognized the body in the middle of the hall.

"Phoebe?"

He hurried forward and dropped to his knees beside his sister. Her eyes were closed. Quickly he pressed his fingers to her neck, sighing in relief as he found a small pulse.

"She's alive…" he muttered, glancing across at the second body. "Warrington…?"

Aiden frowned; before realization slowly dawned on his face… he didn't have to be an eye witness to know what had transpired in the Entrance Hall, prior to his arrival.

_**But why didn't she scream?**_ He wondered silently, looking between his sister and the older Slytherin.

Wait. There had been something… a high-pitched noise… almost like a banshee's cry; it had been over ten minutes ago, he had heard it when he was with Sarah, but he hadn't wanted to worry her; so he hadn't said or done anything.

Aiden cursed his own stupidity.

If he had only come to investigate the source of the disturbance, maybe, just maybe, Phoebe wouldn't be unconscious… maybe Warrington wouldn't have been so damaged.

"Phoebe, if he dies – or is dead – you are in so much trouble!" Aiden said, and although he was speaking to Phoebe, she was unconscious and therefore unable to hear him.

Footsteps arrived behind, stopping at the top of the marble staircase.

"What is going on here?" demanded the familiar voice of Draco Malfoy. "Phoebe… What did you do, Chamberlain?"

"Me?" Aiden demanded. "I have only just arrived, Malfoy! I found them like this!"

"What are you doing outside of the common room, it is after curfew?"

"Same goes for you!"

"I happen to be a Prefect!"

"And a part of Umbridge's squad, by the look of things!" spat Aiden, his gaze seeking out the badge on Draco's robes. "You must be so proud… infiltrating your sisters own secret defense unit!"

Draco paused. "You're lying; Phoebe wouldn't have joined that stupid group! She doesn't need to learn from Potter!"

Aiden smirked and shook his head. "You really are as dense as you look,"

"Watch it, Chamberlain," sneered Malfoy. "I have the power to take points now!"

"From your own house?" Aiden shrugged. "Be my guest! But I thought you actually wanted to beat the Gryffindor's in the house cup for once… my mistake!"

Draco glared. He had a point.

"Is Phoebe going to be alright?" asked Draco, deciding to change the subject.

"I didn't think you'd care," said Aiden.

"She is my sister, Chamberlain!" snapped Draco. "I care about what happens to family!"

Aiden bit his tongue to keep from retorting, there was a reason that Draco did not know the truth about him, and that was because Lucius had not seen fit to explain that he had committed the ultimate sin within the pureblood society. He had committed adultery and sired an illegitimate child that could easily ruin his reputation.

Instead, he said, "She is going to be fine... but we have to get her to the hospital wing, now!"

"What about him?" Draco asked, sneering across at the unconscious Warrington.

Getting to his feet, Aiden crossed the Entrance Hall and pressed his fingers against the Slytherin chaser's neck. There was a pulse. "He's still alive... but only just! We'll take them both to Madam Pomfrey. Can you carry Phoebe?"

Draco did not answer, he merely scooped Phoebe up as if she were a doll, and started up the marble staircase with her.

"And for your information," said Aiden as he followed after him, levitating Warrington in front of him, "It was Phoebe's idea to start the DA lessons with Potter has teacher…"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, 22 May 2012 at 2:45am**


	114. Chapter 114

**Author's Note:** You guys are all truly amazing. I know... I know... I have said it many times in the past, but I really do mean it. You know what else you are? Patient! I am trying to navigate around essay writing and updating this, and my other stories, and you are all truly amazingly patient while I am away for a long period. Thank you for being amazing, never change!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following people: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Jojia, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185** and anonymous reviewer:** Miracleshappen1994**.

**In Responses:** Many of you have asked if Phoebe will be expelled after her 'attack' on Warrington last chapter. Well, let me just say that if she is expelled this story will end very _very_ soon. So, let's get through this chapter before we decide what is going to happen, shall we?

* * *

><p><em>- BY ORDER OF -<em>

_The Ministry of Magic_

_Dolores Jane Umbridge (High Inquisitor) has replaced Albus Dumbledore as Head of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty-eight._

_Signed: Cornelius Oswald Fudge_

_MINISTER OF MAGIC_

"The notices are everywhere," said Ashlyn. She was sitting on Phoebe's bed, a piece of parchment in her hands; it was the same notice that explained that Umbridge had been made Headmistress of Hogwarts.

Phoebe, who was lying back against her pillows, blinked and used her hand to smother a yawn. "They aren't just on the noticeboards?"

"No," answered Ashlyn. "I suspect Umbridge wants to be sure that we are all aware that she is the new Headmistress..."

"She wants us to be aware that a new regime has started," said Aiden. "This was her plan all along! She didn't just come here to keep an eye on Dumbledore... she came here to take over!"

There others stayed silent; neither of them could argue the point because they had all been thinking it for some time, most since the beginning of the start of school.

"What are we going to do?" Amelia asked.

"There is nothing we can do!" said Sarah.

Phoebe blinked rapidly. She had only just woken up and her brain was not working to its usual standards just yet, so she was having a little difficulty taking everything in. "You lot surprise me," she said, biting back a yawn. "You're all acting like it is the end of the world!"

"Pheebs, Dumbledore is _gone_!" emphasized Amelia. "It just about _is_ the end of the world!"

"There is nothing we can do to win against the old toad," added James.

"Who says?"

"We just tried to win against her," said Ashlyn. "The DA was supposed to help us win against her, but she found us out, there is nothing more we can do! And with Dumbledore gone..."

"Dumbledore will be back before long," protested Phoebe, stubbornly. "They won't be able to keep him away for long! You'll see everything will go back to normal in no time!"

"But what are we going to do about Umbridge?" questioned Sarah. "We are still stuck with her and her medieval methods!"

"Hey, that reminds me!" said Jackson, lowering his voice so that no one could overhear him. "Nearly Headless Nick told me that Umbridge tried to get back into Dumbledore's office last night after they'd search the castle and grounds for him -"

Phoebe snorted. "Oh, please! Like Dumbledore is going to take refuge on the grounds! How thick does the Ministry think he is?"

Jackson shrugged. "Anyway, apparently the Heads office has sealed itself against her, she couldn't get passed the gargoyle," he went on. "Apparently she had a right little wobble!"

"Oh, I expect she really fancied herself sitting up there in the Head's office," said James viciously, as the door to the Hospital wing opened at the end of the dormitory. "Lording it over all the other teachers, the stupid puffed-up, power-crazy old -"

"Now, do you _really_ want to finish that sentence, Black?"

Draco Malfoy had just entered the dormitory and approached Phoebe's bed, possibly with the intent on visiting his sister without the cover of his bodyguards. His pale, pointed face was alight with malice.

"Afraid i'm going to have dock a few points from Gryffindor," he drawled.

Aiden rolled his eyes. _**Typical**_

"It's only teachers that can dock points from Houses, Malfoy," said Sarah at once. "Prefects don't have that authority!"

"I know _prefects_ can't dock points, Puffer -"

"Don't call me that!" snapped Sarah, earning a surprised look from her friends. The Hufflepuff shrugged, only her friends had the pleasure of calling her by her nickname.

Draco glared, but pressed on in his lazy tone. "- Prefects may not have the pleasure of taking points, but members of the Inquisitorial Squad -"

"The _what_?" said James sharply.

"The Inquisitorial Squad, Black," said Draco, pointing at his tiny silver badge upon his robes just beneath his Prefect's badge. "A select group of students who are supportive of the Ministry of Magic, hand-picked by Professor Umbridge."

"In other words," interrupted Phoebe. "Umbridge has got our own classmates spying on us because she can't be in several places at once!"

"It brings a whole new meaning to 'she has eyes all over the school'" added Aiden.

Phoebe grinned. "Perfect example," she nodded.

Aiden winked.

Draco, who had not missed the gesture, frowned, why did it seem to him that Aiden had a better relationship with _his_ sister? And, how exactly, did they become friends in the first place?

"Anyway," said Draco, "members of the Inquisitorial Squad _do_ have the power to dock points. So, Black, I'll have five from you for being disrespectful towards our new Headmistress and Prentiss, five for contradicting me..."

James and Sarah glared.

"Now," added Draco, "you must all leave!"

"Why?" asked Amelia and Sarah at the same time.

"Because I said so!"

"Not good enough!" snarled James.

"Do I need to take more points?" threatened Draco. "Because I will -"

James glared. "Since when do you threaten?"

"Ten points for Gryffindor," said Draco. "For back-sassing me! Now, get out!"

But James and the others remained seated around Phoebe's bed.

The elemental sighed and looked around at them, "It's alright, guys," she nodded. "You can all come back later... I need to rest up anyway!"

"Are you sure?" questioned James, still hesitant to leave Phoebe alone. He understood that Draco was her brother and had every right to see her, but that did not mean he trusted him.

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "Go. Go enjoy the weekend... I'll see you later!"

James exchanged a look with Ashlyn before nodding. "Alright, if you insist!"

"Although we won't do much enjoying without you," smiled Amelia. "Rest up! We'll be back after lunch!"

"Can't wait!" grinned Phoebe.

The others nodded and quickly left, leaving the twins together.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Dear Serefina,_

_ It has happened. Phoebe's powers have combined and she lost control last night. She is alright in herself, but Warrington was caught in the blast, he has been removed from the Hospital wing and transferred to St. Mungo's! He's not waking up! He is alive... there is a pulse, I felt it myself, but I fear he may be in a slight coma._

_ We need to bind our powers now! It is the only chance of Phoebe not losing control again._

_Write back as soon as you can._

_Love Aiden"_

Folding the letter and placing it inside an envelope. Aiden handed it to Athena, carried her to the opening in the Owlery wall and let her fly. It was earlier hours in the morning, the rest of the castle was asleep and he knew that this was the only safe time to actually send a letter; there was no one awake yet to intercept his mail.

Not that anyone was stupid enough to intercept Athena... especially after the time she had attacked Umbridge, and scarred her for life!

Once the eagle was out of sight, Aiden made his way down to the Hospital Wing, Phoebe was being released today, and he had promised that he would accompany her down to breakfast. Besides, they needed to discuss what had happened the night the DA had been disbanded and Warrington had attacked her.

He wanted to apologize for not investigating when he had heard the scream... he had not had the chance to yet, and he still felt guilty about it. If he had gone to investigate, Phoebe would not have been hurt, Warrington would be awake and he would not have needed to send the letter in the first place.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"But why haven't you got Occlumency lessons anymore?" said Hermione, frowning.

"I've _told_ you," Harry muttered. "Snape reckons I can carry on by myself now I've got the basics..."

Phoebe, who had just arrived behind her friend, looked skeptical.

"So you've stopped having funny dreams?" she asked, taking pleasure in seeing Harry jump.

"You're alive!" exclaimed Ron, as Hermione made room for her best friend on the bench beside her.

"Don't sound so disappointed!" said Phoebe, pouring herself some orange juice.

Ron paled. "No!" he yelped. "I didn't mean -"

"I know, Ron," nodded Phoebe. "I'm just messing with you. Anyway," she added turning to Harry. "Answer my question: Have you or have you not stopped having funny dreams?"

"Pretty much," said Harry, not looking at her.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "You know what I think?" she asked.

"What?"

"I think you're lying," said Phoebe. "I think you saw something that you shouldn't have in Professor Snape's office... something that made her furious and has refused to give you lessons because he wishes not to see you again!"

Harry blinked and stared at her in amazement. How the hell did she know these things?

"Did you?" whispered Hermione, looking between Harry and Phoebe. "Did you see something that you weren't supposed to?"

Still staring at Phoebe, who was smirking triumphantly because she knew she was right, Harry shook his head and said, "No. I have no clue what she is talking about!"

"Liar!" accused Phoebe. "Being the case, I do not believe that Snape should stop giving you lessons..."

"I agree," said Hermione. "Not until you are sure that you can control your dreams! You should go back to him and ask -"

"No!" said Harry forcefully. "Just drop it!"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks, the bookworm looked like she wanted to argue, but Phoebe interrupted her and explained that it would be Harry's fault if Voldemort were to use him as a one-way mirror to see what he is doing. That it would be on his shoulders if Voldemort tricked him into believing that his dreams were in fact his reality.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was the first day of the Easter holidays.

Phoebe and Ashlyn, as it was their custom, had spent the whole day drawing up study schedules for themselves.

"Six weeks?" howled James. "How can there be only six weeks left?"

"Why are you acting so surprised?" asked Phoebe, as she tapped each little square of his schedule with her wand so that it flashed a different colour according to its subject.

"I dunno..." said James, "there's been a lot going on..."

"Here," said Phoebe, handing him his schedule, "if you follow that you should do fine."

James looked down at it gloomily, but then brightened. "You've given me an evening off every week!"

"That's for Quidditch practice," said Ashlyn, "you will see that Weasley and Phoebe have the same days off. You'll all be practicing together."

"Has Angelina booked the pitch for them days?"

Phoebe nodded. "I asked her before I started planning these," she waved her schedule at him.

"Oh," said James, nodding. "But what's the point? We're shit!"

"We do when our players have that attitude!" snapped Phoebe. "Practice makes perfect!"

James sighed heavily, shrugged and pocketed his schedule. He would look at it later. He, unlike his friends, preferred to breeze through his exams and not bury himself under mountains of work and then worry when he couldn't remember a single thing in the exam room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather grew breezier, brighter and warmer as the holidays passed, but the fifth years and seventh years at Hogwarts were all trapped inside the castle, unable to enjoy the sunshine with the rest of their schoolmates. They were left traipsing back and forth to the library, since their exams were getting closer and closer.

It was Sunday evening, and Phoebe was making her way along the sixth floor towards the library where she was sure that Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah were, studying for their upcoming exams. Pushing open the door to the quiet sanctuary, the elemental made her way towards the back table where she found her friends.

"Hey," she smiled taking a seat beside Ashlyn.

"Hey," said Sarah. "How come you're not at practice?"

"It's over," said Phoebe. "Ron had to take Jack Sloper up to the hospital wing."

"Why?"

"Well, we're not sure, but we _think_ he knocked himself out with his own bat." She sighed heavily. "Anyway... what did I miss?"

"Not much," said Amelia. "Just boring hours of research... revision... and reviewing!"

"You make it sound fun," huffed Phoebe, pulling her homework diary from her backpack. "I'll be right back..."

"Where are you going?" asked Ashlyn.

Phoebe pointed towards the Transfiguration section. "Advanced Transfiguration! I left mine in my dorm room!"

"Could you grab me _Transfiguration for OWLs_?"

"Sure," said Phoebe, bypassing a Ravenclaw first year and disappearing into the shelves.

She run her finger across the books pulling down what was needed and putting back what was not. She had just passed the end of the Potions section when she heard a whispered conversation from behind the Charms section of the library. Peering around the corner, she smiled as she spotted Harry and Ginny. _**They look cute together**_ she thought.

"Hey, guys," Phoebe smiled, approaching the table.

"Hey, Phoebe," grinned Ginny. "Oh, wait; I have something for you..."

She fished around in the box that was on the table and pulled out a large Easter egg. "It's from Mum! It has only just made it passed Umbridge's inspection!"

"Thanks," said Phoebe, admiring the chocolate egg. "What's wrong, Harry? You look like someone just ran over Hedwig!"

Harry glanced around to make sure that nobody was listening; Madam Pince was several shelves away, stamping out a pile of books for a frantic-looking Hannah Abbott. "I was just telling Ginny," he said, in a low voice as he turned back to Phoebe. "I wish to talk to Sirius! But I can't!"

"Why can't you?" asked Phoebe.

"Because Umbridge is policing the fires and reading our mail!" said Harry, hopelessly.

Ginny and Phoebe exchanged looks.

"The thing about growing up with Fred and George," said Ginny thoughtfully, "is that you sort of start thinking anything's possible if you've got enough nerve."

Harry looked at her, but before he could say anything, Madam Pince had swooped down on them.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?"

"Oh, damn!" whispered Ginny, jumping to her feet. "I forgot -"

"Chocolate!" yelped Phoebe, dashing back towards the Potions section of the library. She needed to be in the library, and being kicked out was not something that was on her to-do-list for this evening. Carefully and quietly she scampered back to her table and hid her Egg from Mrs. Weasley in her backpack, while Madam Pince charmed Harry's books, bag and ink bottle to chase him and Ginny from the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As though to underline the importance of their upcoming examination, a batch of pamphlets, leaflets, and notices concerning various Wizarding careers appeared on the tables in Gryffindor Tower shortly before the end of the holidays, along with yet another notice on the notice board, which read:

_CAREER ADVICE_

_All fifth years will be required to attend a short meeting with their Head of House during the first week of the summer term, in which they will be given the opportunity to discuss their future careers. Times of individual appointments are listed below._

Phoebe scanned the list and found that she was expected in Professor McGonagall's office at half-past one on Monday, which meant that she was missing most of Potions. She and the other fifth years spent a considerable part of the final weekend of the Easter break reading all the career information that had been left there for their perusal.

"Well, I don't fancy Healing," said James on the last evening of the holidays. He was immersed in a leaflet that carried the crossed bone-and-wand emblem of St. Mungo's on its front. "It says here you need at least and 'E' at NEWT level in Potions, Herbology, Transfiguration, Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts. I mean... blimey... Don't want much, do they?"

"It's a very responsible job," said Phoebe. She was looking through a bright red and green leaflet that was headed THINK YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO TAKE CARE OF MAGICAL CREATURES? "You don't seem to need many qualifications to be a Carer for Magical Creatures. All they want is an OWL in Care of Magical Creatures... and I already have that!"

"You could have been working at the age of ten," said Jackson sitting on the couch beside her. Phoebe nodded and picked up another leaflet on Dancing.

Hermione, who had been reading about Muggle Relations, looked up at her best friend. "Do you have an idea of what you want to do after Hogwarts?"

"I have conflicting ideas," said Phoebe. "Before I started Hogwarts I wanted to work with Magical creatures..."

"So why did you decide to come to school if you have the grades that you needed to get a job?" Ron frowned.

"Because I was ten," answered Phoebe. "No one is going to hire a ten year old to work around dangerous creatures!"

Ron turned red and withdrew behind his leaflet on Aurors.

"But now I have come to Hogwarts my ideas have changed," continued Phoebe. "I would love to take my dancing further, but being a dancer isn't really a job, it's more of a hobby! But I have also put thought into being an Unspeakable!"

Harry snapped his head up. "Why would you want to be an Unspeakable?"

"Because it sounds interesting," said Phoebe.

"What do they do, anyway?"

"No one knows," said Phoebe. "They work for the Ministry. But like I have said -" she reached for another leaflet "- I am undecided. Maybe McGonagall can shed some light on things for me on Monday."

**~*Phoebe*~**

As the night went on, Fred and George wandered over to where Phoebe and the others were sitting. They had news for Harry.

"Ginny's had a word with us about you," said Fred, stretching out his legs on the table in front of them and causing several booklets on careers with the Ministry for Magic to slide off onto the floor. "She says you need to talk to Sirius?"

"What?" said Hermione sharply, freezing with her hand halfway toward picking up MAKE A BANG AT THE DEPARTMENT OF MAGICAL ACCIDENTS AND CATASTROPHES.

"Yeah..." said Harry, trying to sound casual, "yeah, I thought I'd like -"

"Don't be ridiculous," said Hermione, straightening up and looking at him. "With Umbridge groping around in the fires and frisking all the owls?"

"Well, we think we can find a way around that," said George, stretching and smiling. "It's a simple matter of causing a diversion. Now, you might have noticed that we have been rather quiet on the mayhem front during the Easter holidays?"

"What was the point, we asked ourselves, of disrupting leisure time?" continued Fred. "Not point at all, we answered ourselves. And of course, we'd have messed up people's studying too, which would be the very last thing we'd want to do."

He gave Phoebe and Hermione little nods.

"Oh, thank you for being so thoughtful," said Phoebe. "But the point is... you'll be expelled if you are caught!"

"We don't care about that anymore, Pheebs," said George. "What is the point in staying anymore?"

"Uh, exams?"

Fred and George laughed.

"We won't need grades where we are going," smiled Fred, "but thanks for the thoughtfulness!"

Phoebe stuck her tongue out.

"I'll chop it off next time," teased George.

"Sorry, mum!" grinned Phoebe.

Fred smirked. "Anyway, it's back to usual from tomorrow," he continued briskly. "And if we're going to be causing a bit of uproar, why not do it so that Harry can have his chat with Sirius?"

"Yes, but _still_," said Hermione with an air of explaining something very simple to somebody very obtuse, "even if you _do_ cause a diversion, how is Harry supposed to talk to him?"

"Umbridge's office," said Harry quietly.

Phoebe stared at him. "Oh, yes, that sounds like a very good plan!" she sniped sarcastically, before becoming serious. "_Are you crazy?"_

"I don't think so," said Harry, shrugging.

"And how are you going to get in there in the first place?" asked Hermione.

James lowered his leaflet on jobs in the cultivated fungus trade and was watching the conversation rapidly. He always enjoyed it when Hermione and Phoebe teamed up... he just never liked it when they teamed up against him.

Harry, however, was ready for the question.

"Sirius's knife," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"Christmas before last Sirius gave me a knife that'll open any lock," said Harry. "So even if she's bewitched the door so _Alohomora_ won't work, which I bet she has -"

"What do you think about this?" Hermione demanded of Ron.

Ron looked alarmed at being asked to give an opinion. "Um..."

"Do remember that you are a Prefect, Weasley," reminded Phoebe. "Rule breaking could cost you your badge!"

"Um... I dunno," said Ron. "If Harry wants to do it, it's up to him, isn't it?"

"Spoken like a true friend and Weasley," said Fred, clapping Ron hard on the back. "Right then. We're thinking of doing it tomorrow, just after lessons, because it should cause maximum impact if everybody's in the corridors - Harry, we'll set it off in the east wing somewhere, draw her right away from her office - I reckon we should be able to guarantee you, what, twenty minutes?" he said looking at George.

"Easy," said George.

"What sort of diversion is it?" asked James.

"You'll see," said Fred, as he and George got up again. "At least, you will if you trot along to Gregory the Smarmy's corridor round about five o'clock tomorrow."

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next day was glorious.

But sadly the glorious sunshine was being enjoyed by something else, someone that was not in Gryffindor or Slytherin.

"This sucks," complained James as he and Phoebe descended the stairs into the dungeons for Potions. "It is a beautiful day outside! Why can't we ditch Snape and go enjoy it?"

"Because you'll be expelled," said Phoebe joining Ashlyn outside the door.

Ashlyn smiled. "Hey, don't you have an appointment with McGonagall?" she asked.

"At half one," nodded Phoebe. "I have an hour of Potions. I will leave around 25 past."

"If Snape will let you," muttered James.

"He will," said Phoebe. "When is your time again?"

"Half 3," said James. "What about you, Ash?"

"I have a meeting with Professor Snape at half 2," answered the Slytherin. "Mid-way through Charms..."

"What about you, Aiden?" asked James.

"2:00 o'clock," Aiden answered. "I will be leaving as you are entering, Ash!"

"So you'll be late for Divination?" asked Phoebe.

Aiden nodded.

"I'll let Firenze know,"

Aiden smiled.

The door to the dungeons opened and the two classes filed inside.

While the rest of Gryffindor and Slytherin took their usual seats, Phoebe made her way to the front of the class and explained to Snape the situation of her meeting with Professor McGonagall. The Potions master sneered his response and waved her back to her table.

The lesson passed without incident and at 1:25pm Phoebe was leaving the dungeons for her Head of Houses' office.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Good afternoon, Miss. Blackheart," Professor McGonagall said briskly as Phoebe entered the room.

"Good afternoon, Professor," smiled Phoebe, but as she spoke somebody else sniffed from the corner. Phoebe looked around.

Professor Umbridge was sitting there, a clipboard on her knee, a fussy little pie-frill around her neck, and a small, horribly smug smile on her face.

"Sit down, Blackheart," said Professor McGonagall tersely. Her hands shook slightly as she shuffled the many pamphlets littering her desk.

Phoebe sat down with her back to Umbridge and did her best to ignore the scratching of the quill on the clipboard.

"Well, Blackheart, this meeting is to talk over any career ideas you might have, and to help you decide which subjects you should continue into sixth and seventh years," said Professor McGonagall. "Have you had any thoughts about what you would like to do after you leave Hogwarts?"

"I had this conversation with Hermione last night," smiled Phoebe. "She asked the exact same question..."

"And what did you tell her?"

"That I am conflicted," answered Phoebe.

"Conflicted?"

Phoebe nodded. "I have the grades that are required to work with Magical creatures," she explained, "but if that is the case then coming back next year would be pointless. You are only expected to achieve an Outstanding at OWL level at Care of Magical Creatures and I already have that! I have it had for the last five years..."

"Yes, I am fully aware that you have passed your OWLs and NEWTs in Care of Magical Creatures," nodded McGonagall. "Is there anything else that you may wish to pursue?"

"I have been looking into taking my dancing further,"

"Dancing is not a required job position," reminded McGonagall.

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. And the last idea I had was an Unspeakable!"

"You will need top grades for that," said McGonagall, extracting a small, dark leaflet from under the mass on her desk and opening it. "They ask for a minimum of five NEWTs and nothing under 'Outstanding's' grade, I see. It's a difficult career path, Blackheart. They only take the best. In fact, I don't think anyone has joined them in the last four years."

At this moment Professor Umbridge gave a very tiny cough, as though she was trying to see how quietly she could do it. Professor McGonagall ignored her.

"You'll want to know which subjects you ought to take, I suppose?" she went on, talking a little more loudly that before.

"Yes," said Phoebe, she had not read deeply into the Unspeakable leaflet the night before, she had been more interested in passing notes with Ashlyn. They had charmed their notebooks so they worked as a sort of telephone, but instead of speaking into a mouth piece they could scribble out a message and the recipient was alerted to the message by a small vibration that emitted from the book.

McGonagall nodded. "Defense Against the Dark Arts is a natural subject that you may need," she explained. "Of course, I would recommend Transfiguration and Potions. Charms, they are always useful, and Potions."

Professor Umbridge gave her most pronounced cough yet.

"May I offer you a cough drop, Dolores?" Professor McGonagall asked curtly, without looking up.

"Oh no, thank you very much," said Umbridge, with the simpering laugh that Phoebe hated. "I just wondered whether I could make the teensiest interruption, Minerva."

"I daresay you'll find you can," said McGonagall through gritted teeth.

"I was just wondering whether Miss. Blackheart has the right _temperament_ to be an Unspeakable," said Umbridge. "I know quite well that they prefer Witches and Wizards that they can trust."

Phoebe frowned.

_**What is that supposed to mean?**_ She thought angrily.

Possibly reading the angered question on Phoebe's face, McGonagall looked towards Umbridge. "If you are insisting that because Miss. Blackheart is not a British citizen that she will not be offered a career by our Ministry for Magic, you will find that you may be very mistaken, Dolores!"

"I beg your pardon," said Umbridge, taken aback by McGonagall's confrontation. She had not expected this. "Miss. Blackheart has not been a British citizen for fourteen years -"

"Fifteen years," interrupted Phoebe. "Sorry. But it is fifteen, nearly sixteen years since I was taken to Portugal!"

She knew it was foolish to contradict Umbridge, but she actually took pride in the fact that she was Portuguese and not British.

_**Besides, who is to say that I will be **_**able**_** to work at the British Ministry for Magic... they have a strict rule about dark creatures working for them**_.

"_Fifteen_ years!" sniffed Umbridge. "I fail to see why you are giving the girl false hope!"

"False hope?" repeated McGonagall. "Miss Blackheart has achieved high marks in all of her studies since she has started Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I do not see any _reason_ has to why she would fail to acquire a job at the end of her years."

"It is not her scores that will be taken into account," said Umbridge. "It will be her citizenship..."

Phoebe rolled her eyes.

_**You mean it will be my status**_ she contradicted mentally.

"The chances of this girl of ever becoming an Unspeakable are the same as the chances of Dumbledore ever returning to the school." said Umbridge.

"Very good chances, then," said Professor McGonagall.

Professor Umbridge stood up. She was so short that this did not make a great deal of difference, but her fussy, simpering demeanor had given place to a hard fury that made her broad, flabby face look oddly sinister.

"Blackheart has no chance whatsoever of becoming an Unspeakable!" she said. "It is not just her citizenship that will be questioned... it is her loyalty and her status!"

_**There we go!**_ Thought Phoebe with odd sense of satisfaction. She had been waiting for this.

"Oh?" questioned McGonagall.

"Miss. Blackheart is, what we at the Ministry, refer to as a 'Dark Creature'," explained Umbridge. "Yes, Miss. Blackheart, we had a healer check the signs of Mr. Warrington's injuries and she reported back that he had been blasted by a very powerful witch... the symptoms he is showing don't come from ordinary witches like myself or Professor McGonagall. Tests have been run and there are residues of elemental magic!"

Phoebe looked impassive. "I have no idea what you are talking about," she said.

"Tut, tut," said Umbridge, shaking her head. "I did not peg you as the type to tell lies, Miss. Blackheart..."

_**Then you thought wrong.**_

"What happened to Mr. Warrington is a complete mystery," said McGonagall. "But, please, do explain what it has to do with Miss. Blackheart's career choice!"

"The Minister for Magic will never employ a dark creature, especially one of Blackheart's status!" said Umbridge, her voice rising furiously,

"There may well be a new Minister of Magic by the time Blackheart is ready to join!" shouted Professor McGonagall.

"Aha!" shrieked Professor Umbridge, pointing a stubby finger at McGonagall. "Yes! Yes, yes! Of course! That's what you want, isn't it, Minerva McGonagall? You want Cornelius Fudge replaced by Albus Dumbledore! You think you'll be where I am, don't you, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister and headmistress to boot!"

"You are raving," said Professor McGonagall, superbly disdainful. "Miss. Blackheart, do you have any questions before we end this consultation?"

"Just one!"

"Which is?"

Phoebe smiled and turned to Umbridge. "Who says that I would like to work under Cornelius Fudge, anyway?"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** A new poll has been added to my Profile. Please take it. If you do not have an account then please take it here:

Should Phoebe be expelled?

Yes or No?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 23 May 2012 at 03:51am**


	115. Chapter 115

**Author's Note**: Well I finished my essay! Now to send it off to my study skills tutor to see what she makes of it, make some amendments and then to hand it in tomorrow… and then, guess what? I'M FREE! Whoo!

**Dedications:** (Where did everyone go? Please come back) Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, Fan of Fics **and **Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn.**

**Shout Outs:** A big thank you too **TheDarkAngelCreed** for adding this story to their favourites and **LindsayC173** for adding this story to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

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><p>It was nearing the end of Defence Against the Dark Arts.<p>

Umbridge, who had been reminding them all about the severe consequences of upholding an illegal Defence group at Hogwarts, paused as a humungous BOOM!

The very floor of the office shook.

Phoebe and Aiden exchanged looks, there was only one person that they knew who was strong enough to cause an Earth shake that powerful… and that person wasn't even in the United Kingdom.

There were screams and yells reverberating from somewhere above them. Classroom doors, all along the corridor outside, burst open and student tumbled out into the corridors.

Next second, the door to the DADA classroom burst open and Argus Filch stood on the threshold, he was wheezing terribly and his eyes were bulging. "Professor… Umbridge…" he coughed.

"What is it, Filch!" snapped Umbridge, she looked furious. "What is happening?"

However, before the caretaker could answer a huge wheel of pink fire rolled into the classroom.

"Everyone get down!" James shouted, ducking under the table. Ashlyn and Phoebe copied his actions, as all over the classroom everyone did as instructed.

"Who wants to bet this is Fred and George's doing?" whispered Aiden.

Phoebe nodded. "They did say something about a diversion..."

"But I thought they were doing it after lessons?" asked James. "You know, when there were maximum students in the classrooms?"

"Classes have supposed to have ended," said Aiden. "We are the only ones over-looking the time limit."

"No one is leave this room, understand!" ordered Umbridge, raising her wand and dashing out of the office. Loud shouts could be heard coming down the corridor, the students gave her a few seconds start and then hurried after her.

It was not difficult to find the uproar. Down in the Entrance Hall, Pandemonium reigned. Dragons comprised entirely of green-and-gold sparks were soaring up and down the corridors, emitting loud fiery blasts and bangs as they went. Shocking-pink Catherine wheels five feet in diameters were whizzing lethally through the air like so many flying saucers.

Rockets with long tails of brilliant silver starts were ricocheting off the walls. Sparklers were writing swearwords in midair of their own accord. Firecrackers were exploding like mines everywhere Phoebe looked, and instead of burning themselves out, fading from sight, or fizzling to a halt, these pyrotechnical miracles seemed to be gaining in energy and momentum the longer she watched.

Umbridge was standing apparently transfixed with horror, halfway down the stairs. As Phoebe watched, one of the larger Catherine wheels seemed to decide that what it needed was more room to maneuver; it whirled toward Umbridge with a sinister _Wheeeeeeeeee_.

Ashlyn and Phoebe laughed as Umbridge screamed in fright and ducked as the Catherine wheel spun towards the window, with a flick of her wrist, Phoebe opened the glass pane and watched as the firework flew outside and streaked across the grounds.

Meanwhile, several of the dragons and a large paper bat that was smoking ominously took advantage of the open door at the end of the corridor to escape toward the second floor.

"Hurry, Filch, hurry!" shrieked Umbridge. "They'll be all over the school unless we do something - _Stupefy!"_

A jet of red light shot out of the end of her wand and hit one of the rockets. Instead of freezing in midair, it exploded with such a force that it blasted a hole in a painting of a soppy-looking witch in the middle of a meadow - she ran for it just in time, reappearing seconds later squashed into the painting next door, where a couple of wizards playing cards stood up hastily to make room for her.

"Don't Stun them, Filch!" shouted Umbridge angrily, for the entire world as though it had been his suggestion.

"Right you are, Headmistress!" wheezed Filch, who was a Squib and cold no more have stunned the fireworks than swallowed them. He dashed to a nearby cupboard, pulled out a broom, and began swatting at the fireworks in midair; within seconds the head of the broom was ablaze.

Phoebe had seen enough; still laughing she turned to James, Ashlyn and Aiden. "We have to find Fred and George!" she said. "Umbridge will figure out how to get rid of these and then she will be looking for revenge! We have to get the twins out of Hogwarts!"

"I agree!" said James. "I have an idea on where they may be... c'mon!"

And he was off down the corridor.

Ashlyn, Aiden and Phoebe hot on his heels.

**~*Phoebe*~**

True to his word, James knew exactly where Fred and George were.

"Impressive," said Aiden after they had pulled the twins into an empty classroom. "Very impressive..."

"Cheers," said George. "Has she tried to vanish them, yet?"

James shook his head. "Not yet - why? What happens if she does?"

"They multiply by ten every time," answered Fred.

Ashlyn grinned. "Sweet!"

"But that is not why we are here," said Phoebe, and although she was impressed with Fred and George's work, she had bigger problems. "You two have to get out of the school! It is the only way that she can't punish you!"

"But we haven't finished," protested Fred.

Phoebe glared at them. "Didn't you say, just last night, that you didn't care about staying in school anymore? You're not changing your minds are you?"

"No," said George. "But we want to cause a little more mayhem before we leave!"

"Leave that to someone else!" snapped Phoebe. "Right now top priority is making sure that Umbridge doesn't get her hands on you! If she does, I fear the punishment is going to be a lot worse than detention and writing lines. She may be approve of Filch to bring back Whipping!"

Fred and George's eyes widened. The number of times Filch had said in the past that they deserved a good Whipping for the trouble they caused him.

"She wouldn't -" the twins whispered.

"She is sadistic enough," answered Phoebe. "I understand that you want to be remembered here at Hogwarts... and trust me, you will! I will make sure of that! But you have to leave! It is for your own safety!"

Fred and George exchanged looks. "Alright," they agreed. "When would you suggest... now?"

"No, not now," answered Phoebe. "Umbridge is still in the corridors and she will have had the Inquisitorial Squad patrolling looking for you while she deals with your fireworks. We'll have to do it after hours... when it is dark, and everyone else asleep."

"We?" questioned James. "What do you mean 'we'?"

"They can't do it alone!" said Phoebe, "they'd never make it! We have to help them!"

"What can we do?" asked James.

Phoebe glanced around at her friends. "I have contacts on the outside," she explained. "They will help! They can meet Fred and George in Hogsmeade and take them to Headquarters!"

"You will need a time," said Ashlyn.

"We'll do it at midnight," answered Phoebe. "It will be perfect. The cover of darkness. I will see if I can borrow the Marauders Map from Harry, we will be able to check where everyone... if there is anyone patrolling the corridors - there shouldn't be - we will know. I will message my contacts as soon as the sun goes down!"

Fred and George nodded. "We'll meet you in the common room at ten to 12,"

"Alright," said Phoebe. "Now, let's get out of here!"

And so, one-by-one, the four Gryffindor's and two Slytherin's hurriedly left the empty classroom, breaking off and going their separate ways when they reached the Grand staircase. Phoebe's mind on the plan to help escape Fred and George escape. It had to be perfect! Her life - not to mention Fred and George's life - depended on her ability to execute their escape.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A lone figure walked across the courtyard of the Hogwarts castle. She was dressed for travel in plain gray with a heavy wool cloak, which fastened around her head like a nun's habit, hiding her face. The flag stones beneath her ancient and cold, her footsteps echoed off every stone column and arch. She pulled the cloak tightly around her as the shadows crept up her skin and chilled her to the bone.

It was passed midnight. Light struggled and lost here: it strained through dim stained glass windows, glowed from occasional rays of the full moon and glinted off the silver ring on the girl's finger.

She walked past the fountain to one of the secret passageways on the side of the castle.

She played with the ring on her finger, twisting it around her skin and running her fingers over the rough surface. There lay a dragon pendant around her neck, its claws clutching a pearl like stone. The stone itself was a loving white - it had been that colour since her attack on the Slytherin that had 'man-handled' her a few weeks previous.

Reaching for her wand, Phoebe tapped the stone bricks of the castle wall, similar to that of the secret entrance into Diagon Alley. Next second a passage opened up in the side of the wall, ignited her wand using the _'Lumos'_ charm, and placed her hands against the walls. They were cool, hard and bony, and they closed in quickly on either side.

The ceiling was low and made her stoop but it was the floor that was dangerous. The secret passageway had been formed in the design of a rough, twisting stairway, which made climbing easier, but in the semi-darkness she could barely see the steps. If she fell, there would be no one to help her - assuming she was here alone.

_**You have to be alone! Only you know about this passage!**_

Yet, she continued to climb on, testing the ground ahead of her with a foot before inching forward. At least she was moving away from the dangers of the outside world, but surprisingly it was not what lay _behind_ her that terrified her, it was what lay ahead.

Phoebe climbed for several more minutes, when suddenly the ground flattened out and she caught a hint of light ahead. She took a few more steps; her hands away from the walls now that she could see better, and saw a series of tiny gaps in the rocks. She stopped by the first and put an eye to it, only to realize that the tunnel had come to an end.

She had reached her destination.

_"Nox!"_ Phoebe whispered, extinguishing the light from her wand and reached into her robes for the Marauders Map, she unfolded it and tapped it with her wand. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!"

The map sprang to life; little dots appeared, clustered in the four corners of the paper, revealing that everyone was in their correct places. Phoebe searched for the dot labelled 'Umbridge' and much to her relief found it in her quarters.

_**Thank god**_ thought the elemental, as she carefully pushed open the secret passage and slipped into the empty corridor on the sixth floor. _**Now to get to the Grand staircase and back to Gryffindor Tower!**_

Checking the map every few minutes, Phoebe made it safely to the Grand staircase; but by the time she reached the seventh floor, the young elemental became aware that she was no longer alone.

"Out after hours, Blackheart?" sneered a gruff voice.

Phoebe froze, and forgetting about the map, turned slowly to face the person whom had caught her.

Lucien Bole, the Slytherin Beater stood in front of her, his wand aloft and pointed at her.

_**Busted!**_

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **It would seem that Phoebe is passed the whole 'dying-at-the-end-of-the-school-year' and has replaced it with 'being-hunted-by-Slytherin-Quidditch-Players' instead. When will this girl ever learn to not leave the Gryffindor tower, alone, after hours during the end of the year?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 25 May 2012 at 03:30am**


	116. Chapter 116

**Author's Note:** I'M FREE! Yup. You read the correct... I am free of lessons, homework and essays until September. Whoo!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Evanescencefan97, Dream Lighting, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185** and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs: **Big shout out too **MissMaryMalfoy** for adding this story to their Favourite story alert. Appreciate it mate.

**In Responses:** Haven't done one of these for some chapters. Let's see:

**Evanescenefan97:** I am glad that you liked the plot twist. The other way just didn't seem to fit, what with them just up and leaving, mostly because they didn't leave after the firework incident in the book. There was another incident but someone mentioned the fireworks and I decided to keep them in. And I agree: Phoebe will never learn.

**Dream Lighting:** Sadly Phoebe getting caught was something that I planned on. There is an incident in the books that I want to bring into the story... we don't see it in the books because of Fred and George's departure... but we will see it here. Read the warning below it may give you a slight idea of what to expect.

**Fan of Fics:** Yes. Phoebe had already helped Fred and George and was on her way back to Gryffindor Tower; I guess I didn't make that clear enough. I apologize. As for not checking to be sure that everyone was in their common rooms, Phoebe was more focused on Professors being in the corridors, it was after midnight so for a student to be out was a complete surprise. But you are correct, she had the map, she shouldn't have missed him.

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** Phoebe? Airhead? I guess she has been hanging out with James for too long; her brain cells are becoming wasted. =)

**Pixiescale1185:** Thanks. =)

**Warning:** This story is now rated 'M' for mild violent scenes. Things are about to become horrific and frightening. Next few chapters are not for the faint-hearted, squeamish or easily upset. Read at your own risk – you have been warned! The rating has been changed specifically for this reason!

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><p><em><strong>Busted!<strong>_

Shit! How did she manage to get herself into these situations was beyond understandable. She had the Marauders Map for Merlin's sake! How had she missed seeing Bole on the seventh floor? Was it because she was certain that no student would be out after midnight? Why would they? Or had someone tipped Bole off to her being in the corridors at a certain time?

But who would know?

Phoebe winced as Bole's hand tightened around her elbow and he tugged her back down the Grand staircase to the second floor, she knew instantly where he was taking her, he needn't have said, it was obvious that he would take her back to Umbridge. Why wouldn't he? Umbridge was headmistress now and she was the one that he reported too anyway!

"Never in my life," she said snidely, "did I ever think that I would see the day where a Slytherin listened to a Professor!"

"Shut up!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Whatever happened to the 'Slytherin's-do-what-is-right-by-them' attitude?" she questioned.

Bole's lip curled. "I said shut up!"

With Warrington in St. Mungo's and Montague in the Hospital Wing, it was up to him to bring rule-breakers in for questioning. "Umbridge is going to reward me and Slytherin greatly for this!"

"For what?"

"You!"

"I am not some fox!" snapped Phoebe. "Something that you _hounds_ can hunt down and then return to your masters to be skinned alive!"

Bole smirked at the reference. "I now understand why no _decent_ Pureblood would want you!" he growled. "When you babble Muggle nonsense such as that!"

"Any _decent_ Pureblood would not have known what I meant," spat Phoebe.

Bole's eyes darkened and his grip on her elbow loosened, taking it as a sign of momentarily surprise, Phoebe shoved him away, turned and sprinted for the Grand staircase. Unfortunately, it would have seemed that Bole had been anticipating her escape; he grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her back.

Phoebe screamed. "Let go! Let me go!"

Just then the door to the Defence classroom burst open and Umbridge stood on the other side. Her eyes bulged and she was dressed in her evening clothes. She looked from Bole to Phoebe and back again.

"What is the meaning of this?" she demanded.

"I caught her on the seventh floor," Bole answered. "She was dressed for travel and she had this -" he held up the Marauders Map, which was now just a blank piece of paper. "She refuses to tell me how it works..."

He handed the map to Umbridge, who looked at it and the scowled at Phoebe. "Very well," she nodded. "Bring her inside. We'll get her to talk."

Phoebe swallowed nervously and stumbled as Bole pushed her, full force into the defence classroom and followed behind her. He slammed the door, locking her in the suddenly stuffy classroom with himself and Umbridge.

_**Great!**_ She thought desperately, _**Now what do I do?**_

**~*Phoebe*~**

Hermione looked aghast.

"I wasn't going to say anything about Fred and George!" she said in an injured voice.

Ron snorted disbelieving and Hermione threw him a very dirty look.

"No, I wasn't!" she said angrily. "As a matter of fact, I was going to ask Harry when he's going to go back to Snape and ask for Occlumency lessons!"

Harry's heart sank. He was sitting in the Gryffindor common room with Hermione, Ron, Jackson and James. They were waiting for Phoebe to return from Hogsmeade, where she had gone with Fred and George to help them flee Umbridge's wrath.

The fireworks had fizzled out by now, several hours after burning holes in several portraits, chasing screaming witches and wizards around into neighboring ones, singing Umbridge's hair and clothes and attacking specific Inquisitorial members. Fred and George had made sure that they would be remembered for years at Hogwarts.

But now, it was seemingly back to normal. The infamous Weasley twins had fled Hogwarts; Umbridge was in uproar over the fact that she had let the culprits slip through her fingers, although she was sure that they were being helped.

"There is no way they both have a brain to pull off this disruptive scheme and flee the school unprotected!" she had screeched at Draco Malfoy, Lucien Bole and a few other Slytherin students earlier that afternoon, when they had reported that they could not find the Weasley twins anywhere.

"You can't tell me you've stopped having funny dreams," Hermione said now, "because Ron told me last night you were muttering in your sleep again..."

Harry shot Ron a furious look. Ron had the grace to look ashamed of himself.

"You were only muttering a bit," he mumbled apologetically. "Something about 'just a bit farther.'"

"I dreamed I was watching you lot play Quidditch," Harry lied brutally. "I was trying to get you to stretch out a bit farther to grab the Quaffle."

Ron's ears went red and James hit Harry across the back of the head.

"What did you do that for?" snapped Harry, rubbing the back of his head.

"Because Phoebe is not here to do it!" answered James.

Jackson checked his wrist watch. "Where is she?" he questioned, it was nearly 1:30am now. "She should have been back by now - you don't think she has been compromised, do you?"

"No," said James. "We had a plan! She would send a Patronus if she was in trouble!"

"What if he has been over-powered?"

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione, looking fearful.

"I mean," sighed Jackson. "What if there was more than one assailant? What if she has been over-powered and is unable to send us a distress signal?"

The fifth years exchanged looks.

"But who would attack Phoebe?" asked Ron. "Warrington is in St. Mungo's, Montague is still in the Hospital Wing - his parents are set to arrive sometime tomorrow - and Flint doesn't even go to school anymore! There is no one else that I can think of that would want to attack her!"

"They don't need to have the same motives as Warrington and Flint," answered Jackson. "But what if Umbridge had been tipped off about the flight tonight? What if someone told her that Phoebe would be out after hours?"

James frowned. "The only people who knew were Ashlyn, Aiden and I," he explained. "And I haven't said anything to anyone and I know that Ashlyn and Aiden wouldn't see Phoebe out. Ashlyn is her best friend and Aiden is her brother, why would they want to see her get hurt?"

"Are you sure that it is only you three?" asked Jackson. "How sure are you that you were alone in the classroom?"

"Pretty sure,"

"100%,"

"Well, no..."

Jackson gave a start. "We've got to find her!"

"Not at 1:30 in the morning!" snapped Hermione. "You won't be doing Phoebe any good if you go barging around the corridors at this time of the night! The only thing you are going to do is get yourself in trouble with Umbridge... and if Phoebe _hasn't_ been compromised, you will get her in trouble too!"

"So what do you suggest we do?" asked Jackson, "just sit around and wait for her to return! What if she _has_ been compromised? What if she is already hurt? Do you want that on your conscience when you go to bed, Granger?"

Hermione glared at him. "Of course not! But do you really want to get Phoebe hurt any more than she has already been this year? We don't the facts... we don't know what has actually happened!"

"This is why we need to find her!"

"Look," Hermione said slowly. "Phoebe said that Terence and his older brother, Philip, were meeting the twins! Maybe she has opted to staying with Terence in Hogsmeade tonight! If she is not back by breakfast tomorrow, we will go to McGonagall and explain everything! But until then we do not leave this tower..."

Jackson growled silently and after several minutes of standing and glaring at the back of the Fat Lady, he turned on heels and without a backwards glance, stormed up to bed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Since detention has failed to teach you the error of your ways, Miss. Blackheart," said Umbridge in her sickly sweet voice, "You have forced my hand to take desperate measures."

She pointed her wand at the elemental and muttered: "_Suffocatio!"_

Phoebe's eyes widened as she grappled with her throat, struggling to breathe. Umbridge was standing over her, her and trained on the young elemental, a malicious glint in her eye as she watched the life slowly seep out of Phoebe's stormy grey gaze.

Lowering her wand, seconds before Phoebe's whole world would have turned to black and she passed out from lack of oxygen; the elemental fell to the floor on her stomach as Umbridge trotted around her and perched herself on the chair in the middle of the room.

"Now, shall we try this again... why were you out of your common room after hours?"

"I told you," wheezed Phoebe. "I couldn't sleep! Decided to take a walk in the grounds. Being outside calms me down!"

"Was Hogsmeade on your travels?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No!"

"Tell me, Miss. Blackheart," started Umbridge, ignoring Phoebe's last answer. "Where are Mr. and Mr. Weasley?"

"Fred and George?"

"Yes!"

"Gryffindor tower!"

"_Suffocatio!"_

Phoebe struggled once more, grabbing her throat with her hands as the air was once again pushed out of her lungs. She was being suffocated... pressured to endure this pain and suffering because she refused to answer Umbridge's questions.

The spell was lifted and Phoebe was left panting on the classroom floor.

"I know that you had something to do with their escape," snarled Umbridge.

"Then why don't you just punish me and get it over with!" snapped Phoebe.

Umbridge smirked. "_Suffocatio_!"

Once again Phoebe felt the air leave her lungs, and her whole body hunched over as she curled up in a fetal position. Her forehead pressed to her knees as her world started to spin and her lungs ached in pain, her brain was becoming foggy and only one thought could penetrate the fogginess that surrounded her mind.

_**I'm going to die!**_

"You see Miss. Blackheart," said Umbridge, her voice barely reaching Phoebe through the fog. "Punishment doesn't seem to faze you at all! And detention has no effect on you or your little friends whatsoever! But do not fear, I swear I will break you before this year is over!"

On the verge of passing out, Phoebe heard not one word of Umbridge's threat, however, she was aware of the clacking of Umbridge's shoes on the marble floor of the classroom. They were becoming distant - and soon they disappeared. The spell broke as the door closed with a snap and Phoebe was left a withering mess in the middle of the classroom.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Another plot twist. Umbridge is ALOT more sadistic than she was in the original version of Harry Potter. And it would seem that she has found her new target. Oh, and 'Suffocatio' is Latin. It mean's 'Suffocation'.

**A/N:** Chapter 117 is already in the works and should be posted sometime tomorrow night.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 26 May 2012 at 01:42am**


	117. Chapter 117

**Author's Note: **This chapter would have been posted last night, but I had been at the beach all day and was really tired when I got home. Didn't realize how much going to the beach really takes it out of you! Anyway, here is the next chapter to **The Dark Lords Downfall**.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Princessflag3998, Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi, Evansescencefan97, KingdomHeartsNerd, BrightYellowSunflower, Dark D-Knight** and** SoPhiE-sUNsHinE-gIrl.** Keep 'em coming! You're all amazing!

**Shout outs:** Big shout out too **Dark D-Knight** for adding this story to their Story alerts and Favourite stories. Appreciate it mate.

**In response to everyone:** Most, if not all, of you have mentioned that Umbridge could/would get in trouble for torturing students. Well in the book The Order of the Phoenix it mentions that Umbridge allowed Whipping to be brought back because Filch is in her office getting the 'Approval for Whipping' forms while Harry is talking with Sirius, therefore I believe that if she can give approval for Whipping then other forms of torture do not phase her.

Plus, Phoebe is an elemental half breeds and we all know how Umbridge feels about half breeds.

* * *

><p>The final match of the Quidditch season, Gryffindor verses Ravenclaw, was to take place on the last weekend of May. This happened to be the weekend following Phoebe's disappearance. And although Slytherin had been narrowly defeated by Hufflepuff in their last match, Gryffindor was not daring to hope for victory, due mainly (though of course nobody said it to him) to Ron's abysmal goalkeeping record.<p>

He, however, seemed to have found a new optimism.

"I mean, I can't get any worse, can I?" he told Harry, Hermione and James the morning before the last game. "Nothing to lose now, is there?"

"Unfortunately," said James, "without Phoebe we will be just as bad as usual!"

It had been almost a week since Fred and George's escape and, still, they hadn't found Phoebe. The morning after her disappearance Jackson, James and the Golden Trio had gone straight to Professor McGonagall and explained everything that had happened and how Phoebe had failed to return after Hogsmeade.

To say that McGonagall was disappointed at their behavior was an understatement, but her worry and fear for Phoebe was too great, and therefore they went unpunished.

"Do you think that McGonagall has any new information?" asked Harry.

"I think she would have told us if she had," answered Jackson, looking up at the staff table. McGonagall was eating her breakfast in silence, her eyes fixated on her plate and not wavering or looking around at the students. Umbridge on the other hand was looking rather smug about something or another and kept glancing at the Gryffindor table, as if looking for something... a reaction, maybe?

It was then that Angelina stood. She looked just as grim James felt, as if she too knew that without Phoebe the chances of winning the Quidditch cup were slim. "Team..." she called.

That was all she needed to say as one-by-one the Gryffindor team rose to their feet, Roxanna Fae Lilienthal, a back-up Chaser, had been given the chance to take over for Phoebe, but for James did not feel the same, walking down to the Quidditch pitch without Phoebe. He sighed, shouldered his broomstick and followed behind Ginny and Jack.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Jackson, who had gone down to the pitch in spite of himself, found a seat in the topmost row of the stands. It was a fine, clear day, but for him, it felt as though everything was just toying with him. He was alone and empty - he shouldn't have been here! He should have been looking for Phoebe! He owed it to Blake to protect her.

_**How can you protect her when you do not know where she is?**_ He asked himself. _**Damn it Blake! Why did you have to go and enter that stupid tournament! Do you have any idea how much I need your help right now?**_

The whistle blew and Jackson snapped his attention to the game. He had missed out on the commentating of the team players, but he did not care. His best friend - little sister - was missing and he was sitting, here, in the stands, watching the very game that Phoebe lived for! He should have been doing something to find her!"

"Ravenclaw Captain Davies with the Quaffle," said Jordan. "He dodges Johnson, he dodges Black, and he dodged Lilienthal as well... He's going straight for the goal! He's going to shoot - and - and -" Lee swore very loudly. "And he's scored!"

The Gryffindor's all around Jackson groaned, as predictably, horribly, the Slytherin's on the other side of the stands began to sing:

_"Weasley cannot save a thing,_

_He cannot block a single ring..."_

"Harry,"

Jackson looked up at the sound of a hoarse whisper, he was sitting in the very corner of the stands, but Harry and Hermione were not sitting that far away from him. He spotted the source of the whisper, it was Hagrid, he was bent double as though anxious not to be seen, though he was still at least four feet taller than everybody else.

"Hagrid...?" whispered Harry in return. "What are you doing here?"

"Listen," said Hagrid, "can yeh come with me? Now? While ev'ryone's watchin' the match?"

"Er... can't it wait, Hagrid?" asked Harry, "Till the match is over?"

"No," said Hagrid. "No, Harry, it's gotta be now... while ev'ryone's lookin' the other way... Please?"

Hagrid's nose was gently dripping blood. His eyes were both blackened. Jackson had not seen him close up since his return to the school; he looked utterly woebegone.

"'Course," said Harry at once, "'course we'll come..."

He and Hermione edged back along their row of seats, causing much grumbling among the students who had to stand up for them. The people in Hagrid's row were not complaining, merely attempting to make themselves as small as possible.

Jackson, who had turned away the moment Harry had looked around to make sure that they weren't being watched, waited a few seconds before jumping up and following them. He didn't know why he hadn't just gone with them, but he feared that this was something that Hagrid did not want outsiders to know about. And while he was now a Hogwarts student, he would always be an outsider. A Durmstrang!

"... She has got the whole Inquisitorial Squad sitting with her, didn't you see?" Jackson heard Harry say as he followed after them. "She must be expecting trouble at the match."

"Yeah well, a bit o' trouble wouldn' hurt," said Hagrid, pausing to peer around the edge of the stands to make sure the stretch of lawn between there and his cabin was deserted. "Give us more time..."

"What is it, Hagrid?" said Hermione, looking up at him with a concerned expression on her face as they hurried across the lawn to the edge of the forest.

"Yeh - yeh'll see in a mo'," said Hagrid, looking over his shoulder as a great roar rose from the stands behind them. "Hey - did someone jus' score?"

"It'll be Ravenclaw," said Harry, heavily.

"Good... good..." said Hagrid, distractedly. "Tha's good..."

Harry and Hermione, Jackson noticed, had to jog to keep up with Hagrid, while he had to jog to keep up with them, but also maintain a fair distance away, just enough for them to not realize they were being followed. When they reached the cabin, Hermione turned automatically left toward the front door; Hagrid, however, walked straight past it into the shade of the trees on the outermost edge of the forest, where he picked up a crossbow that was leaning against the tree.

When he realized they were no longer with him, he turned.

Jackson ducked behind a bush for visual protection.

"We're going in here," said Hagrid, jerking his shaggy head behind him.

"Into the forest?" said Hermione, perplexed.

"Yeah," said Hagrid. "C'mon now, quick, before we're spotted!"

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, and then ducked into the cover of the trees behind Hagrid, who was already striding away from them into the green gloom, his crossbow over his arm. Harry and Hermione ran to catch up with him. Jackson waited for a few seconds before following.

"Hagrid, why are you armed?" asked Harry.

"Jus' a precaution," said Hagrid, shrugging his massive shoulders.

"You didn't bring your crossbow the day you showed us the Thestrals," said Hermione timidly.

"Nah, well, we weren' goin' in so far then," said Hagrid. "An' anyway, tha' was before Phoebe wen' missing, wasn' it?"

"What does Phoebe going missing have anything to do with you being armed?" asked Hermione curiously.

Harry, however, was frowning. "How did you know Phoebe was missing?"

"McGonagall came and told me the very day you told her," answered Hagrid. "Wanted me to warn the Centaurs of the disappearance and ask if there were any changes in the stars!"

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks, now they were even more confused.

Jackson, however, had heard the whole conversation, and it had taken all his well-being to not jump out from behind the trees and expose himself. He would have to speak with Firenze when he returned to the castle, was it possible that Phoebe's disappearance was written in the stars?

"Is that why we are in here, Hagrid?" asked Hermione. "Do the centaurs know where Phoebe is?"

"Ah no," said Hagrid, shaking his head dismissively, "no, it's not them... but yeh'll see what I mean in a bit..."

On this incomprehensible note he fell silent and forged a little ahead, taking one stride for every three of theirs, so that they had great trouble keeping up with him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The path was becoming increasingly overgrown and the trees grew so closely together as they walked further and further into the forest that it was as dark as dusk. Suddenly and unexpectedly, Hagrid decided to step off the beaten path and began to wend his way in and out of the trees towards the dark heart of the forest.

"Hagrid?" called Harry, fighting his way through thickly knotted branches over which Hagrid had stepped easily and remembering very vividly what had happened to him on the other occasion he had stepped off the forest path. "Where are we going?"

"Bit further," said Hagrid over his shoulder. "C'mon, Harry... We need ter keep together now..."

It was a great struggle to keep up with Hagrid, what with branches and thickets of thorn through which Hagrid marched as easily as though they were cobwebs, but which snagged at Harry, Hermione robes, frequently entangling them so severely that they had to stop for minutes at a time to free themselves.

They were so deep in the forest now that Jackson was finding it incredibly difficult to see his fellow Gryffindor's through the dark gloom. Any sound seemed threatening in the muffled silence and the breaking of a twig echoed loudly, whilst the tiniest rustle of movement, though it might have been made by an innocent sparrow caused Jackson to peer through the darkness for a culprit.

"Hagrid, would it be all right if we lit our wands?" asked Hermione quietly.

"Er... all righ'," Hagrid whispered back. "In fact..."

He stopped suddenly and turned around; Hermione walked right into him and was knocked over backwards. Harry caught her just before she hit the forest floor.

"Maybe we bes' jus' stop fer a momen', so I can... fill yeh in," said Hagrid. "Before we ge' there, like."

"Good!" said Hermione, as Harry set her back on her feet. They both murmured _"Lumos!"_ and their wand tips ignited.

Hagrid's face swarm through the gloom by the light of the two wavering beams and Harry saw that he looked nervous and sad again.

"Righ'," said Hagrid. "Well... see... the thing is..."

He took a great breath.

"Well, there's a great chance I'm going ter be gettin' the sack any day now," he said.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, and then back at him.

"But you've lasted this long -" said Hermione. "What makes you think -?"

"Umbridge reckons it was me that put tha' Niffler in her office!"

"And was it?" asked Harry, before he could stop himself.

"No, it ruddy well wasn'!" said Hagrid. "On'y anythin' ter do with magical creatures an' she thinks it's got somethin' ter do with me. Yeh know she's bin lookin' fer a chance ter get rid of me ever since I got back. I don' wan' ter go, o' course, but it wasn't fer... well... the special circumstances i'm abou' ter explain to yeh, I'd leave righ now, before she's go' the chance ter do it in front o' the whole school, like she did with Trelawney."

Harry and Hermione both made noises of protest, but Hagrid overrode them with a wave of one of his enormous hands.

"It's not the end o' the world, I'll be able ter help Dumbledore and Serefina once I'm outta here, and I can be useful ter the Order. An' you lot'll have Grubbly-Plank, next to Serefina she is the top teacher. She'll get yeh through yeh exams, no problem!"

His voice trembled and broke.

"Don' worry abou me," he said hastily, as Hermione made to pat his arm. He pulled his enormous spotted handkerchief from the pocket from the pocket of his waistcoat and mopped his eyes with it. "Look, I woudn' be tellin' yer this at all if I didn' have ter. See, if I go... well, I can' leave withou'... withou' tellin' someone... because I'll - I'll need you two ter help me. An' Ron, if he's willin... and Phoebe, if yer find her -"

"We'll find her!" said Hermione.

"And we'll help you!" said Harry. "What do you want us to do?"

Hagrid gave a great sniff and patted Harry wordless on the shoulder with such a force that knocked him sideways into a tree. The same tree that Jackson was hidden behind.

"I knew yeh'd say yes," said Hagrid into his handkerchief, "but I won'... never... forget... Well... c'mon... jus' a little bit further through here... Watch yerselves, now, there's nettles..."

They walked on in silence for another fifteen minutes. Harry had opened his mouth to ask how much further they had to go when Hagrid threw out his right arm to signal that they should stop.

"Really easy," he said softly. "Very quiet, now..."

They crept forward and Jackson saw that they were facing a huge, smooth mound of earth nearly as tall as Hagrid that he thought, with a jolt of dread, was sure to be the lair of some enormous animal. Trees had been ripped up at the roots all around the mound, so that it stood on a bare patch of ground surrounded by heaps of trunks and boughs that formed a kind of fence or barricade, behind which the three Gryffindor's and Hagrid.

"Sleepin'," breathed Hagrid.

Sure enough, Jackson could hear a distant, rhythmic rumbling that sounded like a pair of enormous lungs at work. He glanced sideway at Harry and Hermione, both who had failed to realize they had been followed all this way, to find them gazing at the mound. Hermione's mouth was slightly open in a silent scream.

"Hagrid," said Hermione in a whisper barely audible over the sound of the sleeping creature, "who is he?"

Harry found this an odd question... "What is it?" was the one he had been planning on asking.

"Hagrid, you told us," said Hermione, her wand now shaking in her hand, "you told us none of them wanted to come!"

Harry looked from her to Hagrid and then, as realization dawned, he looked back at the mound with a small gasp of horror.

The great mound of earth, on which he, Hermione and Hagrid could have easily stood, was moving slowly up and down in time with the deep, grunting breathing. It was not a mound at all. It was the curved back of what was clearly...

"Well - no - he didn't want ter come," said Hagrid, sounding desperate. "But I had ter bring him; Hermione, I had ter!"

"But why?" asked Hermione, who sounded as though she wanted to cry. "Why - what - oh _Hagrid_!"

"I knew if I jus' got him back," said Hagrid, sounding close to tears himself, "an' - an' taught him a few manners - I'd be able ter take him outside an' show ev'ryone he's harmless!"

"Harmless!" said Hermione shrilly, and Hagrid made frantic hushing noises with his hands as the enormous creature before them grunted loudly and shifted in its sleep. "He's been hurting you all this time, hasn't he? That's why you've had all these injuries!"

"He don' know his own strength!" said Hagrid earnestly. "An' he's gettin' better, he's not fightin' so much anymore -"

"So this is why it took you two months to get home!" said Hermione distractedly. "Oh, Hagrid, why did you bring him back if he didn't want to come, wouldn't he have been happier with his own people?"

"They were all bullyin' him, Hermione, 'cause he's so small!" said Hagrid.

"Small?" said Hermione. "_Small?_"

"Hermione, I couldn' leave him," said Hagrid, tears now trickling down his bruised face into his beard. "See - he's my brother!"

Hermione stared at him, her mouth open.

"Hagrid, when you say 'brother,'" said Harry slowly. "Do you mean -?"

"Well - half-brother," amended Hagrid. "Turns out me mother took up another giant when she left me dad, an' she went an' had Grawp here -"

"Grawp?"

"Yeah... well, tha's what it sounds like when he says his name," said Hagrid anxiously. "He don' speak a lot of English... I've bin tryin' ter teach him... Anyway, she don seem ter have liked him much more'n she liked me... See, with giantesses, what counts is producin' good big kids, and he's always been a bit on the runty side fer a giant - on'y sixteen foot -"

"Oh yes, tiny!" said Hermione, with a kind of hysterical sarcasm. "Absolutely minuscule!"

"He was bein' kicked around by all o' them - I jus' couldn' leave him -"

"Did Madam Maxime want to bring him back?" asked Harry.

"She - well, she could see it was right importan' ter me," said Hagrid, twisting his enormous hands. "Bu' - bu' she got a bit tired of him after a while, I must admit... so we split up on the journey home... She promised not ter tell anyone though..."

"How on earth did you get him back without anyone noticing?" said Harry.

"Well, that's why it took s'long, see," said Hagrid. "Could on'y travel by night an' through wild country an' stuff. 'Course he covers the ground pretty well when he wan's ter, but he kep' wantin' ter go back..."

"Oh, Hagrid, why on earth didn't you let him!" said Hermione, flopping down onto a ripped up tree root and burying her face in her hands. "What do you think you're going to do with a violent giant who doesn't even want to be here?"

"Well, now - 'violent' - tha's a bit harsh," said Hagrid, still twisting his hands agitatedly. "I'll admit he mighta taken a couple o' swings at me when he's bin in a bad mood, but he's gettin' better, loads better, settlin' down well..."

But Jackson had heard enough and had turned to leave when a giant roar echoed throughout the clearing. He spun around, just as Grawp was rising, the ground shuddered as he placed an enormous hand upon it to push himself up onto his knees and turned his head to see who had what had disturbed him.

"All righ', Grawpy?" said Hagrid in a would-be cheery voice, backing away. "Had a nice sleep, eh?"

Harry and Hermione retreated as far as they could while still keeping the giant within their sights.

Grawp knelt down between two trees he had not yet uprooted. They looked up into his startlingly huge face, which resembled a gray full moon swimming in the gloom of the clearing.

It was as though the features had been hewn onto a great stone ball. The nose was stubby and shapeless, the mouth lopsided and full of misshapen yellow teeth the size of half bricks. The small eyes were half gummed together with sleep.

Grawp raised dirty knuckles as big as cricket balls to his eyes, rubbed vigorously, then, without warning, pushed himself to his feet with surprising speed and agility.

"Oh my..." Jackson heard Hermione squeal, terrified.

The trees to which the other ends of the ropes around Grawp's wrists and ankles were attached creaked ominously. He was, as Hagrid has said, at least sixteen feet tall. Gazing blearily around, he reached out a hand the size of a beach umbrella, seized a bird's nest from the upper branches of a towering pine and turned it upside down with a roar of apparent displeasure that there were no birds in it.

"Anyway, Grawpy," shouted Hagrid, looking up apprehensively in case of further falling eggs, "I've brought some friends ter meet yeh. Remember, I told yeh I might? Remember, when I said I might have ter go on a little trip an' leave them ter look after yeh fer a bit? Remember that, Grawpy?"

But Grawp merely gave another low roar; it was hard to say whether he was listening to Hagrid or whether he even recognized the sounds Hagrid was making as speech. He had now seized the top of the pine tree and was pulling it toward him, evidently for the simple pleasure of seeing how far it would spring back when he let it go.

"Now, Grawpy, don' do that!" shouted Hagrid. "Tha's how you ended up pullin' up the others -"

And sure enough, Jackson could see the earth around the tree's roots beginning to crack.

"I got company fer yeh!" Hagrid shouted. "Company, see! Look down, yeh big buffoon, I brought yeh some friends!"

"Oh Hagrid, don't," moaned Hermione, but Hagrid had already raised the bough again and gave Grawp's knee a sharp poke.

The giant let go of the top of the pine tree, which swayed menacingly and deluged Hagrid with a rain of needles, and looked down.

"_This_," said Hagrid, hastening over to where Harry and Hermione stood, "is Harry, Grawp! Harry Potter! He migh' be comin' ter visit yeh if I have ter go away, understand?"

The giant had only just realized that Harry and Hermione were there. They watched, in great trepidation, as he lowered his huge boulder of a head so that he could peer blearily at them.

"An' this is Hermione, see? Her -" Hagrid hesitated. Turning to Hermione he said, "Would yeh mind if he called yeh Hermy, Hermione? On'y it's a difficult name fer him ter remember..."

"No, not at all," squeaked Hermione.

"This is Hermy, Grawpy! An' she's gonna be comin' an' all! Is'n tha' nice? Eh? Two friend's fer yeh ter - GRAWPY, NO!"

Grawp's hand had shot out of nowhere towards Hermione - Jackson, seeing his chance, shot out from behind the tree and seized Hermione around the waist, knocking out of the way of Grawp's fingers.

"Huh?" Harry frowned, looking down at the older Gryffindor. "What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" demanded Jackson, as Hermione clung to him, shaking and whimpering. "Saving you!"

"BAD BOY, GRAWPY!" Hagrid shouted. "VERY BAD BOY! YEH DON' GRAB - OUCH!"

Harry looked around and saw Hagrid lying on his back, his hand over his nose. Grawp, apparently losing interest, had straightened up again and was again engaged in pulling back the pine as far as it would go.

"Righ'," said Hagrid thickly, getting up with one hand pinching his bleeding nose and the other grasping his crossbow. "Well... there yeh are... Yeh've met him an' - an' now he'll know yeh when yeh come back. Yeah... well..."

"Come back?" asked Jackson, as he helped Hermione to her feet. "Hagrid..."

But Hagrid wasn't listening, he was looking up at Grawp, who was now pulling back the pine with an expression of detached pleasure on hi boulderish face; the roots were creaking as he ripped them away from the ground.

"Well, I reckon tha's enough fer one day," said Hagrid. "We'll - er - we'll go back now, shall we?"

Harry and Hermione nodded.

Hagrid shouldered his crossbow again and, still pinching his nose, led the way back into the trees.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Is she going to be alright?"_

_"I see no reason for her to not wake from this... she has been through much worse!"_

_"Yes. But -"_

_"There are not 'buts...' Serefina! Only will and power! It is up to Phoebe on whether or not she wants to wake up this time!"_

_"But she has to wake up!"_

_"She may fear the world has turned against her! There is obviously evidence that the English government is out to get her! I think now would be a good idea to decide on that transfer!"_

_"Phoebe will never leave Hogwarts!"_

_There was a heavy silence... one that she had to strain to pick up even the slightest of sounds._

_"Then she must bind with that of her equal! It is the only way that she will be protected!"_

_"Yes, I understand! The binding ceremony is being set up as we speak... all there is now, is for her to awaken!"_

_"And of the other?"_

_"Aiden is being brought from Hogwarts at this very moment! The stars have aligned and the full moon is tonight. If Phoebe does not wake by then... we will miss our chance..."_

_"And the next chance is not for another fifty years!"_

_"Yes, I know,"_

There was another silence.

One where you could hear the faintest of breathing coming from the unconscious elemental that lay in the Queen Size bed on the far side of the room.

Those that stood around her bed were nothing but anxious at her awakening. Unfortunately, since her arrival at the Manor, Phoebe Blackheart had showed no signs, whatsoever; of awakening from whatever darkened world she had slipped into this time.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, 29 May 2012 at 2:59am**


	118. Chapter 118

**Author's Note:** I apologize for the shortness. I am working for time here... I hope to finish fifth year very soon!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dark D-Knight, Evanescencefan97, Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185, BrightYellowSunflower** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

This chapter is the ever-waited 'Binding ceremony' I hope you enjoy it.

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><p>Phoebe was running, running for her life. The forest's path twisted before her and she tore along it into the storm. She saw clouds racing, bracken flailing, the lake smashing on the rocks; she saw Hagrid's cabin rising like a sword. She raced towards it, the wind driving her on, and still the terror pursued her, the huge unseen presence she sensed behind her, chasing, chasing.<p>

She could hear it panting after her. She could feel its hands reaching out to clutch her. Hagrid's cabin rushed closer and the jaws of the opened door appeared before her. She threw herself over the threshold and turned to slam the door closed with her feet, however, he had caught up!

Phoebe screamed as his huge form leaned over her in the semi-darkness of the cabin.

"No!" she screamed. "No! No! No!"

She woke with a start, to see hands stretched out towards her hair again but they froze, and then slowly moved back. He stared down at her, his face darker than the night. She watched, gulping for breath and listening even now for the sounds of the storm that had haunted her nightmare. But they were gone; she was in a familiar, the room was silent.

The figure straightened up.

"Dreaming," he said his voice familiar. "It's alright, Phoebe, you are dreaming!"

"Aiden?" Phoebe whispered her voice hitched with fear and tears.

"Yes," Aiden nodded, lighting the candle on the bedside table. "I'm here... I'm right here!"

Phoebe crumbled into his arms, her sobs racking her body. She shuddered as her dream passed and she was able to calm down. "It wasn't a dream," she said. "It was a nightmare."

"I know." He looked down at her, then - with brusqueness that startled her - pushed her back down onto the bed and lay beside her. She tried to stop shaking but it was no good. Her dream had brought several of her fears to the surface, fears that she didn't even know she had.

"What did you see?"

"I was running through the forest, I think it was the Forbidden forest! Someone was chasing me!"

"Who?"

"I don't know," answered Phoebe. "But he scared me! Hagrid's cabin door was open, so I dived inside, but when I turned to close the door and lock him out, he was there! Just standing in the doorway, staring at me! He reached out to touch me and I screamed -"

"You screamed here too."

"I did?"

Aiden nodded. "Yes, it is the reason you woke up."

Phoebe sighed heavily, rolled onto her side and buried her head in his clothes. "What does it mean, Aiden?"

"I don't know, Phoebe!" he answered, wrapping his arm around her. "But I will not let it happen you! You have my word!"

With her face still buried in his clothes, Phoebe felt the pictures from the nightmare slip back into her mind. "Go away," she muttered. "Go away, go away."

But they clung to her like a bad smell. She thought of Serefina and her grandparents. She thought of Aiden, Draco, Jackson, Terence and Bambi; then just Bambi. Little Bambi. Tears filled her eyes.

"Bambi," she said softly. "Bambi..."

The pictures of the nightmare still bulged in her mind.

"Little Bambi, little Bambi."

They stayed a few moments longer, then flickered and vanished. She stared into the darkness, Aiden's breathing had evened out and she knew that he was sleeping. Suddenly, out of the darkness came an image - _the_ image - the tiny face, the soft hair, the bright eyes.

"Bambi," Phoebe murmured. "Little Bambi."

The face peered through the darkness at her.

"Are you sleeping, Bambi? Are you sleeping?"

Between the combination of her lack of energy and Aiden's rhythmic breathing, Phoebe felt her eyes close in spite of her fear.

"You're sleeping," she whispered, to the ghostly image of her boyfriend's sister. "I know you are!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that afternoon, Phoebe was assaulted by a flurry of arrivals; people who thought for sure that she was not going to awaken this time round. After Aiden had awoken three hours previous, and reported to Serefina that the Gryffindor had indeed awoken due to a nightmare - something that he still found strange - the Earth elemental had wrote to everyone that was in correspondence with Phoebe had brought them to Blackheart Manor.

Everyone except the Golden Trio, the Hufflepuff's and the Black cousins.

"You can see them when you return to school," said Serefina, when Phoebe had enquired why she couldn't see them. "Jackson has permission to return because of his roots here in Portugal. He is governed by the Portuguese Ministry! Umbridge cannot refuse his visitation rights to his own country!"

But the moment Jackson had entered Blackheart manor, Phoebe had forgotten about her England friends and was immediately happy to just be with her best friend for once.

"How is life, sickie?"

"I am not sure who this 'sickie' person is," answered Phoebe, "but I am perfect!"

"Really?" questioned Jackson. "Because you have been missing for a whole week! You missed the Quidditch finals!"

Phoebe's eyes widened. "Who won?"

"Gryffindor!"

"We did?"

Jackson nodded. "Ron did amazingly... apparently!"

"What do you mean 'apparently'; didn't you go to the game?"

"I left after the first missed goal," admitted Jackson.

"Why?"

"Because of Hagrid. He decided to tell Harry and Hermione why he's been covered in injuries ever since he got back from the giants. He wanted them to go into the forest with him, they had no choice... you know how he gets!"

Phoebe nodded. "But what does that have to do with you?"

"I followed them -"

"You what?"

"It is a good thing I did too,"

"Why?"

The story was told in five minutes, by the end of which Phoebe's face had adorned a look of total incredulity.

"_He brought one back and hid it in the forest?"_

"Yep," said Jackson grimly.

"No," said Phoebe, as though by saying this she could make it untrue. "No, he can't have..."

"Well, he has," said Jackson firmly. "Grawp's about sixteen feet tall, enjoys ripping up twenty-foot pine trees, and knows Hermione as _Hermy_."

Phoebe snorted.

"Don't snort," scolded Jackson, "you sound like a man!"

"Meh!" Phoebe shrugged. "And Hagrid wants me and the Golden Trio to...?"

"Teach Grawp some English, yeah,"

"He's lost his mind!"

"Yes. Yes, I am beginning to think he has. But unfortunately, Harry and Hermione promised -"

"Well, they can un-promise him, that's all," said Phoebe. "I am sorry, but I have just been severely tortured by a sadistic Ministry official... and been in another coma for who knows how long... not to mention I am binding my powers with Aiden tonight and I have exams to deal with! I don't have time to deal with a sixteen foot giant!"

Jackson nodded. "Not to mention you are really close to being expelled!"

"Well, Hagrid is on his own with this one," said Phoebe, "I love Hagrid, but I am not being expelled for him!"

"But the fact remains," said Jackson. "Potter and Granger promised!"

"Then they can do the task," said Phoebe. "I am not! Besides, Hagrid hasn't been sacked yet, has he? He's hung on this long, maybe he'll hang until the end of term and we won't have to go near Grawp at all."

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Manor grounds were gleaming in the sunlight as though freshly painted; the cloudless sky smiled at itself in the smoothly sparkling lake out on the plains behind the estate, the satin-green lawns rippled occasionally in the gentle breeze.

It was already early June, and while, if she was back at Hogwarts, she would have been studying for her upcoming OWLs, but instead Phoebe was lying in her Queen size bed, comforting the flow of visitors that had slowed since her initial awakening.

It was early evening when Serefina entered her bedroom; she was carrying a travelling cloak over her arm.

"_Come,"_ she instructed, holding out the cloak. "_Put this on and follow me... the ceremony begins at sundown!"_

Phoebe did as instructed and followed her godmother from the room. They descended the stairs and met Aiden in the grand hallway; he too was wearing a travelling cloak and was waiting patiently. He smiled reassuringly at his sister, took her hand and led her out onto the front lawn of the manor.

"Where are we going?" asked Phoebe.

"We have to travel to the north side of the forest," answered Serefina.

"We will never get there by sundown,"

"Not on foot," answered Aiden. "This is why three of your best thoroughbreds have been chosen to take us!"

Phoebe turned to the sound of hooves on the cobbled-stoned courtyard. Cameron Proulx had arrived, in his hands he held three reins and the three horses that had been chosen were three that Phoebe had broken in herself. Biscuit, Shortbread and Chocolate.

"Select a horse and get on," said Serefina. "We do not have a lot of time!"

Approaching Biscuit, Phoebe climbed up onto the saddle and stayed the reigns slightly, just enough to get Biscuit to remain stable. She then pulled his head towards the entrance to Blackheart Manor, kicked his sides lightly and was off at a short gallop. Serefina and Aiden following behind her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Repeat after me," Serefina instructed, as she turned to face her son and Goddaughter. They were standing alone in the middle of the Forbidden Forest, away from the prying eyes of the rest of the school, including Dolores Umbridge. "Fire, Earth, Air and Water."

"Fire, Earth, Air and Water," Aiden and Phoebe repeated, they were stood facing one another, their hands intertwined in front of them. Their eyes locked and the blood moon rising high over the forest behind them. As they both repeated the words, they could feel as a sharp tingle spread through their hands and into one another. Like an electric shock.

Serefina nodded as Phoebe gasped. "This is natural," she reassured. "Now, repeat this: By these elements we bind the twin cores and follow in the steps of our ancestors who pledged themselves to fight against the forces of darkness."

"By these elements we bind the twin cores and follow in the steps of our ancestors who pledged themselves to fight against the forces of darkness," Phoebe and Aiden repeated, staring at one another as their elemental magic stirred within their beings and coursed through one another.

Aiden shivered as he felt a blast of cold air sweep around him, and the trickle of cold water run through his blood stream, and he knew that it was Phoebe's powers connecting with his elemental core, they were awakening the dormant powers that were hidden within him. Ones that would have stayed dormant had it not been for Phoebe's strength and connection.

Meanwhile, Phoebe was feeling along the same lines, except she felt the ground beneath her feet rock ever so slightly, as flowers bloomed to life all around her. Trees quivered and leaves rained down upon them from the high branches overhead; while a warmth blast crept its way through her bloodstream, warming her to the core.

"When evil assaults us, when fear weakens us," Serefina continued, "when conflicts threaten us, within each other we will find our power. We come to this place alone, but leave bound as one."

"When evil assaults us, when fear weakens us, when conflicts threaten us," Phoebe and Aiden murmured, "within each other we will find our power. We come to this place alone, but leave bound as one."

Serefina nodded. "Nearly finished... With this oath, our journey begins together."

"With this oath, our journey begins... together!"

A bright light erupted from both elementals, collided in mid-air and knocked Phoebe and Aiden away from one another, the two students hit the ground and groaned as the light moved together like two brightly coloured snakes.

One was green and blue while the other was yellow and scarlet.

Then... when no one was expecting it, the two strands ripped away from one another and hit the two elementals.

Phoebe glowed a soft amber colour for a brief moment, while Aiden had the opposite, he glowed a soft turquoise.

When the colours died away, Aiden, Phoebe and Serefina were left standing in the dark and deserted forest... in silence.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Well... there is the binding ceremony! Was it what you expected? Did you expect something different? Either way the twin cores are now bound! Aiden and Phoebe can feel the others emotions, which is both a good thing and bad! Good because if Phoebe is ever in trouble again, Aiden will know and vice versa.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 30 May 2012 at 2:50am**


	119. Chapter 119

**Author's Note:** I would like to apologize for making you wait for this chapter. But I have been more focused on writing the four chapter story called 'Hooked on you' it is an additional Phoebe story that I created two nights ago. If you haven't read it yet... go take a look. You may be pleasantly surprised.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Evanescencefan97, Fan of Fics, Dream Lighting, BrightYellowSunflower** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too **PandoraSkyes** and** Alaina08** for adding this story to their Favourite story alerts. Appreciate it mates.

* * *

><p>Phoebe stayed at Blackheart Manor for the next week. She took her exams with a personal examiner that had come from the Elemental academy to oversee her transformation; even Headmaster Dumbledore came from England to review her advance techniques in certain areas.<p>

The only exam that Phoebe was finding difficult in completing was her Dance exam.

"But I need to be at Hogwarts!" she protested one evening. She was sitting at the dinner table with her grandparents and Serefina. She had only just finished her Divination exam with her tutor and was more than hungry... it had felt like she had not eaten in several moonlit days.

Jacob, who was sitting at the head of the table, shook his head. "I am sorry, Phoebe, but while we are certain that this Dolores Umbridge is out to eliminate you, we cannot permit your return to England!"

"But what about my team?" asked Phoebe. "We have all practiced really hard for this! I can't let them down! They need me!"

"They do not need you," said Elena. "I am sure they are bright enough and well equipped to do the routine alone."

"It is a four man recital, Grandma," explained Phoebe. "They cannot change it! There is not enough time!"

"That is enough, Phoebe!" shouted Jacob, taking his granddaughter by surprise. He had never shouted at her before. "You cannot return until we are sure this woman has been removed from the castle! Until then this conversation is at an end!"

Phoebe glared at her grandfather; unshed tears clear in her stormy grey gaze. "But -"

"I said enough!" snarled Jacob and a small fire sparked to life in the corner of the room. Rose, who had just entered with dessert jumped in surprise and nearly sent her famous strawberry and raspberry pie flying through the air.

"Dancing is my life!" shouted Phoebe, knowing full well that she was pushing the boundaries with her grandfather. "I have already been ripped away from my friends! Now I am being ripped away from the only other thing that is important to me!"

But Jacob shook his head. "No, Phoebe, Professor Renard from the School of Dance is arriving tomorrow to watch you... You will perform your recital for him and he will grade you! I fear that while Umbridge and the Ministry are still in control of Hogwarts you cannot return!"

"What about Aiden?" Phoebe protested. "And Jackson! Why do they get to return?"

"Umbridge and Fudge do not see them as threats," explained Jacob. "There is no evidence as of yet that they are anyway linked to our elemental background. As soon as it gets too dangerous for them I will have them removed from the school... until then it does not do anyone justice to pull them out now! It would only arouse suspicions. Now, eat the rest of your dinner, you have a long day ahead of you!"

Phoebe lowered her head and stared at the remains of her meal. She was silent for a few moments before she pushed away her plate and stood. "I am no longer hungry. If I am needed... I will be in my room!"

And without further question or confirmation that she could leave... Phoebe turned toe and exited the room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"It has happened!"_

Phoebe frowned at the three words that stared back at her from the parchment in which had arrived for her that morning. She had expected it to be a lengthily letter from Aiden, possibly including her friends comments on how they were happy to hear that she was safe, alive and well, and that they couldn't wait until she returned to school.

But no, she had not received anything of the sort; instead she had received three words that were openly meaningless to her.

"It has happened..." she read. "What has happened?"

The door to the kitchen opened and Rose stepped inside. "_Has Miss finished her breakfast?"_ she asked.

"_Yes, thank you, Rose!"_

_"You are most welcome, Miss,"_ Rose Brooks nodded. It had been a hard couple of months for her after the death of her younger brother, she was now alone in the world, her parents had died when she was eighteen and Blake had been ten, it was during the time that they were working for the Blackhearts. _"Would Miss like to go riding before her exam?"_

Phoebe blinked and looked up. She smiled. "_No thank you, Rose,"_ she said. "_It would not be the same without Jackson..."_

_"I am sure that Master Stream would not want Miss to put her life on hold just because he cannot be here with her,"_ said Rose. She was wise for her age, and while Phoebe knew that she was right, she still could not bring herself to go riding alone.

"_I am fine, really, Rose,"_ Phoebe insisted. "_I think I will just go and get in some last minute practice. I will see you at lunch!"_

_"See you at Lunch, Miss,"_ nodded Rose. "_Myself and the rest of the kitchen staff would like to wish you good luck, you are an excellent dancer, you will do well, we do not disagree!"_

Phoebe smiled, folded the letter from Aiden and quickly left the room. She had no intention of practicing in the little hour she had left, she needed answers and she needed them now. Serefina was back in England, at Headquarters and her grandparents were at the Ministry of Magic.

Pulling open her bedroom door, Phoebe hurried inside and grabbed parchment and ink from her desk, she scribbled out a reply to Aiden and set off in search of Athena. She found the golden eagle out on the plains; she had to take Biscuit to get there, and was left standing in the middle of nowhere while she watched the eagle disappear into the early morning sky.

At quarter to eleven, Phoebe returned to Blackheart manor where she was met by Warren, an older stable boy who had been with her family since 1975. He took by the hand and helped her slide off the back of the horse and then taking the reins turned in her direction as he lead Biscuit back to his barn.

"_Rachel has been looking for you,"_ he said. "_Your dance examiner arrived while you were out on the plains. She explained to him that the past couple of days have been a whirlwind for you, so if you hurry he should not deduct points for your punctuality."_

_"Thank you, Warren,"_ said Phoebe. "_Please make sure that Biscuit is prepped for this afternoon... I wish to ride after my exam!"_

Warren nodded. "_Of course, Miss. Blackheart... I will do it at once!"_

Phoebe nodded and hurried into the Manor; she bypassed Rose and rushed upstairs to her room. She showered quickly, dressed her dance clothes and then made her way up to the top floor and her own personal dance studio where the examiner and Rachel were awaiting her arrival.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The black door swung open for him as usual, and here he was in the circular room with its many doors...

Straight across the stone floor and through the second door... patches of dancing light on the walls and floor and that odd mechanical clicking, but no time to explore, he must hurry...

He jogged the last few feet to the third door, which swung open just like the others.

Once again he was in the cathedral-sized room full of shelves and glass spheres... his heart was beating very fast now... He was going to get there this time... When reached number ninety-seven he turned left and hurried along the aisle between two rows...

But there was a shape on the floor at the very end, a black shape moving upon the floor like a wounded animal... his stomach contracted with fear...

A voice issued from his own mouth, a high, cold voice empty of any human kindness.

"Take it for me... Lift it down, now... I cannot touch it... but you can..."

The black shape upon the floor shifted a little. He saw a long-fingered white hand clutching a wand rise into the air in front of him... heard the high, cold voice say, _"Crucio!"_

The man on the floor let out a scream of pain, attempted to stand but fell back, writhing. He was laughing. He raised his wand, the curse lifted, and the figure groaned and became motionless.

"Lord Voldemort is waiting..."

Very slowly, his arms trembling, the man on the ground raised his shoulders a few inches and lifted his head. His face was bloodstained and gaunt, twisted in pain yet rigid with defiance...

"You'll have to kill me," whispered Terence.

"Undoubtedly I shall in the end," said the cold voice. "But I thought, at the very least, you would have wanted to witness your beloved take the oath and join me!"

"She is not my beloved!" spat Terence. "I don't know what you have done, but that is _not_ Phoebe!"

A high cold laugh resounded around the hall.

"Ah, love! Such a dangerous, pathetic thing!" sneered the cold voice. "Makes even the most decent of men fall to the whim of females everywhere! Females, it would seem, are the most powerful of us all!"

"If that were true, you would have an army of female Death Eaters -"

Terence gritted his teeth in pain.

"Do not use that tone when you are addressing me, Higgs! I will be forced to do far worse than just kill you!"

Terence breathed in sharply as the curse was lifted once more.

"You think you have felt pain thus far? Think again... We have hours ahead of us and nobody to hear you scream..."

But somebody screamed as Voldemort lowered his wand again; somebody yelled and fell sideways off a hot desk onto the cold stone floor. Harry hit the ground, still yelling. Aiden whipped around in his seat, slid out of his chair and landed on his knees beside the Boy-Who-Lived.

He had witnessed it all - everything that Harry had seen, he had seen it to! Terence Higgs was in trouble and it seemed if his vision was anything to go by, so was Phoebe.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Short but worth it! Next chapter we join our heroes in the Ministry of Magic.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, June 03, 2012 at 4:26am**


	120. Chapter 120

**Author's Note: **Want to see Phoebe in a setting that you did not expect? Then check out 'Hooked on You' and its sequel 'The Reason Why' trust me... you won't be disappointed.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out the following: **Fan of Fics, Dark D-Knight, Dream Lighting, Pixiescale1185, Princessflag3998** and** KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Warning:** M-rated scene coming up! Read at own risk!

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><p>"I'm not going... I don't need the hospital wing... I don't want..."<p>

He was gibbering, trying to pull away from Aiden, who was looking at him with much concern, and who had just helped him out into the entrance hall while the students all around them stared.

"I'm - I'm fine - Aiden... let go -" he yelped as the Slytherin unhanded him and he stumbled backwards onto the floor of the entrance hall.

"Sorry," Aiden apologized, as he held out his hand and pulled the Gryffindor back to his feet. Once Harry was steady, he turned to Professor Tofty. "I'll see that he gets to the Hospital wing, Professor, you have my word!"

"And what of your exams?"

"I have finished," said Aiden. "Harry, what about you?"

"Yes," said Harry wildly. "I've done - done as much as I can, I think..."

"Very well, very well," said the old wizard gently. "I shall go and collect your examination papers; a cool drink of water should do him very nicely, Mr. Chamberlain, and maybe a lie down!"

Aiden nodded. "Of course, Professor, I will inform Madam Pomfrey of the situation."

Professor Tofty smiled gently and then returned to the Great Hall.

Aiden waited for the second when the old man's heels had disappeared and the doors had closed behind him, he then turned to Harry, grabbed the Gryffindor by the wrist and pulled him up the stairs to the first floor hallway. Quickly, he found an empty classroom and ushered the boy-who-lived inside.

"Tell me what you saw!" he demanded.

Harry blinked. "Wha - what are you talking about?"

"Your vision," said Aiden, impatiently. "What did you see?"

"How - How do you -?"

"Harry," snapped the Slytherin. "We do not have time for these games! If you saw, what I think you saw, then we have to act fast! Terence and Phoebe could be in trouble!"

Harry's brain was running slow, he was still recovering from his vision, his scar was prickling nastily and Aiden was demanding something of him... but for the life of him he could not register a single thought, much less a demand.

"I have to see Professor McGonagall," he managed to say after a few deep breathes. He turned towards the door but Aiden prevented him from leaving. "Aiden! I have to see -"

"She's not here," said Aiden. "She was transferred to St. Mungo's this morning. Four Stunning Spells straight to the chest at her age? It is a wonder they didn't kill her."

"She's... gone?" said Harry, stunned.

The bell rang just outside the classroom, and they heard the usual distant rumbling of students starting to flood out into the corridors above them. Harry remained quite still, looking at Aiden. Terror was rising inside him.

There was nobody left to tell. Dumbledore had gone, Hagrid had gone and Serefina had gone, but he had always expected Professor McGonagall to be there, irascible and inflexible, perhaps, but always dependably, solidly present.

"Harry, you have to tell me everything!"

Harry nodded, numbly. The panic expanding inside him like poison gas so that his head swan and he could not think what to do...

_Ron and Hermione_ said a voice in his head.

"Ron and Hermione!" he whispered the voice's instructions. "They will know what to do -"

He turned swiftly towards the door; Aiden's hand shot out, grabbed his shoulder and held him back.

"Aiden, let me go, we are wasting time!"

"You have to tell me what you saw!" snapped Aiden. "Did you see Terence being tortured?"

"Yes!"

"In the Department of Mysteries?"

"Yes!"

"By Voldemort?"

"YES!" shouted Harry. "Yes! Yes! All of it! I saw it all!"

The classroom door opened. Harry and Aiden whipped around. Hermione, Ron, Ashlyn, James, Amelia and Sarah were standing there, looking curious.

"I thought I recognized your voice, Potter," said Ashlyn. "Feel like explaining why you are shouting at my housemate?"

"Would rather explain it when you are not around," spat Harry.

Ashlyn narrowed her eyes. "Fine! I wouldn't want to look like I care about the pathetic Boy-Who-Lived anyway!"

"Voldemort has got Terence," said Aiden.

"_What?"_

"How'd you -?"

"We saw it," said Aiden. "Just now. Harry fell asleep during his exam and I am somehow connected to him..."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the Slytherin, she had known for some time now that Aiden was hiding a secret, at first she had believed it to be the fact that he was an elemental and Phoebe's older half-brother, and for a while she allowed this to be the reason, but now, not even she could disagree that there was something more to the Slytherin than met the eye.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I saw the same vision he saw," answered Aiden. "I don't know how it is possible, Granger, all I know is that there is a room in the Department of Mysteries full of shelves covered in small, smoking, glass spheres, and Terence is at the end of row ninety-seven... He's trying to use Terence to get something for him... all the while taunting him with Phoebe!"

"Phoebe?" James broke in. "She is there as well?"

"I don't know," answered Aiden. "I didn't see her... or sense her... and she can't be injured or in distress because I would feel it!"

"So you think Voldemort is using it to scare Higgs?" asked James.

Aiden shrugged. "We all know that Terence would do anything for Phoebe!"

They all nodded.

It was common knowledge that both Terence would die for Phoebe, and vice versa.

"He's torturing him," said Harry. "Says he'll end by killing him... but he wants him alive long enough to watch Phoebe take the oath and become a Death Eater!"

"She would never do that!" protested Sarah.

"Voldemort is very good at manipulating people..."

"Phoebe is not easily manipulated!" defended Amelia. "She would never join You-Know-Who!"

"Not even to save him?" questioned Harry. "She would do anything to save Higgs... he is her... _fiancé!"_ he spat the word as if it were poison in his mouth.

James and Ashlyn exchanged looks.

Harry shook his head, moved over to a desk and sat down on it, trying to master himself.

"How're we going to get there?" he asked them.

There was a moment's silence. Then Ron said, "G - get there?"

"Get to the Department of Mysteries, so we can rescue Higgs!" said Harry loudly.

"But - Harry..." said Ron weakly.

"What? _What_?"

He could not understand why they Ron and Hermione were gaping at him as though he was asking them something unreasonable.

"Harry," said Hermione in a rather frightened voice, "er... how... how did Voldemort get into the Ministry of Magic without anybody realizing he was there?"

"How do I know?" bellowed Harry. "The question is how _we're_ going to get in there!"

"Harry, think about this," said Hermione, taking a step toward him. "It's five o'clock in the afternoon... The Ministry of Magic must be full of workers... How would Voldemort and Terence have got in without being seen? Harry... Voldemort is one of the most wanted wizards in the world... not to mention Terence's mother works at the Ministry, how did he get passed her? There is no way they got in without being detected!"

"I dunno Voldemort used an Invisibility Cloak or something!" Harry shouted. "Anyway, the Department of Mysteries has always been completely empty whenever I've been -"

"You've never been there, Potter," snapped Ashlyn. "You've dreamt about the place, that is all!"

"No one asked for your opinion, Black!"

"I don't care!" spat Ashlyn. "You're telling us that my best friend's fiancée is being tortured at the Department of Mysteries; then you better get used to our interruptions and demands!"

James, Amelia and Sarah nodded in agreement.

"Harry, these dreams are not real!" said Hermione.

"They are not normal!" snapped Harry as he stood up and took a step closer to the bookworm. Instantly, Ashlyn and Aiden put themselves between the two Gryffindor's, while James's hand went automatically for his wand. "How do you explain Phoebe's godmother, what was that all about, how come I knew what had happened to her?"

"He's got a point," said Sarah quietly, looking at Hermione.

"But this is just - just so _unlikely_!" said Hermione desperately. "Harry, how on earth could Voldemort have got hold of Terence, who is most likely in Portugal with Phoebe!"

"There is nothing stopping Voldemort from going to Portugal!"

"He would never be able to gain access to Blackheart Manor!" exclaimed Amelia. "Jacob Blackheart would not permit it!"

"He could be dead!"

"He's not!" snapped Aiden. "My grandfather - my _family_ - they are the strongest Wizarding family in all of Portugal and England combined, Potter! You cannot just kill them off! Plus there is my grandmother... she would have known if Voldemort was on his way!"

Hermione frowned. "How would she have -?"

"Not now, Granger," said James. "The question I want answered is why would Voldemort want to harm Higgs in the first place?"

"Because he has something Voldemort wants,"

"And what is that?"

"Phoebe!"

"Voldemort doesn't care about Terence getting hurt!" said Ashlyn. "All he cares is about Phoebe... he knows that Phoebe will come to the rescue -"

"It's a trap!" said Amelia. "Voldemort set a trap and Terence is the bait!"

Ashlyn nodded. "It is a good thing that Phoebe does not know -"

"We don't know if Phoebe is there or not!" cried Harry. "Voldemort said that he wanted Terence alive so that he could witness Phoebe take the oath and join him! Who is to say that she is not there, in the Department of Mysteries, we have to go! We have to save her!"

"She is not there!" yelled Ashlyn. "Professor Blackheart would have informed us if she was missing!"

"No, she wouldn't have!" shouted Harry. "She wouldn't have said a word to us because she knows that we would go running off to help!"

"Hey, I've just thought of something," said Ron in a hushed voice. "Sirius's brother was a Death Eater, wasn't he?"

Ashlyn tensed angrily and rounded on Ron. "So, what if he was?" she snapped. "He didn't kill anyone! You have to kill in order for the oath to take effect... my father was a good man!"

"Easy, Ash, easy..." said James.

Ashlyn shrugged her cousin off and glared at Ron. "Go on, Weasley... finish your sentence!"

"I wasn't suggesting that your father -" stuttered Ron, before blinking and shaking his head. "What if he told Sirius the secrets of the weapon and Sirius informed the Order about it? That is one way that Higgs would know the origins and contents of the weapon... and he would have told Phoebe... and now Voldemort has taken him to get the information he has, but he will be getting two birds with one stone!"

"Wait a minute," said Sarah, coming into the conversation. "Who is to say that _Phoebe_ isn't the weapon?"

Everyone paused and turned in her direction.

"What?" the Hufflepuff shrugged. "She is the strongest of us all and already Voldemort has tried to convert her to his side! Who is to say that she is not the weapon that the Order has tried to protect all this time?"

"If that is true," said Aiden, looking at his girlfriend. "Then we need to find out exactly where Phoebe is..."

Harry paused and turned to the Slytherin. He nodded. "I agree... but how?"

"Athena?"

"I just sent her home," answered Aiden. "Unless there is someone at Blackheart Manor trying to contact us, I do not think we will be seeing her for a while!"

"Then how?"

"Floo network," suggested James.

"Umbridge is keeping all the networks under surveillance!" said Sarah.

Harry shook his head. "Not all of them..."

"What do you mean?"

"I used her fireplace the other day to contact Sirius," explained the Gryffindor. "We could use it to contact Phoebe..."

The others exchanged looks. It could work.

"Look, i'm sorry," cried Hermione, "but neither of you are making sense, and we've got no proof for any of this, no proof Voldemort and Terence are even there -"

"Hermione, Harry's seen them!" said Ron, rounding on her.

"Okay," she said, looking frightened yet determined. "I've just got to say this..."

"What?"

"You... This isn't a criticism, Harry! But you do... sort of... I mean - don't you think you've got a bit of a - a - _saving-people-thing_?" she said.

He glared at her. "And what's that supposed to mean, a 'saving-people-thing'?"

"Well... you..." she looked more apprehensive than ever. "I mean... last year, for instance... in the lake... during the Tournament... you shouldn't have... I mean, you didn't need to save that little Delacour girl... You got a bit... carried away..."

A wave of hot, prickly anger swept Harry's body - how could she remind him of that blunder now?

"... I mean, it was really great of you and everything," said Hermione quickly, looking positively petrified at the look on Harry's face. "Everyone thought it was a wonderful thing to do -"

"That's funny," said Harry in a trembling voice, "because I definitely remember Ron saying I'd wasted time _acting the hero_... is that what you think this is? You reckon I want to act the hero again?"

"No, no, no!" said Hermione, looking aghast. "That's not what I mean at all!"

"Well, spit out what you've got to say, because we're wasting time here!" Harry shouted.

"I'm trying to say - Voldemort know you, Harry! He took Ginny and Phoebe down into the Chamber of Secret to lure you there, it's the kind of thing he does, and he knows you're the - the sort of person who'd go to Phoebe's aid! What if he's trying to get you into the Department of Myst -?"

"Hermione, it doesn't matter if he's done it to get me there or not - they've taken McGonagall to St. Mungo's, there isn't anyone left from the Order at Hogwarts who can tell, and if we don't go, Higgs is dead and the next time we see Phoebe, she will be fighting_ against _us rather than with us!"

"But Harry - what if your dream was - was just that, a dream?"

Harry let out a roar of frustration.

Hermione actually stepped back from him, looking alarmed.

"You don't get it!" Harry shouted at her. "I'm not having nightmares, I'm not just dreaming! What d'you think all the Occlumency was for, why d'you think Dumbledore wanted me prevented from seeing these things? Because they're REAL, Hermione - Higgs is trapped - I've seen him - Voldemort's got him, and no one else knows, and that means we're the only ones who can save him -"

"But Harry, you've just said it," said Hermione fiercely. "Dumbledore wanted you to learn to shut these things out of your mind; if you'd done Occlumency properly you'd never have seen this -"

"IF YOU THINK I'M JUST GOING TO ACT LIKE I HAVEN'T SEEN -"

"Phoebe told you there was nothing more than you learning to close your mind!"

"WELL, I EXPECT SHE'D SAY SOMETHING DIFFERENT IF SHE KNEW WHAT I'D JUST -"

"ENOUGH!" Shouted Ashlyn as she shoved Harry back a few steps. "We are wasting time! We need to find out if Phoebe is at Blackheart Manor! If she is then we know that what Potter saw was nothing more than a nightmare - stress from the exams - if she is not at Blackheart Manor then we will find a way to get to the Department of Mysteries! We will raise the alarm! The Order will rescue her -"

"We cannot raise the alarm," hissed Harry. "There is no one left to tell!"

Ashlyn rolled her eyes. "You really are as stupid as you look," she growled. "Unfortunately, Potter, you fail to remember that Professor Snape is a part of the Order of the Phoenix! If what we find out is true, and Phoebe is not at Blackheart Manor, he will raise the alarm with the Order and they will infiltrate the Ministry and rescue both Phoebe and Terence!"

Harry breathed sharply. He had forgotten about Snape... but then again, Snape was the last person he would have gone to for help.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Show me..." he whispered.

Phoebe smirked and didn't hesitate to comply. She slid her hands up from his shoulders to tangle in his hair and drag him down until his lips met hers. She didn't need to encourage him to open his mouth for her, it was like he was reading her mind - which was impossible - but every tilt, lick, suck and nibble was received and returned in perfect sync.

She gripped his shoulders hard as he pressed his upper thigh tightly against her, feeling her arousal pulse against him.

"I'm going to..." she whispered, her breathing limited and ragged. "I'm going..."

"That's the idea," he whispered into her ear, and then covered her mouth with his own while he continued to rub his thigh against her below.

He smirked as he slid his tongue against hers, as she kissed him back. "When did you become a _naughty_ Gryffindor," he teased, his eyes glinting mischievously.

"When did you become a _bad-boy_ Slytherin?" she asked. Matching his tone.

"It's always been there, darling," he answered. "Just never found someone to share it with!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Liar... you're telling me that I'm your first?"

"Oh no, Princess," he said, tucking his head against her neck and giving it a swipe with his tongue. "Unfortunately, you are not my first! But I am sure you will be my best!"

He pressed harder and continued to run in a flawless rhythm, grinning as she pulsed, and clenched, and rode the waves of her climax until the receded.

Phoebe sighed heavily as she gazed up at him. "You're cruel..." she huffed, trying to catch her breath.

"You loved it, darling!" said Terence, kissing her. "Admit it!"

Phoebe smirked up at him, but before she could respond a bright silvery-white Jaguar flew through the open window.

_"Oi, lover-boy..."_ the voice of Philip Higgs issued from the Jaguar. _"They have infiltrated the Ministry. Tell your beautiful fiancée that her friends have gone to rescue her. All Order members are on alert. Headmaster Dumbledore wishes you to be there! Although I do not understand why... I know not to question his authority... so, get your butts here as soon as possible!"_

The Jaguar vanished and Phoebe turned lividly towards Terence. "What did he mean my friends have gone to rescue me?"

"I don't know," answered Terence, getting up off the bed. He straightened his clothes and held his hand out to her. "C'mon... it won't do us well to be late!"

Phoebe hesitated in taking his hand. To say she was nervous would have been an understatement, terrified was more along the correct lines.

She was _terrified_ of meeting Voldemort face-to-face, to be so close to the person that had been the reason that she was separated from her twin, the person that had murdered so many people... the person that had been prepared to murder her when she was twelve years of age.

"I won't let anything happen to you," Terence promised, sensing her fear. His hand was still held out towards her. "Phoebe..."

Phoebe looked up at him, before curling her fingers around his hand and allowing him to pull her off the bed and into his arms. "Promise me..." she said quietly, "promise me that you will remain by my side!"

Terence titled her head so that she was staring up at him. "I promise," he agreed, leaning in and kissing her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"This is it..." whispered Harry. "Keep your wands out!"

They crept forward, staring behind them as they went on down the long alleys of shelves, the farther ends of which were in near total darkness. Tiny, yellowing labels had been stuck beneath each glass orb on the shelf. Some of them had a weird, liquid glow; others were as dull and dark within as blown light bulbs.

They passed row eighty-four... eighty-five... Harry was listening hard for the slightest sound of movement, while Aiden was concentrating mainly on the emotions around him. None of them seemed to be in distress... in fact... they seemed almost _pleasurable_!

_Oh... Merlin! I hope she isn't doing what I think she is doing!_ Grumbled Aiden, as he clutched Sarah's hand tightly. _But if she was doing _that_ then there was no possible way that she could be in the Department of Mysteries!_

"Ninety-seven!" whispered Hermione.

Aiden stopped walking the second Sarah had stopped. They stood grouped around the end of the row, gazing down the alley beside it. There was nobody there.

"He's right down at the end," said Harry, whose mouth had become slightly dry. "You can't see properly from here..."

And he led them forward, between the towering rows of glass balls, some of which glowed softly as they passed.

"He should be near here," whispered Harry, convinced that every step was going to bring the ragged form of Terence into view upon the darkened floor. "Anywhere here... really close..."

"Oi, Potter!" called Aiden, as the sense of pleasure overwrought his senses. Phoebe wasn't there and neither was Terence. There was only one way that he could be feeling this sense of pleasure and not experiencing it himself was because Phoebe was the one experiencing it. He now understood why she had been against binding their powers together.

"He might be..." Harry whispered hoarsely as they reached the end of the row and emerged into more dim candlelight. There was nobody there at all. All was echoing, dusty silence.

"Potter?" said Aiden again.

"What?" he snarled.

"Phoebe isn't here."

Nobody spoke. Harry did not want to look at any of them. He felt sick. He did not understand why Phoebe was not here. She had to be here. This was where he, Harry, had seen Higgs... and he knew that wherever Higgs was, Phoebe was not far away.

He ran up the space at the end of the rows, staring down them. Empty aisle after empty aisle flickered past. He ran the other way, back past his staring companions. There was no sign of Phoebe or Terence anywhere, nor any hint of a struggle.

"Harry?" Ron called.

"What?"

He did not want to hear what Ron had to say, did not want to hear Ron tell him he had been stupid, or suggest that they ought to go back to Hogwarts. But the heat was rising in his face and he felt as though he would like to skulk down here in the darkness for a long while before facing the brightness of the Atrium above and the others' accusing stares...

"Have you seen this?" said Ron.

"What?" said Harry, but eagerly this time - it had to be a sign that Phoebe had been there, a clue - he strode back to where they were all standing, a little way down row ninety-seven, but found nothing except Ron staring at one of the dusty glass spheres on the shelves.

"What?" Harry repeated glumly.

"It's - It's got your name on," said Ron.

Aiden snapped his head up; he had been trying to collect his thoughts to the feelings of pleasure that were awkwardly washing over him. _God, I am going to kill you, Phoebe!_ He cursed inwardly, trying very hard to not show his discomfort in front of the others.

He shifted his weight from foot to foot and turned back to Harry and Ron. "What is it?" he asked.

"We don't know," said Hermione. "The date is from sixteen years ago!"

"What does the label say?" asked Ashlyn, she was craning her neck to try and read the scribbled writing.

S.P.T to A.P.W.B.D.

Dark Lord

and (?) Harry Potter.

"SPT to APWBD?" questioned Amelia. "What do you think -?"

"Sybil P. Trelawney," answered Aiden, cutting across Amelia, "to Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore..."

His friends paused and glanced at him.

"What?" he asked.

"How did you know that?"

"Research," he answered impotently. "Point is, Potter, you do not take that sphere - Potter what are you doing?"

"What? It's something to do with me, isn't it?" asked Harry. "It's got my name on it!"

"Yes, but who is to say that _this_ is not what Voldemort has been after all this time?"

Ron snorted. "_This?_" he questioned. "This small glass ball... is the weapon? Please! What could this glass ball do?"

"A lot of damage if it falls in the wrong hands!" snapped Aiden. "But what is the point? Potter doesn't listen to anyone other than himself... we all know that he is going to take the sphere! Despite the fact that it _could_ possibly be the end of us all! So go ahead, Potter, be the reason that we are all eliminated!"

Harry glared at the Slytherin. But while a part of him was screaming at him to listen to Aiden and turn away from the shelf, another part of him was coaxing him on and encouraging him to take the sphere with his name on it.

_It is just a glass ball_ the voice in the back of his head whispered. _It is not going to cause any immediate damage... take it! You know you want to! Go on... just reach out your hand... yes, that is it... now close your fingers around it... feel the smooth surface on your skin... doesn't it feel good? Nearly there... now just lift your hand and bring it back to your -_

Aiden shook his head as he watched Harry give into temptation and remove the Prophecy from the shelf. He knew exactly what the glass sphere represented; he had seen them so many times back home! But he had promised Dumbledore when he had become a part of the Order of the Phoenix that anything discussed in the meetings would be kept confidential.

Unfortunately, it was then, the moment that Harry had wiped the clogging dust from the sphere, that Aiden became aware of the fact that they were no longer alone. Dark shapes were coming out of the darkness and pressing closer upon their little group; none of the others had seemed to notice them yet! He hadn't _seen_ them per say... but he could sense them!

He could sense small movements on the ground; it was a part of being an elemental controller of Earth! He could detect even the slightest of changes through the ground.

"And then, from right behind them, a drawling voice said, "Very good, Potter. Now turn around, nice and slowly, and give that to me."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, June 04, 2012 at 4:59am**


	121. Chapter 121

**Author's Note:** There are some major surprises in this chapter! Also a spoiler on the future of a certain character… can you spot who and what it is?

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dark D-Knight, Pixiescale1185, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Fan of Fics**.

**Shout Outs: **Big shout out too **ZuzuManiac** for adding this story to their story and favourite alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize are copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx.

This chapter includes a disclaimer. Reason why? I recently received a PM from a fellow author accusing me of stealing the work of successful authors/writers and passing it off as my own! This is Fanfiction, people, if I owned Harry Potter in anyway shape or form; do you really think I would be posting here?

If I owned Harry Potter then the original canon series would have, probably, taken place from a Slytherin's point of view, I mean c'mon this is me you are talking about! I don't do anything that follows canon... it's like you don't know me at all!

Rant over... onto next chapter.

* * *

><p>It was now bluntly obvious that they had fallen hook-line-and-sinker for this 'dream'.<p>

Black shapes were emerging out of thin air all around them, blocking their way left and right; eyes glinted through slits in hoods, a dozen lit wand tips were pointing directly at their hearts. Amelia gave a gasp of horror.

"To me, Potter," repeated the drawling voice of Lucius Malfoy as he held out his hand, palm up.

Harry's insides plummeted sickeningly. They were trapped and outnumbered half a dozen to one.

"To me," said Malfoy yet again.

"Where's Phoebe?" Harry said.

Several of the Death Eaters laughed. A harsh female voice from the midst of the shadowy figures to Ashlyn's left said triumphantly, "The Dark Lord always knows!"

"Always," echoed Malfoy softly. "Now, give me the prophecy, Potter."

"I want to know where Phoebe is!"

"_I want to know where Phoebe is!"_ mimicked the woman to Ashlyn's left.

She and her fellow Death Eaters had closed in so that they were mere feet away from Harry and the others, the light from their wands dazzling and blinding the students.

"You've got her," said Harry, ignoring the rising panic in his chest, the dread he had been fighting since they had first entered the ninety-seventh row. "She's here. I know she is."

"_The little baby woke up fwightened and fort what it dweaned was twoo,"_ cooed the woman in a horrible, mock baby-like voice. Harry felt Aiden stir beside him.

"Don't do anything," he muttered. "Not yet -"

The woman who had mimicked him let out a raucous scream of laughter.

"You hear him? _You hear him?_ Giving instructions to the other children as though he thinks of fighting us?"

"Oh, you don't know Potter as I do, Bellatrix," said Malfoy softly. "He as a great weakness for heroics; the Dark Lord understands this about him. _Now give me the Prophecy, Potter."_

"I know Phoebe is here," said Harry, through panic was causing his chest to constrict and he felt as though he could not breathe properly. "_I know you've got her!"_

More of the Death Eaters laughed, though the woman still laughed loudest of all.

"Aw," she cooed again. "Does little baby Potter have a crush on the Ultimate power?"

"It's time you learned the difference between life and dreams, Potter," said Malfoy. "Now give me the Prophecy, or we start using wands."

"Go on then," said Harry, raising his own wand to chest height. As he did so, the seven wands of Ron, Hermione, Aiden, Ashlyn, James, Sarah and Amelia rose on either side of him. The knot in Harry's stomach tightened. If Phoebe really was not here, he had led his friends to their deaths for no reason at all.

But the Death Eaters didn't strike,

"Hand over the prophecy and no one need get hurt," said Malfoy coolly.

It was Harry's turn to laugh.

"Yeah, right!" he said. "I give you this - prophecy, is it? And you'll just let us skip off home, will you?"

The words were hardly out of his mouth when the female Death Eater shrieked, "_Accio Proph -"_

Aiden was ready for her. He shouted "_Protego!"_ before she had finished her spell.

The female and Malfoy turned quickly in Aiden's direction. Malfoy's eyes widened as he looked startled, while the female cackled mercilessly. "Oh, he knows how to play, little bitty baby... What's your name, sweets?"

"Chamberlain," spat Aiden, his eyes never faltering from his fathers. "Aiden Chamberlain!"

He could have said Malfoy; put Lucius in his place, but that would mean unleashing pandemonium on everyone within the hall. People would get hurt - his friends - Sarah - would get hurt! He couldn't let that happen.

"Very well, then..." nodded the female Death Eater. "Chamberlain... prepare to meet your fate!"

"I TOLD YOU, NO!" Lucius Malfoy roared at the woman. "If you smash it - !"

Harry's mind was racing. The Death Eaters wanted this dusty spun-glass sphere. He had no interest at all in it. He just wanted to get them all out of this alive, make sure that none of his friends paid a terrible price for his stupidity... and it looked like Aiden wanted to achieve the same goal as he, for the second he glanced back at the elemental he nodded once.

The woman stepped forward, away from her fellows and pulled off her hood. Azkaban had hollowed Bellatrix Lestrange's face, making it gaunt and skull-like, but it was alive with a feverish, fanatical glow.

"You need more persuasion?" she said, her chest rising and falling rapidly. "Very well - the smallest one," she ordered the Death Eaters beside her. "Let them watch while we torture the little girl. I'll do it."

Sarah whimpered and clung to Aiden's arm as the Death Eaters moved closer to her. He give her arm a tug and pulled her further into fray of her friends as they each closed in around her, and he stepped sideways so that he was right in front of her, his wand elevated and pointed directly at Bellatrix.

"I'll destroy the prophecy long before you can touch either of us," he snarled. "And I don't think your precious Dark Lord will be too pleased if you come home without it, will he?"

Bellatrix did not move; she merely stared at him, the tip of her tongue moistening her thin mouth, she then cast a glance in Lucius's direction and her gaze hardened. Aiden knew that she had worked out who he was... she just wasn't stupid enough to create a scene down here in the Department of Mysteries. No, being who she was, she would save this information for later, when she was back in the presence of her precious Dark Lord.

"So," said Harry, "what kind of prophecy are we talking about anyway?"

He could not think what to do but to keep talking. Ron's arm was pressed against his; and he could feel him shaking. He could feel one of the other's quickened breath on the back of his head. He was hoping they were all thinking about ways to get out of this, because his mind was blank.

"What kind of Prophecy?" repeated Bellatrix, the grin fading from her face. "You jest, Harry Potter."

"Not, not jesting," said Harry, his eyes flicking from Death Eater to Death Eater, looking for a weak link, a space through which they could escape. "How come Voldemort wants it?"

Several Death Eaters let out low hisses.

"You dare speak his name?" whispered Bellatrix.

"Yeah," said Harry, maintaining his tight grip on the glass ball, expecting another attempt to bewitch it from him. "Yeah, I've got no problem saying Vol -"

"Shut your mouth!" Bellatrix shrieked. "You dare to speak his name with your unworthy lips, you dare besmirch it with your half-blood's tongue, and you dare -"

"Did you know he's a Halfblood too?" said Harry recklessly. Hermione gave a little moan in his ear. "Voldemort? Yeah, his mother was a witch but his dad was a Muggle - or has been telling you lot he's a pureblood?"

"_STUPEF -"_

_"NO!"_

The jet of red light had shot from the end of Bellatrix Lestrange's wand, but Malfoy had deflected it. His spell caused hers to hit the shelf a foot to the left of James and several of the glass orbs there shattered.

Two figures, pearly white as ghosts, fluid as smoke, unfurled themselves from the fragments of broken glass upon the floor and each began to speak. Their voices vied with each other, so that only fragments of what they were saying could be heard over Malfoy and Bellatrix's shouts.

"... _at the Solstice will come a new..."_ said the figure of an old, elegant looking woman. Aiden recognized her. It was Elena Blackheart.

"Phoebe..." he whispered, as he realized that the prophecy that had smashed was the one about Phoebe's birth.

"DO NOT ATTACK! WE NEED THE PROPHECY!"

"He dared - he dares -" shrieked Bellatrix incoherently. "- He stands there - filthy Halfblood -"

"WAIT UNTIL WE'VE GOT THE PROPHECY!" bawled Malfoy.

Aiden snuck a glance at Ashlyn. That was all the proof he needed, Malfoy had the intention of letting them walk out of there alive. They needed to get out... and now!

"... _and none will come after_..." said the figure of a young man.

The two figures that had burst from the shattered sphered had melted into thin air. Nothing remained of them or their erstwhile homes but fragments of glass upon the floor. They had, however, given Harry an idea. The problem was going to be conveying it to the others.

"You haven't told me what's so special about this prophecy I'm supposed to be handing over," he said, playing for time. He moved his foot slowly sideways, feeling around for someone else's.

"Do not play games with us, Potter," said Malfoy.

"I'm not playing games," said Harry, half of his mind on the conversation, half on his wandering foot. And then he found someone's toes and pressed down upon them.

Ashlyn gasped sharply, prodding Harry in the shoulder blades with her wand. "What's the big deal, Potter!" she snapped in a whispered voice.

Harry almost groaned. It had to be her foot he had found!

"Dumbledore never told you that the reason you bear that scar was hidden in the bowls of the Department of Mysteries?" said Malfoy sneeringly.

"I - what?" said Harry, and for a moment a quite forgot his plan. "What about my scar?"

"_What's the big deal, Potter!"_ snarled Ashlyn.

"Can this be?" said Malfoy, sounding maliciously delighted, some of the Death Eaters were laughing again, and under cover of their laughter, Harry hissed to Ashlyn, moving his lips as little as possible. "Smash the shelves -"

Ashlyn frowned and looked around her. _Smash the shelves? What the hell does he -_

Her gaze caught sight of the shattered glass on the floor and the raised to that of the shelves surrounding her and the Death Eaters. She smirked; alright maybe Potter wasn't as stupid as she once thought.

"Dumbledore never told you?" Malfoy repeated. "Well, this explains why you didn't come earlier, Potter, the Dark Lord wondered why -"

"- When I say go -"

"- you didn't come running when he showed you the place where it was hidden in your dreams. He thought natural curiosity would make you want to hear the exact wording..."

"Did he?" said Harry. Behind him he felt rather than heard Ashlyn passing the message on to the others and he sought to keep talking, to distract the Death Eaters. "So he wanted me to come and get it, did he? Why?"

_"Why?"_ Malfoy sounded incredulously delighted. "Because the only people who are permitted to retrieve a prophecy from the Department of Mysteries, Potter, are those about whom it was made, as the Dark Lord discovered when he attempted to use other to steal it for him -"

"And why did he want to steal a prophecy about me?"

"About both of you Potter, about both of you... Haven't you ever wondered why the Dark Lord tried to kill you as a baby?"

Harry stared into the slitted eyeholes through which Malfoy's grey eyes - the same grey eyes that Phoebe had - where gleaming. Was this prophecy the reason Harry's parents had died, the reason he carried his lightning-bolt scar? Was the answer to all of this clutched in his hand?

"Someone made a prophecy about Voldemort and me?" he said quietly, gazing at Lucius Malfoy, his fingers tightening over the warm glass sphere in his hand. It was hardly larger than a Snitch and still gritty with dust. "And he made me come and get it for him? Why couldn't he come and get it himself?"

"Get it himself?" shrieked Bellatrix on a cackle of mad laughter. "The Dark Lord, walk into the Ministry of Magic, when they are sweetly ignoring his return? The Dark Lord reveal himself to the Aurors, when at the moment they are wasting their time on my dear cousin?"

"So he's got you doing his dirty work for him, has he?" said Harry. "Like he tried to get Sturgis to steal it - and Bode?"

"Very good, Potter, very good..." said Malfoy slowly. "But the Dark Lord knows you are not unintell -"

"NOW!" yelled Harry.

Seven different voices behind him bellowed "_REDUCTO!"_ Five curses flew in five different directions and the shelves opposite them exploded as they hit. The towering structure swayed as hundreds of glass spheres burst apart, pearly-white figures unfurled into the air and floated there, their voices echoing from who knew what long-dead past amid the torrent of crashing glass and splintered wood now raining down upon the floor -

"RUN!" Harry yelled, and as the selves swayed precariously and more glass spheres began to pour from above, he seized a handful of Ashlyn's robes and dragged her forward, one arm over his head as chunks of shelf and shards of glass thundered down upon them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Atrium was empty.

There was no fires burning under the mantelpieces set into the walls and the only sound was that of the rushing water from the fountain in the middle of the Hall.

Phoebe frowned and turned to Terence.

"Shouldn't there be a night guard or something?" she asked.

Terence nodded and taking her hand, led her across the hall towards the desk where the night guard was usually situated. He leaned over the desk and gasped as he spotted the body of the only other person present. He was lying, flat on his back, his eyes wide open and mouth agape in a silent scream.

"He's dead," said Terence, turning to Phoebe.

"Killing Curse," said Phoebe, inspecting the body. "The Death Eaters are here... but where is the rest of the Order?"

Terence shook his head. "We should wai - where are you going?"

Phoebe had brushed past him and made her way quickly to the elevator on the other side of the Hall.

"Phoebe, we should wait for the others!"

"There is no time," answered Phoebe. "My friends are in trouble! Voldemort wants that Prophecy... Harry was foolish enough to believe his dreams and now they are in danger! I won't just stand back and wait for their bodies to be brought out!"

"What if he is down there?"

"He's not," answered Phoebe. "He won't come here! Not yet... not until he is sure that his Death Eaters have securely retrieved the Prophecy!"

She could feel distress and fear rising in her chest, and knew instantly that it was Aiden. It was at times like this that she did not mind being bound to her brother, but if he had felt what she had felt a few hours ago when she was with Terence... then things were about to get awkward when they were back together again.

Phoebe pressed the nearest down button and a lift clattered into sight almost immediately, the golden grilles slid apart with a great, echoing clanking, and they dashed inside. Phoebe stabbed the number nine button, the grilles closed with a bang, and the lift began to descend, jangling and rattling.

When the lift halted, a cool female voice said, "Department of Mysteries," and the grilles slid open again, they stepped out into the corridor where nothing was moving but the nearest torches, flickering in the rush of air from the lift.

Glancing at Terence, Phoebe elevated her wand and took his hand.

"Which way now?" Terence asked.

"Through the black door," Phoebe answered. "At least that is what Aiden said..."

"Black door?" repeated Terence. "Phoebe, everything down here is black!"

"There are only two doors down here," answered Phoebe. "The lifts in and out and the door leading to the main part of this department. We find that then we are one step closer to finding the others! Come on!"

She tugged him forward.

The hallway in which they had stepped out onto, indeed did lead them to a smooth black door at the end.

"I still think we should wait for the rest of the Order," whispered Terence.

"It could be too late by then," replied Phoebe. "You're not scared are you?"

"No!" defended the former Slytherin.

Phoebe giggled and turned to face the door and walked forward. It seemed to sense her presence and swung open, permitting her entrance to the room beyond. Terence followed her across the threshold.

They were standing in a large, circular room. Everything in here was black including the floor and ceiling - identical, unmarked, handle-less black doors were set at intervals all around the black walls, interspersed with branches of candles whose flames burned blue, their cool, shimmering light reflected in the shining marble floor so that it looked as though there was dark water underfoot.

The door shut behind them and they were thrown into complete darkness.

_"Lumos!"_

The two wand tips ignited with beams of bright light.

Seconds later there was a great rumbling noise and the candles began to move sideways. The circular wall was rotating.

"What's happening?" asked Terence.

"Hall of Prophecies!" shouted Phoebe.

The wall slid to a halt and a door appeared before them. Stumbling forwards, Phoebe braced herself against the wall as the door swung open and she was permitted access to a beautiful, diamond-sparkling lit room.

"How did you do that?"

"My grandmother had a vision," answered Phoebe. "She saw this... us, Harry, the others... she saw us down here! She knew that she couldn't stop her vision from becoming true, so instead of us running into this blind she instructed Serefina to teach me how to control the room!"

Terence stared at her in wonder. "Is that the reason why you wanted to become an Unspeakable?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Partly! Come on... we've got to find the others!"

Terence nodded and the two stepped further into the Hall of Prophecies.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They were at the end of row ninety-seven; Harry turned right and began to sprint in earnest. He could hear footsteps right behind him and Ashlyn's voice urging Amelia on. The door through which they had come was ajar straight ahead, Harry could see the glittering light of the bell jar, but before he could reach the opening, he collided with something and hit the floor with a thud.

"Ouch!"

"Harry!"

"Phoebe!"

There was a pause.

"Harry?"

"Phoebe?"

Light illuminated the whole row and Harry was able to see Phoebe sitting opposite him on the floor, she looked slightly frazzled and it might have been from the fact that he had just crashed into her, other than that she looked perfectly fine.

"Phoebe!" exclaimed Ashlyn, jumping over Harry and throwing her arms around her best friend.

Phoebe, who had just made it back to her feet, stumbled slightly but returned the hug with just as much enthusiasm. They were joined by Amelia, while James helped Harry back to his feet.

"Can we leave the hugging for later?" asked James, "unless you forgot we got a herd of Death Eaters on our tail!"

"Well, what are we standing around for?" asked Phoebe. "Let's get out of here!"

She tugged Ashlyn's hand and pulled her back into the room behind her. The others tumbled through the door and it slammed shut behind them.

"Someone lock it!" shouted Amelia, and it wasn't difficult to hear the hysteria in her voice.

Phoebe pointed her wand at the door and said, "_Colloportus!"_

"Where - where are the others?" asked Terence.

"They must have gone the wrong way!" said James, terror in his face.

"Listen!" whispered Ashlyn.

Footsteps and shouts echoed from behind the door they had just sealed. Harry put his ear close to the door to listen and heard Lucius Malfoy roar: "Leave Nott, _leave him, I say, _the Dark Lord will not care for Nott's injuries as much as losing that prophecy - Flint, come back here, we need to organize! We'll split into pairs and search, and don't forget, be gentle with Potter until we've got the prophecy, you can kill the others if necessary - Bellatrix, Rodolphus, you take the left, Crabbe, Rabastan, go right - Flint, Dolohov, the door straight ahead - Macnair and Avery, through here - Rookwood and Mulciber, over there, Wood, come with me!"

"Did he say Wood?" whispered Phoebe. "As in Oliver Wood?"

Harry shrugged. It couldn't have been... but then again, how many Wood's did they know?

"What do we do?" Amelia asked Harry, trembling from head to foot.

"Well, we don't stand here waiting for them to find us, for a start," said Harry. "Let's get away from this door..."

They ran, quietly as they could, past the shimmering bell jar where the tiny egg was hatching and unhatching, toward the exit into the circular hallway at the far end of the room. They were almost there when Phoebe heard something large and heavy collide with the door that she had locked.

"Stand aside!" said a rough voice. "_Alohomora!"_

As the door flew open, Harry, Amelia, Ashlyn, James, Phoebe and Terence dived under desks. They could see the bottom of the two Death Eaters' robes drawing nearer, their feet moving rapidly.

"They might've run straight through to the hall," said the rough voice.

"Check under desks," said another.

James saw the knees of the Death Eaters bend. Poking his wand out from under the desk he shouted. "_STUPEFY!"_

A jet of red light hit the nearest Death Eater; he fell backward into a grandfather clock and knocked it over. The second Death Eater, however, had leapt aside to avoid Harry's spell and now pointed his own wand at Amelia, who had crawled out from under the desk to get a better aim.

"_Avada -"_

_"EXPELLIARMUS!"_

The Death Eater's wand flew out of his hand and soared back toward the entrance of the Hall of Prophecy. Phoebe knelt down and picked it up, her wand still pointed at the Death Eater. "Amelia, MOVE!" she shouted.

The Hufflepuff flung herself sideways into James as Phoebe took aim. "_STUPEFY!"_

The jet of red flew right over the Death Eater and hit a glass-fronted cabinet on the wall full of variously shaped hourglasses. The cabinet fell to the floor and burst apart, glass flying everywhere, then sprang back up onto the wall, full mended, then fell down again, and shattered -

"Argh!" Phoebe screamed. "Why did this have to the room of Time?"

"Phoebe, look out!" shouted Ashlyn, swinging around from behind a bronze cabinet and aiming her wand at the Death Eater. "_STUPEFY!"_

The jet of red light hit the Death Eater in the middle of the chest, he froze and then he collapsed backward toward the bell jar, his head sinking through the surface of the bell jar as though it was nothing but a soap bubble and he came to rest, sprawled on his back on the table, with his head lying inside the jar full of glittering wind.

"Look," said Amelia, pointing at the Death Eater.

Phoebe and Ashlyn looked round, their jaws dropping as they watched openmouthed and appalled at what was happening to the man's head.

It was shrinking very fast, growing balder and balder, the black hair and stubble retracting into his skull, his cheeks smooth, his skull round and covered with a peach like fuzz.

A baby's head now sat grotesquely on top of the thick, muscled neck of the Death Eater as he struggled to get up again. But even as they watched, their mouths open, the head began to swell to its previous proportions again; thick black hair was sprouting from the pate and chin.

"Time..." whispered James, turning to Phoebe. "You complained about this being the time room!"

"Yeah," nodded Phoebe. "His head will continue to shift between that of a babies and his regular one..."

The Death Eater shook his ugly head again, trying to clear it, but before he could pull himself together again, it began to shrink back to babyhood once more.

There was a shout from a room nearby, then a crash and a scream.

"RON?" Harry yelled, turning quickly from the monstrous transformation taking place. "HERMIONE?"

"SARAH!" Amelia, Ashlyn and Phoebe yelled. "AIDEN!"

"Phoebe!" James screamed.

The Death Eater had pulled his head out of the bell jar. His appearance utterly bizarre, his tiny baby's head bawling loudly while his thick arms flailed dangerously in all directions, narrowly missing Terence, who ducked. Harry raised his wand but to his amazement Ashlyn seized his arm.

"You cannot hurt a baby!"

There was no time to argue the point. He could hear more footsteps growing louder from the Hall of Prophecy they had just left and knew, too late, that they should not have shouted and given away their position.

"Come on!" said Harry again, and leaving the ugly baby-headed Death Eater staggering behind them, they took off for the door that stood ajar at the other end of the room, leading back into the black hallway.

They had run halfway toward it when Terence saw through the open door two more Death Eaters running across the black room toward them. He seized Phoebe's wrist and veered left, bursting instead into a small, dark, cluttered office. The others followed, and Harry slammed the door behind them.

_"Collo -"_ Phoebe began, but before she could complete the spell the door had burst open again and the two Death Eaters had come hurtling inside.

With a cry of triumph both yelled, "_IMPEDIMENTA!"_

Ashlyn, Amelia and James ducked as Harry, Phoebe and Terence were all knocked backwards off their feet.

Terence was thrown over the desk and disappeared from view, Harry smashed into a bookcase and was promptly deluged in a cascade of heavy books; the back of Phoebe's head slammed into the stone wall behind her, tiny lights burst in front of her eyes, and for a moment she was too dizzy and bewildered to react.

"Two birds with one stone," cackled one of the Death Eaters, as his gaze landed on Phoebe.

"WE'VE GOT HIM!" yelled the second Death Eater. "WE'VE GOT HIM AND THE WEAPON! IN AN OFFICE OFF -"

_"Silencio!"_ cried Ashlyn, and the man's voice was extinguished. He continued to mouth through the hole in his mask, but no sound came out; he was thrust aside by his fellow.

"_Petrificus Totalus!"_ shouted James, as the second Death Eater raised his wand. His arms and legs snapped together and he fell forward, facedown onto the rug at James's feet, stiff as a board and unable to move at all.

"Well done, Ja -"

But the Death Eater Ashlyn had just struck dumb made a sudden slashing movement with his wand from which flew a streak of what looked like purple flame. It passed right across Ashlyn's chest; she gave a tiny 'oh!' as though of surprise and then crumpled onto the floor where she lay motionless.

"ASHLYN!"

Phoebe fell to her knees beside her as James and Amelia crawled rapidly across the floor towards them, James had his wand held up in front of him. The Death Eater kicked out hard at James's head - his foot broke James's wand in two and connected with his face - James gave a howl of pain and recoiled, clutching his mouth and nose.

Terence, who had emerged from under the desk, looked over Phoebe's shoulder as the Death Eater ripped off his mask and was pointing his wand directly at Harry, who had yet to join his friends around Ashlyn. It was Antonin Dolohov.

Dolohov grinned, as his free hand shot out and wrapped around Terence's upper arm and pulled him backwards away from the group.

"No!" Phoebe yelled, as Terence was pulled away from her. "Let him go!"

Terence was pulled the length of the room and let go of, although Dolohov's wand was trained on him preventing him from even attempting to escape. With his free hand, Dolohov pointed from the prophecy still clutched in Harry's hand, to himself, to Terence, then at Ashlyn. Although he could no longer speak his meaning could not have been clearer. _Give me the prophecy, or he gets the same as her._..

_"_Like you won't kill us all the moment I had it over anyway!" said Harry.

A whine of panic issued from Phoebe's lips, and Harry felt his heart constrict painfully as he glanced sideways at her, her eyes were wide and full of swirling fear as she stared at Terence. Her wand had gone limp in her hand and it seemed that she had forgotten that she had elemental magic at her disposal.

"_I can't create the elements... only control them!"_ her voice echoed loudly in his head as he remembered what she had told him months ago. She wasn't able to create the elements out of thin air, only control them when they were in full view of her. They were in the middle of the Department of Mysteries there was no water or air down here for her to manipulate.

"Whatever you do, Potter," said Terence fiercely, "don't give it to him!"

"Terence shut up!" whispered Phoebe.

Terence smiled, somewhat sadly, at his girlfriend. Her lower lip was quivering and Harry was sure that he could hear her heartbeat excel inside her chest. He clutched the prophecy in his hand; he was willing to hand it over just to see some life return to her face.

There was a crash outside the door, and Dolohov looked over his shoulder - the baby-headed Death Eater had appeared in the doorway, his head bawling, his great fists still flailing uncontrollably at everything around him.

Harry seized his chance: _"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!"_

Terence threw himself aside as the spell hit Dolohov before he could block it, and he topped forward across him comrade, both of them rigid as boards and unable to move an inch.

"Terence!" Phoebe gasped, sliding across the floor and throwing her arms around her boyfriend. The former Slytherin pulled her into his lap and buried his head in her shoulder, as she sobbed into his shoulder. And he run his fingers through her hair, whispering soothingly into her ear.

Amelia, however, had not left Ashlyn's side and was shaking her shoulder as the baby-headed Death Eater blundered out of sight again. "Ashlyn, wake up..."

"Whaddid he do to her?" said James, crawling out from under his desk to kneel beside his cousin and friend, blood streaming from his rapidly swelling noise. He groped for Ashlyn's wrist and sighed in relief. "Dat's a pulse, I'b sure id is..."

Such a powerful wave of relief swept over the others in the room.

"She's alive?" asked Phoebe; she was sitting on Terence's lap, his arms around her and her head resting on his shoulder. Her eyes were rimmed red from crying and there were dried tear tracks on her cheeks.

"Yeah, I dink so..." said James.

There was a pause in which Harry listened hard for the sounds of more footsteps, but all he could hear were the whimpers and blunderings of the baby Death Eater in the next room.

"Phoebe, we're not from the exit," Harry whispered. "We're right next to the circular room... If we can just get across it and find the right door before any more Death Eaters come, I'll bet we can get Ashlyn, Amelia and James up the corridor and into the lift... Then you could go find someone... Raise the alarm..."

"The Order is on its way, Harry," said Phoebe. "We were given orders to come here..."

Harry blinked. "You - you were?"

Terence nodded. "Yes, we were supposed to wait in the Atrium, but Phoebe was worried about you... and well... you know how stubborn she is!"

Phoebe grinned and buried her face back into his shoulder.

"Whad are you going to do?" asked James, mopping his bleeding nose with his sleeve and frowning at Harry.

"I've got to find the others," said Harry.

"Well, I'b going do find dem wid you," said James firmly.

"But Ashlyn -"

"We'll dake her wid us," said James firmly. "I'll carry her -"

He stood up and seize one of Ashlyn's arms, glared at Harry, who hesitated, then grabbed the other and helped hoist Ashlyn's limp form over James's shoulders.

"Wait," said Amelia, snatching up Ashlyn's wand from the floor and shoving it into James's hand, "you'd better take this..."

James kicked aside the broken fragments of his own wand as they walked slowly toward the door.

"My mother is going to kill be," said James thickly, blood spattering from his noise as he spoke, "dat was my grandfather's old wand..."

Harry stuck his head out of the door and looked around cautiously. The baby-headed Death Eater was screaming and banging into things, toppling grandfather clocks and overturning desks, bawling and confused, while the glass cabinet that Phoebe now suspected had contained Time-Turners continued to fall, shatter, and repair itself on the wall behind them.

"He's never going to notice us," Terence whispered.

Harry nodded. "C'mon... keep close behind me..."

They crept out of the office and back toward the door into the black hallway, which now seemed completely deserted. They walked a few steps forward, James tottering slightly due to Ashlyn's weight. The door of the Time Room swung shut behind them, and the walls began to rotate once more.

The recent blow on the back of Phoebe's head seemed to have unsteadied her; she narrowed her eyes, swaying slightly, until the walls stopped moving again.

"So which way d'you reck -?" Harry started.

But before they could make a decision as to which way to try, a door to their right sprang open and four people fell out of it.

"Ron!" croaked Harry, dashing toward them. "Hermione - are you all -?"

"Harry," said Ron, giggling weakly, lurching forward, seizing the front of Harry's robes and gazing at him with unfocused eyes. "There you are... Ha ha ha... You look funny, Harry... You're all messed up..."

Ron's face was very white and something dark was tricking from the corner of his mouth. Next moment his knees had given way, but he still clutched the front of Harry's robes, so that Harry was pulled into a kind of bow.

"Hermione?" Harry said fearfully. "What happened?"

But Hermione shook her head and slid down the wall into a sitting position, panting and holding her ankle.

"I think her ankle's broken, I heard something crack," whispered Sarah, who was bending over the bookworm. She and Aiden seemed unhurt. "Four of them chased us into a dark room full of planets, it was a very odd place, and some of the time we were just floating in the dark -"

"Harry, we saw Uranus up close!" said Ron, still giggling feebly. "Get it, Harry? We saw Uranus - ha ha ha -"

A bubble of blood grew at the corner of Ron's mouth and burst.

"Anyway, one of them grabbed Hermione's foots, I used the Reducto Curse and blew up Pluto in his face, but..."

Sarah gestured hopelessly at Hermione, who was breathing in a very shallow way, her eyes still closed.

"And what about Ron?" said Harry fearfully, as Ron continued to giggle, still hanging off of the front of Harry's robes.

"I don't know what they hit him with," said Sarah sadly, "but he's gone a bit funny, we could hardly get him along at all."

Phoebe and Aiden, who had caught one another's eye, crossed the room and fell into a tight embrace. Relief washed over both of them twice, as they both sensed the others relief for their safety.

"We've got to get out of here," said Harry firmly. "Sarah, can you help Hermione?"

"Yes," said Sarah, sticking her wand behind her ear for safekeeping, putting an arm around Hermione's waist and pulling her up.

"It's only my ankle, I can do it myself!" said Hermione impatiently, but next moment she had collapsed sideways and grabbed Sarah for support. Harry pulled Ron's arm over his shoulder. He looked around: They had a one-in-twelve chance of getting the exit right the first time -

He heaved Ron toward a door; they were within a few feet of it when another door across the hall burst open and three Death Eaters sped into the hall, led by Bellatrix Lestrange.

_"There they are!"_ she shrieked.

Stunning Spells shot across the room: Harry smashed his way through the door ahead, while Aiden, Phoebe, Terence and Amelia blocked and attacked all at once. They continued to fight as they backed up towards the door and slid across the threshold just in time to slam the door against Bellatrix.

_"Colloportus!"_ shouted Phoebe, and she heard three bodies slam into the door one the other side.

"It doesn't matter!" said a man's voice. "There are other ways in - WE'VE GOT THEM, THEY'RE HERE!"

Phoebe spun around. They were in the Brain Room and, sure enough, there were doors all around the walls. She could hear footsteps in the hall behind them as more Death Eaters came running to join the first.

"Terence - Aiden - help me!"

The three of them tore around the room, sealing the doors as they went; Aiden crashed into a table and rolled over the top of it in his haste to reach the next door.

_"Colloportus!"_

There were footsteps running along behind the doors; every now and then another heavy body would launch itself against one, so it creaked and shuddered. Terence and Phoebe were bewitching the doors along the opposite wall - then, as Aiden reached the very top of the room, he heard Phoebe cry, _"Collo - aaaaaaaaaaaaargh..."_

Aiden spun around in time to see her flying through the air. Five Death Eaters were surging into the room through the door she had not reached in time; Phoebe hit a desk, slid over its surface and onto the floor on the other side where she lay sprawled, as still as Ashlyn.

"Get Potter!" shrieked Bellatrix, and she ran at him.

"Harry, move!" Aiden yelled.

Harry dodged Bellatrix and sprinted down the room; he was safe as long as they thought they might hit the prophecy -

"Hey!" said Ron, who had staggered to his feet and was now tottering drunkenly toward Harry, giggling. "Hey, Harry, there are _brains _in here, ha ha ha, isn't it weird, Harry?"

"Ron, get out of the way, get down -"

But Ron had already pointed his wat at the tank.

"Honest, Harry, they're brains - look - _Accio Brain!"_

The scene seemed momentarily frozen. Harry, Aiden, Terence, Amelia and Sarah and each of the Death Eaters turned in spite of themselves to watch the top of the tank as a brain burst from the green liquid like a leaping fish. For a moment it seemed suspended in midair, then it soared toward Ron, sinning as it came, and what looked like ribbons of moving images flew from it, unraveling like rolls of film -

"Ha ha ha, Harry, look at it -" said Ron, watching it disgorge its gaudy innards. "Harry, come and touch it, bet it's weird -"

"RON, NO!"

But before Ron could touch the brain - or the brain could touch Ron - a serpent of water shot out of the tank, flung itself around the brain and pulled it back under, deep into the green liquid within the glass tank.

Everyone stood transfixed staring at it, while Aiden, who recognized the signs as a water elemental glanced around the room. Phoebe was unconscious, so the chances of her saving Ron were zero. So that meant... Aiden glanced in his father's direction, Lucius's eyes were returning to stormy grey, and the look on his face was grim.

Several stream of red lights flew in different directions, some of them hitting their marks, others shattering objects around the room. One-by-one Aiden, Terence, Amelia, Sarah and Hermione keeled over sideways.

"_STUBEFY!"_ shouted James, wheeling around and waving Ashlyn's wand at the oncoming Death Eaters. _"STUBEFY! STUBEFY!"_

But nothing happened - one of the Death Eaters shot their own Stunning Spell at James; it missed him by inches. Harry and James were now the only two left fighting the five Death Eaters, two of whom sent streams of silver light like arrows past them that left craters in the wall behind them.

Harry ran for it as Bellatrix Lestrange sprinted right at him. Holding the prophecy high above his head he sprinted back up the room; all he could think of doing was to draw the Death Eaters away from the others.

It seemed to have worked. They streaked after him, knocking chairs and tables flying but not daring to bewitch him in case they hurt the prophecy, and he dashed through the only door still open, the one through which the Death Eaters themselves had come.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe groaned as she started to come too, her world was a little hazy, but at least she was alive. Pushing herself up onto her knees she cast a look around the room and spotted her friends, all of which were unconscious and strewn around the room.

"What happened?" she asked, looking at James. He was the only one still awake. "Where is Harry?"

"He led the Death Eaters away," James answered. "Are you okay?"

Phoebe nodded and staggered to her feet, she reached for her wand and in turn, pointed it at each of the Stunned friends. One-by-one their eyes snapped open and they lifted themselves up from the ground.

"What the -?" started Sarah, rubbing her head tentatively.

"You were Stunned," answered Phoebe.

Amelia blinked and looked around. "Where is Potter?"

"Gone!" answered James.

"Gone where?" asked Aiden.

James nodded towards the open door on the otherside of the room, it was the same door that Phoebe had failed to lock in time and the Death Eaters had come through. "I went to check on him," James explained, "but they aren't on the otherside!"

"Alright," nodded Phoebe. "Now would be a good time for the Order to show up! Where the hell are they? We -" she pointed at herself and Terence, "came all the way from Portugal! They should have been here first!"

"Maybe they are searching for us?" suggested Sarah. "The Department of Mysteries, they sure got that name right, didn't they?"

Amelia nodded. "So, what do we do? I assume we aren't going to just sit around and wait for them to show up?"

"No," said Phoebe. "We're going to find Harry and then we are getting the hell out of here! I am tired of running around in circles! No more games!"

The others murmured in agreement.

"What about Ashlyn and Hermione?" asked Sarah. "Ashlyn is still unconscious and Hermione can't walk!"

"We'll have to carry and support them! James, you got Ashlyn?"

James nodded and with the help of Aiden hoisted Ashlyn over his shoulders, while Sarah and Amelia supported Hermione between them.

"Ready?" Phoebe asked, holding her wand aloft in front of her.

Her friends nodded.

"Alright then," the elemental nodded, and she started for the door. "Let's go!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Potter, your race is run," drawled Lucius Malfoy, pulling off his mask. "Now hand me the prophecy like a good boy..."

"Let - let the others go, and I'll give it to you!" said Harry desperately.

A few Death Eaters laughed.

"You are not in a position to bargain, Potter," said Lucius, his pale face flushed with pleasure.

"Phoebe and Aiden are upstairs!" snapped Harry. "Surely, you wouldn't want to see your children get hurt!"

Lucius glared, but continued as if Harry had not spoken. "You see, there are ten of us and only one of you... or hasn't Dumbledore ever taught you how to count?"

"He's not alone!" shouted a voice from above them.

Harry turned and felt his spirits soar. Phoebe, who had awakened, was standing in the doorway to the brain room, backed up by the others, who had also awakened. "Phoebe..." Harry whispered.

Lucius sneered as he caught wind of Harry's loving whisper. "You don't stand the chance with a Malfoy," he hissed.

"No, not now that she is engaged," answered Harry, turning back to face his friend's father.

"You lie!"

"Do I?" countered Harry, a grin plastering its way across his face, it was not difficult to see the anger boiling beneath the surface of Lucius's pale skin.

Scrambling over the last stone bench, Phoebe reached for Harry's hand and took a step in front of him, acting like a barrier between him and the Death Eaters. Aiden was beside her in two strides, adding to the protective barrier that she had formed.

Bellatrix, who stood just behind Lucius, gasped as the light fell across the two's faces. She had already worked out that Aiden was a product of her brother-in-law, but now that she could see the weapon more clearly she wasn't discouraged in believing that Lucius was keeping more than baby boy a secret, especially not when the girl standing in front of her resembled the Blacks and Narcissa to a 'T'.

"You -" breathed Bellatrix, her eyes wide with surprise and malice at the delicious secret she had discovered down in the depths of the Department of Mysteries.

Then, high above them, two more doors burst open and nine more people sprinted into the room: Sirius, Lupin, Moody, Tonks, Kingsley, Serefina, Josephine, Philip and Samantha.

Malfoy turned and raised his wand, but Tonks had already sent a Stunning Spell right at him. Phoebe did not wait to see whether it had made contact, but dived off the dais out of the way, taking Aiden and Harry with her. The Death Eaters were completely distracted by the appearance of the Order, who were now raining spells down upon them as they jumped from step to step toward the sunken floor: Through the darting bodies, the flashes of light, Phoebe, Aiden and Harry searched for their friends.

"There!" Aiden shouted over the noise, he was pointing between the bodies to where James and the others were hidden.

The three of them dodged another jet of red light and flung themselves flat on the ground to reach the rest of their group.

"Are you okay?" Phoebe yelled, as another spell soared inches over their heads.

"Yes," said James.

"We have to get out of here!" shrieked Sarah, as she crawled into Aiden's arms.

The stone floor between them exploded as a spell hit it, leaving a crater right where James's hand had been seconds before. The small group scrambled away from the spot, dragging their unconscious friends with them.

A thick arm came out of nowhere, seized Phoebe around the neck and pulled her upright, so that her toes were barely touching the floor.

"Give it to me," growled a voice in her ear, "give me the prophecy -"

"Go to hell!" Phoebe screamed, swinging her leg backwards and kicking the man in the groin. He dropped her and recoiled in pain.

"_STUPEFY!"_ Terence yelled, aiming his wand at the howling Death Eater.

The Death Eater keeled over backwards and his mask slipped off. It was Macnair, Buckbeak's would-be killer, his eyes were watering and pain was easily spotted in his face.

"Did you have to kick him?" asked Amelia.

"Did he have to strangle me?" countered Phoebe. "Besides, that was the only place I could reach!"

"At least we won't have to worry about him producing a child!" added Sarah.

Amelia and Phoebe giggled in response.

"Tha' cruel!" shouted James, through a mouth full of blood.

"And totally worth it!" nodded Amelia, as she pulled Sarah aside as Sirius and his Death Eater lurched past, dueling so fiercely that their wands were blurs. Then Terence's foot made contact with something round and hard and he slipped - he hit the ground and spotted Moody's magical eye spinning away across the floor.

Its owner was lying on his side, bleeding from the head, and his attacker was now bearing down upon the students; Dolohov, his long pale face twisted with glee.

"_Tarantallegra!"_ he shouted, his wand pointing at James, whose legs went immediately into a kind of frenzied tap dance, unbalancing him and causing him to fall to the floor again. "Now, Potter -"

He made the same slashing movement with his wand that he had used on Ashlyn just as Aiden yelled, _"Protego!"_

Harry felt something streak across his face like a blunt knife but the force of it knocked him sideways, and he felt over James's jerking legs, but the Shield Charm had stopped the worst of the spell.

Dolohov raised his wand again. _"Accio Proph -"_

Philip hurtled out of nowhere, rammed Dolohov with his shoulder, and sent him flying out of the way. The prophecy had again flown to the tips of Harry's fingers but he had managed to cling to it. Now Philip and Dolohov were dueling, their wands flashing like swords, sparks flying from their wand tips -

Dolohov drew back his wand to make the same slashing movement he had used on Harry and Ashlyn. But before he could complete the spell, the ground shook violently and a crevice opened beneath his feet, he dropped down out of sight and the floor closed back up, leaving Philip standing there, looking bewildered.

Phoebe turned to Aiden, his eyes returning to their stormy grey colour. "How did you do that?" she asked.

"Years of practice," he answered. "How do you make a tidal wave?"

"Years of practice," Phoebe grinned.

Aiden nodded. "Exactly! Now, what do you say that we get the hell out of here?"

"I'd say it's the best idea I have heard all day!"

"Given it has been mentioned several times already!" said Sarah, appearing beside the siblings and wrapping her arms around Aiden.

"Look out!" shouted Terence, he had sprung up, grabbed Phoebe's shoulders and pulled her down as a jet of green shot overhead. Across the room Amelia saw Tonks fall from halfway up the stone steps, her limp form toppling from stone seat to stone seat, and Bellatrix, triumphant, running back down the fray.

"Phoebe, take the prophecy, grab Harry, and run!" Serefina yelled, dashing to meet Bellatrix along with Sirius.

Phoebe did not see what happened next: Josephine and Kingsley swayed her field of vision, battling with Rookwood and Rodolphus; another jet of green light flew over Phoebe's head as she launched herself at Harry and the others.

"James, can you stand?" she bellowed in his ear, as his legs jerked and twitched uncontrollably. "Put your arm around Harry's neck -"

James did so - Harry heaved - James's legs were still flying in every direction, they would not support him and then, out of nowhere, a man lunged at them. Both fell backward, James's legs waving wildly like an overturned beetle's, Harry with his left arm held up in the air to try and save the small glass ball from being smashed.

"The prophecy, give me the prophecy, Potter!" snarled Lucius Malfoy, his wand pressing hard against Harry's ribs.

"No - get - off - me... Phoebe - catch it!"

Harry flung the prophecy across the floor. Phoebe whipped around and scooped it up, holding it close to her chest. Lucius pointed his wand at Phoebe instead, but Harry jabbed his own wand back over his shoulder and yelled _"IMPEDIMENTA!"_

Lucius was blasted off his back. As Harry scrambled up again he looked around and saw Malfoy smash into the dais on which Sirius and Bellatrix were now dueling. Malfoy aimed his wand at Harry and Phoebe again, but before he could draw breath to strike, Lupin jumped between them.

"Harry, Phoebe, round up the others and GO!"

Harry seized Phoebe by the wrist and tugged her back towards the others, all of which had managed to get James, Ashlyn and Hermione to the foot of the stairs.

"Can't you do something about his legs?" asked Sarah, avoiding James's mad moves.

"I can't think of the spell!" cried Phoebe, still clutching the glass sphere. "Aiden, Terence, you'll have to help him!"

The two boys seized James and heaved him upwards, his arms wrapping around their shoulders as they awkwardly climbed the steps to the brain room.

A spell hit the stone bench at Aiden's heel. It crumbled away and he fell back to the step below, knocking into Sarah who was right behind him. The Hufflepuff squealed as she was knocked backwards into Amelia, who was helping a giggling Ron up the stone steps, and created a domino effect ending with Harry, Phoebe, Hermione and Ashlyn sprawled out on the floor.

Phoebe rolled after she had hit the ground and came to stop at the dais, the shattered remains of the prophecy near her stomach. A pearly-white figure with hugely magnified eyes roes into the air, unnoticed by any but the students trying to escape. Harry could see its mouth moving, but in all the crashes and screams and yells surrounding them, not one word of the prophecy could he hear.

The figure stopped speaking and dissolved into nothingness.

"Harry, i'm sorry!" cried Phoebe, her face anguished. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean too -"

"Phoebe... don't worry about the Prophecy!" Harry shouted. "Let's just get out of -"

But Phoebe was no longer listening; instead something over his shoulder had caught her attention. A grin slid onto her face and Harry couldn't help but frown at the sheer beauty and yet confusion of her happiness. Why was she smiling?

"Phoebe...?"

"Grandma," Phoebe whispered. "Grandpa!"

Harry turned to look where Phoebe was staring. Directly above them, framed in the doorway from the Brain Room, stood Elena and Jacob Blackheart, but they were not alone, stood directly in front of them, his wand aloft, and his face white with fury, was Albus Dumbledore.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, June 06, 2012 at 4:13am**


	122. Chapter 122

**Author's Note: **Due to this 'purge' that is happening on Fanfiction there are going to be some changes made to this story. At the moment I am not in any violations of the rules or Terms or Service but I don't want to risk the chance of getting banned from this site or this story getting taken down.

**Dedication:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dark D-Knight, Evanescencefan97, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **Pixiescale1185.**

**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OCs and anything you don't recognize are copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx.

(Hoping to do some **in responses** real soon. So bear with me and I will _try_ and answer your questions without giving away spoilers.)

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><p>Dumbledore sped down the steps past his students, who had no more thought of leaving. Dumbledore was already at the foot of the steps when the Death Eaters nearest realized he was there. There were yells; one of the Death Eaters ran for it, scrabbling like a monkey up the stone steps opposite.<p>

However, he didn't make it to the top when he was blasted back down to the dais by Elena Blackheart, the Air elemental had blown hair from her lungs into her hand, and then aimed it at the Death Eater with a snap of her fingers, while her husband waved his wand and Stunned the remaining Death Eaters, leaving Dumbledore to pull those that the elementals had not be able to reach, he was pulling them back towards him, as if caught on an invisible fish hook.

Only one couple was still battling, apparently unaware of the new arrivals. Harry saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: He was laughing at her. "Come on, you can do better than that!" he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room.

The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest.

The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock. It seemed to take Sirius ages to fall. His body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backward into thin air. Phoebe waited with bated breath for him to topple over and re-appear on the otherside, smiling and laughing as if all this was one big joke.

But Sirius did not reappear.

"SIRIUS!" Harry's yells snapped her back to focus. There were still people fighting, Death Eaters still trying to get away, but all she could hear was Harry's desperate screams. "SIRIUS!"

Lupin had seized Harry, his arms wrapped around his chest, holding him back.

"There's nothing you can do, Harry -"

"Get him, save him; he's only just gone through!"

"It's too late, Harry -"

"We can still reach him -"

"There's nothing you can do, Harry... nothing... He's gone..."

"He hasn't gone!" Harry yelled. "SIRIUS! SIRIUS!"

"He can't come back, because he's d -"

"HE - IS - NOT - DEAD!" Harry yelled. "SIRIUS!"

There was a small whimper and the arms wrapped around her waist slid off. She looked over her shoulder to see Aiden move over to Sarah, taking her in her arms as tears slid down her face at the mere fact that another had been killed. On the steps, overlooking the dais, sat James, his legs had stopped dancing and she was starting at the veil with a look of unbelievable horror on his face.

Movement to her left caught her attention, and Phoebe whipped around to see Lupin dragging Harry away from the dais. Phoebe forced her feet to move in their direction.

"Harry..." she murmured, falling to her knees beside him and touching his hand, but when he refused to meet her gaze she looked towards Lupin and then around at James. He had still not moved from the steps and was still staring at the dais as if waiting for his father to still fall through the otherside, although there was a nagging feeling in the back of her mind which was telling her that that was not going to happen.

Sirius was gone and he was not coming back.

There was a loud bang and a yell from behind the dais. Phoebe saw Kingsley, yelling in pain, hit the ground. Bellatrix Lestrange turned tail and ran as Jacob Blackheart whipped around. He aimed a spell at her but she deflected it. She was halfway up the steps now -

"Harry - no!" cried Lupin, but Harry had already ripped his arms from Lupin's slackened grip.

"SHE KILLED SIRIUS!" bellowed Harry. "SHE KILLED HIM - I'LL KILL HER!"

And he was off, scrambling up the stone benches.

"HARRY!" Phoebe yelled. "HARRY - COME BA - JAMES!"

Seconds after Harry had disappeared through the door at the top of the room, James had snapped back to attention and was on his feet, following after him. With Ashlyn's wand in hand and a murderous look upon his face.

Phoebe moved to run after them but Lupin caught her elbow and held her back.

"Let go," she struggled. "Harry! James!"

"Phoebe, you're hurt -"

"It's a scratch!" Phoebe protested, still trying to get out of his grasp. She had to help James and Harry! She had to save them! They had come to save her... now it was time for her to save them! "Lupin... let go - I have too - I hav - I HAVE TO HELP HARRY!"

With a hard tug, the elemental stumbled backwards away from the dais. She quickly regained her footing and took off up the stone benches. People were shouting behind her but she did not care. The sound of a slamming door in the distance was all she could hear, and soon the voices were drowned out as the sound of her hammering heart beat and pounding blood in her ears was all she could hear.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Reaching the end of the brain room, Phoebe wrenched open the door into the circular black hall. It rotated, and Phoebe found herself once more surrounded by streaks of blue light from the whirling candelabra. Rooting herself to the spot, Phoebe took a deep breath and shouted: "EXIT!"

The room stopped spinning and the door right behind her flew open, and the corridor toward the lifts stretched ahead of her, torch-lit and empty. She ran...

Two of the lifts were missing when she reached them and she jabbed the button, waiting the third lift. It jangled and banged lower and lower; the grilles slid open and Phoebe dashed inside, slamming the gates shut behind her and slamming her fist against the Atrium button. As the lift reached the Atrium she could hear Bellatrix's voice.

"Never used an Unforgiveable Curse before, have you, boys?" she yelled. "You need to _mean_ them! You need to really want to cause pain - to enjoy it - righteous anger won't hurt me for long - I'll show you how it is one, shall I? I'll give you a lesson - _Crucio!"_

Phoebe ducked into the Atrium just in time to see the arm of centaur in the fountain spin off and land with a crash on the floor a short distance away from what appeared to be a wizards head.

"You cannot win against me!" Bellatrix cried. She was moving to the right. Ducking behind a wall, Phoebe caught James's eye and motioned for him to move to the left. He grabbed Harry and did as instructed; just missing Bellatrix who had just jabbed her wand at the place they had been hiding mere seconds before. "I was and am the Dark Lord's most loyal servant, I learned the Dark Arts from him, and I know spells of such power that you, pathetic little boys, can never hope to compete -"

_"Stupefy!"_ yelled James. He had edged right around to where the goblin stood beaming up at the now headless wizard and taken aim at her back as she peered around the fountain. She reacted so fast he barely had time to duck.

"_Protego!"_

The jet of red light, his own Stunning Spell, bounced back at him. James scrambled back behind the fountain, and one of the goblin's ears went flying across the room.

"Potter, I am going to give you one chance!" shouted Bellatrix. "Give me the prophecy - roll it out toward me now - and I may spare yours and my pathetic cousin's life!"

"Well you're going to have to kill us, because it's gone!" Harry yelled. "And he knows! Your dear old mate Voldemort knows it's gone! He's not going to be happy with you, is he?"

"What? What do you mean?" Bellatrix cried.

"The Prophecy smashed when Phoebe and I were knocked off the steps. What do you think Voldemort'll say about that then?"

"LIAR!" Bellatrix shrieked. "YOU'VE GOT IT, POTTER, AND YOU WILL GIVE IT TO ME – _Accio Prophecy! ACCIO PROPHECY_!"

Harry laughed again as he waved an empty hand from behind the one-eared goblin and withdrew it quickly as she sent another jet of green light flying at him.

"Nothing there!" he shouted. "Nothing to summon! It smashed and nobody heard what it said, tell your boss that -"

Pressing herself firmly against the wall, Phoebe held her wand down in front of her and attempted to sneak a glance around the edge of the brick wall, but pulled back as another jet of light came barreling towards her.

"No!" Bellatrix screamed. "It isn't true, you're lying - MASTER, I TRIED, I TRIED – DO NOT PUNISH ME –"

"Don't waste your breath!" yelled Harry. "He can't hear you from here!"

Suddenly, a high, cold voice echoed through the Atrium. "Can't I, Potter?"

Phoebe clapped her hand over her mouth to muffle the sharp gasp that followed the sudden arrival of the man from her nightmares.

Although she had not seen him in person, and did not know what he looked like after his transformation and resurrection from the dead, he was still the main reason that she had lost one of her best friends. The reason that she had been separated from her real parents a mere sixty seconds after she had been born, and the main reason she had been hunted from the moment of her birth.

James opened his eyes.

Tall, thin and black-hooded, his terrible snakelike face white and gaunt, his scarlet, slit-pupil eyes staring... Lord Voldemort had appeared in the middle of the Ministry of Magic, his wand pointed at Harry who was frozen quite unable to move.

"So you smashed my prophecy?" said Voldemort softly, completely ignoring James. "No, Bella, he is not lying. . . . I see the truth looking at me from within his worthless mind. . . . Months of preparation, months of effort . . . and my Death Eaters have let Harry Potter thwart me again."

"Master, I am sorry, I knew not, I was fighting the Animagus Black!" sobbed Bellatrix, flinging herself down at Voldemort's feet as he paced slowly nearer. "Master, you should know –"

"Be quiet, Bella," Voldemort told her. "I shall deal with you in a moment. Do you think I have entered the Ministry of Magic to hear your sniveling apologies?"

"But Master – he is here – he is below –"

Voldemort paid no attention.

"- and we have the girl

"The girl. . . ." murmured Voldemort.

_"Expelliarmus!"_

Phoebe screamed in surprise as her wand tugged from her hand and Bellatrix appeared in her field of vision. The older woman grabbed a fist of the elemental's hair and pulled her into full view of Voldemort, Harry and James.

"Here, Master," Bellatrix cried in triumphant. "Just as promised... she came to save _them_!"

She sneered at Harry and James.

And there he was.

Phoebe swallowed as Bellatrix dragged her forward, forcing her to her knees in front of Voldemort. Her grip was painfully tight on Phoebe's shoulder and shirt collar, almost choking her.

Voldemort glared at her and Phoebe tried her hardest to conceal her fear from her eyes and face. She was supposed to hate this man! He had destroyed her life! He had killed her friend! Forced her parents to give her up at birth... granted they did it for her protection, but she grown up without a relationship with her twin - or yet, her twin had grown up not knowing about her!

"Your father was foolish to think that he could hide you from me," he sneered, running a bony white finger over her face.

Phoebe tried her hardest not to flinch. "You are the only fool I see!"

A horrible smile stretched over the monster's waxy face, before he finally looked away, back to Harry. "I have nothing more to say to you, Potter. You have irked me too often, for too long. _AVADA KEDAVRA_!"

"No!" James and Phoebe yelled as Harry remained standing, motionless in the path of the jet of green light.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The headless golden statue of the wizard in the fountain had sprung alive, leaping from its plinth, and landed on the floor with a crash between Harry and Voldemort. The spell merely glanced off its chest as the statue flung out its arms, protecting Harry.

"What -?" said Voldemort, staring around. He let go of Phoebe, who scurried over to James and Harry, while Voldemort's gaze found the person behind the last minute rescue. "Dumbledore!"

James looked behind him, his heart pounding. Dumbledore was standing in front of the golden gates.

Voldemort raised his wand and sent another jet of green light at Dumbledore, who turned and was gone in a whirling of his cloak; next second he had reappeared behind Voldemort and waved his wand toward the remnants of the fountain; the other statues sprang to life too.

The statue of the witch ran at Bellatrix, who screamed and sent spells streaming uselessly off its chest, before it dived at her, pinning her to the floor. Meanwhile, the goblin and the house-elf scuttled towards the fireplaces set along the wall, and the one-armed centaur galloped at Voldemort, who vanished and reappeared beside the pool.

The headless statue thrust Harry, James and Phoebe backward, away from the fight, as Dumbledore advanced on Voldemort and the golden centaur cantered around them both.

"It was foolish to come here tonight, Tom," Dumbledore said. "The Aurors are on their way –"

"By which time I shall be gone and you dead!" spat Voldemort. His killing spell missed Dumbledore and, instead hitting the security guard's desk, which burst into flame.

Dumbledore flicked his own wand. The force of the spell that emanated from it was such that the three Gryffindor's, despite being shielded by their stone guard, felt the hair on the backs of their necks stand on end as it passed, and this time Voldemort was forced to conjure a shining silver shield out of thin air to deflect it.

The spell, whatever it was, caused no visible damage to the shield, though a deep, gonglike note reverberated from it, an oddly chilling sound.

"You do not seek to kill me, Dumbledore?" called Voldemort, his scarlet eyes narrowed over the top of his shield. "Above such brutality, are you?"

"We both know that there are other ways of destroying a man, Tom," Dumbledore said calmly, continuing to walk around Voldemort as though he had not a fear in the world, as though nothing had happened to interrupt his stroll up the hall. "Merely taking your life would not satisfy me, I admit –"

"There is nothing worse than death, Dumbledore!" snarled Voldemort.

"You are quite wrong," said Dumbledore, still closing in upon Voldemort, like a predator stalking its prey. It was slightly nerve-wracking to see him walking along, undefended, shieldless. But every time one of the students tried to call out to him, they were shunted backwards by the headless guard. "Indeed, your failure to understand that there are things much worse than death has always been your greatest weakness -"

Another jet of green light flew from behind the silver shield. This time it was the one-armed centaur, galloping in front of Dumbledore, that took the blast and shattered into a hundred pieces, but before the fragments had even hit the floor, Dumbledore had drawn back his wand and waved it as though brandishing a whip.

A long thin flame flew from the tip of it; it wrapped itself around Voldemort, shield and all. For a moment, it seemed Dumbledore had won, but then the fiery rope became a serpent, which relinquished its hold upon Voldemort at once and turned, hissing furiously, to face Dumbledore.

Voldemort vanished. The snake reared from the floor, ready to strike -

There was a burst of flame in midair above Dumbledore just as Voldemort reappeared, standing on the plinth in the middle of the pool where so recently the five statues had stood.

_"LOOK OUT!"_ Harry yelled.

"_NO!"_ Phoebe screamed, darting out from behind the headless guard.

"Phoebe!" James shouted, trying to follow her, only to be caught in the vice like grip of the headless guard.

Phoebe ran straight towards Dumbledore just as the snake was about to strike, the elemental waved her hand as the water from the fountain rose up into the air, drowned the flaming serpent causing it to disappear into a wisp of dark smoke, and cover Voldemort like a cocoon of molten glass -

For a few seconds Voldemort was visible only as a dark, rippling, faceless figure, shimmering and indistinct upon the plinth, clearly struggling to the throw off the suffocating mass -

And then he was gone, and the water fell with a crash back into its pool, slopping wildly over the sides, drenching the polished floor.

"MASTER!" screamed Bellatrix.

Sure it was over; sure Voldemort had decided to flee. Harry made to run out from behind his statue guard, but Dumbledore bellowed. "Stay where you are, Harry!"

Phoebe glanced back at her headmaster, for the first time, he sounded frightened, and she knew why. The hall was quite empty but for themselves, the sobbing Bellatrix still trapped under her statue, James struggling against the vice-like grip of the statue and Harry, looking around in confusion.

Something was wrong... she could sense it.

"It was too easy," she whispered. "I may be powerful... but there is no way he would just flee..."

Dumbledore caught her eye as she looked over her shoulder at him.

"Out of everything that he is," Phoebe added. "He is not a cow -"

Harry yelled and Phoebe heard no more.

**~*Phoebe*~**

He was going to die.

The pain that took over was incredible, powerful and evil. He was gone from the hall, he was locked in the coils of a creature with red eyes, so tightly bound that he did not know where his body ended and the creatures began. They were fused together, bound by pain, and there was no escape =

He thought he may have heard voices, but he couldn't be sure. The only thing he was truly aware of was the pain that was slowly seeping through his body and taking control. His lips were moving, but he had no clue has to what he was saying, or whether he was saying anything at all. He could have been screaming.

The pain was intense. So intense that it was slowly stealing his strength, seeping slowly through his blood stream into his very core, not only his magical core... but also his elemental core. The pain was paralyzing.

And then... he heard it... a scream -

A female scream.

"Phoebe!" he yelled, his eyes snapping open, jumping back in surprise as Sarah's face loomed into view, inches away from his own. "Phoebe..."

"Shh," Sarah soothed. "It's alright. She's alright..."

Aiden let go of the breath that he did not know he had been holding, and pushed himself into a sitting position so he could see where he was and what was happening. He was in the Atrium. It was full of people, the floor was reflecting emerald-green flames that had burst into life in all the fireplaces along one wall, and a stream of witches and wizards was emerging from them.

As Sarah and Amelia pulled him back to his feet, Aiden saw the tiny gold statues of the house-elf and goblin leading a stunned-looking Cornelius Fudge forward.

"He was there!" shouted a scarlet-robed man with a ponytail, who was pointing at a pile of golden rubble on the other side of the hall. "I saw him, Mr. Fudge, I swear, it was You-Know-Who, he grabbed a woman and Disapparated!"

"I know, Blackwell, I know, I saw him too!" gibbered Fudge, who was wearing pajamas under his pinstriped cloak and was gasping as though he had just run miles. "Marlins beard - here - _here_ - in the Ministry of Magic! - great heavens above - it doesn't seem possible - my word - how can this be?"

"If you proceed downstairs into the Department of Mysteries, Cornelius," said Dumbledore, from opposite Aiden, he was holding onto Harry's wrist as if to steady the Gryffindor. Behind him, still sat on the floor, cradled in Terence's arms was an exhausted looking Phoebe.

Aiden sighed in relief.

Phoebe may have looked tired but at least she was alive.

As if feeling his gaze, Phoebe looked up and caught his eye, a smile gracing her features and reassuring him further that she was alright.

"You will find several escaped Death Eaters contained in the Death Chamber, bound by an Anti-Disapparation Jinx and awaiting your decision as to what to do with them," continued Dumbledore.

"Dumbledore!" gasped Fudge, apparently beside himself with amazement. "You - here - I - I -"

He looked wildly around at the Aurors he had brought with him, and it could not have been clearer that he was in half a mind to cry, "Seize him!" and probably would have done so had it not been for the arrival of Serefina, Jacob and Elena Blackheart, who had just returned from the Death Chamber, escorting several Death Eaters.

"No need to send your men down, Fudge," said Serefina. "We have done yet another job for you!"

Through her exhaustion, Phoebe giggled, bringing a smile to everyone's - save for Fudge and the rest of the Ministry workers - faces.

"I - don't - well -" blustered Fudge, looking around as though hoping somebody was going to tell him what to do.

"An excellent Minister for Magic you make," quipped Phoebe, as Terence helped her back to her feet, his arms still around her waist. "You don't even know what to do! You've just been handed eight Death Eaters on a silver platter and all you can do is stand there and stutter while waiting for someone to tell you what to do! _You_ are the Minister for Magic what happens now is _your_ decision!"

Fudge shook himself, he was still in shock at what was occurring and the look on his face was one that was lost between disbelief and dreaming.

"Um... very well..." he nodded, after a few minutes. "Dumbledore... you - you will need to tell me exactly - the Fountain of Magical Brethren - what happened?" he added in a kind of whisper, staring around at the floor, where the remains of the statues of the witch, wizard, and centaur now lay scattered.

"We can discuss that after I have sent Harry and his friends back to Hogwarts," said Dumbledore.

"Harry - _Harry Potter?"_

Fudge spun around a stared at Harry, who was still standing beside James against the wall beside the fallen statues that had been guarding them during Dumbledore and Voldemort's duel.

"He - here?" said Fudge. "Why - what's all this about?"

"I shall explain everything," repeated Dumbledore, "when the students are back at school."

Serefina stepped forward. "_I wish to take Phoebe and Aiden back to Portugal,"_ she insisted of the headmaster.

Aiden and Phoebe, both of whom were fluent in Portuguese, looked up at one another. Why were they both going back to Portugal?

"_Yes, of course,"_ nodded Dumbledore, much to the surprise of the students. _"I am sure there is much to explain!"_

"_Especially now that things are far more complicated than originally feared."_

Dumbledore nodded once more and turned back to the remaining students. "Harry, Miss. Winchester, Miss. Prentiss..." he motioned them forwards. "If you will -" he walked away from the pool to the place where the golden wizard's head lay on the floor. He pointed his wand at it and muttered, "_Portus."_

The head glowed blue and trembled noisily against the wooden floor for a few seconds, then became still once more.

"Now see here, Dumbledore!" said Fudge, as Dumbledore picked up the head and walked back to Harry, Amelia and Sarah carrying it. "You haven't got authorization for that Portkey! You can't do things like that right in front of the Minister for Magic, you - you -"

His voice faltered as Dumbledore surveyed him magisterially over his half-moon spectacles.

"You will give the order to remove Dolores Umbridge from Hogwarts," sad Dumbledore. "You will tell your Aurors to stop searching for my Gameskeeper and allow my Care of Magical Creatures teacher to return to England so that she can return to work. I will give you..." Dumbledore pulled a watch with twelve hands from his pocket a glanced at it, "half an hour of my time tonight, in which I think we shall be more than able to cover the important points of what has happened here. After that, I shall need to return to my school. If you need more help from me you are, of course, more than welcome to contact me at Hogwarts. Letters addressed to the headmaster will find me."

Fudge goggled worse than ever. His mouth was open and his round face grew pinker under his rumpled gray hair.

"I - you -"

Dumbledore turned his back on him.

"Miss. Prentiss, Miss. Winchester," he called to the two girls, beckoning them closer. Aiden kissed Sarah and allowed her to cross the hall with Amelia. "Take this Portkey, Harry."

He held out the golden head of the statue, and Harry, Amelia and Sarah placed their hands on it, past carrying what they did next or where they went.

"Harry, I shall see you in half an hour," said Dumbledore quietly. "Miss. Winchester, Miss. Prentiss, your friends have been returned to Hogwarts and are currently being looked after my Madam Pomfrey, you have my permission to visit them and stay until they awaken."

"Thank you, Headmaster," the two Hufflepuff's smiled.

Dumbledore nodded. "One... two... three..."

Amelia felt a strange sensation of a hook being jerked behind her naval. The polished wooden floor was gone from beneath her feet, the Atrium, Fudge, Dumbledore, Aiden, Phoebe and everyone else had all disappeared, and she was flying forward in a whirlwind of colour and sound.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Hey! What did you think? Everything that happened to Aiden will be explained next chapter... and I am willing to bet you will be surprised at the twist that you are about to receive =)

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 08 June 2012 at 4:42am**


	123. Chapter 123

**Author's Note: **This chapter carries on from the previous one. Ready for the twist that you didn't expect? Aaaaaaaaand… it is the second to last chapter of year five. Wow! Sixth year starts at 125!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Evanscencefan97, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, and Princessflag3998**.

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><p>Phoebe sat in her usual seat at the family table, her arms were folded on the polished table and her head was buried deep in them. It was unknown on whether or not she was sleeping, but her breathing was even and Aiden came to the conclusion that he would not have blamed her if she had decided to catch a few dreams.<p>

It had been nearly three hours since they had returned from England, the Ministry of Magic to be exact. Serefina, Jacob and Elena had disappeared the moment they had returned, leaving the two students alone for what felt like eternity; Rose and Rachel had come found them half an hour ago to explain that they were requested in the family room.

"_Could you please calm down?"_ Phoebe asked, peeking over her arms at her brother. She had been trying to collect her thoughts on the past events but kept getting hit by a series of nerves... and she knew that they weren't her own.

Aiden jumped at her voice. "_I thought you were sleeping!"_

"_Nope,"_ said Phoebe. "_Just trying to think and you are making it difficult!"_

_"How?"_

_"You're nervous,"_ answered Phoebe. "_Why are you nervous?"_

"_Because something happened at the Ministry of Magic and it is making me nervous just thinking about it,"_

Phoebe frowned. "_What happened?"_

_"I don't know how to explain it,"_ said Aiden. "_But one minute I was coming into the Atrium with Sarah and the others, and then I felt as if someone had doused me in flames. The pain was excruciating - what?"_

Phoebe had lifted her head fully out of her arms and was now staring at him with wide eyes. "_That happened to me..."_ she whispered. _"It happened after Harry screamed..."_

"_Was it paralyzing?"_

Phoebe nodded once.

Aiden frowned in confusion, was he feeling Phoebe's pain? Or was the pain his own? That was the question... but before he could voice any of his concerns, Phoebe beat him too it.

_"What's happening to us?"_

Looking up, Aiden met his sister's stare, and shrugged, "_I don't know, Phoebe,"_ he murmured, looking back down at the table. "_I really don't know!"_

It was then that the door opened and Serefina walked in, she was wearing a travelling cloak and she looked as exhausted as Phoebe felt. Her smile was strained and her eyes dimmed. "_How are you both feeling?_" she asked, when she saw them.

Aiden and Phoebe exchanged looks, what kind of question was that?

"_We're fine, thank you,_" nodded Aiden.

Again, Serefina gave them a strained smile but it faded quickly. "_I suppose you are both wondering what happened tonight at the Ministry?_"

"_There is just one thing that we wish to understand,_" said Phoebe.

"_And that is?_"

"_Why both of us felt like we were going to die,_"

Serefina sighed and nodded; she placed her travelling cloak over the back of the chair at the head of the table and motioned for her son and goddaughter to sit either side of her. "_I feared that this day would come,_" she said. "_I'm afraid that things have gotten slightly more serious than expected!_"

"_What do you mean?_" Aiden asked, his fingers clasping the underside of the table.

"_Aiden, the pain was not yours,_" said Serefina, "_you felt it through the bond you now share with Phoebe."_

Phoebe frowned, her brain was fuzzy and working overtime to try and understand what her godmother was explaining to her.

"_But how could I - I mean to say, why was I -_" she hesitated, unsure of how to put her question into words.

Reaching across the table, Serefina touched her goddaughter's hand. "_Let me explain_," she said gently, seeing the confusion settling on Phoebe's features._ "As you know Voldemort is a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin, and you are connected to Salazar via your elemental control over water!"_

_"Does this mean that Voldemort is an elemental controller of water also?_" asked Aiden.

"_No, it does not,_" answered Serefina. "_While his ancestor had elemental control, the powers and gene had died out by the time it had reached him. Merope Gaunt was no good at normal magic than she was at elemental! But neither she, nor her brother or father, inherited the elemental gene!_"

"_So the gene ended with which family_?"

"_It is difficult to trace the Slytherin family through the generations,_" explained Serefina. "_Although your godfather, Aiden, has been trying for years! He contacts me every time he finds something new..._"

"_But what does that have to do with what I felt earlier this evening?_" asked Phoebe, still confused. "_If Voldemort is not an elemental, how did I feel such pain when he attacked Harry?"_

"_You and Voldemort are connected via your link to Salazar,_" answered Serefina.

"_I still don't understand why I felt like I was going to die!_"

"_Harry and Voldemort share a deep connection, one that was formed the night Voldemort tried to kill him,_" explained Serefina. "_You, on the other hand, have a deeper connection, one that is born through blood._"

"_But I am not related to Salazar,_" protested Phoebe.

Serefina smiled. "_No, but you are connected by your powers! The powers that purebloods share are passed down through the generations; they grow stronger with each descendant -_"

"_But you just said -_"

"_This is the point I am trying to convey,_" nodded Serefina. "_Voldemort did not acquire the elemental core that Salazar had to offer, if he had received elemental powers then we would not be having this conversation. In the last five years, Voldemort has tried to kidnap you and each time the reason has been the same."_

"_My power..._" whispered Phoebe, her mind flashing back to what Harry had said in second year. He had told her that the memory of Tom Riddle had explained that her power was all he needed to return, stronger and smarter than ever before. "_He has been trying to capture me to access my power._"

Serefina nodded, happy that they point had somehow made it through her goddaughter's tiredness.

"_Do you remember what Harry said at the end of last year?_" asked Aiden.

"_No, I try not to remember last year,_" answered Phoebe. Her fourth year was just too painful for her to even attempt to remember; sometimes she wished that she could go back in time and change it, _**how different would my life be if last year had never happened?**_

Aiden smiled, somewhat sadly. "_He said that Voldemort intended for you to join him,_" he said. "_He made a remark about Lucius Malfoy, how pathetic he was as a father, and that you, just like him and Crouch Jr, were the same because of your fathers. He intends for you to join him and kill Lucius in order for the oath to take effect!"_

"_I guess it is a good thing Lucius is in Azkaban then,_" muttered Phoebe.

Serefina bowed her head once. "_Yes, but while Lucius is safe, Draco is not..._"

"_What do you mean?_"

"_That is a different matter,_" interrupted Serefina. "_I will explain it to you again... right now I have to be sure that you understand the meaning of what happened tonight. It is too dangerous to hide information from you anymore, you need to be prepared._"

Phoebe nodded and Serefina continued.

"_There is always magic more ancient than what we currently possess. As elementals we have access to more magic than the average witch or wizard. Professor Dumbledore and I believe that Voldemort wishes to use this ancient magic to make himself virtually invincible._"

Aiden let the words sink in - her words echoing through his otherwise silent mind. "_You mean - he's been trying to capture Phoebe so that he can steal her powers rather than convert her to his cause?_"

"_It would make it that much stronger if he was to have Phoebe's powers alongside his, yes,_" nodded Serefina. "_The whole 'she-will-make-a-great-Death-Eater' is nothing more than talk! He has no intention of claiming you as a Death Eater..._"

"_He just needs my trust and approval to use my powers,_" theorized Phoebe.

Serefina nodded. "_Exactly._"

"_How would he get her powers?_" asked Aiden. "_And what does this have to do with me?_"

"_There is a spell and __potion,_" explained Serefina. "_It is a very old and complicated potion, but it is powerful enough to strip anyone of their magical cores. It would render Phoebe impassive, long enough for Voldemort to steal her powers and then end her life._"

Aiden frowned.

Phoebe spotted it and said, "_Without my powers I would be a mere Muggle! It is our powers that set us apart from them... without our magic,_" she shrugged, "_we are exactly the same!_"

"_So, what has it got to do with me?_" he repeated his earlier question.

"_Your bond with Phoebe is similar to the one that Voldemort shares with Harry,_" explained Serefina. "_You feel what Phoebe feels. If Phoebe is in pain, you feel the exact same thing! This is what happened earlier this evening. Voldemort attacked Harry and unknowingly attacked Phoebe at the same time, he does not know you exist, and he also does not know of the twin cores, or he would have tried to take you also!_"

"_Is this why I was given to Thomas when I was born?_"

Serefina smiled sadly. "_Our family is complicated, Aiden. I had to give you up for the same reason Lucius and Narcissa had to give up Phoebe. You were not safe! The twin cores were not to be bound until absolutely necessary, if you had grown up with Phoebe there is a chance that your powers would have connected at some point in your younger years and a catastrophe would have occurred. You understand that I did not give you up willingly?_"

"_I understand,_" Aiden nodded, although he was still a little confused on his family life, he realized that now was not the time to question his mother's motives. She had always made sure that he was provided for, he now knew that, he often wondered who Thomas conferred with during the late evenings, and he now knew that it was Serefina and his grandparent, all of whom were expectant to see how he turned out.

Glancing around at the two teenagers, Serefina noticed how tired they truly were. Phoebe's eyes were dimmer than usual and she looked dead on her feet, while Aiden was slumped in his chair, his head rested on his hand and his eyes were starting to close.

"_Bed,_" she instructed firmly. "_You both need it..._"

"_But I have more questions!_" protested Phoebe.

"_I will answer your questions in the morning,_" answered Serefina, "_you are simply too tired to receive any more information. Besides, I believe Terence is waiting for you!_"

At the mention of her boyfriend's name, Phoebe jumped out of her seat and flew out of the room and up the stairs to her bedroom. Serefina and Aiden exchanged looks and chuckled at her enthusiasm, before Aiden excused himself and made his way up the stairs to his own bedroom.

Down the hall, Phoebe's bedroom door stood ajar, and Aiden could faintly hear their voices. He did not know what they were talking about and he was too tired to honestly care, he'd get the information in the morning.

However, if what he was feeling from Phoebe now was anything to go by; she had just received some tremendous and exciting good news.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Anyone confused? PM or Review me and I will try and make it clearer.

Point is: Phoebe is connected to Voldemort via her elemental powers that are the same as Salazar Slytherin's, and Voldemort is a direct descendant of Slytherin but does not possess the elemental control of water. But due to the similar fact that they are both connected to Salazar, they are both connected to each other. Aiden has just pulled the worst end of the stick because he needs to be bound to Phoebe for their powers to reach maximum level in power.

Better? I hope so... you don't realize how hard it is to convey this message... but I will, if need be, come back and edit this chapter to try and make it clearer (but only if it needs it).

**A/N 2:** One more thing: there won't be an update tomorrow night. Good night all.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, June 09, 2012 at 4:05am**


	124. Chapter 124

**Author's Note:** It is the last chapter of Order of the Phoenix! I can't believe it! Oh, one more thing before I continue, this will be the last update for this week. Halfblood Prince needs some looking over and editing before I start posting; mainly because there are some significant changes to the plot that need to be looked over to make sure that they match up with the rest of the story and, hopefully, be sure that the new plot does not confuse anyone.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Princessflag3998** and** Pixiescale1185**

**In Responses:** Right. Now that this is the final chapter and the whole thing with the Prophecy is out of the way, I can attempt some new in responses.

I have just realized that if I were to go back to the last time I did a response you'd half a page of in responses to read before you get to the main part of the story. So I am only going to do the last three chapters.

**Fan of Fics: **It was easy to keep track of everyone that was at the Ministry by not taking Ginny, Neville and Luna. With my OCs I could do whatever I liked and have them paired off with whoever I thought suited. As for Harry, Ron and Hermione not being paired together, that was mostly because I wanted Ashlyn, James and Harry to collide with Phoebe because they were heading for the exit and the others go separated, there was also, if you look back, an elemental in each group too. Lucius being an elemental was the one thing that I had not planned on myself, but as you stated, Phoebe needed to inherit from somewhere, plus it gives her something in common with her father... and also explains the situation with Aiden. Both of his parents were elementals. And you have got the twist correct.

**Evanescencefan97: **Oliver? Mhmm... He is not something that I can discuss at the moment. His fate will not be revealed until the final battle in Deathly Hallows. At the moment you, and the rest of my faithful readers, are left to wonder why I included his name. I hope you don't go insane trying to figure out my reason. I agree with the battle and people keeping OCs to the beginning of the battle, that gets boring, plus I didn't see a reason to have Phoebe at the very beginning; it would just take the attention off the reason they were there and put it on her. Besides, it would defy the purpose considering Harry went there looking for her and not Sirius. Lucius saving Ron is the gateway to a better future; you will see what I mean as the story progresses over the last two years.

**KingdomHeartsNerd:** I have answered all your questions and you know where the story ends up, more or less, so I have nothing more to say to you.

**Pixiescale1185:** Again, I have answered some of your questions and while you do not know where the story is going to end up, you know the basics, plus you haven't left me any questions to answer in your reviews, therefore I have nothing more to say.

Wow... I thought I had more in responses than that, but I guess this is a good thing because now I can carry on with the next chapter and you can all see why Phoebe was feeling tremendous at the end of last chapter.

Here we go...

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><p>HE-WHO-MUST-NOT-BE-NAMED-RETURNS<p>

_In brief statement Friday night, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge confirmed that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned to this country and is active once more._

_"It is with great regret that I must confirm that the wizard styling himself Lord - well, you know who I mean - is alive and among us again," said Fudge, looking tired and flustered as he addressed reporters. "It is with almost equal regret that we report the mass revolt of the Dementors of Azkaban, who have shown themselves averse to continuing in the Ministry's employ. We believe that the Dementors are currently taking direction from Lord - Thingy."_

Phoebe snorted as she ruffled the magazine: _Confetti_.

_"We urge the magical population to remain vigilant. The Ministry is currently publishing guides to elementary home and personal defense that will be delivered free to all Wizarding homes within the coming month."_

_The Ministry's statement was met with dismay and alarm from the Wizarding community, which as recently as last Wednesday was receiving Ministry assurances that there was "no truth whatsoever in these persistent rumors that You-Know-Who is operating amongst us once more."_

_Details of the events that led to the Ministry turnaround are still hazy, though it is believed that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and a select band of followers (known as Death Eaters) gained entry to the Ministry of Magic itself on Thursday evening._

_Albus Dumbledore, newly reinstated headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, reinstated member of the International Confederation of Wizards, and reinstated Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, was unavailable for comment last night. He has insisted for a year that You-Know-Who was not dead, as was widely hoped and believed, but recruiting followers once more for a fresh attempt to seize power. Meanwhile the Boy Who Lived -_

"There you are, Harry, I knew they'd drag you into it somehow," said Hermione, looking over the top of the paper at him.

They were in the hospital wing. Harry was sitting on the end of Ron's bed and they were both listening to Hermione read the front page of the _Sunday Prophet_, her ankle had been mended in a trice by Madam Pomfrey, was elevated on a soft pillow at the bottom of the bed; Phoebe, who had returned from Portugal earlier that morning, was curled up at the foot of Ashlyn's bed with a wedding magazine that she, Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia had been looking through; James, whose nose had likewise returned to its normal size and shape, was in a chair between the two beds; and Aiden and Terence, who had arrived with Phoebe, were sitting on an empty bed listening intently.

"He is the 'Boy Who Lived' again is he?" said Ron darkly. "Not such a show-off maniac anymore, eh?"

He helped himself to a handful of Chocolate Frogs from the immense pile on the bedside cabinet, threw a few to Harry, James and Hermione, and ripped off the wrapper of his own with his teeth.

"Yes, they're very complimentary about you now, Harry," said Hermione, now scanning down the article. "'_A lone voice of truth... perceived as unbalanced, yet never wavered in his story... forced to bear ridicule and slander...'_"

"I notice they do not mention the fact that it was _them_ doing all the ridiculing and slandering, though..." said Phoebe, looking up from her magazine. "Are you alright?" she added over her shoulder as Ashlyn winced and put a hand to her ribs.

"Yeah," nodded the Slytherin, "i'm fine!"

The curse that Dolohov had used on her, though less effective than it would have been had he been able to say the incantation aloud, had nevertheless caused, in Madam Pomfrey's words, 'quite enough damage to be going on with.'

Ashlyn was having to take ten different types of potion every day and although she was improving greatly, was already bored with the hospital wing.

"_'You-Know-Who's Last Attempt to Take Over, pages two to four, What the Ministry Should Have Told Us, page five, Why Nobody Listened to Albus Dumbledore pages six to eight, Exclusive Interview with Harry Potter, page nine...' _Well," said Hermione, folding the paper and throwing it aside, "it's certainly given them lots to write about. And that interview with Harry isn't exclusive; it's the one that was in _The Quibbler_ months ago..."

"Luna's dad sold it to them," said Phoebe, "I saw her on the way up! Do you know that people have stolen all her possessions? Hidden them all over the castle... I know the kid is weird, but come on! No one deserves to be treated like that, not even her!"

"I actually like Luna," Sarah smiled, "she's a little quirky... but she is great fun to be around!"

Amelia nodded in agreement, before pointing at the magazine in front of her. "What about that one?"

"Which one?" Phoebe asked, pulling the magazine backwards her. "It's a nice dress... but it is the wrong colour, purple is too dark for you, Amelia!"

"Well, if you do what we did for the Yule Ball, then you are short on colours," said Sarah. "There are only two colours of Hufflepuff: Black and Yellow, and I highly doubt Black is approved for a wedding."

Phoebe frowned. "I could have my bridesmaids in Yellow, my maid of honor in Green..."

"Flower child?" Ashlyn asked.

"I already promised Bambi," said Phoebe, "and she wants either a red or pink dress!"

"Aw, is she going to be a little princess in pink?" cooed Amelia.

Phoebe smiled.

James, however, was frowning, "why are you planning the wedding now? You aren't getting married until Christmas next year!"

Phoebe and Terence exchanged looks.

"After the events in the Ministry of Magic," said Phoebe. "Terence and I have realized that one, if not both of us, may not make it to next Christmas..."

"So..." James pressed.

"So, we have decided to move the wedding forward!" said Terence.

"How much forward?"

Phoebe smiled sheepishly. "The end of August!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

James and Ashlyn left the hospital wing completely cured three days before the end of term. During which time Phoebe had spent most of her time with Hermione, Sarah and Amelia going over wedding plans, they had already decided that it would be best, safer and nicer to have the actual wedding in Portugal, at least out there they were guaranteed that the weather would hold.

"Who is going to give you away?" asked Sarah, as she, Amelia and Phoebe made their way up to the hospital wing to meet the last of their group. "Your grandfather?"

"No, actually, I haven't decided on who is giving me away yet," answered Phoebe. "Obviously it cannot be my real father, for one he is in Azkaban and two he would never approve of me marrying a Halfblood! But everyone is expecting my grandfather to do the job."

"But -?" questioned Amelia.

Phoebe smiled; her friends always knew how to read her. "I was thinking that maybe... Draco could give me away!"

The two Hufflepuff's stopped and stared at the Gryffindor.

It was common knowledge between them, James and Ashlyn that all Phoebe really wanted in life was a stable relationship with her twin. But what they could not wrap their head around was the fact that maybe; just maybe, Draco Malfoy would not be on the invitation list to the wedding.

"Are you sure that is a good idea?" asked Sarah, "I mean he is not exactly the most favorable of people..."

"He is still my brother," answered Phoebe, "and I want my brothers there! I would ask Aiden to give me away but I really want Draco to attend my wedding, and it would seem the only way that is going to happen is if he has a reason to be there!"

Amelia exchanged a look with Sarah. "Phoebe, it is _your_ day! You decide on who is invited or not, no one else!"

Phoebe chewed her lower lip. "I will have to talk with Terence and then my grandfather... especially when the subject matter includes the son of a Death Eater!"

"Well, you are the daughter of a Death Eater so I don't see how that is going to be a problem," said Sarah.

"Technically it is not my grandfather I have to worry about," explained Phoebe. "But since he is paying for my half of the wedding, it would only be fair that I include him in on my plans! Draco just showing up is not going to bode well with most of my guests... especially Jackson!"

The two Hufflepuff's nodded. That was also common knowledge: Jackson Stream, Phoebe's eldest best friend, was not the best person to keep a secret from, especially when said secret is that of the bride's brother, a Slytherin no less, attending the wedding.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Professor Umbridge left Hogwarts the day before the end of term. It seemed she had crept out of the hospital wing during dinnertime, evidently hoping to depart undetected, but unfortunately for her, she met Peeves on the way, who seize his last chance to do as Fred and George had instructed him (through Phoebe) and chased her gleefully from the premises, whacking her alternately with a walking stick and a sock full of chalk.

Many students ran out into the entrance hall to watch her running away down the path, and the Heads of Houses tried only halfheartedly to restrain their pupils.

Indeed, Professor McGonagall, who had returned from St. Mungo's three days ago, sank back it her chair at the staff table after a few feeble remonstrances's and was clearly heard to express a regret that she could not run cheering after Umbridge herself, because Peeves had borrowed her walking stick.

The last evening at school arrived; most people had finished packing and were already heading down to the end-of-term feast, Phoebe, who had already returned all her belongings to Portugal night before last, returned solely to enjoy the end of her term with her friends, and make sure that they all knew that they had pre-planned wedding arrangements to do before August, which was only a month away.

"We are going dress shopping in Portugal Wizarding community on the 19th July," said the elemental as she stood in the Entrance Hall with her usual group of friends. "Joey, Philip and Bambi are then coming to stay at Blackheart Manor exactly one month before the wedding... they want to get the feel of being out of England, plus they have to meet my family, that hasn't happened yet!"

"How can they not have met your family?" asked Ashlyn. "Terence spends more time in Portugal than he does his own country!"

"Our families are always busy!" Phoebe defended with a small shrug. "They have to get used to the fact that they not have international relatives!"

Sarah grinned. "I would love international relatives..."

"Hey," smiled Phoebe, "one day, when Aiden decides to pop the question, we will be family!"

"Sweet!"

"Why can't we be family?" asked Amelia.

"Technically, because of the fact that all pureblooded families are inter-related somehow, I am related to Cedric through the Malfoy's," explained Phoebe, "just like i'm related to James and Ashlyn through the Blacks! So, one day, in some form or another, we are all going to be family!"

James paled and looked around at his friends.

"Oh great!" he complained, loudly.

"What?" asked the girls.

"Well, I get picked on enough by you lot when we're just friends," James explained, "Merlin help me when we're family!"

Ashlyn and Phoebe grinned.

"Technically, we're already family," Ashlyn said.

"And you two are the worst when it comes to abusing me!" defended James.

Sarah, Amelia, Phoebe and Ashlyn giggled, before the five of them made their way into the Great Hall for the final feast of the year.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I have nothing more to say except... be on the lookout for the next chapter... it will be the wedding.

Until next time!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, June 11, 2012 at 5:26am**


	125. Chapter 125

**Author's Note: **I apologize for making you wait a whole week for this update. But I took a break, to not just edit and plan _Half-Blood Prince_, but to also update three other series stories I have written. They were in dire need of an update and I couldn't drag myself away from Phoebe long enough to concentrate on anything else.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, Starrynightsky01, Pixiescale1185, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, Princessflag3998, DJScales, KatzrAwesome** and** LokiLova** (who is actually **Jojia**).

**Shout Outs: **I would like to personally thank **KatzrAwesome** for adding this story to their Story Alerts and Favourite story and for also adding me to their Favourite Author's and Author's alert. I am also honored to hear that you a created an account just to add me to these alerts, I hope you enjoy your time on .

Here is the ever anticipated... wedding chapter... I hope you enjoy it.

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><p>Sarah peeked through the white fabric of the curtains she was standing in Phoebe's bedroom at Blackheart manor, watching the men in the garden outside, wandering around in their dress robes.<p>

"Are they all dressed?" a harried Phoebe asked from behind her. Sarah pulled her head out of the window and sealed the curtains.

"Pheebs, they're all there, dressed and incredibly good looking today," she smiled. "Now calm down, everything is going to run smoothly."

"Sarah is right, Phoebe," said Ashlyn. "You need to stop worrying. Nothing is going to ruin your big day."

Phoebe breathed deeply and looked into the mirror on her dressing table. Amelia moved behind her and started brushing through her curls and pilling them on her head, a leaving a few spirals to hand loosely around her radiant face.

"Ashlyn," Phoebe said, glancing at her best friend in the mirror. "Can you get Serefina, please, I really need her!"

Ashlyn smiled.

"Sure," she nodded and left the bedroom, looking beautiful in her emerald green floor-length gown. Then came, Amelia and Sarah in their yellow floor-length gowns, Bambi in her light pink dress and Hermione in a red floor-length gown.

Phoebe herself was wearing an off-the-shoulder white gown with lace trimming; it reached the floor, and Amelia was attaching a silver tiara with its lacy white veil that reached down Phoebe's back.

"Gorgeous," Sarah whispered, popping up beside her best friend and pressing her cheek against hers so they were both looking in the mirror.

"Phoebe?"

The door opened and Serefina, along with Ashlyn and Elena entered the room.

"Phoebe," said Serefina. "What is the matter?"

"I've faced death in the face and managed to come back from the brink," Phoebe said, tears appearing in her eyes. "I faced Voldemort, sadistic Ministry officials and murderers, and not once did I show fear... But I am terrified of walking down that aisle and marrying the man I love!"

Elena and Serefina smiled as they each stood behind Phoebe, looking at her in the mirror.

"_Phoebe,_" Elena said, twirling the tendrils around her fingers so that they curled. "I have been sitting exactly where you are now, and I felt the same way. I was terrified to marry Jacob, but it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened. You just have to ask yourself one question..."

"What is that?"

"Do you love Terence?"

"More than anything," said Phoebe.

Elena smiled. "Then you have nothing to be afraid of," she reassured. "That boy is crazy for you... just take a deep breath and go out there on Jacob's arm."

"Grandpa?" Phoebe blinked, "but I thought - Draco... Draco is giving me away!"

"Phoebe, I know you wanted Draco to give you away," sighed Serefina. "But that is not possible... I am sorry to have to tell you this, we tried to keep it a secret, and we did not want to ruin your day..."

"Where is Draco?" Phoebe asked, close to tears now.

Serefina shook her head. "He's not coming!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

It had taken nearly an hour to calm Phoebe down.

After the revelation that her twin was not attending her wedding, that he would not be there to enjoy this magical day with her, to not give her away to the man she loved, was heartbreaking to say the least.

It had always been planned, from the very beginning that Draco would be the one to walk Phoebe down the aisle and give her away to Terence. But now... that was not going to happen, instead a suitable replacement had been found, and Phoebe was to walk down the aisle on her grandfather's arm.

Phoebe did not mind her grandfather giving her away, but she just wished that her brother could be there to share her special day.

"It's time," Jacob said softly as he appeared in the bedroom door, he was wearing a gorgeous, expensive black dress robes, with a white button up shirt and a black tie.

The bridesmaids scattered to grab their bouquets and Bambi's basket. Serefina handed Phoebe her bouquet of red roses while the others stood around, smiling brightly.

"Phoebe, we wanted this day to be perfect for you," said Amelia. "So I told the others about this old adage that we do in the Muggle world. It is supposed to be for good luck and dates back to the Victorian era."

"Then let's do it," smiled Phoebe. "Terence is linked to the Muggle world through his father... and I'm about to become a part of that family."

Amelia smiled. "Okay. So we start with _Something Old_," she explained. "It is meant to represent the link with the bride's own family and the past particularly the mother or grandmother..."

Elena opened a drawer on the dressing table and removed an old jewelry box. She opened it and revealed a gorgeous 9ct silver necklace, she turned to Serefina who smiled and held up Phoebe's hair while her mother clipped the necklace in place.

"_Something New_," added Amelia. "It represents good luck and success and the brides hopes for a bright future in her new married life."

Serefina presented her goddaughter with a pair of silver earrings that glittered as they moved.

_"Something Borrowed,"_ Amelia smiled. "It is to represent to the bride that friends and family will be there for her on her special day and in the future when help is needed. Borrowing is especially important, since it has to come from a happily married woman, thereby lending the bride some of her own marital happiness to carry into the new marriage."

Elena smiled as she slipped a red, green and white charm bracelet her granddaughter's wrist.

"And _Something Blue_," Amelia finished, taking Phoebe's bouquet and slipping a blue glass flower into the mix and handing it back to her best friend.

"You guys are the best," Phoebe said, her voice choking with tears. After several hugs, the bridesmaids left the room to pair up with their respective boyfriends and partners. Bambi hugged Phoebe and then left the room with Elena and Serefina, taking basket of flower petals with her.

With his wife and daughter gone, Jacob turned to his granddaughter. "Are you ready?" he asked.

Phoebe nodded.

"Phoebe," Jacob said, lifting her chin so that he could see her face. "I know how much you wanted Draco here..."

"I know," Phoebe said, a small pout forming on her lips, one that caused Jacob to tickle her sides and make her laugh.

"Now, go make me proud!" said the older elemental, kissing Phoebe's forehead.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A sense of jittery anticipation had filled the warm tent, the general murmuring broken by occasional spurts of excited laughter. Elena and Serefina strolled up the aisle, smiling, followed Bambi, who was tossing flower petals into the air and giggling as they fell like snow onto the carpet, next came Sarah and Aiden, Amelia and Cedric, and lastly, Ashlyn and her Adrian.

A moment later Terence and his best man, Philip, stood up at the front of the marquee, both wearing dress robes, with large, white roses in their buttonholes. Then the crowd fell silent as music swelled, from what seemed to be the gold and silver balloons lining the outside of the marquee.

Terence looked around as a great collective gasp issued from the assembled witches and wizards, he couldn't believe his eyes as Jacob Blackheart came walking up the aisle, Phoebe gliding along beside him, and when she reached him, Terence had never felt happier.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," said a small man; he was speaking English but had a heavy Portuguese accent. "We are gathered here today to unite two souls as one. Do you, Terence Higgs, take Phoebe Blackheart join us here of your own free will, to share the eternal bond shared by both of you?"

"I do," Terence nodded.

"I do," Phoebe smiled.

"You may face each other," the minister nodded, "join hands..."

Terence and Phoebe did as instructed.

In the front row Serefina and Josephine were both sobbing quietly into lace. Ginny turned and beamed at Harry and Ron; her eyes, too, were full of tears.

"Terence, you may recite your vows,"

"Phoebe," Terence smiled, "from the first time I met you, four years ago, on the Astronomy tower at Hogwarts, and I knew that you were one that I wanted to spend my life with. You made me smile, you made me laugh and I anticipated every moment that we were together. I promise to love and respect you from this point forward; you are my wife, my friend and my soul mate..."

Phoebe couldn't help the tears that appeared in the corner of her eyes as his words caused her heart to swell, she really didn't deserve him.

"Phoebe..." the Minister smiled, turning to the bride.

"I do not know if I can top that," Phoebe giggled, earning a chuckle from Terence and the rest of the witches and wizards present. "But I will give it ago..."

She breathed deeply to calm her beating heart and to quell the tears that threatened to fall.

"Terence, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me, for a while, I thought that you were too good to be true, that I didn't deserve someone as loving and caring as you are... and yet, here we are, surrounded by the people that I love the most, and I feel blessed that you chose me to be your wife. I was born to love you... and I always will!"

Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia and Hermione exchanged looks, each trying their very hardest not to cry.

"You may now kiss your bride..."

Phoebe smiled as Terence leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.

"... then I declare you bonded for life."

The minister raised his wand high over the heads of Terence and Phoebe and a shower of glittery, golden fairy lights showered down upon them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Throughout the reception, Phoebe sat at one of the tables, watching everyone socialize. She never once thought that she would be married at the age of sixteen, but now that she was there, she would never dream of losing what she had.

She smiled as Amelia and Cedric danced passed her table, her best friend's laughter reaching her above the music.

As she sat watching, Phoebe could not help but think of the people who couldn't make it to her wedding.

Her parents, first of all, couldn't be present for this day because of Voldemort and his plan for world domination. How she despised him.

Her brother, Draco, who could not his sister's wedding. It was for the best, really, she understood that.

If what her grandmother had said was true, and it usually was whenever she had a vision, and it was only confirmed when Aiden stated that he had received a similar vision.

Draco had become a Death Eater, and allowing him to attend the wedding would be putting everyone in danger, while Phoebe did not believe that Draco would do anything to ruin her special day, did not mean that she didn't pass a thought at what Voldemort and the rest of his followers would do to obtain her; even if that did mean ruining her wedding day.

With a small sigh, Phoebe wrapped a green silk ribbon around her wrist as Terence sat down beside her. He smiled, and helped her knot the ribbon so that it would stay in place.

"Missing him?" he asked.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded. "It's not fair... he is being punished for Lucius's mistake... but that is not all..."

"What else is there?" Terence asked, pulling Phoebe onto his lap and kissing her neck.

Phoebe smiled and turned to face him, she kissed him once, before her smile dropped and was replaced with a frown.

"I could lose my brother at the end of all this," Phoebe answered. "I don't want that to happen!"

Just then Ashlyn walked over. She grabbed Phoebe's hand and pulled her up.

"This is your wedding and you are the only that hasn't danced yet," she said, "so get your butts out there before I cast the Imperious Curse and force you to dance!"

Phoebe held her hands up in defence. "Alright... C'mon Ter, I actually want my best friend at Hogwarts this year!"

Terence chuckled, took her hand and followed her out onto the dance floor.

Phoebe looked up at Terence, smiling madly as he kissed her, his arms wrapping around her small waist as they danced delicately.

"I love you," Phoebe whispered, as she encircled her arms around his neck and pulled his lips to hers. "I love you so much..."

Terence embraced Phoebe tight, wishing that he never had to let her go, but as the music came to an end and the cheering of all their friends and family sounded around the tent, he knew that this moment would have to come to an end... but that didn't mean they couldn't pick it up later.

"I love you too, Phe," Terence whispered, kissing her avidly, never breaking apart until they needed to breathe.

Finally, he reached down, put his other arm behind her knees and scooped her up. He carried her to the otherside of the tent saying goodbye to their friends as he past.

"Ten Galleons says she's pregnant by January," James said, turning to Ashlyn.

The Slytherin rolled her eyes and slapped him across the back of the head. "They have one night together," she said, "I say we let them enjoy it... without worry about any consequences!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 4:45am**


	126. Chapter 126

**Author's Note:** I know this chapter and the wedding chapter was short… but they will pick up as the story progresses. I promise.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, LokiLova, BrightYellowSunflower, Fan of Fics, Princessflag3998, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **Pixiescale1185**.

To those of you who fear that Phoebe will be pregnant before the beginning of the final battle, I can assure you, that while that was the original idea, it will now not be happening. I promise. I tried to write a character being pregnant while fighting a big battle in another story of mine and it just doesn't work.

Anyway... this chapter is the very first chapter of the Halfblood Prince story, but has been moved, edited and fitted in here. I hope you enjoy it. A few new characters will be making an appearance, there have been references to them throughout the story, but they have not made an appearance until now.

I hope you enjoy it... I know you will... you always do =)

* * *

><p>"<em>To Jacob Blackheart. Urgent we meet. Kindly respond immediately. Sincerely, Marques<em>."

Phoebe sat up straight and stared at the weird looking picture hanging on the wall of the Blackheart family room, it seemed to have appeared out of nowhere because she did not recognize it. She had grown up in this household and not once did that weird looking picture frame ever reside on any of the walls.

Ashlyn, Amelia, Sarah, James, Aiden and Terence, who were also present in the family room, looked towards the young elemental, who was now staring at her grandfather, a look of surprise on her features. "Papa is there a reason that Antonio Marques wishes to speak with you at this late hour?" she asked.

"None that I can think of, Little Star," Jacob answered, turning towards the portrait. "Yes, I will see Marques."

Suddenly, bright green flames burst into life in the empty grate beneath the marble mantelpiece. The occupants of the room watched as a tall man appeared within the flames, spinning as fast as a top. Seconds later, he had climbed out onto a rather fine antique rug.

The first thing that Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah noticed was that the new comer was young - and attractive, very attractive. He was tall, dressed in a fine gray suit, white shirt, and black tie with unruly dark-copper-coloured hair and intense, bright gray eyes that regarded them insightfully.

"_Ah... Jacob_," said Antonio Marques, striding forward with his hand outstretched. "_Good to see you again._"

Jacob took his President's hand and smiled. "_The pleasure is all my, Mr. President, you remember my granddaughter, Phoebe, and these are her friends: Ashlyn Black, Amelia Winchester, Sarah Prentiss, James Black, Aiden Chamberlain, and her new husband, Terence Higgs."_

_"Pleasure to see you again, Miss. Blackheart..." _Marques said, as he took Phoebe's hand and kissed the back of it. He proceeded to do the same to Ashlyn, Amelia and Sarah, and bowed his head to Aiden, James and Terence. _"My congratulations..."_ he added to the newlyweds.

"_Thank you, Mr. President,"_ replied Phoebe, before noticing her friends, except for Aiden, were looking lost and confused. She giggled silently as she realized that they must have felt left out of the conversation. "He was just offering his congratulations to us," she told them, linking hands with Terence and smiling up at him.

Terence smiled. "Thank you - um..." he trailed off, looking down at Phoebe.

The elemental giggled again. "Mr. President," she supplied the answer to his silent question.

"Oh," Terence nodded. "Thank you, Mr. President!"

Marques nodded once more and turned back to Jacob. "_Maybe we should speak in private, Jacob?"_

"_Of course,"_ Jacob agreed, turning expectantly to Phoebe and Aiden, just as the clock on top of the fireplace chimed midnight. "_If I am not mistaken you are returning to school tomorrow, are you not? You will need to be rested as you will be leaving early for the Hogwarts Express."_

Phoebe pouted, saddened that she was not going to be involved in the obviously important meeting, but she also knew that she should be getting to bed. Plus, if Serefina was involved in this meeting, she could always get the information off of her tomorrow.

"_Goodnight Grandpa,"_ the young elemental smiled, rounding the table and hugging her grandfather. The Fire elemental hugged her back, kissed the top of her head and sent her off with her friends, bidding them all a goodnight as they left.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once inside his office, Jacob cast a silencing charm on his door, it wasn't that he was paranoid of being overheard, but if he knew his granddaughter as well as he did, he would not put it past her to try and eavesdrop on this conversation.

_"Now, what was so urgent?"_ Jacob said, turning back to Marques.

"_Difficult to know where to begin,"_ muttered Marques, taking a seat in one of the chairs at Jacob's desk. "_What a week... what a week..."_

_"Problems at the office, Antonio?"_

_"Yes, you know of the matters that are happening in England?"_

_"Of course,"_ Jacob nodded. "_How can I forget? The Brockdale Bridge... the Bones and Vance murders... not to mention the ruckus in the West Country, Serefina has been working herself into a frenzy trying to console foreign witches and wizards in that part of the country."_

Marques nodded. He understood the hassle that his old friends daughter was going through, he had, obviously, handpicked her to liaise between the English ministry and Portuguese ministry himself. He knew of the hardships she was having with the foreign magical folk that wished to come home. But things were just not that easy anymore.

_"We are at war, Jacob,"_

_"Yes, I am very aware of that, Antonio,"_ nodded Jacob. "_What I would like to know, however, is what is so important that you had to come here at this late hour."_

_"The Brockdale Bridge was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's doing -"_

_"Good grief, Antonio, what is it going to take to get you to say Voldemort?"_

Antonio shivered involuntarily. "_Come now, Jacob, it is not just the Witches and Wizards of England that fear the name! Please respect that we, here in Portugal, fear him... I respect that you say his name, but have the same courtesy to those who do not."_

_"Of course,"_ Jacob agreed. "_Please, do continue."_

Antonio breathed deeply and started his speech once more. "_Since You-Know-Who has moved out into the open, he and his Death Eaters have been causing havoc in England. You-Know-Who threatened a mass Muggle killing unless Cornelius Fudge stood aside for him and -"_

_"Fudge is no longer in power,"_ interrupted Jacob. "_I hear that there is a new Minister for Magic..."_

_"Rufus Scrimgeour,"_ Antonio nodded. "_I have just come from a meeting with him, Fudge and the Muggle President, Rafael Noland. I thought it would be beneficial if you were informed too, since your daughter and granddaughter reside in England for twelve months!"_

Jacob nodded. "_I appreciate your concern, Antonio, please, do continue..."_

"_Of course,"_ Antonio answered, picking up where he left off. "_The Muggle Prime Minister thinks that it was an ordinary hurricane that swept through the West Country, destroying homes and families. Rafael Noland has been put on full alert, we fear that Voldemort may attack Portugal next... we fear that he will come here looking for you and your family, of course, we do not want innocent Muggles hurt in the process!"_

_"Of course,"_ agreed Jacob. "_My family is ready to move if that is the fear of the Ministry. We have contacts in Salem -"_

_"Now, now, Jacob,"_ interrupted Antonio, "_You know as well as I do that you have no reason to leave your home and country. You are the strongest family in this country, and you have the Ministry of Magic at your disposal. You just say the word and Auror's will be disposed of immediately to protect your home and family."_

_"Thank you, Antonio, your concern eases me."_ Jacob smiled. "_Now, tell me more about the meeting with Scrimgeour, Fudge and Noland._"

_"Oh yes, the Dementors have revolted - but I assume you already knew that - yes, they are attacking people left, right and centre, Muggles do not stand a chance against them, of course, but the Witches and Wizards are demanding the Ministry for protection, refurbishments because of destruction of property... it is like someone has opened the gates to Hell, England is havoc."_

_"From what I can get from the _Daily Prophet_ England is blanketed in a thick mist, is it not?"_

Antonio nodded. _"Yes, you are correct to assume that the Dementors are breeding, Jacob!"_

Jacob nodded, distractedly. "_Tell me, what is being done to ensure the safety and protection of Noland?"_

_"Auror's have been dispatched to his office,"_ Antonio replied. "_Celia Margarida has been selected has his new secretary in his outer office. She is efficient, gets through twice the work, and she is a trained Auror, she knows the risks."_

_"What about that Glaucio? What happened to him?"_

Antonio shook his head. "_We seem to think it was a poorly performed Imperious Curse,"_ he explained. "_Addled his brains, poor chap, has been clucking like a chicken for almost a week now. A team of Healers have been dispatched to examine him," _he checked his watch, "_yes; they should be with him now. I have already signed the papers for him to be removed from Muggle society for a while."_

Jacob nodded his head once more.

_"Well, that is really all I had to say, I will keep you posted of developments, Jacob - or, at least, I shall probably be too busy to come personally, but I will be sure to send someone that is trustworthy. If not, you are always welcome to drop by the Ministry."_

_"I know you will do your best, Antonio,"_ smiled Jacob. _"I wish you all the best..."_

Antonio smiled and shook Jacob's hands. "_Goodnight, Jacob."_

_"Goodnight, Antonio, do give my regards to your wife and children."_

_"I will,"_ Antonio smiled, as he stepped into the bright green flames and vanished.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, June 18, 2012 at 2:18am**


	127. Chapter 127

**Author's Note**: Whoo... we're heading back to Hogwarts. Sorry for not including all the Diagon Alley stuff. But I found it kind of irrelevant considering Elena Blackheart had a vision about Draco becoming a Death Eater, and that was pretty much what Diagon Alley was all about. But, if you want, then you can pretend that the Golden Trio went to Diagon Alley while Phoebe and her group of friends bought their school supplies in the Golden Triangle, which is the Portuguese version of Diagon Alley.

**Dedications**: Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, Fan of Fics** and **Princessflag3998**.

* * *

><p>"Did you hear about Florean Fortescue, Phoebe?" asked Hermione, who was securing her trunk into the overhead rack. "He run the ice cream parlor in Diagon Alley?"<p>

Phoebe frowned and looked back at her best friend; she was standing in the doorway to their compartment waiting for the rest of their friends to join them. Harry and Ron were on the platform with the rest of the Weasley clan, while Ashlyn had gone off in search of Adrian, James was hunting down his younger siblings, Sarah and Aiden had disappeared the moment they arrived on the platform, and Amelia had disappeared with Cedric, who had graduated the previous year.

"No, what's happened to him?" Phoebe asked.

"Dragged off, by the look of his place," Hermione answered. "Bill was telling Harry, Ron and I last night. He must've upset them somehow. Ollivander has gone too."

"The wandmaker?" said Phoebe, looking startled.

"That's the one. Shop's empty. No sign of a struggle. No one knows whether he left voluntarily or was kidnapped. I don't know what people are going to do about their wands, mind."

"There will be other wandmakers," smiled Phoebe. "People of England just prefer Ollivander because he was the best. I had my first wand from Ollivander... it still works, it's just, since my elemental core was split into four separate cores, the wand doesn't work for me."

Hermione nodded and jumped down from the seat on which she had been standing, she looked up towards the luggage rack and then round towards the door as Harry and Ron returned. On his robes, Harry was supporting a Quidditch Captain's badge.

"Nice badge, Harry," Phoebe grinned. "That gives you equal status with prefects! You can use our special bathroom now and everything!"

"Yeah," Ron nodded. "It also means he's our Captain - if he lets us back on the team, of course,"

He turned bright red.

"Speak for yourself," Phoebe smiled. "I've been on the team since second year... I'm the star player, you're not getting rid of me, are you, Harry?"

She smiled sweetly.

Harry felt his stomach lurch.

"C-course not..." he gulped.

Hermione rolled her eyes and jabbed Phoebe in the back with her fore-finger. "No flirting, you're a married woman!"

Phoebe giggled, dropped down into the seat near the door, waited for the students to board the train accordingly as they whistle blew and the Hogwarts Express prepared for its journey north.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once the train had gradually started to pick up speed, Phoebe, Ron, Sarah and Ashlyn departed the compartment and disappeared down towards the front of the train where the Prefect's carriage was situated. They didn't know how long they would be gone exactly, but it wasn't satisfying to know that they would spend half the journey to Hogwarts in another compartment.

"Did you hear that they found Igor Karkaroff's body in a shack up north?" Aiden asked looking across at Harry and Hermione. "The Dark Mark had been set over it."

"Yes, Bill, Ron's eldest brother told us about him last night," Hermione nodded. "I'm surprised that he managed to survive a year after deserting the Death Eaters; if I'm not mistaken, Sirius's brother, Regulus, only managed a few days..."

James nodded. "Don't let Ashlyn hear you talking about that," he warned. "She's still upset about her father's death, even if she doesn't remember him!"

"I can imagine why," Amelia agreed. "Her father was a Death Eater; he died for the greater good, ultimately taking him away from his wife and daughter. But, didn't your father say that Regulus only revolted against Voldemort because he was scared of Ashlyn and Thalia's safety?"

"Who is Thalia?" asked Harry.

"Ashlyn's mother," James answered. "She died a year after Ashlyn was born. Ashlyn was then raised by my grandmother, before going to the Pucey's! She was supposed to have come to my mother, but it was in Thalia's Final Will and Testament that her daughter goes to her best friend, Elladora Pucey, if anything where to happen to her Walburga."

However, before either Harry or Hermione could respond, there was a disturbance outside their compartment door; a group of fourth-year girls was whispering and giggling together on the other side of the glass.

"You ask him!"

"No, you!"

"I'll do it!"

And one of them, a bold-looking girl with large dark eyes, a prominent chin, and long black hair pushed her way through the door.

"Hi, Harry, I'm Romilda, Romilda Vane," she said loudly and confidently. "Why don't you join us in our compartment? You don't have to sit with this _mudblood filth_," she added in a sneer, looking between Amelia and Hermione, her gaze fell on James and her eyes glinted. "Oh, and let's not forget the _blood traitors_!"

"Who you calling a blood traitor, Vane," James snapped. "Last I checked your grandmother married a Muggle..."

Romilda's face darkened. "Do _not_ mention that... that... witch... in my presence! She stained the family name; she should be ashamed for what she has out my family through!"

James rolled his eyes and looked across at Amelia, her hand tightened around her wand, and her eyes and clouded over, a sure sign that she was beyond angry.

"You have three seconds to leave, Vane," hissed the Hufflepuff.

"Harry," Romilda said, sweetly, turning to back to the boy in questioned.

Harry glared at her. "These are my friends, Romilda," he answered, coldly. "Please leave..."

"Oh," said the girl, looking very surprised. "Oh. Okay."

And she withdrew, sliding the door closed behind her.

"People expect you to have cooler friends than us," said Amelia, glancing at Harry.

"You are cool," said Harry shortly. "None of them was at the Ministry. They didn't fight with me."

"That's a very nice thing to say," beamed Amelia, stowing her wand back into her robes.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather beyond the train windows was as patchy as it had been all summer; they passed through stretches of the chilling mist, then out into weak, clear sunlight. It was during one of the clear spells, when the sun was visible almost directly overhead, that Phoebe, Ron, Ashlyn and Sarah returned to the compartment at last.

"What does it matter, Ronald," Phoebe sighed. "I don't see you doing Prefect duties!"

"It is not our turn!" Ron said.

"It's not Slytherins turn either," Ashlyn defended. "It's Ravenclaws!"

Ron opened his mouth, before closing it again and turning towards Harry, who was looking confused.

"Malfoy's not doing prefect duty. He's just sitting in his compartment with the other Slytherins, we saw him when we passed."

Harry sat up straight, interested; it was not like Malfoy to pass up the chance to demonstrate his power as prefect, which he had happily abused all the previous year.

"What did he do when he saw you?"

"The usual," said Ron indifferently, demonstrating a rude hand gesture. "Not like him, though, is it? Well - _that_ is -" he did the hand gesture again - "but why isn't he out there bullying first years?"

"Dunno," said Harry.

"Maybe he preferred the Inquisitorial Squad," said Hermione. "Maybe being a prefect seems a bit tame after that."

Phoebe sighed in frustration, and got to her feet.

"Where are you going?" James asked.

"Away from here," Phoebe answered.

Harry frowned. "Why?"

"Why? I'll tell you _why_, Harry James Potter! It is because of the slander and verbal abuse against my brother! Draco may not be the perfect person on the planet... and he may now have joined Voldemort's ranks, but I can honestly tell you, that he did not join them on purpose! Draco would never do that!"

"Why do you defend him?"

"Because he is my brother!"

"You don't know him!"

"And you do, do you?" Phoebe snapped. "So, please enlighten me, Harry, what do you know about my brother that I don't?"

Harry hesitated. "I know that - well, I believe that he has taken over Lucius's position within Voldemort's ranks."

"You _believe..._?" Phoebe repeated. "No proof... just your assumptions and accusations, is that it?"

"Yes,"

Phoebe's eyes turned blue, as the storm outside the window worsened. "What about the time you _assumed_ Snape was after the Philosopher's Stone? Or... what about the time you _assumed_ Hagrid was the Heir of Slytherin..."

Harry opened his mouth to interrupt, but Phoebe overrode him.

"... How about the time you _assumed_ Sirius was a murderer? Or you _assumed_ that Barty Crouch Jr was the real Alastor Moody... oh, and my favorite, you _assumed_ that I needed saving and run head first into danger, dragging my friends with you!"

By now, silence had fallen throughout the compartment. Phoebe was shaking, the storm was lashing against the windows and Harry was staring, opened-mouthed, at the elemental who continued to downgrade him.

"Just because you _assume_ something, Harry, does not make it right!" Phoebe finished. She then turned around, wrenched open the compartment door and stormed out, colliding with a breathless third-year girl on the other side.

The third year squeaked as she hit the ground, clutching five scrolls of parchment tied with violet ribbon.

"Oh, I am so sorry," Phoebe apologized, scrambling to her feet and helping the third year up. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," the girl nodded. The badge on her clothes said she was a Ravenclaw. "I'm supposed to deliver these to Aiden Chamberlain, James and Ashlyn Black, Phoebe Blackheart and Harry P-Potter," she faltered, as her eyes met Harry's and she turned scarlet.

Perplexed, Phoebe took the parchments and passed them to their respective recipients as the girl stumbled back down the hallway.

"What is it?" Ron demanded, as Harry unrolled his.

"An invitation," said James.

_Mr. Black,_

_I would be delighted if you wanted to join me for a bite of lunch in compartment C._

_Sincerely,_

_Professor Slughorn_

"Who is Professor Slughorn?" asked Aiden, looking perplexedly at his own invitation.

"New teacher," said Harry. "Well, I suppose we'll have to go, won't we?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they reached compartment C, the first thing Phoebe noticed was that they were not Slughorn's only invitees, although judging by the enthusiasm of Slughorn's welcome, Harry was the most warmly anticipated.

"Harry, m'boy!" said Slughorn, jumping at the sight of him so that his great velvet-covered belly seemed to fill all of the remaining space in the compartment. His shiny bald head and great silvery mustache gleamed as brightly in the sunlight as the golden buttons on his waistcoat. "Good to see you, good to see you! And you must be Ashlyn and James Black - yes, I recognize both your parents in you, missy -" he wagged his finger at Ashlyn, who glanced sideways at Phoebe. "And who do we have here?"

Phoebe felt Aiden grab her hand from behind.

"Phoebe Blackheart, sir," Phoebe answered.

"Aiden Chamberlain," Aiden nodded.

Slughorn's eyes brightened as he roamed over the two elementals. "Ah, yes, Dumbledore has told me great deals about you two, oh yes, very great things!"

At a gesture from Slughorn, they sat down opposite each other, Ashlyn and Phoebe sliding into seats beside a Slytherin, which Ashlyn recognized as Blaise Zabini and a Gryffindor, which Phoebe recognized as Cormac McLaggen. While Aiden, Harry and James, were relocated into the last remaining seats near the door.

"Now, do you know everyone?" Slughorn asked. "Blaise Zabini is in your year, of course -"

Zabini nodded at Ashlyn and Aiden, but chose to ignore James, Phoebe and Harry.

"This is Cormac McLaggen; perhaps you've come across each other -?"

McLaggen, a large, wiry-haired youth, raised a hand, and Harry, Phoebe and James nodded back at him.

"- And this is Marcus Belby, I don't know whether -?"

Belby, who was thin and nervous-looking, gave a strained smile.

"- and _this_ charming young lady tells me she knows you!" Slughorn finished, he was beaming at someone who had been squeezed into the corner.

Phoebe peered closer, her eyes widened as she realized who Slughorn was referring too.

"Ginny!"

Ginny grimaced at Phoebe from her seat.

"Well now, this is most pleasant," said Slughorn cozily. "A chance to get to know you all a little better. Here, take a napkin. I've packed my own lunch; the trolley as I remember it, is heavy on licorice wands, and a poor old man's digestive system isn't quite up to such things... Pheasant, Belby?"

Belby started and accepted what looked like half a cold pheasant.

"I was just telling young Marcus here that I had the pleasure of teaching his Uncle Damocles," Slughorn told his newcomers, now passing around a basket of rolls. "Outstanding wizard, outstanding, and his Order of Merlin most well-deserved. Do you see much of your uncle, Marcus?"

Unfortunately, Belby had just taken a large mouthful of pheasant; in his haste to answer Slughorn he swallowed too fast, turned purple, and began to choke.

_"Anapeno,"_ said Phoebe, diving for her wand and pointing it at Belby, whose airway seemed to clear at once.

"Nicely done, Miss. Blackheart," beamed Slughorn. "Very nice work!"

Phoebe smiled. "Thank you, Professor, are you alright, Belby?"

Belby smiled, thankfully and nodded. "Y-yes..." he stuttered, his eyes streaming.

Phoebe frowned, why was he stuttering?

Turning away from the elemental, Belby started to answer Slughorn's question. "Not... not much of him, no," he gasped.

"Well, of course, I daresay he's busy," said Slughorn, looking questioningly at Belby. "I doubt he invented the Wolfsbane Potion without considerable hard work!"

"I suppose..." said Belby, who seemed afraid to take another bite of pheasant until he was sure that Slughorn had finished with him. "Er... he and my dad don't get on very well, you see, so I don't really know much about..."

His voice tailed away as Slughorn gave him a cold smile and turned to McLaggen instead.

Phoebe smiled tentatively at the Ravenclaw, pushed him a glass of water and turned back to Ashlyn who was eyeing her pheasant with great distaste. "Wrong flavor?" the elemental teased.

Ashlyn cracked a grin, shook her head, and started to sip at her water instead.

"We went with Bertie Higgs -" said McLaggen, catching Phoebe's attention. The elemental whipped around and spied the other Gryffindor.

"Higgs?" she questioned. "What do you know about the Higgs family?"

Slughorn looked around at the elemental, who was staring at McLaggen, waiting for an answer.

"Only that Bertie's brother is a Squib and the father to your new husband," answered McLaggen, he grinned as Phoebe's face faltered. "Don't be so surprised, Blackheart, your wedding was the biggest event of the summer... aside from the whole You-Know-Who incident! Everyone, all over of the world, knows about the marriage between you and Terence Higgs. Of course, you wouldn't have met Bertie; he was hunting nogtails in Norfolk with my uncle and I... oh and Rufus Scrimgeour."

"I don't like you," Phoebe said, her eyes narrowed slightly.

"Can't say I particularly like you, Blackheart," shrugged McLaggen, "but you are a Gryffindor, and I tolerate those within my house!"

"You have the aura of a Slytherin," retorted Phoebe, "but the personality of a Hufflepuff! You're a bully, McLaggen... I don't like bullies!"

McLaggen huffed and turned his attention away from Phoebe, clearly affronted at being called a bully... or maybe it was something else, either way, Phoebe didn't like him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was as Phoebe had suspected. Everyone inside compartment C had been invited because they were connected to somebody well-known or influential - everyone except Ginny.

Phoebe and Aiden had been requested because of their powerful connections outside of Wizarding London, James and Ashlyn had been requested because of Slughorn's nature to collect the Blacks', Zabini turned out to have a famously beautiful witch for a mother, who had been married seven times, each of her husband's dying mysteriously and leaving her mounds of gold, and that left Harry.

"And now," said Slughorn, shifting massively in his seat with the air of a compere introducing his star act. "Harry Potter! _Where_ to begin? I feel I barely scratched the surface when we met over the summer!" He contemplated Harry for a moment as though he was a particularly large and succulent piece of pheasant, and then said, "'The Chosen One,' they are calling you now!"

Harry said nothing. Belby, McLaggen and Zabini were all staring at him.

"Of course," said Slughorn, watching Harry closely, "there have been rumors for years. I remember when - well - after that _terrible_ night - Lily - James - and you survived - and the word was that you must have powers beyond the ordinary -"

Zabini gave a tiny little cough that was clearly supposed to indicate amused skepticism. And angry voice burst out from behind Slughorn.

"Yeah, Zabini, because _you're_ so talented... at posing..."

"Oh dear!" chuckled Slughorn comfortably, looking at Ginny, who was glaring at Zabini around Slughorn's great belly. "You want to be careful, Blaise! I saw this young lady perform the most marvelous Bat-Bogey Hex as I was passing her carriage! I wouldn't cross her!"

Zabini merely looked contemptuous.

"Anyway," said Slughorn, turning back to Harry. "_Such_ rumors this summer. Of course, one doesn't know what to believe, the_ Prophet_ has been known to print inaccuracies, make mistakes - but there seems little doubt, given the number of witnesses, that there was _quite_ a disturbance at the Ministry and that you were there in the thick of it all!"

Harry, who could not see any way out of this without lying, nodded but still said nothing. Slughorn beamed at him.

"So modest, so modest, no wonder Dumbledore is so fond - you were there, then? But the rest of the stories - so sensational, of course, one doesn't know quite what to believe - this fabled prophecy, for instance -"

"We never heard a prophecy!" Phoebe interrupted. "But it was real!"

"That's right," said Ashlyn staunchly. "James, Aiden and I were there too, along with our other friends Amelia and Sarah. All this 'Chosen One' rubbish is just the _Prophet_ making things up as usual."

"You were there too, were you?" said Slughorn with great interest, looking from Ashlyn to Aiden to James, but all of them sat clamlike before his encouraging smile.

"Yes... well... it is true that the _Prophet_ often exaggerates -"

"Exaggerates?" repeated Phoebe. "I'm sorry, Professor, but that isn't the word I would use! The _Daily Prophet_ depends, not on the reviews of the communities that read it, but the approval of the Minister. While Fudge was in power he controlled the Ministry and printed scandalous lies against Harry and Dumbledore... they weren't exaggerations... Fudge was a bumbling fool; he did not want to believe Voldemort had returned, simply because his _reputation_ within the Ministry would be at stake! He controlled the _Prophet_ and printed lies to cover up his own denial!"

Slughorn stared at Phoebe, wide-eyed, before beaming. "Ah, yes, the infamous temper... yes, Dumbledore told me all about that... you do not care for the Ministry of Magic much, do you, Miss Blackheart?"

"Not yours," Phoebe answered, simply and easily. It was no lie that she did not like the English Ministry for Magic... so what was the point in lying?

**~*Phoebe*~**

The afternoon wore on with more anecdotes about illustrious wizards Slughorn had taught, all of whom had been delighted to join what he called the 'Slug Club' at Hogwarts. Phoebe could not wait to leave, and if the looks on their faces were anything to go by, neither could her friends.

Finally the train emerged from yet another long misty stretch into a red sunset, and Slughorn looked around, blinking in the twilight.

"Good gracious, it's getting dark already! I didn't notice that they'd lit the lamps! You'd better go and change in your robes, all of you. McLaggen, you must drop by and borrow that book on nogtails. Harry, Blaise, Phoebe - anything your passing. Same goes for you, miss," he twinkled at Ginny. "Well, off you go, off you go!"

As he pushed past Phoebe into the darkening corridor.

"Hey!" Phoebe yelled after him. "Watch where you're going!"

Zabini ignored her, shot Harry a filthy look that Harry returned with interest.

"I'm glad that's over," muttered James, "Strange man, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is a bit," said Harry, his eyes on Zabini. "How come you ended up in there, Ginny?"

"He saw me hex Zacharias Smith," said Ginny. "You remember that idiot from Hufflepuff who was in the DA? He kept on and on asking about what happened at the Ministry, he wouldn't believe that I wasn't there, in the end he annoyed me so much I hexed him - when Slughorn came in I thought I was going to get detention, but he just thought it was a really good hex and invited me to lunch! Mad, eh?"

"Better reason for inviting someone than because their mother's famous," said Phoebe, glaring after Zabini, "or because their uncle knows the Minister!"

Ashlyn nodded in agreement. "He only wanted me because of my parents," she said, sadly. "I hope I don't have to see him at Hogwarts, except for lessons, obviously."

"What is he teaching?" asked James.

"It has to be Defence Against the Dark Arts," said Ginny. "It is the only spot left open!"

The others nodded, while Aiden's eyes darkened, something that only Phoebe spotted. Over the summer, Elena Blackheart had taught Aiden how to receive a vision without drawing attention to him by crying out in pain, she had taught him to connect his powers to his visions, so whenever he had a vision his eyes would cloud over, just like they did when he was using his powers.

Except they would be a grey color, rather than blue.

"I'll see you guys later," said Harry under his breath, pulling out his Invisibility Cloak and flinging it over himself.

"Harry, what are you -?" James started.

"Later!" whispered Harry, darting after Zabini as quietly as possible.

Phoebe, Aiden, Ashlyn, James and Ginny exchanged looks.

"What the -?"

"Where is he going?" asked Ginny.

Phoebe shrugged, although she had a pretty decent idea of where Harry was going, after all their argument from several hours ago was still fresh in her mind.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"We're getting close," Phoebe said as she returned to her own compartment with Ashlyn, James and Aiden. Hermione, Ron, Amelia and Sarah looked up at their return. "We better get our robes on."

Hermione jumped out of her seat, seized her trunk and rummaged through it for her robes. Phoebe and the others followed her lead, and carefully and quietly, pulled on their robes, locked their trunks, and as the train slowed to a jerky crawl, Phoebe fastened a thick new traveling cloak around her neck.

"Come on, Ronald," Phoebe said. "We need to be helping the first years. Ash, Sarah, you coming?"

Ashlyn and Sarah nodded following the elemental out of the compartment, Ron at their heels.

Once on the platform the two Gryffindor's, one Hufflepuff and one Slytherin parted ways to help the new students, while Aiden, Hermione and Amelia darted off towards the carriages.

"Where is Harry?" Amelia asked, opening the door to one of the carriages and jumping inside.

Hermione shook her head and turned back to the mass of students, Harry hadn't returned with the others from compartment C and she was starting to wonder if something had happened, mostly because neither Phoebe nor the others had mentioned where he had gone too.

_**I hope he hasn't gone and gotten himself into trouble already**_ the bookworm thought as she climbed into the carriage alongside Aiden, James and Amelia and they set off for the castle.

Meanwhile, Phoebe, Ron, Ashlyn and Sarah were herding the first years towards Hagrid, who was waiting at the edge of the platform, he waved and thanked them as they shuffled off and pointed second years in the direction of the carriages.

"Where is Harry?" Ron asked. "Did you see him pass?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No. You go on ahead," she told him, "I'll check the train!"

"I'll stay," Ashlyn said. "I can't find Draco, anyway!"

Sarah looked at Ernie. "We'll make sure that the second years find the carriages," she said. "Make sure you the train is empty... it leaves in ten minutes!"

Phoebe and Ashlyn nodded, climbed back onboard the train and set off in search of any stragglers, not to mention Draco and Harry.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_"Petrificus Totalus!"_

Without warning, Malfoy pointed his wand at Harry, who was instantly paralyzed. As though in slow motion, he toppled out of the luggage rack and fell, with an agonizing, floor-shaking crash, at Malfoy's feet, the Invisibility Cloak trapped beneath him, his whole body revealed with his legs still curled absurdly into the cramped kneeling position.

He couldn't move a muscle; he could only gaze up at Malfoy, who smiled broadly.

"I thought so," he said jubilantly. "I heard Goyle's trunk hit you. And I thought I saw something white flash through the air after Zabini came back..."

His eyes lingered for a moment upon Harry's trainers.

"You didn't hear anything I care about, Potter. But while I've got you here..."

And he stamped, hard on Harry's face.

Harry felt his nose break; blood spurted everywhere.

"That's for my father. Now, let's see..."

Malfoy dragged the cloak out from under Harry's immobilized body and threw it over him.

"I don't reckon they'll find you till the trains back in London," he said quietly. "See you around, Potter... or not."

And taking care to tread on Harry's fingers, Malfoy left the compartment.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Depending on how fast you review… I might be able to get another chapter up tonight before bed.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, June 19, 2012 at 8:05pm**


	128. Chapter 128

**Author's Note: **I know I promised another update last night, but I wanted to give everyone a chance to read last chapter before this chapter was posted. So I am posting this morning instead. Hopefully, as soon as I get Halfblood Prince written up, and depending on how fast you can read and review, you can have two updates a day. But that also depends on how busy I am. But here is the next update. Enjoy.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to: **ZabuzasGirl, BrightYellowSunflower, KingdomHeartsNerd, Evanescencefan97, HotaruKenobi, Pixiescale1185, Dark D-Knight** and** Fan of Fics.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Irishrose20** for adding this story to their Story Alert. Appreciate mate.

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><p>Phoebe sighed with relief as she spotted her brother making his way towards her and Ashlyn from the opposite side of the train.<p>

"There you are!" she cried, once he was close enough. "Have you seen Harry?"

"No," Draco answered, simply. "Why would I be caught dead with Potter?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"I was just asking," she snapped, "no need to get bitchy! C'mon, the train is getting ready to leave, I must have missed him in the hustle of the crowd outside!"

Ashlyn nodded and turned to leave the train, however, something caught her eye as Draco strode past. Nudging Phoebe, the Slytherin pointed at the crimson droplets on Draco's hand. It was easily contrasted against the pale skin.

Phoebe frowned and glanced at her best friend. "He's not hurt," she whispered.

"You don't think -?" Ashlyn trailed off, pointing over her shoulder in the direction that Draco had come.

"Knowing Draco and Harry, yes," nodded Phoebe. "You go on, I'll check."

"Are you sure?" Ashlyn asked. "I can wait if you wish?"

Phoebe shook her head. "You go on," she smiled, "just tell the conductor that I have left something in my compartment and I should be about five minutes. Tell Draco the same, I'll see you tomorrow after breakfast."

"Alright, if you're sure," Ashlyn hesitated.

"Im sure," Phoebe smiled, hugging her best friend and setting off down the corridor, towards the Slytherin compartment.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry could not move a muscle. He lay there beneath the Invisibility Cloak feeling the blood from his nose flow, hot and wet, over his face, listening for any signs that someone would check the compartments before the train returned to London. But at once came the dispiriting realization that even if somebody looked into the compartment, he would be neither seen nor heard.

Harry had never hated Malfoy more than as he lay there, like an absurd turtle on its bacl, blood dripping sickeningly into his open mouth. What a stupid situation to have landed himself in... and now the last few footsteps were dying away; everyone was shuffling along the dark platform outside; he could hear the scraping of trunks and the loud babble of talk.

Ron, Hermione and Phoebe would think he had left the train without them. Once they arrived at Hogwarts and took their places in the Great all, looked up and down the Gryffindor table a few times, and finally realized that he was not there, he, no doubt, would be halfway back to London.

He tried to make a sound, even a grunt, but it was impossible. Then he remembered that some wizards, like Dumbledore, could perform spells without speaking, so he tried to summon his wand, which had fallen out of his hand, by saying the words _"Accio Wand!"_ over and over again in his head, but nothing happened.

He thought he could hear the rustling of the trees that surrounded the lake, and the far-off hoot of an owl, but no hint of a search being made or even (he despised himself slightly for hoping it) panicked voices wondering where Harry Potter had gone.

A feeling of hopelessness spread through him as he imagined the convoy of thestral-drawn carriages trundling up to the school and the muffled yells of laughter issuing from whichever carriage Malfoy was riding in, where he could be recounting his attack on Harry to Crabbe, Goyle, Zabini and Pansy Parkinson.

The train lurched, causing Harry to roll over onto his side. Now he was staring at the dusty underside of the seats instead of the ceiling. The floor began to vibrate as the engine roared to life. The Express was leaving and nobody knew he was still on it.

"Wait!"

Harry gave a start, he knew that voice, it was Ashlyn!

"Wait! There is someone still on board!"

"What are you talking about, Missy, the train has been emptied! All students are heading up to the castle!"

Harry frowned, what was Ashlyn doing? Did she know he was here? Had she come back to find him? Why her? Why not Phoebe... or Hermione and Ron? Did _they_ even know? Maybe Ashlyn had found Draco, they were Slytherin Prefects, maybe she had waited for him, seen the blood over his robes and figured that he, Harry, was still on the train.

"I'm serious, there is someone still onboard, please, you have to wait!"

"Five minutes," the conductor sighed, "not a minute more!"

"Thank you, sir," Ashlyn answered and fell quiet.

Was she coming aboard? Was she going to find him?

Then he felt his Invisibility Cloak fly off him and a voice overhead said, "_Finite_!"

There was a flash of red light and Harry's body unfroze; he was able to push himself into a more dignified sitting position, hastily wipe the blood off his bruised face with the back of his hand, and raise his head to look up at the person who had saved him. Half expecting to find Ashlyn Black standing over him, Harry was surprised to see that it was -

"Phoebe -?"

"Just because we argue doesn't mean I'm going to let Draco walk all over you!" Phoebe said, holding her hand out to her friend and pulling him to his feet. "Now come on, the train is ready to leave!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"_Episkey,"_ said Phoebe.

Harry's nose felt very hot, and then very cold. He raised a hand and felt it gingerly. It seemed to be mended.

"Thanks a lot!"

Phoebe nodded and waved her wand once more; an immense silvery four-legged creature erupted from it and streaked off into the darkness.

"Was that your patronus?" asked Harry, he had seen Dumbledore send messages like this.

"Yes," said Phoebe. "Serefina taught me at a young age how to send messages using Patronuses. As you know, I have always been able to conjure a Patronus, but unlike most students, save for Ashlyn and Hermione, I can send them with messages too. I am just telling Serefina that we are on our way, she will worry otherwise."

They set off toward the lane that led to the school.

"How did you find me?"

"I noticed you hadn't left the train and I knew you had your cloak," Phoebe answered, "I sent Ron back to the school and opted to stay behind and look for you, Ashlyn said she would stay with me, she had to look for Draco anyway. We had just found him when Ashlyn spotted blood on his hand and robes, we concluded that he had seen you along the way and I thought I'd check..."

She shrugged, off-handedly.

They trudged up the dark, deserted lane, following the freshly made carriage tracks. Having always traveled there by carriage, Harry had never appreciated just how far Hogwarts was from Hosgmeade Station. With great relief he finally saw the tall pillars on either side of the gates, each topped with a winged boar. He was cold, he was hungry, and he was quite sure that Phoebe felt the same way.

But when he put out a hand to push open the gates, he found them chained shut.

_"Alohomora!"_ he said confidently, pointing his wand at the padlock, but nothing happened.

"That won't work on these," said Phoebe. "Dumbledore bewitched them himself."

Harry looked around.

"We could climb a wall," he suggested.

"No, we couldn't," said Phoebe. "Anti-intruder jinxes on all of them. Security's been tightened a hundredfold this summer."

"Well, then," said Harry, starting to feel annoyed at her lack of helpfulness. "I suppose we'll just have to sleep out here and wait for morning."

Phoebe rolled her eyes, pointed through the gates and up towards the castle.

"Someone is coming," she said.

A lantern was bobbing at the distant foot of the castle. Harry was so pleased to see it he felt he could even endure Filch's wheezy criticisms of his tardiness and rants about how his timekeeping would improve with the regular application of thumbscrews.

It was not until the glowing yellow light was ten feet away from them, did Harry realize, with a rush of pure loathing that it was not Filch, but Severus Snape who had come to relieve them.

"Well, well, well," sneered Snape, taking out his wand and tapping the padlock once, so that the chains snaked backward and the gates creaked open. "Nice of you to turn up, Potter, although you have evidently decided that the wearing of school robes would detract from your appearance."

"I couldnt change -" Harry started, but Phoebe cut across him.

"I sent a message to my godmother... what are you doing down here?"

Snape sneered at her.

"Your godmother is pre-occupied!" he answered. "So I took it instead."

He stood back to allow them to pass him, before shutting the gates with a loud clang and tapping the chains with his wand again, so that they slithered, clinking back into place. He then swung the lantern about, Phoebe ducking to avoid being hit.

Snape did not speak for a moment or so, Phoebe pulled her traveling cloak tighter around her body as she shivvered in the cold air.

"Fifty points from Gryffindor for lateness, I think," said Snape. "And let me see, another twenty for your Muggle attire. You know, I don't believe any House has ever been in negative figures this early in the term: We haven't even started pudding. You might have set a record, Potter."

Harry frowned and glanced at Phoebe, why wasn't Snape taking points from her? Not that he wanted to lose Gryffindor anymore points, but why was Snape being biased towards him? Surely it couldn't be because of the hatred that was between them both?

"Miss. Blackheart is a Prefect, Mr. Potter," Snape answered, having seen Harry's confused look. "She is also apart of your advanced guard. The Order of the Phoenix needed someone that could be with you at all times within the castle. Dumbledore is busy, you see, and Miss. Blackheart was the perfect choice as she is your housemate and friend."

Phoebe glanced at Harry and smiled weakly, she hadn't told him that she was apart of his advanced guard, the topic had never been brought up and she didn't see the need in being treated to Harry's temper about not needing a babysitter. She had seen it once with Sirius, and that time James had been included, she didn't need to be subjected to it again.

"I suppoe you wanted to make an entrance, did you?" Snape continued. "And with no flying car available you decided that bursting into the Great Hall halfway though the feast ought to create a dramatic effect."

They reached the castle steps at last and as the great oaken front doors swung open into the vast flagged entrance hall, a burst of talk and laughter and of tinkling plates and glasses greeted them through the doors standing open into the Great Hall.

Phoebe shed her traveling cloak, hooked it over her arm, run a hand through her hair in an attempt to make herself look presentable, before walking across the flagstoned Hall and disappearing into the Great Hall. She ignored the looks from the other students and made her way directly towards James, who had saved her a seat at the Gryffindor table.

"Where have you been?" James whispered urgently.

"Looking for Harry," Phoebe answered, before adding, hastily, to Ron and Hermione, "he is right behind me!"

Harry, who had just wedged himself in between the bookworm and Ron, smiled weakly at Phoebe, who had finally seen the dried blood covering his face and clothes.

"Harry, stay still," she ordered, waving her wand once more.

_"Tergeo!"_

The dried blood disappeared.

"Thanks," said Harry, feeling his now clean face.

"Harry, what happened? We've been terrified!" Hermione said.

"I'll tell you later," said Harry curtly. He was very conscious that Ginny, Neville, Dean and Seamus were listening in; even Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghost, had come floating along the bench to eavesdrop.

"But -" said Hermione.

"Not now, Hermione," said Harry, in a darkly significant voice.

"You missed the Sorting," James said to Phoebe, as the dinner plates were replaced with pudding, and Ron dived for a large chocolate gateu.

"Hat say anything interesting?" asked Harry, taking a piece of treacle tart.

"More of the same, really... advising us all to unite in the face of our enemies, you know."

"Dumbledore mentioned Voldemort at all?"

"Not yet, but he always saves his proper speech for after the feast, doesn't he? It can't be long now."

"Snape said my godmother was pre-occupied," said Phoebe. "Where is she?"

"You've seen Snape? How come?" said Ron between frenzied mouthfuls of gateu.

Phoebe glared, her stomach churning.

"Bumped into him," said Harry evasively.

"Professor Blackheart hasn't turned up for the feast yet," said Hermione, "we don't know why, Dumbledore hasn't said anything."

"Maybe he will mention it in a minute," James suggested.

Phoebe nodded, although she scanned the staff table for any signs of her godmother as she spooned jelly and cream into her mouth and swallowed it.

The elemental was surprised to see Divination teacher, Professor Trelawney, sitting on Hagrid's left, while the half-giant himself was waving, enthusiastically at Harry, much to the disapprovement of Professor McGonagall.

Looking across the hall at the Slytherin table, Phoebe's eyes sought out her brother, Draco was sat, surrounded by his usual croonies and was mimicking the shattering of a nose to raucous laughter and applause.

The elemental's eyes narrowed and thunder clashed against the enchanted ceiling over head. Many first years jumped in surprise, while Phoebe's friends, including Draco snapped to attention.

Returning his sister's glare, Draco returned to his dessert, while Aiden smiled, somewhat reassuringly at Phoebe, before she turned to Hermione who was speaking, rather hastily.

"So what did Professor Slughorn want?" Hermione asked.

"To know what really happened at the Ministry," said Harry.

"Him and everyone else here," snniffed Hermione. "People were interrogating us about it on the train, weren't they, Ron?"

"Yeah," said Ron. "All wanting to know if you really are 'the Chosen One' -"

"There has been much talk on that very subject even amongst the ghosts," interrupted Nearly Headless Nick, inclinding his barely connected head toward Harry so that it wobbled dangerously on its ruff. "I am considered something of a Potter authority; it is widely known that we are friendly. I have assured the spirit community that I will not pester you for information, however. 'Harry Potter knows that he can confide in me with complete confidence,' I told them. 'I would ratehr die than betray his trust'"

"That's not saying much, seeing as you're already dea - OUCH!" Ron gasped, his eyes watering as Phoebe kicked him in the shin.

Unfortunately, Nick heard him, loud and clear.

"Once again, you show all the sensitivity of a blunt axe," said the ghost in affronted tones, and he rose into the air and glided back toward the far end of the Gryffindor table just as Dumbledore got to his feet at the staff table. The talk and laughter echoing around the Hall died away almost instantly.

"The very best of evenings to you!" he said, smiling broadly, his arms opened wide as though to embrace the whole room.

"What happened to his hand?" gasped Hermione.

She was not the only one who had noticed. Dumbledore's right hand was as blackened and dead-looking as it had been on the night he had come to fetch Harry from the Dursleys. Whispers swept the room; Dumbledore, interperting them correctly, merely smiled and shook his purple-and-gold sleeve over his injury.

"Nothing to worry about," he said airily. "Now... to our new students, welcome, to our old students, welcome back! Another year full of magical education awaits you..."

"His hand was like that when I saw him over the summer," Harry whispered to Hermione. "I though he'd have cured it by now, though... or Madam Pomfrey would've done."

"It looks as if it's died," said Phoebe, with a nauseated expression. "But there are some injuries you can't cure... old curses... and there are poisons without antidotes..."

"... and Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has asked me to say that there is a blanket ban on any joke items bought at the shop called Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Those wishing to play for their House Quidditch teams should give their names to their Heads of House as usual. We are also looking for new Quidditch commentators, who should do likewise. We are pleased to welcome a new member of staff this year. Professor Slughorn" - Slughorn stood up, his bald head gleaming in the candlelight, his big waistcoated belly casting the table below into shadow - "is a former colleague of mine who has agreed to resume his old post of Potions master."

"Potions?"

_"Potions?"_

The word echoed all over the Hall as people wondered whether they had heard right.

"Potions?" said Ron and Hermione together, turning to stare at Harry. "But you said -"

Professor Snape, meanwhile," said Dumbledore, raising his voice so that it carried over all the muttering, "will be taking over the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."

"No!" said Harry, so loudly that many heads turned in his direction. He did not care; he was staring up at the staff table, incensed. How could Snape be given the Defence Against the Dark Arts job after all this time? Hadn't it been widely known for years that Dumbledore did not trust him to do it?

"But Harry, you said that Slughorn was going to be teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts!" said Hermione.

"I thought he was!" said Harry.

"We all thought he was," Phoebe said. "It has only been Defence Against the Dark Arts that has needed a professor... ever since Quirrell! It was automatic that we thought Slughorn would take over for Umbridge! It is the way it has always been!"

"Do you know why Snape was chosen?" Ron asked.

"How would I know?"

"Because you're apart of the Order of the -"

He was cut off by another swift kick to the shin, this time from Hermione.

"Merlin!" he cried, his eyes watering once more. "You two will be the death of me!"

Snape, who was sitting on Dumbledore's right, did not stand at the mention of his name; he merely raised a hand in lazy acknowledgement of the applause from the Slytherin table, yet there was a pure look of triumph on his features.

"Well, there's one good thing," said Harry savagely. "Snape'll be gone by the end of the year."

"What do you mean?" asked James.

"That job's jinxed. No one's lasted more than a year... Quirrell actually died doing it. Personally, I'm going to keep my fingers crossed for another death..."

"Harry!" said Hermione and Phoebe, shocked and reproachful.

"He might go back to teaching Potions at the end of the year," said Ron reasonably. "That Slughorn bloke might not want to stay long-term. Moody didn't."

Dumbledore cleared his throat. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and James were not the only ones who had been talking; the whole Hall had erupted in a buzz of conversation at the news that Snape had finally achieved his heart's desire.

"Now, as everybody in this Hall knows, Lord Voldemort and his followers are once more at alarge and gaining strength."

The silence seemed to tauten and strain as Dumbledore spoke.

"I cannot emphasize strongly enough how dangerous the present situation is, and how much care each of us at Hogwarts must take to ensure that we remain safe. The castle's magical fortifications have been strengthened over the summer, we are protected in new and more powerful ways, but we must still guard scrupulously against carelessness on the part of any student or member of staff. I urge you, therefore, to abide by any security restrictions that your teachers impose on you, however irksome you might find them - in particular, the rule that you are not to be out of bed after hours. I implore you, should you notice anything strange or suspicious within or outside the castle, to report it to a member of staff immediately. I trust you to conduct yourselves, always, with the utmost regard of your own and others' safety."

Dumbledore's blue eyes swept over the students before he smiled once more.

"But now, your beds await, as warm and comfortable as you could possible wish, and I know that your top priority is to be well-rested for your lessons tomorrow. Let us therefore say good night. Pip pip!"

With the usual deafening scraping noise, the benches were moved back and the hundreds of students began to file out of the Great Hall toward their dormitories. Harry, who was in no hurry at all to leave with the gawping crowd, lagged behind, pretending to retie the lace on his trainer.

Phoebe, who had missed the Sorting, had darted forward to a cluster of nervous looking Gryffindor first-years, smiled softly and introduced herself.

"I'm Phoebe Blackheart," she said, in a soothing tone. "Im one of Gryffindor's Prefects... come, follow me, I'll show you to your dormitories."

The gaggle of first years seemed to cling to one another as they followed Phoebe through the crowd of students, disappearing into the sea of black.

"Gryffindor first years," Phoebe called over the noise. "Stick close now... that's it, follow me!"

And she led them up seven floors to the portrait of the Fat Lady, leaving Harry to explain to James, Hermione and Ron, just exactly what had happened on the train and the reason for why he was late.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **The story will pick up soon.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at 11:20am**


	129. Chapter 129

**Author's Note: **Sorry for the late update... I spent all day yesterday cleaning out my bedroom, I intend to paint it green and have Slytherin decorations everywhere very soon, but that was part of the reason for this late update. All day cleaning, meant very little time to edit and post this chapter, I have finished it now and am heading to bed.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Pixiescale1185** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**. (Where did everyone go, I updated early and everything!)

* * *

><p>Phoebe met James in the common room before breakfast the next morning, the Golden Trio had already gone down to breakfast ahead of them, Harry, who had been hoping for some backup from Hermione, wasted no time in telling her what he had overheard on the train the previous evening.<p>

"I don't want to know," Phoebe said, shaking her head as she and James walked through the corridors towards the Entrance Hall.

"But Phoebe," James protested. "We may be able to get inside information on You-Know-Who -"

"You want me to ask Draco to put his life further on the line, just so we can spy on Voldemort?" asked Phoebe. "No, James! I'm not happy with the fact that Draco bears the Dark Mark has it is! I don't want him to lose his life because of something we want! Besides, he won't do it!"

James deflated.

"Why do you protect him?" he asked, after a moment of silence. "And don't say because he is your brother... Aiden is your brother, and you don't protect him half as much as Malfoy!"

"Fine, I won't say it is because he is my brother," said Phoebe. "I'll say it is because he is my twin!"

James rolled his eyes.

"That is the same thing," he groaned.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "But it is in a different wording. You said I couldn't say he was my _brother_ therefore I changed it to _twin_!"

"You are so confusing!"

"Women generally are," Phoebe agreed. "It is why you men enjoy our company..."

James grumbled under his breath, but Phoebe did not press the subject. However, he jumped when Phoebe gave a start, throwing out her arm and halting a passing fourth year, who was attempting to push past her with a lime-green disk clutched tightly in his hand.

"Fanged Frisbees are banned, hand it over," she told him sternly. The scowling boy handed over the snarling Frisbee, ducked under her arm, and took off after his friends.

James waited for him to vanish, and tugged the Frisbee from Phoebe's grip.

"Excellent, I've always wanted one of these."

"You're not keeping it," Phoebe said, tugging the item back, freezing it with her wand and tucking it carefully into her backpack. "I'm handing it into McGonagall the first chance I get!"

"Spoiled sport," James pouted, carrying on his way to the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The ceiling of the Great Hall was serenely blue and streaked with frail, wispy clouds, just like the squares of sky visible through the high mullioned windows. While they tucked into porridge and eggs and bacon, James told Phoebe about the embarrassing conversation with Hagrid the previous evening.

"But I _am_ continuing with Care of Magical Creatures," Phoebe said.

"You are?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. I don't _have_ to..."

"Then why are you?"

"Because I _want_ too," Phoebe said. "If I didn't then I wouldn't have much of a timetable. I'll take the lessons, but I won't sit the examinations."

"What are you mostly taking this year?"

"Dance,"

James blinked. "But I thought McGonagall said that Dance wasn't a proper job selection?"

"She did," Phoebe nodded. "But that doesn't mean I can't take the lessons!"

"True," James nodded. "And Ashlyn?"

"She is taking a majority of Dance and Potions,"

"And you?"

"Dance, Potions and Care of Magical Creatures!"

James blinked. "But you will only take examinations in Dance and Potions?" he questioned. "The same as Ashlyn."

"Yes," Phoebe nodded.

James shook his head. "Again... women are confusing!"

Phoebe giggled and went back to her breakfast.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After they had eaten, they remained in their places, awaiting Professor McGonagall's descent from the staff table. The distribution of class schedules was more complicated than usual this year, for Professor McGonagall needed first to confirm that everybody had achieved the necessary OWL grades to continue with their chosen NEWTs.

Hermione was immediately cleared to continue with Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Herbology, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes and Potions, and shot off to a first-period Ancient Runes class without further ado. Neville took a little longer to sort out; his round face was anxious as Professor McGonagall looked down his application and then consulted his OWL results.

"Herbology, fine," she said. "Professor Sprout will be delighted to see you back with an 'Outstanding' OWL. And you qualify for Defense Against the Dark Arts with 'Exceeds Expectations.' But the problem is Transfiguration. I'm sorry, Longbottom, but an 'Acceptable' really isn't good enough to continue to NEWT level. I just don't think you'd be able to cope with the coursework."

Neville hung his head.

"Why do you want to continue with Transfiguration, anyway? I've never had the impression that you particularly enjoyed it."

Neville looked miserable and muttered something about "my grandmother wants."

"Hmph," snorted Professor McGonagall. "It's high time your grandmother learned to be proud of the grandson she's got, rather than the one she thinks she ought to have!"

Neville turned very pink and blinked confusedly; Professor McGonagall had never paid him a compliment before.

"I'm sorry; Longbottom, but I cannot let you into my NEWT class. I see that you have an Exceeds Expectations in Charms, however - why not try for a NEWT in Charms?"

"My grandmother thinks Charms is a soft option," mumbled Neville.

"Take Charms," said Professor McGonagall, "and I shall drop Augusta a line reminding her that just because she failed _her_ Charms OWL, the subject is not necessarily worthless."

Smiling slightly at the look of delighted incredulity on Neville's face, Professor McGonagall tapped a blank schedule with the tip of her wand and handed it, now carrying details of his new classes, to Neville.

Professor McGonagall turned next to James, who was instantly cleared for Potions, Charms, Divination, Herbology, History of Magic and Defense Against the Dark Arts. James set off for Divination five minutes later, waving Phoebe goodbye as he fled the Hall.

"Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration, Potions, Care of Magical Creatures and Dance... yes... very pleasing grades in everything," she tapped a blank timetable and handed it over to the elemental.

"Thank you, Professor," Phoebe grinned, snapping up her backpack and crossing the hall, to where Ashlyn had just been released from Professor Snape.

"Please tell me we are in the same dance class," Ashlyn pleaded, looking up from her table.

Phoebe consulted her own. "If you have it first thing this morning, then yes, we are!"

Ashlyn's smile brightened. "Shall we?"

"We shall," Phoebe grinned, linking her arm with her best friend and the two of them set off for Dance.

**~*Phoebe*~**

An hour later, Phoebe and Ashlyn made their way out of the Dance studio, followed by fellow Ravenclaw, Kaylee Masters and Hufflepuff, Aliyah Hunter.

"Those dances look difficult," Aliyah complained. "I was never taught those in dance camp. How about you three?"

Kaylee shook her head.

"I hate the tango," Ashlyn said. "The steps look rather difficult."

"Just follow the music," Phoebe smiled. "Don't worry if you screw up! Just smile and carry on. That is what I do!"

"Yes, but you come from an elegant family, Phoebe," Kaylee said. "You were probably taught this stuff from birth."

"I wasn't actually," Phoebe answered. "I was allowed to express myself though dance, which is why I choose steps that I can create myself. I hate doing set dancing. Anyway, what do you have now?"

Kaylee consulted her table. "I have Herbology, Aliyah?"

"History of Magic," the Hufflepuff answered, turning to Phoebe and Ashlyn.

"Defence," Ashlyn answered. "See you tomorrow?"

Kaylee and Aliyah nodded. "Yes. Definitely."

And the four girls parted to go their separate ways, all the while, Phoebe knew that she was going to be seeing a lot more of Kaylee and Aliyah in the upcoming months, and she could honestly say she was looking forward to it.

Hermione was already queuing outside the Defence room when the two girls got there, her arms were full of heavy books and she was looking put-upon.

"We got so much homework for Runes," she said anxiously, when Phoebe and Ashlyn joined her. "A fifteen-inch essay, two translations, and I've got to read these by Wednesday!"

"Merlin!" Ashlyn gasped. "I'm glad I dropped it!"

Phoebe shrugged. "I bet Snape gives us loads."

The classroom door opened as she spoke, and Snape stepped into the corridor, his sallow face framed as ever by two curtains of greasy black hair. Silence fell over the queue immediately.

"Inside," he said.

James looked around as they entered. Snape had imposed his personality upon the room already; it was gloomier than usual, as curtains had been drawn over the windows, and was lit by candlelight. New pictures adorned the walls, many of them showing people who appeared to be in pain, sporting grisly injuries or strangely contorted body parts.

Nobody spoke as they settled down, looking around at the shadowy, gruesome pictures.

"I have not asked you to take out your books," said Snape, closing the door and moving to face the class from behind his desk; Hermione hastily dropped her copy of _confronting the Faceless_ back into her bag and stowed it under her chair. "I wish to speak to you, and I want your fullest attention."

His black eyes roved over their upturned faces.

"You have had five teachers in this subject so far, I believe."

Phoebe and Ashlyn exchanged looks, what did he mean? Of course they had! He had witnessed each and every one of them come and go.

"Naturally, these teachers will all have had their own methods and priorities. Given this confusion I am surprised so many of you scraped an OWL in this subject. I shall be even more surprised if all of you manage to keep up with the NEWT work, which will be much more advanced."

Snape set off around the edge of the room, speaking now in a low voice; the class craned their necks to keep him in view.

"The Dark Arts," said Snape, "are many, varied, ever-changing, and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, and indestructible."

Again, Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks, it was obvious that Snape respected the Dark Arts; the loving caress in his voice was enough to give them assumption.

"Your defenses," said Snape, a little louder, "must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo. These pictures" - he indicted a few of them as he swept past - "give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer, for instance, the Cruciatus Curse" - he waved a hand toward a witch who was clearly shrieking in agony - "feel the Dementors Kiss" - a wizard lying huddled and blank-eyed, slumped against a wall - "or provoke the aggression of the Inferius" - a bloody mass upon the ground.

"Has any Inferius been seen, then?" said Parvati Patil in a high-pitched voice. "Is it definite, is he using them?"

"The Dark Lord has used Inferi in the past," said Snape, "which means you would be well-advised to assume he might use them again. Now..."

He set off again around the other side of the classroom toward his desk, and again, they watched him as he walked, his dark robes billowing behind him.

"... You are, I believe, a complete novice in the use of nonverbal spells. What is the advantage of a nonverbal spell?"

Hermione, Ashlyn and Phoebe's hands shot into the air.

"Yes, Miss. Black," Snape said, calling upon Ashlyn.

"A nonverbal spells is a spell which is performed without saying the incantation out loud," Ashlyn said. "Basically your opponent has no warning about what kind of magic you are about to perform, which gives you a split-second advantage."

"Five points to Slytherin." Snape nodded. "Yes, those who progress to using magic with shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spell-casting. Not all wizards can do this, of course; it is a question of concentration and mind power which some lack."

His gaze lingered on Harry for a second.

"You will now divide," Snape went on, "into pairs. One partner will attempt to jinx the other _without speaking_. The other will attempt to repel the jinx _in equal silence_. Carry on."

Ashlyn frowned and looked between James and Phoebe, who would she choose? Luckily, at that moment, Draco appeared beside his twin sister and whisked her away to the otherside of the room.

"Well, that was odd," James said.

"Not really," Ashlyn answered. "He kept asking me about Phoebe all night last night. I think he feels guilty that he couldn't make the wedding - speaking of Malfoy siblings, where's Aiden?"

James shrugged. "You would know you're both in Slytherin."

"He disappeared after Breakfast," Ashlyn explained. "Do you think everything is alright?"

"Phoebe would have told us if anything was wrong," James said, although he cast a glance in the elemental's direction, just to be sure.

Meanwhile, Draco and Phoebe, both of whom had been taught magic from a young age, were having a conversation whilst jinxing and repelling one another.

"I'm sorry," Draco said. "I really wanted to be there!"

"I really wanted you there too," Phoebe nodded, repelling his jelly-legs jinx. "I had it all planned. I wanted you'd give me away to Terence..."

Draco frowned. "I'm really sorry!"

"Why, Draco?" Phoebe said, unexpectedly changing the subject. "Why did you agree?"

"I didn't have a choice,"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Draco shook his head. "I can't tell you," he sighed. "He'll have my head if I do!"

"I'm your sister!"

The Slytherin's eyes darkened.

"I can't tell you," he snapped. "Just let it go, Phoebe, what's done is done!"

Phoebe glared, but did not approach the subject anymore that lesson.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes," Phoebe teased as she spotted Aiden sitting at a table in the back of the library with Sarah and Amelia. "Where you been all day?"

"Busy," Aiden answered.

"Doing?"

"Stuff..."

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "What are you hiding?"

"Nothing,"

"Uh-uh," Phoebe nodded, exchanging a look with Ashlyn and James. Her brother was definitely hiding something and she was determined to find out what it was.

Aiden smiled, somewhat stupidly, and turned back to his homework. "What lesson did you just come from?" he asked.

"Defence," Ashlyn answered. "You were supposed to be there with us... why weren't you?"

"I am taking it at a different time this year," he answered.

"I thought that all four houses had integrated lessons this year?" James frowned.

Aiden nodded. "They do. But because of the large number of students in each class they have split the times."

"When do you have it?"

"This afternoon," Amelia answered, without thinking.

Phoebe and Ashlyn smirked.

"Oh," Amelia breathed, realizing her mistake, before apologizing sheepishly to Aiden.

"It's okay, they would have weaseled it out of us sooner or later," Aiden shrugged.

Ashlyn grinned. "So you're taking Defence with the second class of Hufflepuff's..."

Phoebe's gaze landed on Sarah, who had turned Gryffindor red. "I wonder why?"

"So, how was Snape?" asked Amelia, quickly changing the subject.

"He should have stuck with Potions," said James. "He paired us all up and had us try non-verbal spells... he tried to Jinx Harry, and then gave him a detention when Harry protected himself."

Sarah frowned. "Why did he get detention?"

"Because he yelled out the protection spell," Phoebe answered. "We were doing _non_verbal spells... therefore we were supposed to attempt the spells without saying anything."

"Yes, but Potter can't do nonverbal spells," Amelia pointed out. "He would have been jinxed if he hadn't done anything.

Phoebe nodded. "Yes, I know, but this is Snape, does he really need a reason to give Harry a detention?"

Amelia shrugged. "Good point."

"I still don't understand what Dumbledore is playing at," said James. "Why did he give Snape the Defence job? Did you hear him talking about the Dark Arts? He loves them! All that _unfixed, indestructible_ stuff -"

"Well," said Ashlyn, "I thought he sounded a bit like Potter!"

Phoebe nodded.

"What?" James exclaimed.

"Yes, when Potter was telling us what it's like to face Voldemort. He said it wasn't just memorizing a bunch of spells, he said it was just you, your brains and your guts - well, wasn't that what Snape was saying? That it really comes down to being brave and quick-thinking?"

James stared at his cousin, his mouth open slightly.

"Close your mouth," Phoebe said, "you're catching flies!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After break Aiden, Sarah and Amelia hurried off to Defence Against the Dark Arts, James headed off to Herbology, while Phoebe and Ashlyn remained in the library to start Snape's homework, which proved to be rather complex that they were still researching when the bell rang, signaling the beginning of their next lesson.

Potions.

"Two hours," Ashlyn complained, rubbing her wrist. It had started to stiffen after an hour and half of writing. "It took us two hours to write that essay! I hope that all our essays aren't going to take that long."

"I think it only took that long because we had to do research in between," Phoebe smiled. "I'm more annoyed that we missed lunch... how could we miss lunch?"

Ashlyn shrugged. "We were so immersed with our work that we forgot?" she suggested.

Phoebe giggled. "Well, I guess it is a good thing that we can go for longer periods without food," she pointed out. "What do you say we go to the kitchens as soon as Potions is over?"

"Deal!" Ashlyn nodded, descending the steps to the dungeons.

When they arrived in the corridor they saw that there were only a dozen people progressing to NEWT level. Crabbe and Goyle had evidently failed to achieve the required OWL grade, but five Slytherin's had made it through, including Draco and Aiden. Four Ravenclaws were there, including Kaylee Masters and Amelia, two Hufflepuff's, Ernie McMillian and Sarah, and five Gryffindor's.

But before anyone could say a word to one another, the dungeon door opened and Slughorn's belly preceded him out of the door. As they filed into the room, his great walrus mustache curved above his beaming mouth, and he greeted Harry, Phoebe, Aiden and Zabini with particular enthusiasm.

The dungeon was, most unusually, already full of vapors and odd smells. Phoebe and Aiden sniffed interestedly as they passed large, bubbling cauldrons. The four Ravenclaws took a table together, as did Draco, Nott and Zabini, both of whom turned expectantly to Aiden and Ashlyn, imploring them both silently that they should stick together.

However, Ashlyn, who still had her arm hooked with Phoebe, pulled her best friend to an empty table, along with James, while Aiden, Sarah and Amelia headed for another. This left Harry, Ron and Hermione to share with Ernie.

"What's that smell?" Ashlyn asked, looking at the bubbling cauldron beside her.

"What smell?" James frowned, sniffing the air around him.

"It smells sugary sweet, mixed with the woody smell of a broomstick and..." the Slytherin trailed off, a small frown appearing on her face.

Phoebe, who had been watching her, also frowned. "What's the matter?"

"That last one," murmured Ashlyn. "It's Adrian's cologne! Why can I smell Adrian's cologne when he is not even near me?"

"Maybe it rubbed off on you when you were kissing him this morning?" James teased.

Ashlyn glared. "It is only now I can smell it doofus!"

Phoebe, however, was smirking. "The reason you can smell Adrian's cologne, is because that potion, right there -" she pointed at the bubbling cauldron beside her best friend, "is Amortentia!"

"Amortentia?" both James and Ashlyn exclaimed. Ashlyn is surprise and James in confusion.

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "Amortentia, it is the most powerful love potion in the world!"

"Quite right, Miss. Blackheart," said Slughorn, his attention having been drawn to their table by the sudden yelling of the Black cousins. "You recognized it, I suppose, by its distinctive mother-of-pearl sheen?"

"And the steam rising in characteristic spirals," said Phoebe, "and it's supposed to smell differently to each of us, according to what attracts us, for example, Ashlyn can smell her respective other's cologne because - OW!" she yelled, snapping her head at Ashlyn and glaring angrily at the Slytherin. "That hurt!"

Slughorn chuckled in amusement.

"And what can you smell, my dear?" he asked, eyeing Phoebe interestedly.

"Um... I can smell horses and fresh air... the kind you find on open plains... and..." Phoebe trailed off as she bit her lip to suppress a smile, as a dull blush crept into her cheeks.

Ashlyn smirked in amusement. "Do I need to ask what you are thinking about?" she whispered, leaning closer to her best friend.

"Shut up," retorted Phoebe.

James wrinkled his nose. "Ew!"

Again, Slughorn chuckled, before turning back to the rest of the class. "Now, before we go any further into the potions that are bubbling around the room, I would like to say a few words, first of all, scales out everyone, and potion kits, and don't forget your copies of _Advanced Potion-Making..."_

"Sir?" said Harry, raising his hand.

"Harry, m'boy?"

"I haven't got a book or scales or anything - nor's Ron - we didn't realize we'd be able to do the NEWT, you see -"

"Ah, yes, Professor McGonagall did mention... not to worry, my dear boy, not to worry at all. You can use ingredients from the store cupboard today, and I'm sure we can lend you some scales, and we've got a small stock of books here, they'll do until you can write to Flourish and Blotts..."

Slughorn strode over to the corner cupboard and, after a moment's foraging, emerged with two very battered-looking copies of _Advanced Potion-Making_ by Libatius Borage, which he gave to Harry and Ron along with two sets of tarnished scales.

"Now then," said Slughorn, returning to the front of the class and inflating his already bulging chest so that the buttons on his waistcoat threatened to burst off, "I've prepared a few potions for you to have a look at, just out of interest, you know. These are the kind of thing you ought to be able to make after completing your NEWTs. You ought to have heard of 'em. Anyone tell me what this one is?"

He indicated the cauldron nearest Draco, Zabini and Nott. James raised himself slightly in his seat and saw what looked like plain water boiling away inside it.

Hermione, Phoebe and Ashlyn's hands shot into the air; Slughorn pointed at the Bookworm.

"It's Veritaserum, a colorless, odorless potion that forces the drinker to tell the truth," said Hermione.

"Very good, very good!" said Slughorn happily. "Now," he continued, pointing at the cauldron nearest the Ravenclaw table, "this one here is pretty well known... Featured in a few Ministry leaflets lately too... Who can -?"

Ashlyn's hand was faster this time.

"It's Polyjuice Potion, sir," she said. Hermione looked disgruntled at missing the chance to give the correct answer for the second time in a row.

"Excellent, excellent! Now, this one here... as Miss. Blackheart has already deduced is Amortentia!" he beamed at Phoebe. "Now, Amortentia doesn't really create _love_, of course. It is impossible to manufacture or imitate love. No, this will simply cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. It is probably the most dangerous and powerful potion in this room - oh yes," he said, nodding gravely at Malfoy and Nott, both of whom were smirking skeptically. "When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love..."

Phoebe glanced in Harry's direction, she knew exactly what Slughorn was talking about; Harry wasn't necessarily _obsessed_ with her but the fact that he would not take her rejection as a final answer, was something that annoyed her and could have, possibly, bordered on obsession.

As if feeling her gaze on him, Harry turned in the elemental's direction, causing Phoebe to look back towards Slughorn, rather quickly.

"And now," said Slughorn, "it is time for us to start work."

"Sir, you haven't told us what's in this one," said Ernie Macmillan, pointing at a small black cauldron standing on Slughorn's desk. The potion within was splashing about merrily; it was the colour of molten gold, and large drops were leaping like goldfish above the surface, though not a particle and spilled.

"Oho," said Slughorn again, it was obvious that he had not forgotten about this potion, but was merely waiting for someone to ask about it, just for the dramatic effect. Yes. That. Well, _that_ one, ladies and gentlemen, is a most curious little potion called Felix Felicis. I take it," he turned, smiling at Ashlyn, Phoebe and Hermione, all of whom had let out an audible gasp, "that you three young ladies know what Felix Felicis does?"

"It is liquid luck," said Phoebe and Hermione excitedly.

"It makes you lucky!" added Ashlyn.

The whole class seemed to sit up a little straighter and gave Slughorn their full and undivided attention.

"Quite right, each of you take ten points for your respective houses," said Slughorn. "Yes, it's a funny little potion Felix Felicis," said Slughorn. "Desperately tricky to make, and disastrous to get wrong. However, if brewed correctly, as this has been, you will find that all your endeavors tend to succeed... at least until the effects wear off."

"Why don't people drink it all the time, sir?" said Terry Boot eagerly.

"Because if taken in excess, it causes giddiness, recklessness and dangerous overconfidence," said Slughorn. "Too much of a good thing, you know... highly toxic in large quantities. But taken sparingly and very occasionally..."

"Have you ever taken it, sir?" asked Michael Corner with great interest.

"Twice in my life," said Slughorn. "Once when I was twenty-four, once when I was fifty-seven. Two tablespoonful's taken with breakfast. Two perfect days."

He gazed dreamily into the distance. Whether he was playacting or not, thought Phoebe, the effect was good.

"And that," said Slughorn, apparently coming back to earth, "is what I shall be offering as a prize in this lesson."

There was silence in which every bubble and gurgle of the surrounding potions seemed magnified tenfold.

"One tiny bottle of Felix Felicis," said Slughorn, taking a minuscule glass bottle with a cork in it out of his pocket and showing it to them all. "Enough for twelve hours' luck. From dawn till dusk, you will be lucky in everything you attempt. Now, I must give you warning that Felix Felicis is a banned substance in organized competitions... sporting events, for instance, examinations, or elections. So the winner is to use it on an ordinary day only... and watch how that ordinary day becomes extraordinary!"

Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks.

"So," said Slughorn, suddenly brisk, "how are you to win my fabulous prize? Well, by turning to page ten of _Advanced Potion-Making_. We have a little over an hour left to us, which should be time for you to make a decent attempt at the Draught of the Living Death. I know it is more complex than anything you have attempted before, and I do not expect a perfect potion from anybody. The person who does best, however, will win little Felix here. Off you go!"

There was a scraping as everyone drew their cauldrons toward them and some loud clunks as people began adding weights to their scales, but nobody spoke. The concentration within the room was almost tangible. Phoebe saw Draco riffling feverishly through his copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ and her heat twisted as she realized that her brother was determined to achieve the best potion to win that lucky day.

Turning away from her brother, Phoebe bent over her book and after reading the first few lines, she started to cut up her valerian roots, while on the opposite side of the room, Harry and Ron were dashing back and forth the store room to collect their ingredients.

Everyone kept glancing around at what the rest of the class was doing; this was both an advantage and a disadvantage of Potions, that it was hard to keep your work private. Within ten minutes, the whole place was full of bluish steam.

Phoebe, of course, seemed to have progressed further than Ashlyn and James. Her potion already resembled the 'smooth, blackcurrant-coloured liquid' mentioned as the ideal halfway stage.

Although, Hermione, however, seemed to be one step ahead of Phoebe and was already attempting to cut her sopophorous bean, but, just like everyone else within the class, she was having a difficult time; that was everyone, except Harry.

"Sir, I think you knew my grandfather, Abraxas Malfoy?"

Phoebe looked around; Slughorn was just passing the table where Draco, Zabini and Nott were situated.

"Yes," said Slughorn, without looking at Draco. "I was sorry to hear he had died, although of course it wasn't unexpected, dragon pox at his age..."

And he walked away.

Phoebe, however, was staring at her brother in complete confusion. How come she had not known that her grandfather had died? He may have been the reason that Lucius and Serefina could not have a decent relationship while they were younger, and he may have been the person to force their friendship to come to an end, but was she not worthy enough to know the details of her birth family?

"Phoebe, my dear," Slughorn boomed, snapping Phoebe back to attention. "Is everything alright?"

"Uh," Phoebe stammered, blinking and looking away from Draco. "Yes... yes... sorry, I zoned out there for a moment."

"So it would seem," Slughorn nodded. "Something Mr. Malfoy said caught your attention?"

Phoebe shook her head. "Oh, it's nothing," she said. "I'm just surprised that I did not hear of Abraxas's death... it's dreadful..."

Slughorn, however, seemed to cast a curious eye over Phoebe and prodded her for further information; asking her, with good reason, as to why she was interested in the death of someone she barely knew. "Obviously it is not out of interest," he said, "I know how your family works, Phoebe, they would not know of Abraxas's Malfoy's death unless there was a reason behind it."

"It was nothing, really," said Phoebe, trying to return her potion. "I was just... curious."

"Alright," Slughorn nodded, "I will let it go... on with your Potion, you only have fifteen minutes left!"

Phoebe smiled, nodded and turned back to her cauldron.

She knew that Slughorn did not believe her, and she was also aware of the fact that he would continue to poke and prod her until she told him exactly what had caught her attention. The only downside to telling him meant that she would be making him aware of the fact that he had Malfoy twins at his fingertips, and there was the minor fact that he of Aiden's true heritage.

The sopophorous bean was proving very difficult to cut up, but that was not what was bothering Phoebe, not only had her thoughts moved on from Abraxas's Malfoy's death, it was now focused on the fact that her potion had yet to change colour, it was still deep purple and according to the book it was supposed to be a light shade of lilac.

"Why won't it change?" Phoebe muttered, consulting her reference book, before ducking as James's sopophorous bean went shooting over her head, and hit Terry Boot in the face.

"Sorry!" James yelped, darting off towards the Ravenclaws, apologizing profusely for the unintended attack.

Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks and giggled.

"How are you doing that?" demanded Hermione, causing Phoebe to look around. The bookworm was glaring at Harry, her hair was bushier than it had been when she first entered the classroom, her face was angry red and her potion was still the same shade as Phoebe's.

Harry's, on the other hand, had turned a clear water colour.

Phoebe frowned. _**How did he do that?**_

"Add a clockwise stir -"

"No, no, the book says counterclockwise!" Hermione snapped.

Harry shrugged and continued what he was doing, as Phoebe turned back to her own potion, added the juice that she had managed to retrieve from her sopophorous bean and started to stir, thinking back on Harry's words, the elemental held her breath and added a clockwise stir, instantly her potion changed from the light shade of lilac, to a clear water. She scoffed... it had worked!

"And time's... up!" called Slughorn. "Stop stirring, please!"

Slughorn moved slowly among the tables, peering into cauldrons. He made no comment, but occasionally gave the potions a stir or sniff. He paused and gazed down at Phoebe's potion and then looked up at the elemental. "I dare say..." he whispered, "We may have a winner!"

Across the room, Hermione's face dropped... although, she should have been used to Phoebe beating her in something; what was confusing, however, was that Harry also looked disappointed. Why? Why did he look disappointed?

"Excellent, excellent, Phoebe! Good lord, I dare say that one drop of this could kill us all!" beamed Slughorn. "Here you are, then, here you are - one bottle of Felix Felicis, as promised, and use it well!"

"Oh, don't worry, Professor," Phoebe smiled. "I intend too!"

And she slipped the tiny bottle into her inner pocket.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Hey, Harry," Phoebe smiled, sliding into the seat beside him at the Gryffindor table, "I think this belongs to you!"

She handed him the small bottle of Liquid luck.

Harry frowned. "What do you mean? You won this!"

"I only won because of you," Phoebe explained. "I heard you telling Hermione to add a clockwise stir to the potion, I decided to give it a go... and I couldn't believe that it worked! It just sucked that Slughorn decided to pass my table before yours! You should have won the potion, you did the hard work, and I just took your words to heart!"

She placed the bottle in his hand and pushed it away from her.

"Like Slughorn said: Use it well," the elemental smiled. "Oh... and promise me you won't use it to pursue Draco, he has enough on his plate... and so do you!"

Harry stared at her for a brief second, before nodding. "I promise I won't use it to pursue your brother, you know, that is still weird to say!"

Phoebe giggled.

"How _did_ you manage to do so good in your Potion?" James asked. "Last I checked you weren't so good at Potion-making!"

"James!" Phoebe cried.

"What?" James asked. "It is an honest question!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes, but Harry was more than happy to tell them, now that they were ensconced at the Gryffindor table. Hermione's face, however, became stonier with every word he uttered.

"I s'pose you think I cheated?" Harry finished, aggravated by her expression.

"Well, it wasn't exactly your own work, was it?" Hermione said stiffly.

"He only followed different instructions to ours," said Ron. "Could've been a catastrophe, couldn't it? But he took a risk and it paid off." He heaved a sigh. "Slughorn could've handed me that book, but no, I get the one one's ever written on. _Puked_ on, by the look of page fifty-two, but -"

Suddenly, at Ron's words, Phoebe's hand flew to her mouth, and seconds later she had jumped out of her seat and bolted out of the Great Hall.

James frowned, turning back to the others. "What was that about?" he questioned.

"I don't know," said Hermione, "but she said she wasn't feeling well before she went to bed last night... and I could hear her vomiting in the bathroom this morning. She seems to think it's a stomach bug, I'll keep an eye on her, and if it gets worse I'll have her visit Madam Pomfrey."

"Alright," James nodded, glancing back towards the Great Hall doors, expecting to see Phoebe return, when she didn't he turned to look at Ashlyn, who was sitting beside Adrian and Aiden at the Slytherin table, the look on her face also confirmed that she too, was worried about Phoebe.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 4:37am**


	130. Chapter 130

**Author's Note:** There will be a valid explanation on Phoebe's 'sickness' in a few chapters. Bear with me until then. But like I have stated: these chapters have been pre-written and just need editing and updating, it would be very difficult to try and change the storyline now.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Dark D-Knight, BrightYellowSunflower **and** Pixiescale1185.**

* * *

><p>For the rest of the week's Potions lessons Harry, Hermione and Phoebe continued to battle against one another for the top spot of best potioneer, what with Hermione and Phoebe following their normal reference books and Harry following the book he had got from Slughorn, the same book that he had found out once belonged to someone who had called themselves 'The Half-blood Prince.'<p>

After their fourth lesson, Slughorn, whom had been oblivious to Harry's winning Potion during their first lesson, had shifted his attention onto Harry after realizing that Phoebe seemed to lose her 'spark' when in fact, she had merely stopped following Harry's instructions and concentrated purely on her own wit, common sense and Libatius Borage's work.

She wanted nothing to do with any Half-Blood Prince. And she wasn't the only one, Harry, who had offered to share the Prince's book with both Hermione and Ron, was met with cold shoulders or dark glares from each of his friends.

Ron, who had trouble understanding the Prince's handwriting more than Harry did, gave up after his fourth attempt, while Hermione was determined to plough on with what she called the 'official' instructions, but was becoming increasingly bad-tempered as they yielded poorer results than the Prince's.

"Look at this," Harry said, pointing out random spells to Ron. It was Saturday evening and the two boys, Hermione and Phoebe were sitting in the Gryffindor common room doing homework. "There are spells in here that I have never heard of... do you think it is possible that the Prince made them up himself?"

"Or herself, said Hermione irritably. "It might have been a girl. I think the handwriting looks more like a girl's than a boy's."

"The Half-Blood _Prince_, he was called," Harry said. "How many girls have been Princes?"

Hermione seemed to have no answer to this.

"It may not be a nickname," said Phoebe, coming to her best friends rescue. "It could be a surname. There was at least one pureblood family that I have heard about called the 'Princes', there should be a book on them in the library... if not, I can always write home to my grandfather, he would know!"

Harry rolled his eyes.

"Why do you always side with Hermione?" he asked.

"Why do you always have to jump down everyone's throat?" Phoebe retorted, her eyebrows raised.

Harry didn't answer, merely looked down at his watch and hurriedly stuffed the old copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ back into his bag. "It is five to eight, I'd better go, or I'll be late for Dumbledore!"

"Ooooh!" gasped Hermione, looking up at once, "Good luck! We'll wait up; we want to hear what he teaches you!"

"Hope it goes okay," said Ron.

Harry nodded and left the common room, just as Ron shouted at Phoebe for snatching Hermione's essay on _The Principles of Rematerialization_ off of the table, to prevent him from reading it upside down.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You've got to go and explain," Phoebe said, sitting opposite Harry during lunch. "I have tried to console Hagrid has much as I can... but it would be better if you went and saw him yourselves!"

They were discussing Hagrid's less than subtle approach to ignoring the Golden Trio for their 'betrayal' in not carrying on Care of Magical Creatures, unlike Phoebe, who actually enjoyed the lessons, the group of three had decided to drop it simply because they did not need to continue on with it.

"Phoebe is right," Hermione agreed. "We have got to go and explain!"

"We've got Quidditch tryouts this morning!" said Ron. "_And_ we're supposed to be practicing that Aguamenti Charm from Flitwick! Anyway, explain what? How are we going to tell him we hated his stupid subject?"

"Hey!" Phoebe snapped. "Care of Magical Creatures is _not_ stupid! And it's not Hagrid's subject... it's Serefina's!"

"Not much of a job she is doing is she?" asked Cormac McLaggen as he appeared behind Harry and James. "She's not even here to teach!"

Phoebe glared. "Shove off, McLaggen!"

"And we didn't hate it!" said Hermione.

"Speak for yourself, I haven't forgotten the Skrewts," said James darkly. "And I'm telling you now; we've had a narrow escape."

"I hate not talking to Hagrid," said Hermione, looking upset.

"You can go down after Quidditch," Phoebe said, looking between Harry and Ron. "And I'll be on the pitch to make sure you do!"

"But tryouts might take all morning," said Harry, "the number of people who have applied. I dunno why the team's this popular all of a sudden."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "It's not the team, Harry, it's you!"

"Me?"

"Yes, you," Phoebe nodded. "You've never been more interesting, and frankly, you've never been more fanciable."

Ron and James choked on their breakfast.

"Everyone knows you've been telling the truth now, don't they?" Phoebe continued, after throwing Ron and James looks of disgust. "The whole Wizarding world has had to admit that you were right about Voldemort being back and that you really have fought him twice in the last two years and escaped both times. And now they're calling you 'the Chosen One' - well, come on, can't you see why people are fascinated by you?"

Harry pulled at his collar, feeling suddenly too warm for comfort.

"_And_ you've been through all that persecution from the Ministry when they were trying to make out you were unstable and a liar. You can still see the marks on the back of your hand where that evil woman made you write with your own blood, but you stuck to your story anyway..." said Hermione.

"And it doesn't hurt that you've grown about a foot over the summer either." Phoebe finished.

The post owls arrived, swooping down through rain-flecked windows, scattering everyone with droplets of water. Most people were recieving more post than usual; anxious parents were keen to hear from their children and to reassure them, in turn, that all was well at home.

"Hey baby," Phoebe cooed as Athena landed in front of her, dropping three letters onto her now empty plate. The eagle cawed loudly; nudged Phoebe's face with her head and then took off again into the air. Her massive wings casting a dark shadow over the Gryffindor table as she took flight.

As Athena took off, and Phoebe ripped open the first of her letters, Hedwig landed on the table in front of Harry, carrying a large, square package. A moment later, an identical package landed in front of Ron, crushing beneath it his minuscule and exhausted owl, Squirtle.

"Ha!" said Harry, unwrapping the parcel to reveal a new copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_, fresh from Flourish and Blotts.

"Oh, good," said Hermione, delighted. "Now you can give that graffitied copy back."

"Are you mad?" said Harry. "I'm keeping it! Look, I've thought it out -"

He pulled the old copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ out of his bag and tapped the cover with his wand, muttering, _"Diffindo!"_. The cover fell off. He did the same thing with the brand-new book and then swapped the covers, tapped each, and said _"Reparo!"_

There sat the Prince's copy, disguised as a new book, and there sat the fresh copy from Flourish and Blotts, looking thoroughly secondhand.

"I'll give Slughorn back the new one, he can't complain, it only cost nine Galleons."

Hermione pressed her lips together, looking angry and disapproving, but was distracted by a third owl landing in front of her carrying that day's copy of the_ Daily Prophet_. She unfolded it hastily and scanned the front page, as a fourth owl landed in front of Phoebe, carrying a paper from Portugal.

"Why are we getting two papers?" James asked. "Isn't the _Daily Prophet_ enough?"

"I want to keep an eye on the news in Portugal," Phoebe said, unfolding the paper and disappearing behind it.

"Anyone we know dead?" asked Ron in a determinedly casual voice; he posed the same question every time Hermione opened her paper.

"No, but there have been more dementor attacks," said Hermione. "And an arrest."

"Excellent, who?" said Harry.

Phoebe frowned and glanced at her captain. "How can you get excited over an arrest?"

"It might be Lestrange," Harry said.

"Doubt it," said Phoebe, "Bellatrix is too smart to walk around in broad daylight, much less let herself get caught for a second time by Ministry officials. Besides, Voldemort would want to keep her close at hand... you know, in case he needs her!"

James wrinkled his nose. "Do you have to make it sound so sexual?"

"Get your head out of gutter, James," Phoebe scolded. "Not everything is about sex!"

Hermione shook her head. "It's not Lestrange, its Stan Shunpike!"

"What?"" said Harry, startled.

"_'Stanley Shunpike, conductor on the popular Wizarding conveyance the Knight Bus, has been arrested on suspicion of Death Eater activity. Mr. Shunpike, 21, was taken into custody late last night rafter a raid on his Clapham home...'"_

"Shunpike, a Death Eater?" said James, remembering the spotty youth he had met the year previous. "No way!"

"He might have been put under the Imperious Curse," said Ron reasonably. "You never can tell."

"It doesn't look like it," said Hermione, who was still reading, "It says here he was arrested after he was overheard talking about the Death Eaters' secret plans in a pub." She looked up with a troubled expression on her face. "If he was under the Imperius Curse, he'd hardly stand around gossiping about their plans, would he?"

"It sounds like he was trying to make out he knew more than he did," said Ron.

"I don't know what they're playing at, taking Stand seriously." said Harry.

"They probably want to look as though they're doing something," Hermione said frowning. "People are terrified - you know the Patil twins' parents want them to go home? And Eloise Midgen has already been withdrawn. Her father picked her up last night."

"What!" said James, goggling at Hermione. "But Hogwarts is safer than their homes, bound to be! We've got Aurors, and all those extra protective spells, and we've got Dumbledore!"

"I don't think we've got him all the time," said Phoebe very quietly, glancing toward the staff table over the top of her paper. "Haven't you noticed that his seat has been empty all week?"

Harry, Ron, Hermione and James looked up at the staff table. The Headmaster's chair was indeed empty.

"Things are getting serious," Phoebe pressed on. "People are turning up dead every day! Witches and Wizards are trying to get out of the country; they fear their lives and their families. One of my letters -" she motioned to the three she had received, "was from Serefina, she was telling me that they found Hannah Abbott's mother dead last night, and she hasn't been around because of the increased number of witches and wizards trying to flee the country!"

"What can she possibly do to stop people from leaving?" James asked.

"A gateway has been set up between here and the Golden Triangle," Phoebe explained. "But people cannot just get up and leave! Precautions have to be taken between your Ministry for Magic and mine! Scrimgeour and Marques have to agree to let these witches and wizards leave one country and enter another! There is also the point of housing! Houses in Portugal are filling up fast what with people trying to escape!"

James lowered his gaze, and then looked back up at Phoebe. "Any news from Portugal?"

"Only that a small family of four was murdered last night," the elemental answered. "I know the family, not well, but well enough to say hello when I see them in the Golden Triangle. The Pendulums! Their youngest, Lucinda, she had just turned three!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

When they left the Gryffindor table five minutes later to head down to the Quidditch pitch, they passed Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil. Knowing that Parvati's parents wanted her to leave Hogwarts, Phoebe found it rather strange that the two best friends were whispering about something, it sounded rather important, but all conversations were dropped as Parvati nudged Lavender as Ron passed by.

"Hi, Ron," said Lavender brightly.

Ron blinked at her, and then returned the smile uncertainly. His walk instantly became something more like a strut. Harry and James resisted the temptation to laugh, while Phoebe glanced at Hermione, taking note of the cold and distant look that had adorned her best friend's features.

As Harry had expected, the trials had took most of the morning. Half of Gryffindor House seemed to have turned up, from first years that were nervously clutching a selection of dreadful looking old broomsticks, to seventh years that towered over the rest, looking coolly intimidating. The latter included a Cormac McLaggen.

Phoebe groaned when she spotted him. "Oh, he cannot make the team!" she whispered to Hermione, "Do whatever you must... but he cannot make our team!"

"Phoebe!" Hermione scolded. "You're a Prefect!"

"I don't like him!" Phoebe whispered. "Please, Hermione, for the sake of the team! Do this one thing!"

The bookworm sighed. "Fine. What position is he trying out for?"

"Keeper," the elemental answered, "I think!"

"Ron's position?"

Phoebe nodded, she and Ron may not have had a decent relationship, but that did not mean she wanted him kicked from the Quidditch team, all he needed was a little bit of practice, just like the rest of them.

"Phoebe," Harry called, waving her over. "We're starting with a few basic tests. Feel like taking the Chasers once around the pitch, while I sort out the Beaters?"

"Sure," Phoebe nodded, turning to the group of Chasers. "First off, first years are not permitted to play... sorry..." she smiled sheepishly at a group of nervous first years, the relief was almost instantaneous, they dropped their broomsticks and bolted straight for the stands. "As for the rest of you... if you'll follow me!"

She mounted her broomsticks, kicked off from the ground and shot into the air.

Meanwhile, on the ground, Harry was dealing with several unwanted players. One group was full of giggling girls, Romilda Vane amongst them, and when Harry blew his whistle they fell about laughing, rather than taking to the air. The second group had a pileup halfway around the pitch; most of the third group had come without broomsticks. The four group were Hufflepuff's.

"If there's anyone else here who's not from Gryffindor," roared Harry, who was starting to become annoyed, "leave now, please!"

There was a pause, and then a couple of little Ravenclaws went sprinting off the pitch, snorting with laughter.

After two hours, many complaints, and several tantrums, one involving a crash Comet Two Sixty and several broken teeth, Harry had found himself three Chasers: Phoebe, James and Ginny Weasley. Between them, they had scored seventeen goals, and worked brilliantly as a team.

Pleased though he was with his choices, Harry had also shouted himself hoarse at the many complainers and was now enduring a similar battle with the rejected Beaters.

"That's my final decision and if you don't get out of the way for the Keepers I'll hex you," he bellowed.

Neither of his chosen Beaters had the old brilliance of Fred and George, but he was still reasonably pleased with them; Jimmy Peakes, a short but broad-chested third-year boy who had managed to raise a lump the size of an egg on the back James's head with a ferociously hit Bludger, and Ritchie Coote, who looked weedy but aimed well. They now joined Phoebe, James and Ginny in the stands to watch the selection of their last team member.

It was obvious that Harry had deliberately left the trial of the Keepers until last, hoping for an emptier stadium and less pressure on all concerned. Unfortunately, however, all the rejected players and a number of people who had come down to watch after a lengthy breakfast had joined the crowed by now, so that it was larger than ever.

As each Keeper flew up to the goal hoops, the crowd roared and jeered in equal measures. Phoebe glanced down at Ron, who had always had a problem with nerves; but she had hoped that winning their final match last term would have cured it, but apparently not: Ron was a delicate shade of green.

None of the first five applicants saved more than two goals apiece. To Phoebe's great disappointment, McLaggen saved four penalties out of five, yet on the last one, he shot off in completely the wrong direction; the crowd laughed and booed as McLaggen returned to the ground grinding his teeth, as Phoebe dived for the Quaffle and returned to the air along with James and Ginny.

Next up... was Ron.

"Easy or hard?" James asked.

"How about fair?" Ginny suggested.

Phoebe looked across at Ron, down Harry and then back up at her team-mates. "Well, put it this way, would you prefer Ron or McLaggen?"

"Ron!" James answered, without hesitation.

"Then we play fair," the elemental nodded, tossing the Quaffle into the air and batting it away from her. Ginny shot forward and caught it as it dropped with rapid speed, before shooting off towards her brother, Phoebe and James in pursuit.

Yet none of them needed to have worried: Ron saved one, two, three, four, five penalties in a row. Recieving crushing hugs from all sides as James, Phoebe and Ginny bombarded him from the air, the Quaffle falling uselessly onto the pitch below.

Delighted, and resisting joining in the cheers of the crowd with difficulty, Harry turned to McLaggen to tell him that, most unfortunately, Ron had beaten him, only to find McLaggen's red face inches from his own. He stepped back hastily.

"The Chasers didn't even try," said McLaggen menacingly. "They gave him easy saves!"

"Rubbish," said Harry, coldly. "Phoebe and Ron don't get on... why would she give him easy saves?"

"Because she hates me more than him!"

_**I'm starting to see why**_ Harry thought as McLaggen took another step nearer Harry, who stood his ground.

"Give me another go."

"No," said Harry. "You've had your go. You saved four. Ron saved five. Ron's keeper, he won it fair and square. Get out of my way."

For a split second McLaggen looked like he might have punched Harry, and he probably would have had it not been for the rest of the Gryffindor team dismounting a few feet away, but also the arrival of a familiar presence behind the older Gryffindor. One that had lived on this pitch for a few years, before being bought off his team by a little blonde ferret.

"Last I checked '_Get out of my way_' was an order... and orders are meant to be followed, especially from someone who has the same status as a Prefect! Or has Hogwarts lost all forms of respect since I left?"

McLaggen narrowed his eyes at the former student and Quidditch player, before contending himself with an ugly grimace and storming away off the pitch, growling what sounded like threats to thin air.

Harry nodded at the former Slytherin. "Thanks... I think,"

"No problem," said Terence Higgs, seconds before he was knocked completely off his feet by his newlywed wife. Her arms wound around his shoulders, her legs wrapped around his waist and her lips clashed against his, desperately and hungrily.

James wrinkled his nose for the second time that morning, while Ginny smiled at the newlyweds.

Harry turned away from his Chaser and her new husband, he was still not completely over Phoebe, but she had made her choice and he knew he had to deal with it. He knew that he would find someone... maybe not someone was amazing as Phoebe, but there were plenty of girls out there... someone genuine was willing to take him, there had to be, right?

He shook himself and returned his attention to his new team members.

"Well done," he croaked. "You flew really well -"

"You did brilliantly, Ron!"

Hermione was running towards them from the stands as Lavender left the pitch, arm in arm with Parvati, and a rather grumpy expression on her face. Ron looked rather pleased with himself and even taller than usual as he grinned at the team and at Hermione.

"When's practice?" James asked, as Phoebe untangled herself from Terence and returned to the rest of the team, her hand still wound tightly with her new husbands, her wedding ring shining brightly in the watery sun.

"Yeah!" agreed Cootes, Peakes and Ginny. "When's practice?"

Harry hesitated.

"How about next Thursday," Phoebe suggested, coming to her captain's aid. "After Dinner? I can book the pitch with Madam Hooch when I return to the castle, if you want?"

"Alright," Harry nodded. "Every agreed? Next Thursday after dinner?"

The rest of the team nodded, before the Golden Trio bid them goodbye and departed towards Hagrid's hut. James nodded at Phoebe and headed off towards the edge of the pitch where Ashlyn, Sarah, Amelia and Aiden were situated, having come down to watch, and Ginny, Coote and Peakes wandered off, leaving Phoebe and Terence alone, to enjoy one another's company.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Has you may have guessed from this chapter, I will be excluding the memories in Dumbledore's and Harry's meetings. Other than I hope you enjoyed Terence's return... I couldn't postpone it any longer. Next chapter will be the conclusion of this one. See you next time.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, June 22, 2012 at 4:21am**


	131. Chapter 131

**Author's Note: **Just a quick update to explain something's that are happening outside of Hogwarts and beyond England... we know, of course what is happening in England, but I have decided to add a few tidbits to the storyline. Also if anyone is curious about Serefina, this is the chapter you will want to read!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Evanescencefan97, BrightYellowSunflower, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd **and** Pixiescale1185.**

**Shout Outs: **Big shout out too **Sarge234** for adding this story to their Favourite story. Appreciate it mate.

I am currently a Co-Author to a friend's Harry Potter story. He has had a few rough patches on Fanfiction, so I am hoping that this time, with a little bit of help, he will pull off a good Harry Potter story. If you are interested, or you enjoy reading stories where Harry has a twin brother, then check out **The Twin Potters** by **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

Enjoy the new chapter.

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><p>The late afternoon sun hung low in the sky as Phoebe and Terence made their way back to the castle. They had spent the entire afternoon down by the lake, and to say the day was uneventful would have been an understatement.<p>

"You look frazzled!"

"Your hair is a mess!"

"Your cheeks are flushed!"

Phoebe chewed her lower lip as her friends took in her appearance, and not so quietly, listed what was wrong with it, clearly conveying the message, to the whole school, what she had been doing that afternoon.

"Yes, but -" she started, trying to defend her position.

Ashlyn, however, was ruthless and ploughed on further, enjoying the dull blush that covered her best friend's face.

"Your shirt is buttoned up wrong," she pointed out, causing Phoebe to look down and her blush to grow brighter. "And your robes are creased..."

"Alright!" Phoebe exclaimed. "I get it... no sex on school grounds!"

It was at that moment that the Golden Trio returned to the castle, after spending the afternoon with Hagrid and learning that very old and dear friend of his was on his last legs - _legs_ being the understatement of the century, considering this old and dear friend had eight of them.

"Some Prefect you are," Harry said, the moment he spotted Phoebe in the Entrance Hall.

"What are you talking about?" the elemental frowned.

Harry pointed at Hermione. "You told Hermione to screw up McLaggen's trial during tryouts, don't try and deny it, Hermione told me everything!"

"She did, did she?" Phoebe said, narrowing her eyes at the bookworm who looked down at the ground as she scurried into the Entrance Hall. "So what if I did tell her to screw up the tryout? We don't need McLaggen. He has got a nasty temper, you saw how he reacted when he didn't get on the team - we don't need someone like him!"

"No," said Harry. "No, I suppose that is true. But wasn't that dishonest, Phoebe? "

"Oh, shut up," Phoebe snapped, as he smirked.

It was then that Harry noticed her dishellved appearance. "Where have you been, anyway, you look like you've been through hell!"

Phoebe blushed.

"Don't you start!" she warned, taking out her wand and waving it over herself. In a matter of seconds her clothes straightened themselves out, her hair became straight and hung around her shoulders, and her face returned its normal shade.

"C'mon," Harry smiled, "let's go to lunch. Did you book the pitch with Madam Hooch?"

"Not yet," Phoebe answered. "I will do it tonight. Don't worry, Harry, we'll get our training in!"

Harry nodded before stopping short, and pulling Phoebe to a halt, as Professor Slughorn appeared in front of them, blocking their path.

"Harry, Phoebe, just the Gryffindor's I was hoping to see!" he boomed genially, twiddling the ends of his walrus mustache and puffing out his enormous belly. "I was hoping to catch you before dinner! What do you say to a spot of supper tonight in my rooms instead? We're having a little party, just a few rising starts, I've got McLaggen coming and Zabini, the charming Ashlyn Black and Hermione Granger, and, of course, James Black, unfortunately Chamberlain cannot make it -"

"I can't come, Professor," said Harry at once. "I've got detention with Professor Snape."

"Oh dear!" said Slughorn, his face failing comically. "Dear, dear, I was counting on you, Harry! Well, now, I'll just have to have a word with Severus and explain the situation. I'm sure I'll be able to persuade him to postpone your detention. What of you, Phoebe, you will be there, surely?"

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I have an appointment with the Headmaster after dinner," Phoebe explained. "Maybe another time?"

Slughorn sighed, he knew that while he may have been able to persuade Snape to postpone Harry's detention, there was nothing more important than a meeting with Dumbledore, that was something that as completely out of his hands.

"Very well," Slughorn nodded. "I hope everything goes well. Harry, m'boy, I will see you later!"

He bustled away out of the Hall.

"He's got no chance of persuading Snape," said Harry, the moment Slughorn was out of earshot. "This detention's already been postponed once; Snape did it for Dumbledore, but he won't do it for anyone else."

Phoebe nodded as she led the way towards the Gryffindor table. "I hear you're going to Slughorn's party tonight," she said to James and Hermione as she sat down between them.

"Yeah," Hermione nodded. "Tell me you'll be there?"

"Sorry, Hermione," Phoebe said, smiling apologetically. "But I have a meeting with Dumbledore this evening..."

Hermione sighed.

"I hate going on my own!" she moaned.

"I doubt you'll be alone, Ginny will probably be invited," snapped Ron. It would have seemed that Slughorn had made a stop by the Gryffindor table before he stumbled across Harry and Phoebe, invited Hermione and James and ignored Ron, which clearly didn't sit well with the red-head.

"I'll be there too, Hermione," James nodded. "So will Ashlyn... I know you get along with her!"

The bookworm nodded. "I suppose," she answered. "I just can't believe you keep getting out of them, Phoebe, how do you do it?"

Phoebe smiled as she loaded her plate with Roast Beef, mash and gravy. "It comes with the territory of being a powerful witch," she answered. "Don't worry, Hermione, I'll save you next time!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After dinner they made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. The common room was very crowded, as most people had finished dinner by now, but they managed to find a free table and sat down; Ron, who had been in a bad mood ever since the encounter with Slughorn, folded his arms and frowned at the ceiling. Hermione reached for a copy of the _Evening Prophet_, which somebody had left abandoned on a chair, and Phoebe climbed up onto the window ledge to stare, unseeingly out of the window behind them.

"Anything new?" said Harry, looking at Hermione.

"Not really..." Hermione had opened the newspaper and was scanning the inside pages. "Oh, look, your dad's in here, Ron - he's all right!" she added quickly, for Ron had looked around in alarm. "It just says he's been to visit the Malfoy's' house. '_This second search of the Death Eater's residence does not seem to have yielded any results. Arthur Weasley of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects said that his team had been acting upon a confidential tip-off.'"_

"Yeah, mine!" said Harry. "I told him at King's Cross about Malfoy and that thing he was trying to get Borgin to fix! Well, if it's not at their house, he must have brought whatever it is to Hogwarts with him -"

"But how can he have done, Harry?" said Hermione, putting down the newspaper with a surprised look. "We were all searched when we arrived, weren't we?"

"Were you?" said Harry, taken aback. "Phoebe and I weren't!"

"Oh no, of course you weren't, I forgot you were late... Well, Filch ran over all of us with Secrecy Sensors when we got into the entrance hall. Any Dark object would have been found, I know for a fact Crabbe had a shrunken head confiscated. So you see Malfoy can't have brought in anything dangerous!"

Momentarily stymied, Harry watched Melissa Black playing with Ginny's Pygmy Puff on the otherside of the common room, while the red head smiled at something her friend was saying.

"Someone's sent it to him by owl, then," Harry finally said. "His mother -"

"Don't you dare!" Phoebe hissed, her eyes still on the grounds, although they had turned violent cobalt blue, and a torrent of rain lashed against the window. She turned her gaze onto Harry, her eyes narrowed, and she spoke again.

"First you accuse my brother of bringing Dark objects into Hogwarts... I am not going to lie to you and say that Draco is not a Death Eater, because he is! But like I have said before, he is being punished for my father's mistake during the Ministry raid - but don't you dare sit there and accuse my mother of something!"

"How can you call her your mother?" Harry asked, "Last I checked Serefina was your mother?"

"Serefina is my mother," Phoebe agreed. "But she didn't give birth to me! Serefina has been a great mother figure in my life, and I would never replace her for the world, but the fact remains that Narcissa Malfoy is my biological mother and I will defend her just as I defend Draco and Serefina!"

Hastily, trying to avoid an argument, Hermione added; "All the owls are being checked too. Filch told us so when he was jabbing those Secrecy Sensors everywhere he could reach."

Harry frowned and looked between Phoebe and Hermione; they had really stumped him now. There did not seem to any way Malfoy could have brought a dangerous or Dark object into the school. He looked hopefully at Ron, who was sitting with his arms folded, staring over at Lavender Brown.

"Can you think of any way Malfoy -?"

"Oh, drop it, Harry," said Ron.

"Listen, it's not my fault Slughorn invited Hermione, Phoebe, James and me to his stupid part, neither of us wanted to go, you know!" said Harry, firing up.

"Well, as I'm not invited to any parties," said Ron, getting to his feet again, "I think I'll go to bed."

He stomped off toward the door to the boys' dormitories, leaving Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and James to stare after him.

Glancing at her watch, Phoebe slid down from the window ledge and leapt off of the chair on which she had landed. "It is quarter to seven," she said, turning back to her friends. "I best be getting to Dumbledore... I'll see you when I get back."

She smiled at them and turned away, nodding and smiling at Henry Black as he entered through the portrait hole and made a bee-line for his brother, Harry and Hermione.

"Harry?" said Henry, appearing suddenly at his shoulder. "I've got a message for you."

"From Professor Slughorn?" asked Harry sitting up hopefully.

"No... from Professor Snape," said Henry. "He says you're to come to his office at half past eight tonight to do your detention - er - no matter how many party invitations you've received. And he wanted you to know you'll be sorting out rotten Flobberworms from good ones, to use in Potions and - and he says there's no need to bring protective gloves."

"Right," said Harry grimly. "Thanks a lot, Henry."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Stepping off the spiral staircase, Phoebe raised her hand to knock the oak door which blocked her path to Dumbledore's office, but before she even had the chance it opened and she found herself staring into the face of Albus Dumbledore.

"Ah, Phoebe," he said, his eyes twinkling. "Right on time. Do come in... I am sure you are anxious to hear news about your godmother."

Phoebe nodded and stepped into his office. Dumbledore motioned for her to sit, and she did so without hesitation.

"Is it true?" she asked, almost at once. "What I have read? Are people being tortured back home? Has Voldemort gone abroad this early?"

"I am afraid so, Phoebe,"

Phoebe's jaw hit the floor, before she quickly composed herself. "What is being done?" she asked.

"Precautions are being taken to protect those within the Golden Triangle district..." Dumbledore explained, "your Minister, Antonio Marques, is doing everything he can be make sure that his people are safe. He has also dispatched several Aurors to stand over your home, your grandparents and the friends that live and work for you are safe, as long as they do not leave the Manor."

"What of Serefina?" Phoebe asked, she was trying her hardest to digest what was being said, but she was so nervous and scared for the people of Portugal that she was finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate on anything.

Dumbledore's eyes seemed to sparkle some more. "Ah yes, your Godmother," he nodded. "She is still within the United Kingdom... but not for much longer!"

"What - what does that mean?"

"It means," Dumbledore elaborated, "that Voldemort is gaining strength from every country. You will be surprised at how many witches and wizards, all over the world agree with his cause. I do believe he has recruited Wizards from places such as France, Greece, Belgium and even Salem - yes, Salem, this is why young Mr. Chamberlain has not been seen since this morning!"

Phoebe frowned. "He's gone home?"

"Simply to warn his godfather," Dumbledore answered. "Do not fear, Phoebe, your brother will be returned to you soon enough."

"I hope so, Professor," Phoebe nodded. "I am on the verge of losing one brother... I do not want to lose them both!"

"Ah, yes, how are things going with Mr. Malfoy?"

"Badly,"

Dumbledore didn't respond, he merely stared at the Gryffindor and Phoebe took this as an opportunity to continue.

"He is not surprised that I know he is a Death Eater," Phoebe explained. "And he has not tried to deny it... but he won't tell me what it is Voldemort has asked him to do! Professor, i'm scared! I fear that Draco will comply with Voldemort's wishes and complete whatever task he has been given... and if he doesn't then Voldemort will kill him personally! Either way, I am going to lose Draco!"

Leaning across the table, Dumbledore placed his hand on top of the elementals. "The year has only just begun, Phoebe, have faith in yourself, my dear! You will, in time, break through the barrier that is surrounding your brother! He will soon understand the stakes - although I do not deny that he may have another agenda for his reason in joining Voldemort's ranks."

"What -?" Phoebe frowned, looking up sharply.

The corners of Dumbledore's lips twitched slightly.

"Has it not occurred to you, Phoebe, that Draco is simply doing whatever it is he is doing... for you?"

"For me?"

"Yes, my dear," Dumbledore nodded. "For you. Draco understands that, as the older brother, he must fulfill his duty and protect you, and maybe, just maybe, the only way he knows how to protect you from Voldemort is to join the ranks of Death Eater! Maybe this is not about your father at all... maybe -"

"It is about me!" Phoebe finished.

Dumbledore nodded.

There was silence in the office.

"I would like to see my godmother," said Phoebe, breaking the silence. "Am I to believe that she will soon return to Portugal?"

"You must understand, Phoebe, that nowhere is safe anymore," Dumbledore explained, it seemed, for a split second, that he was avoiding the question, but he did return to it, eventually. "Not England... Not Portugal... but yes that is the plan!"

"Then I wish to spend as much time with her as possible," Phoebe said.

Dumbledore nodded. "That can be arranged."

"Thank you, sir," Phoebe said, before leaving the office.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, June 25, 2012 at 3:34am**


	132. Chapter 132

**Author's Note: **Where did all my darling reviewers go to? I only got two reviews last chapter... I am sad now.

**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter and all related concepts do not belong to me! I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. All OC's and anything you don't recognize is copyrighted by me: xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics** and** KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Shout Out (s):** Big shout out to: **Shiawse Lover** and **Juicyyjuice** for adding this story to the Favourite Story alerts. Appreciate it mates.

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><p>Where was Serefina, and what was she doing? It had been two weeks after her meeting with Dumbledore and not once had Phoebe heard word about where her Godmother was or when she was going to see her. Aiden returned to school the morning after Phoebe's meeting with Dumbledore, he turned up at the Gryffindor table during breakfast and requested to talk to her privately.<p>

He had told her that his guardian, Thomas Chamberlain, had been removed from Salem and was now staying at Blackheart Manor with their Grandparents.

"It is not safe in Salem anymore, Phoebe," Aiden said in a hushed whisper. "Death Eaters attacked while I was there... Thomas and I are lucky to be alive, his housekeeper, Mrs. Robinson, she was not so lucky!"

Phoebe gasped and cupped her mouth with her hands. She had heard a number of stories about Mrs. Robinson; she had always looked after Aiden whenever Thomas was away from the manor. "Aiden, I am so sorry," she apologized, grabbing his hand and squeezing it softly. "I know how much Mrs. Robinson meant to you,"

"It's alright," Aiden nodded, his face hard, eyes dark and lips pressed tightly together. "She is safe now..."

"I guess," Phoebe agreed, weakly. "Serefina is returning to Portugal!"

"I heard," Aiden nodded. "Grandfather told me that he wishes for you and me to return with her - it is for our safety, Phoebe," he added quickly, for Phoebe's facial expressions had changed from upset, to surprise, too angry in a matter of seconds, "you cannot blame him for being worried!"

However, Phoebe didn't answer, she merely ducked her head and stared, hard, at the cobbled-stoned courtyard beneath her feet.

"I am scared, Aiden," she admitted.

"I will not let anything happen to you," Aiden promised, winding his arms around her shoulders and pulling her close. "I promise."

Phoebe sniffled and wrapped her arms around his waist.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Halfway through October came the first trip of the term to Hogsmeade. It was often wondered if these trips would still be allowed, given the circumstances and the increasingly tight security measures around the school.

"Dumbledore is not going to take away our only point of freedom," Phoebe said. "There will be Auror's stationed through the village. We just have to promise to stay within Hogsmeade and not venture outside the Village limits."

Hermione nodded at the explanation and returned to her breakfast.

At that moment, James, Harry and Ron joined them, all three were grinning madly about something.

Spooning her cereal into her mouth, Phoebe frowned and sucked on the spoon as she eyed them curiously. "What?" she asked, slightly nerved by their sudden giddiness.

"Harry woke Ron in the most _excellent_ way this morning!" James gushed. "You should have seen it! One minute the dormitory is all silent, except for the wind and sleet against the window, the next there is a surprised scream. I woke to find Ron levitating over his bed -"

"Levitating?" Hermione repeated.

James nodded. "Wait a second, I'll get to that now, and then there was another flash of light and Ron landed on his bed again!"

Phoebe exchanged a look with Hermione, neither where smiling.

"Was this spell, by any chance, another one from that potion book of yours?" Hermione asked Harry, a look of wintry disapproval on her face.

Harry frowned at her.

"Always jump to the worst conclusion, don't you?"

"That's a yes," Phoebe said, pushing away her empty bowl and reaching for a piece of toast.

"So what if it was?" Harry asked, turning to her quickly.

"So you just decided to try out an unknown, handwritten incantation and see what would happen, did you?"

"Why does it matter if it was handwritten?" Harry said.

"Because it's probably not Ministry or Magic-approved," said Hermione.

Harry, James and Ron rolled their eyes.

"Am I the only one who thinks this Prince character was a bit dodgy?" Phoebe asked, coming into the conversation. She really didn't care about the Ministry of Magic, but Hermione provided a valid point when it came to explaining the handwritten spells in a Potion book.

"It was a laugh!" said James, raising in his seat and upsetting the ketchup bottle over his sausages. "Just a laugh, Phoebe, that's all!"

"Dangling people upside down by the ankles?" said Phoebe. "That doesn't sound very amusing to me, James! Besides, who in their right mind would put their time and energy into making up spells like that?"

"Fred and George," said Ron, coming into the conversation. "It's their kind of thing. And, er -"

"My dad," said Harry.

James, Hermione, Phoebe and Ron turned in his direction.

"What?"

"My dad used this spell," said Harry. "I - Lupin told me!"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes, for some reason she didn't believe Harry at all when he said that Lupin had told him.

"Maybe your father did use it, Harry," said Hermione, "but he's not the only one. We've seen a whole bunch of people use it, in case you've forgotten. Dangling people in the air. Making them float along, asleep, helpless."

There was an explosion up and down the Gryffindor table, all liquid based drinks were steaming and exploding at random intervals. Phoebe sat, beside Hermione, her eyes a violent cobalt blue as her powers kicked into overdrive, as she too remembered the behavior of the Death Eaters at the World Cup. The baby, screaming and crying and spinning like a top, fifty feet above the ground.

"That was different," Ron said robustly, coming to Harry's defence. "They were abusing it. Harry and his dad were just having a laugh. Neither of you like the Prince because he is better than you at Potions -"

"That has got nothing to do with it!" shouted Phoebe and Hermione, attracting the attention of other students.

"We just think it's very irresponsible to start performing spells when you don't even know what they're for," said Hermione, lowering her voice, "and stop talking about 'the Prince' as if it's his title, I bet it's just a stupid nickname, and it doesn't seem as though he was a very nice person to me!"

"I don't see where you get that from," said Harry, heatedly. "If he'd been a budding Death Eater he wouldn't have been boasting about being 'half-blood,' would he?"

"Not all Death Eaters are purebloods, Harry," said Phoebe. "There aren't many Pureblood wizards left in the Wizarding world."

Hermione nodded. "I expect most of the Death Eaters are Halfbloods pretending to be pure. It's only Muggleborns they hate, they'd be quite happy to let you, Ron, James and Phoebe join up."

"There is no way they'd let me be a Death Eater!" said Ron indignantly, a bit of sausage flying off the fork he was now brandishing at Hermione and hitting Ernie Macmillan on the head. "My whole family are blood traitors! That's has bad as Muggleborns to Death Eaters."

James nodded.

"They're not going to want me," Phoebe said. "The only reason Voldemort - seriously, Ronald? - wants me is to harness my powers!"

"And they'd love to have me," said Harry sarcastically. "We'd best pals if they didn't keep trying to do me in."

This made James and Ron laugh, and even got Phoebe and Hermione to smile, grudgingly. Thankfully, however, a distraction arrived in the shape of Ginny.

"Hey, Harry, I'm supposed to give you this."

It was a scroll of parchment with Harry's name written upon it in familiar thin, slanting writing.

"Thanks Ginny..." Harry smiled, ripping open the parchment and reading the contents. "Monday evening! Want to join us in Hogsmeade, Ginny?"

"I'm going with Dean - might see you there," she replied, waving at them as she left.

Phoebe waved and turned back to her breakfast, catching the disappointed look that swept across Harry's features as the red-head departed. The elemental exchanged a look with Hermione, who else had caught the look, and grinned into her Jam on toast.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Filch was standing at the oak front doors as usual, checking off the names of people who had permission to go into Hogsmeade. They process took even longer that normal as Filch was triple-checking everybody with his Secrecy Sensor.

"What does it matter if we're smuggling Dark stuff OUT?" demanded Ron, eyeing the long thin Secrecy Sensor with apprehension. "Surely you ought to be checking what we bring back IN?"

His cheek earned him a few extra jabs with the Sensor, and he was still wincing as they stepped out into the wind and sleet.

"You really cannot keep your mouth shut can you, Weasley?" Phoebe asked, linking arms with Ashlyn as they followed behind the Golden Trio.

"It's stupid," Ron muttered. "Why should he be worried about us sneaking stuff out of the castle?"

"Because it just proves that you had dark stuff _in_ the castle in the first place," Phoebe answered. "Logically, Weasley, he had every right to check us! If we had stuff in the castle that we were trying to take out with us, we'd be in trouble, not for smuggling it out, but for having it on our person while being within school restrictions. Do try and use what little brain cells you have, Ronald,"

Ron's face reddened in spite of himself.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The walk into Hogsmeade was not enjoyable.

Ashlyn wrapped her scarf over her lower face; the exposed part soon felt both raw and numb. The road to the village was full of students bent double against the bitter wind.

More than once Ashlyn wondered whether they might not have had a better time in the warm castle, and when they finally reached Hogsmeade and saw that most of the shops had been boarded up, she knew that Adrian had the right idea when he had said that he would not be coming down today.

"I say we spend half an hour in the Three Broomsticks," James said, over the raging wind, "go and get sweets in Honeydukes and then head back up to the castle. I really don't see the point in hanging around an almost baron village, do you?"

Phoebe shook her head in agreement.

"What's the plan?" Amelia shouted as she, Sarah and Aiden arrived.

"Three Broomsticks?" Phoebe asked.

Aiden nodded, and head's bent, they waved goodbye to the Golden Trio, and made their way through the snow-covered streets. The bitter wind sliced against their faces like knives, although the sensation was becoming bearable the more numb their faces became.

The street was not very busy; nobody was lingering to chat, just hurrying toward their destinations. The exceptions were two men standing a little ahead of them, standing just outside the Three Broomsticks. One was very tall and thin; Phoebe recognized him as Aberforth Dumbledore, the barman who worked in the Hogs Head.

"Hey, isn't that -?"

"Mundungus!"

The squat, bandy-legged man with long, straggly, ginger hair jumped and dropped an ancient suitcase, which burst open; releasing what looked like the entire contents of a junk shop window.

"Oh, 'ello," said Mundungus Fletcher, with a most unconvincing stab at airiness. "Well, don't let me keep ya."

And he began scrabbling on the ground to retrieve the contents of his suitcase with every appearance of a man eager to be gone.

"Are you selling this stuff?" asked Amelia, watching Mundungus grab an assortment of grubby-looking objects from the ground.

"Oh, well, gotta scrape a living," said Mundungus. "Gimme that!"

Ashlyn had stooped down and picked up something silver.

"Hang on," Ashlyn said slowly. "This looks familiar -"

"Thank you!" said Mundungus, snatching the goblet out of Ashlyn's hand and stuffing it back into the case. "Well, I'll see you all - OUCH!"

James had pinned Mundungus against the wall of the pub by the throat. Holding him fast with one hand, he pulled out his wand.

"James!" squealed Sarah.

"You took that from my house," said James, who was almost nose to nose with Mundungus and was breathing in an unpleasant smell of old tobacco and spirits. "That had the Black family crest on it!"

"I - no - what -?" spluttered Mundungus, who was slowly turning purple.

"What did you do, go back the night dad died and strip the place?" snarled James.

"I - no -"

"Give it to me!"

"James, you mustn't!" shrieked Amelia, as Mundungus started to turn blue.

There was a bang, and James felt his hands fly off Mundungus throat. Gasping and spluttering, Mundungus seized his fallen case, then - _CRACK_ - he Disapparated.

James swore at the top of his voice, spinning on the spot to see where Mundungus had gone.

"COME BACK, YOU THIEVING -!"

"There's no point, James."

Terence had appeared out of nowhere, his golden brown hair wet with sleet.

Phoebe dashed forward and wrapped her arms around him, relishing in the warmth she felt as his arms wrapped around her shoulders and the feeling of his lips on her head.

"Mundungus will probably be in London by now. There's no point yelling."

"He's nicked my father's stuff! Nicked it!"

"Yes, but still," said Terence, seemingly untroubled by this piece of information, and was more focused on Phoebe at this point of the conversation. "You should get out of the cold."

"Won't you join us?" Phoebe asked, reaching up to kiss him.

Terence smiled into the gesture.

"Maybe for a little while," he said, taking her hand and leading her into the Three Broomsticks.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Can't the Order control Mundungus?"

James was still fuming when Phoebe and Terence reached the table in which he occupied with Amelia, Sarah and Ashlyn, while Aiden made his way back to their table from the bar, he was carrying a tray of drinks, which he placed on the table and everyone reached for a bottle.

"Can't they at least stop him stealing everything that's not fixed down when he's at Headquarters?"

"Well, Sirius did say that he could help himself," Phoebe said, sitting down beside Ashlyn and reaching for a bottle of Butterbeer. "Summer before fifth year, just before Harry arrived, Sirius allowed Mundungus to take whatever he wanted... Sirius never cared about that stuff, anyway!"

James opened his mouth to argue, but closed it and slouched in his seat.

Silence fell amongst the friends, Phoebe had slipped from her seat and was now perched in Terence's lap, her head lolling on his shoulder as she sipped her drink contentedly. Ashlyn and Amelia were talking in hushed undertones, while James sat thinking about his father, and how he had hated those silver goblets anyway.

"I'm going to the bathroom," Sarah said, breaking the silence and getting to her feet.

"Alright," Phoebe smiled, watching her friend cross the crowded pub and disappear through a door. "When Sarah comes back, I say we call it a day and return to the castle?"

"I want to go to Honeydukes," Amelia said. "I want to see if they have those deluxe sugar quills in stock, they are supposed to last for hours."

"Alright," the elemental nodded, spying the blonde Hufflepuff who had just reappeared from the bathroom. She was tucking something into the inside pocket of her jacket and making her way back towards them.

"Ready?" Sarah asked.

The others nodded and got to their feet.

"Yeah, Amelia want's to stop by Honeydukes," Ashlyn said.

"Oh," Sarah said, her face falling slightly.

"Unless you have somewhere you need to be,"

Sarah shook her head. "No, I just need to see Dumbledore," she explained.

"Well, why don't you and I go on ahead?" Aiden suggested, "And the rest of you go to Honeydukes?"

"Alright," Amelia nodded. "Shall we meet in the library and go from there?"

Sarah grinned and grabbed Aiden's hand. "Awesome! See you later! C'mon Aiden!"

And she pulled him from the pub.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Amelia shivered in the bathing warmth of the sweet shop; the smell of toffee filled the air and tantalized the taste buds.

"Oh, I could stay in here all afternoon," she said, with a smile.

"I agree," James nodded, making a beeline for the licorice wands.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and called after him, "Not too much! You'll spoil your dinner!"

But James either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her.

"Phoebe, my dear," said a booming voice from behind them.

"Oh no," muttered Phoebe, as she turned around to see Professor Slughorn, who was wearing an enormous furry hat and an overcoat with matching fur collar, clutching a large bag Firewhisky, and occupying at least a quarter of the shop.

"Phoebe, that's three of my little suppers you've missed now," said Slughorn, poking her genially in the chest. "It won't do, my dear. I'm determined to have you! Miss Black loves them, don't you?"

"Yes," said Ashlyn helplessly, "they're really -"

"So why don't you come along, Phoebe?" demanded Slughorn.

"Well, I've had Quidditch practice, Professor," said Phoebe. "You know how Harry gets! Our first game is against Slytherin, no offence, Ash, but you know how the rivalry is between our two houses. Each of us is determined to undermine the other."

Slughorn nodded. "Yes, I managed to catch young Harry over an hour ago," he said. "He mentioned Quidditch practice. Well, I certainly expect you to win your first match after all this hard work! But a little recreation never hurt anybody. Now, how about Monday night, you can't possibly want to practice in this weather..."

"I am not sure, Professor," Phoebe said, awkwardly. "I don't know if I will have plans or not!"

"Plans? Come now, dear, what plans could a simple minded student, such as yourself, possibly have that late at night?"

Phoebe's fists tightened. Simple-minded? Who the hell did he think he was calling her simple minded?

"It kind of comes with the territory, Professor," the elemental explained, smiling in relief as Amelia and James returned, both of them carrying heavy loads of sweets. "Well, must dash, Professor! I hope you enjoy your afternoon!"

Slughorn nodded and allowed them to pass.

"I will have you, Phoebe," he called after them. "You cannot evade me forever!"

"I can try," Phoebe muttered.

The door closed behind her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Once again they drew their cloaks tightly around them, rearranged their scarves, pulled on their gloves, and then followed the Golden Trio back up the High Street. Heads bent against the swirling sleet, Terence wrapped his arm around Phoebe's shoulder and pulled her close as they trudged on.

Suddenly a terrible scream ripped through silence, startling the group of students.

Looking up, Phoebe could barely make out a figure rising ever so higher into the air, their blonde hair whipping around them by the fierce wind. Their eyes were closed and their face was quite empty of expression.

"Is that -?" James started, his mouth open slightly.

"SARAH!" Aiden's voice yelled.

Pulling away from her husband, Phoebe took off at a sprint, rounded the corner and almost crashed into her brother who had stopped in his tracks on the otherside. He was staring up at his girlfriend, a flicker of fear on his face, as something play on the middle of the snow-covered path, just beneath where Sarah was floating.

Then, Sarah's eyes flew open but whatever she could see, or whatever she was feeling, was clearly causing her terrible anguish. She screamed and screamed; Amelia started to scream too, and James darted forward to grab the Hufflepuff by the ankles.

Harry, Ron and Terence rushed forward to help, but even as they grabbed Sarah's legs, she fell on top of them; Terence managed to catch her but she was writhing so much he could hardly hold her. Instead he lowered her to the ground where she thrashed and screamed, apparently unable to recognize any of them.

Phoebe looked around; the landscape seemed deserted.

"Ashlyn!" the elemental shouted, "you and Amelia go and get help!"

The Slytherin nodded and tugged a distraught Muggleborn up the path towards the castle.

With Ashlyn and Amelia out of sight, Phoebe turned her attention to the package that lay at Aiden's feet. She squatted down beside it and reached out to touch the necklace that lay exposed to the elements. Her fingers were millimeters away when a voiced echoed in her ear, telling her to back away.

Whipping around, Phoebe found herself face-to-face with Draco.

"What -?"

"Don't touch it!" he warned, grabbing her hand and pulling her away from the necklace. He then caught sight of Sarah. "What happened?"

"We don't know," Phoebe answered, with a shake of her head. "Ashlyn and Amelia have gone for help! We think Sarah had the package..."

Draco's face drained of the little colour that it held, a notion that didn't go amiss by Aiden, but Phoebe was too preoccupied with her friend to worry about her brothers.

"Get back!" shouted a familiar booming voice. Ashlyn had returned with Hagrid and -

"Serefina!" Phoebe yelped in relief at the sight of her godmother.

"Lemme see her!" Hagrid said.

"Something's happened to her!" said Aiden, his hands clenched into fists. "I don't know what -"

Hagrid stared at Sarah for a second, while Serefina comforted her son; the half-giant then bent down and without a word, scooped the Hufflepuff into his arms, and ran off toward the castle with her. Within seconds, Sarah's piercing screams had died away and the only sound was the roar of the wind.

"What happened?" Serefina demanded.

"We don't -" Phoebe started.

"It all happened when that package tore," Aiden said, pointing at the necklace. "She took it out of her jacket, told me that someone had given it to her in the Three Broomsticks, she wouldn't tell me who... just that she had to deliver it to Professor Dumbledore!"

Serefina nodded.

"And then what?"

"I asked if I could see it," Aiden continued. "She told me no. I thought it was a little suspicious that someone just gave her a package for Professor Dumbledore but she could not remember who and what for. We argued and I reached to take it from her, the paper broke and..."

He broke off as tears raced down his face.

"It is alright," Serefina soothed, hugging her son tightly to her. "Shh, it is going to be alright, Aiden, you will see! Sarah will be fine!"

But now that he was crying, Aiden found that he couldn't stop. School had not even been in swing a full two months yet, and already something had gone wrong.

"Phoebe," Serefina called over the raging wind. "Take your brother back to the school."

Draco frowned before his jaw hit the floor as Phoebe left his side and wrapped an arm around Aiden, bracing them both against the wind, as they started the long trek back up to the castle. He watched them go as his brain worked overtime just to try and comprehend what he had just heard and witnessed.

Phoebe had a brother... a brother that wasn't him... which meant that _he_ had a brother that he did not know about.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 27 June 2012 at 03:41am**


	133. Chapter 133

**Author's Note: **Are you wondering what is going through Draco's head? Or what he was possibly thinking through Halfblood Prince? Well, this is the chapter for you… with my own little idea thrown into plot. I hope you like it. See you at the end of the chapter.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, Fan of Fics, Evanescencefan97** and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Disclaimer:** Hi all, this is Kara's self-conscious, just here to let you all know that Kara does _**not**_ own Harry Potter. You want to know why? Because Harry Potter and all related concepts belong to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing them for her own personal enjoyment. However, she _**does**_ own a small fraction of this story. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture. I hope.

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><p>Ashlyn seized Harry's arm as he reached out to grab the greenish glittering product that lay on the white snow. Her face hardened into a glare as he frowned at her through the swirling sleet that was still falling.<p>

"_Don't touch it!_" she hissed, pulling him back.

An ornate opal necklace was visible, poking out of the paper.

"It's just a necklace," said Harry over the raging winds.

"It's not just any necklace," Ashlyn said. "I've seen this before... Andrew, Adrian's father had this on display in his study. He always used to tell me that it was cursed, I guess he wasn't lying. Sarah must have touched it."

"How did Sarah get it in the first place?" Hermione asked.

"She went to the bathroom in the Three Broomsticks," Ashlyn answered. "When she came back she was in a rush to get back to the school, said she had something that she had to see Professor Dumbledore, none of us thought anything strange, she didn't see different. Amelia wanted to stop by Honeydukes, so Aiden agreed to go on ahead with Sarah."

"You don't think she was Imperiused, do you?" Harry asked.

Ashlyn shook her head. "She didn't look or sound like it," she answered. "And neither Phoebe nor Aiden spotted any differences in her behavior neither did Amelia or James."

"We just took her for face value..." James said.

"We'd better get back to school," Hermione said. "We'll be able to find out how she is. Come on..."

Ashlyn hesitated for a moment, then pulled her scarf from around her face and, ignoring James's gasp, carefully covered the necklace in it and picked it up.

"We'll need to show this to Madam Pomfrey," Ashlyn said. "It may be able to help her in identifying exactly what is wrong with Sarah."

As they followed Hermione up the road, Ashlyn was thinking furiously. Trying to think of who would possibly want to attack her friend, Amelia, who had been ordered to stay at the castle by Professor Blackheart, was probably in the Hospital Wing right at this moment with Sarah, Aiden and Phoebe... or was Phoebe with Draco? There was a slight chance that she was.

"Malfoy knows about this necklace," Harry said, breaking through the Slytherin's thoughts. "He gave it to Sarah -"

"I hardly think Draco would do something as stupid as this!" Ashlyn snapped through the swirling snow. "He may dislike Muggleborns because of the way he was raised, but Sarah is Phoebe's friend, he would never do anything to hurt Phoebe!"

"Maybe not intentionally," Harry argued. "But you said it yourself, he hates Muggleborns! He has a vendetta against Dumbledore for putting his father in prison; he is killing two birds with one stone by giving Sarah the necklace to give to Dumbledore!"

Ashlyn shook her head and turned away angrily.

"Sarah had the package after she came from the girls' bathroom," James interrupted.

"_After_ she came back," Harry pointed out. "That doesn't necessarily mean that she got it in the bathroom itself -"

"McGonagall!" said Ron warningly.

Ashlyn looked up. Sure enough, Professor McGonagall was hurrying down the stone steps through swirling sleet to meet them.

"Serefina says you six saw what happened to Sarah Prentiss - upstairs to my office at once, please! What's that you're holding, Black?"

"It's the thing Sarah touched," Ashlyn answered.

"Good lord," said Professor McGonagall, looking alarmed as she took the necklace from Ashlyn. "No, no, Filch, they're with me!" she added hastily, as Filch came shuffling eagerly across the entrance hall holding his Secrecy Sensor aloft. "Take this necklace to Professor Snape at once, but be sure not to touch it, keep it wrapped in the scarf!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Professor McGonagall led the five students and one graduate upstairs and into her office. The sleet-spattered windows were rattling in their frames, and the room was chilly despite the fire crackling in the grate. Professor McGonagall closed the door and swept around her desk to face her students.

"Well?" she said sharply. "What happened?"

Exchanging looks, Ashlyn cleared her throat and stepped forwards, "It happened after Sarah came from the bathroom in the Three Broomsticks..." she said, telling McGonagall the entire story from beginning to end. When she had finished James and Terence nodded in agreement with the account, while Harry, Ron and Hermione watched on.

They had left Phoebe and her friends after they had made it onto the High Street and therefore had no clue what had happened after that, at least, not until they had met back up with them again outside of Honeydukes and then later when they found Sarah and Aiden.

"All right," said Professor McGonagall, not unkindly, "What happened with Sarah touched the necklace?"

"She rose up into the air," said Harry, before either of the others could speak, "and then began to scream, and collapsed. Professor, can I see Professor Dumbledore, please?"

"The headmaster is away until Monday, Potter," said Professor McGonagall, looking surprised.

"Away?" Harry repeated angrily.

"Yes, Potter, away!" said Professor McGonagall tartly. "But anything you have to say about this horrible business can be said to me, I'm sure!"

Harry hesitated.

And then said, "I think Draco Malfoy gave Sarah that necklace, Professor."

On one side of him, Ron rubbed his nose in apparent embarrassment; on the other Hermione shuffled her feet as though quite keen to put a bit of distance between herself and Harry. James, who, in the past, would have agreed with Harry on his accusations of Malfoy, shook his head and looked away from his fellow Gryffindor, while Ashlyn shook her head in disbelief.

"That is a serious accusation, Potter," said Professor McGonagall, after a shocked pause. "Do you have any proof?"

"No," said Harry, "but..." and he told her about following Malfoy to Borgin and Burkes and the conversation they had overheard between him and Mr. Borgin.

When he had finished speaking, Professor McGonagall looked slightly confused.

"Malfoy took something to Borgin and Burks for repair?"

"No, Professor, he just wanted Borgin to tell him to mend something, he didn't have it with him. But that's not the point, the thing is he bought something at the same time, and I think it was that necklace -"

Ashlyn huffed. "I already told you, Potter! Andrew Pucey bought that necklace many years ago! It was on display in his study!"

"Then there was another one," Harry protested. "I know what I saw four years ago! Malfoy was fascinated by it, but his father wouldn't buy it for him! He was only selling items."

Sensing an argument, McGonagall intervened quickly, "You saw Malfoy leaving the shop with a similar package?"

"No, Professor, he told Borgin to keep it in the shop for him -"

"But Harry," Hermione interrupted, "Borgin asked him if he wanted to take it with him, and Malfoy said no -"

"Because he didn't want to touch it, obviously!" said Harry angrily.

"What he actually said was 'How would I look carrying that down the street?'" Hermione said.

"Well, he woudn look a bit of a prat carrying a necklace," interjected Ron.

"Oh, Ron," said Hermione despairingly, "it would be all wrapped up, so he wouldn't have to touch it, and quite easily to hide inside a cloak, so nobody would see it! I think whatever he reserved at Borgin and Burkes was nosy or bulky, something he knew would draw attention to him if he carried it down the street - and in any case," she pressed on loudly, before Harry could interrupt, "I asked Borgin about the necklace, don't you remember? When I went in to try and find out what Malfoy had asked him to keep, I saw it there. And Borgin just told me the price, he didn't say it was already sold or anything -"

"Well, you were being really obvious, he realized what you were up to within about five seconds, of course he wasn't going to tell you - anyway, Malfoy could've sent off for it since -"

"That's enough!" said Professor McGonagall, as Hermione opened her mouth to retort, looking furious. "Potter, I appreciate you telling me this, but we cannot point the finger of blame at Mr. Malfoy purely because he visited the shop where the necklace might have been purchased. And in any case, we have put stringent security measures in place this year. I do not believe that necklace can possibly have entered this school without our knowledge -"

"But -"

"- and what is more," said Professor McGonagall, with an of awful finality, "Draco Malfoy -"

"- didn't do it," Phoebe said from the doorway.

Harry and the others spun around.

"I know what you're going to say, Harry," Phoebe pressed on, "but I have proof that Draco wasn't anywhere near Sarah when she received that package."

"Then where was he?" Harry demanded, wanting to know how she got her brother out of this one.

"He was with Montague discussing Quidditch tactics on the other side of the Three Broomsticks," Phoebe answered. "He saw us leaving and followed us out. He wanted to talk to me about something, but we had disappeared by the time he reached the High Street."

"How do you know this?" James asked.

"Montague just returned from Hogsmeade," Phoebe answered. "He gave me a full blown confession. Do you want me to go and get both Draco and Montague, so you can hear their accounts for yourself?"

McGonagall held up her hand. "There will be no need, Mrs. Blackheart. Your word is enough."

Phoebe nodded.

"Thank you for telling me your suspicions, Potter," said Professor McGonagall turning back to Harry, "but I need to go inform Professor Sprout about what has happened. Good day to you all."

Ashlyn led the way out of the office.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Draco paced angrily in front of the fire of the Slytherin common room.

He was angry because of everything that had happened today. He had failed to get the necklace to Dumbledore... but he had managed to keep it away from Phoebe, but only barely. His sister had almost ended up with the stupid thing, and would have touched it had he not arrived when he did.

On one hand, he was glad that the Hufflepuff Muggleborn had somehow wound up with the package, Dumbledore would favour her over most students, but only because of her close contact with his sister, but on the other hand he was angry that Prentiss had ended up with it because it was a way of Phoebe getting it by mistake.

_**But she didn't**_ His conscious chastised. _** She didn't get the necklace and she is safe! For now at least! But you have to try again! It is only a matter of time before he realizes what you are doing and comes for her himself... or he will do something that will lure her out. He knows how she ticks... knows how to make her hurt.**_

Draco sighed and run a hand through his ice blonde hair. He had to protect Phoebe, it was the only reason that he had agreed to take the Dark Mark! He knew that everyone thought he was being punished for his father's mistake with in the Ministry last June, but the true reason was Phoebe.

_**Let Potter and them think that it is my father who I am trying to protect... or whatever... let them think that I am being punished for my father's mistakes. They will never understand the bond Phoebe and I share. I may not understand her at times, but I don't hate her! I could never hate her!**_

His mind flashed back to earlier that day.

_**Although I hate her for keeping the secret of Chamberlain from me.**_

Picking up the goblet of pumpkin juice from the glass coffee table, Draco threw it into the flames of the fire. There was a spark and a crackle as the flames and cool liquid clashed. There wasn't enough of the liquid to douse the flames, but the smell of pumpkins that now filled the common room only fuelled his anger more.

The flickering of the flames did nothing to soothe him, not like they usually did. He was angry, annoyed, frustrated, scared and nervous, all at the same time.

He could die at the end of this year. If he hadn't achieved in completing the task he had been set, he would be punished beyond belief by Voldemort, and Death was the only option. Torture was too good for him; Voldemort wouldn't torture him, what was the point in keeping him around?

_**You're not going to die!**_ He scolded himself. _**You have too much left to life for! Phoebe would never allow you to die!**_

"Phoebe..." her smiling face flickered across his mind's eye.

He had to survive.

Not for himself.

Not for his mother or his father.

But for her. Her very life depended on what he was doing here and now.

He had to survive... for Phoebe.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Don't forget to review. My goal is still 750 or more by the end of Halfblood Prince! Only you can get me there =)

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 28 June 2012 at 02:57am**


	134. Chapter 134

**Author's Note: **Oh! Yay, you all came back! I'm happy again. You guys are amazing! You're like Ninja's... one minute you're there, and the next - you've Disapparated. =)

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **HotaruKenobi, Fan of Fics, Blue-Bubbles-Rainbow-Sophie, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, Shikaruizumi97, Pixiescale1185** and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs: **There was simply too many of you to do these individually, I would personally like to thank the following: **HotaruKenobi, Dorky-Reader, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn, KingdomHeartsNerd, Alaina08, Gaara King of the Sand** and **Shikaruizumi97 **for adding me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she _**does**_ own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

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><p>Sarah was removed to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries the following day, by which time the news that she had been cursed had spread all over the school, though the details were confused and nobody other than the Golden Trio, Phoebe, James, Ashlyn, Amelia, Aiden, Terence and Draco seemed to know that Sarah herself had not been the intended target.<p>

"Malfoy was trying to get Dumbledore," said Harry to Ron and Hermione, who continued their new policy of feigning deafness whenever Harry mentioned his Malfoy-is-a-Death-Eater theory. "Didn't Phoebe say that Sarah wanted to get back to the castle to see Dumbledore? That is why she and Aiden went on ahead while the others went to Honeydukes."

Meanwhile, Phoebe, Draco and Aiden were having their own problems to deal with. While Sarah's attack had struck both Phoebe and Aiden deeply, they had more problems to deal with, especially now that Draco knew the truth about Aiden.

_"When exactly were you going to tell me?" Draco fumed as he slammed his books down onto the table in which Aiden and Phoebe were working at. The two elementals jumped in surprise and glanced up at their brother._

_"Tell you what?" Phoebe asked._

_"Do not play innocent with me, Phoebe," Draco snapped, and he trusted a finger in Aiden's direction. "When were you going to tell me that you had another brother?"_

_"Oh," Phoebe muttered. "Um...well, actually, we were not going to tell you."_

_Draco's eyes narrowed furiously. "I had every right to know!"_

_"Hey, in my defence I did not know about this until fourth year," Phoebe snapped. "I was not supposed to know either!"_

_"If he is our brother, how come neither of us knew about him?" Draco asked._

_"For the same reason you did not know about me!" Phoebe answered. "For our safety!"_

_Draco scoffed. "Who was the idiot who thought up that rule?"_

_"That would be daddy dearest," Aiden inputted. "He did not want anyone finding out about me or Phoebe... I am the product of a one-night stand between Lucius Malfoy and Serefina Blackheart, childhood friends and sweethearts! If your grandfather had not stepped in when my parents were teenagers, there is a chance you and Phoebe would never have been born!"_

_Phoebe and Draco were silent as they listened to Aiden._

_"I am not saying that Lucius does not love your mother, Draco," Aiden pressed on. "I am simply stating that he made a mistake... and I am the end product of that mistake! He did not even know that Serefina was pregnant when he returned to your mother, and he did not even try to find out about me after I was born! And I am fine with that!"_

_Draco narrowed his eyes._

_"How old are you?"_

_"I am sixteen," Aiden answered. "My birthday is 31st May 1980."_

_"You're older than us?" Draco exclaimed._

_"By six days," Aiden nodded._

_Draco's hands shook and he turned to Phoebe._

_"He is the heir to __**both**__ our families!"_

_"No, he's not," Phoebe said. "Besides, I hardly see how that makes a difference... I don't care about the money I will inherit from the Blackhearts, my family is more important to me, more significantly, you and Aiden are important to me."_

_Aiden squeezed Phoebe's shoulder._

_"I would not be able to claim any heritance from either the Malfoy's or the Blackhearts, anyways," he explained. "Legally, I am illegitimate!"_

_Phoebe opened her mouth to retort, but Aiden placed his hand over her mouth to silence her._

_"There is no point in arguing," he said. "I do not want what is not mine! The inheritance of the Blackheart family goes to you, just as the inheritance of the Malfoy's goes to Draco... end of story!"_

_Phoebe deflated and turned to her twin brother._

_Draco, who had been silent throughout the explanation, stared at his twin and then sighed. "I just wish... that I had known... I have gone from being an only child, to having a twin sister, to having an older brother! It is too much to take in all at once."_

_"We understand," Phoebe nodded._

_"Completely," Aiden agreed. "I am also not forcing to you accept my appearance. I do not intend any special commitment from you just because we are blood. I understand the bond you share with Phoebe, she is your twin after all, but I too share a bond with her! I would never expect for you and I to instantly get along... besides, I am still not convinced that you are not involved somehow with Sarah's attack."_

_"Aiden!" Phoebe yelled, earning a dark look from Madam Pince who was working at her desk. The elemental lowered her voice, "Aiden, we agreed, Draco was nowhere near Sarah when she received that necklace. He had nothing to do with it!"_

_Aiden sighed. "I know, I apologize!"_

_Draco, however, was silent. How could he tell them that Sarah's attack was __**completely**__ his fault?_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Gwenog Jones?" James explained. "_The_ Gwenog Jones? Captain of the Holyhead Harpies?"

Phoebe nodded. She had managed to find time to attend one of Slughorn's parties, the only reason she had gone was because Serefina had to cancel their meeting due to another upsurge of Dementor activity, that and the elemental was starting to feel guilty in leaving Hermione and Ashlyn alone.

James, however, had come down with a fever, and had been stuck in the Hospital Wing the previous evening.

"That's right," said Phoebe. "Personally, I think she's quite full of herself. It is her attitude that makes me dislike the Holyhead Harpies."

"And it has nothing to do with the fact that they beat the Salem Warriors last season?" James asked.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes.

"None whatsoever," she said. "Honestly, James, do you think I would be that jealous?"

"Yes!"

The elemental rolled her eyes.

"Anyway," said Phoebe, picking up the conversation. "Slughorn's having a Christmas party, I know for a fact that I am not going to be able to get out of it, and I have already written to Terence and invited him to be my date."

James nodded.

"Um... I guess I could find someone decent," he said, mentally listing all the girls in his year, and checking them off one-by-one.

"Actually, I was hoping you could help me with something," Phoebe interrupted. "We all know that Ron is going up the wall with not being noticed by Slughorn, and we all know that he and Hermione share a bond that will _never_ be broken, strained, but not broken!"

Ashlyn nodded.

"What are you planning?" she asked.

"I want Ron to ask Hermione to Slughorn's Christmas party," Phoebe explained, "but I cannot do that while he as eyes for Lavender... I have seen the way he looks at her, he is oblivious to Hermione's feelings, and I fear that she is going to end up hurt in the long run."

James frowned.

"What does that have to do with me and my date?"

Phoebe exchanged a look with Ashlyn, before smiling innocently at her best friend.

James, a little slower on the jump that his female friends, blinked as realization dawned.

"No!" he said, almost instantly. "No way, Phoebe! You can find somebody else, because I won't do it!"

"Why not?"

"Give me one reason why I should?"

"Because Hermione is our friend," Ashlyn said. "It's for a good cause, James!"

"No!"

Phoebe pouted.

"Oh, come on, James! Think of everything Hermione has done for you!" she said. "This could be your way of repayment."

James sighed as he looked between his best friends.

"Why do I have the sudden feeling that I am going to regret this?" he asked.

Phoebe and Ashlyn shrugged.

"Because you usually do," they answered together, collecting their books as the bell rang. They had been in the library during the break finishing up some homework, now it was time to returning to the hustle and bustle of school life.

"What do you have now?" James asked, making his way out of the library.

"Dance," Phoebe answered.

James groaned.

"See you later then," he said. "I have Herbology. Maybe Harry, Ron and Hermione will be there..."

He waved them off and hurried down to the Entrance Hall, while the Ashlyn and Phoebe made their way upstairs to the dance hall. They met up with Kaylee and Aliyah on the floor above the library, and the four set off together.

**~*Phoebe*~**

That evening the Gryffindor's had Quidditch practice.

Shouldering their broomsticks, Phoebe and James made their way down to the Quidditch stadium where the rest of the team was already situated.

"Kick off!" Harry said, soaring into the air, the rest of the team followed his actions and after one lap around the pitch, took to their positions. Phoebe, who was almost like a co-captain, took control almost instantly of the Chasers, swooped down to grab the Quaffle and release the Bludgers, and set off again with James and Ginny on her tail.

Harry nodded in approval, he could always use a second set of hands when on the field, and Phoebe knew exactly what she was doing.

The Beaters, Peakes and Coote, were getting better with each practice, Phoebe who was not a Beater herself was kind and gentle with the two youngsters, refusing to yell and shout at them when the Bludgers interfered with her passes and plays to James or Ginny, instead she showed them a tactic that she had seen Fred and George use a number of times.

Soon, Peakes and Coote were almost playing to the Weasley twin's standards.

"Sometimes I wonder how I got this badge," Harry said, hovering beside the elemental as James and Ginny passed the Quaffle back and forth as they hurtled towards Ron. "You seem to do a better job than I do."

"Sorry," Phoebe said, sheepishly. "I get a bit carried away at times... tell me to stop and I'll do it right away."

Harry shook his head.

"No, it is okay, I don't mind the help."

"Alright," Phoebe smiled, ducking as a Bludger zoomed overhead, and Coote shouted an apology as he passed. "They're getting better," she added to Harry.

"I just hope they knock them towards the Slytherin's during our first game," Harry nodded.

Phoebe grinned.

"They will," she promised.

"PHOEBE!"

Whirling around, Phoebe and Harry spotted James; he was clutching Ginny to his chest and heading towards the ground. Exchanging looks the Captain and Prefect followed them, landing at the same time as Ron, who was muttering over and over again about how sorry he was.

"It was an accident, I'm sorry, Ginny, really sorry! I just -"

"Panicked," James said angrily, as he inspected Ginny's split lip. "You prat, Ron, look at the state of her!"

"Relax," Phoebe said, soothingly. "I can fix this," she drew her wand and pointed it at Ginny's mouth. "_Episkey._"

"And James, don't call Ron a prat, you're not the Captain of this team -"

"Well, you seemed busy undressing Phoebe with your eyes." James retorted, "So I figured I would save you the trouble!"

Phoebe glared at James, while Harry's face burned a deep crimson.

"In the air, everyone, let's go..." Harry ordered.

Overall it was one of the worst practices they had had all term.

"Good work, everyone, I think we'll flatten Slytherin," Harry said, as Ginny, Coote and Peakes left the changing room, followed by James and lastly Phoebe.

The elemental glanced back at her friend. "Yeah, if you happen to catch the Snitch before they gain any points," she said, clearly still upset with Ron for punching his sister, and irritated with his lack of practice.

Harry glared at her, but Phoebe merely shrugged and left the changing room. Ron may not have been Oliver Wood, but the least he could do is show a little commitment to his training during the summer, there was no point in not training during the holidays and expecting to be brilliant when he returned to school.

_**It just doesn't work like that**_ She thought, following James through the winding corridors back to the Gryffindor portrait.

**~*Phoebe*~**

That night, Phoebe lay awake for a very long time in the darkness, Ron's comment repeating itself over and over in her mind. While, in the long run, she didn't really care what he thought of her, or how he treated her, it still hurt to think that someone that she regarded as a friend, no matter how bad their relationship/friendship really was, considered her as nothing more than a troublemaking girl who played men against the other.

Phoebe sighed and rolled over onto her side, she buried her hands under her pillow and stared at the satin curtains around her four poster bed, she could hear the soft breathing of her room-mates, but yet, no matter how much she lay there, no matter how much she tried to sleep, her brain just refused to switch off.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Breakfast was the usual excitable affair next morning; the Slytherin's hissed and booed loudly as every member of the Gryffindor team entered the Great Hall, James glanced at the ceiling and saw a clear, pale blue sky: a good omen.

"At least we know that Phoebe still isn't upset," he whispered to Harry.

Harry nodded.

"Where is Phoebe?" he asked.

"She is trying to coax Hermione out of bed," Lavender answered, as she passed. "Cheer up, Ron! I know you'll be brilliant!"

Ron ignored her.

"Tea?" Harry asked him. "Coffee? Pumpkin Juice?"

"Anything," said Ron, glumly, taking a moody bit of toast.

A few minutes later Hermione, who Phoebe had managed to coax out of bed and dress, entered the Great Hall, the elemental's arm looped through her own. They stopped behind Ron at the Gryffindor table and looked down at the three boys.

"How are you feeling?" Hermione asked tentatively, her eyes on the back of Ron's head.

"Fine," said Harry, who was concentrating on handing on a glass of pumpkin juice. "There you go, Ron. Drink up."

Ron had just raised the glass to his lips when Hermione spoke sharply.

"Don't drink that, Ron!"

Harry, Ron, James and Phoebe looked at her.

"Why not?" Ron asked.

Hermione was now staring at Harry as though she could not believe her eyes.

"You just put something in that drink."

"Excuse me?" Harry said.

"You heard me. I saw you. You just tipped something into Ron's drinks. You've got the bottle in your hand right now!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Harry, stowing the little bottle hastily in his pocket.

"Ron, I warn you, don't drink it!" Hermione said again, alarmed, but Ron picked up the glass, drained it in one gulp, and said, "Stop bossing me around, Hermione."

She looked scandalized. Bending low so that only Harry could hear, she hissed, "You should be expelled for that. I'd never have believed it of you, Harry!"

"Halk, who's talking," he whispered back, "Confunded anyone else for you lately?"

"Phoebe _asked_ me to do that! We were only trying to _help_ you!" Hermione snapped, before storming off up the table, Phoebe glowering at Harry and Ron, before following after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After breakfast, Phoebe left Hermione in the Great Hall and made her way down to the Quidditch pitch alone.

The frosty grass crunched underfoot as she strode towards the door leading to the Gryffindor changing room. The weather was looking ideal for the first game of the season, and as long as no one angered her today then the weather was sure to stay that way.

Ginny and James were already wearing their Quidditch robes and waiting in the changing room. Ron was in the middle of pulling on his own robes and Harry was in the captain's office. Once or twice, Phoebe winced as she heard the crashing of something coming from the office.

"What has got Harry so worked up?" she asked, pulling on her robes.

"He's just found out that Malfoy's gone off sick," Ginny said.

"What?" Phoebe asked, whipping around to face the younger red-head. "He's ill? What's wrong with him?"

"No idea, but it's great for us," said Ginny brightly. "They're playing Harper instead; he's in my year and he's an idiot."

Phoebe smiled back vaguely, but as she pulled on her scarlet robes her mind was far from Quidditch. Draco had once claimed he could not play due to injury, but on that occasion he had made sure the whole match was rescheduled for a time that suited the Slytherin's better. Why was he now happy to let a substitute go on? Was he really that sick or was this just a ploy?

"Phoebe," James called, prodding her shoulder.

"Huh...?" Phoebe blinked and looked around; the whole team was staring at her. "What - ?"

"Are you okay?" Ginny repeated.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, yeah... sorry, I was miles away then!"

"Thinking of Malfoy?" Harry asked, storming out of the captain's office.

"What?" Phoebe repeated. "No!"

"What's wrong with him?" Harry demanded. "And don't think about lying to me!"

"What makes you think I would lie to you?"

"Because you've been defending him since school started!" Harry snapped. "So, what is wrong with him?"

Phoebe stared at her captain.

"I don't know," she answered, honestly.

"I said don't lie to me!"

"I'm not lying!"

"You're his sister," Harry snapped.

"So?" Phoebe shrugged. "Just because I'm his twin doesn't mean he tells me everything, Harry! You're the one that is obsessed with my brother this year, it is a wonder you don't know what is wrong with him!"

She shoved him backwards, out of her personal space.

Harry growled and gritted his teeth, before instead of retorting; he turned away sharply and stalked over to the bench where Ron was sitting.

Phoebe glared after him and turned away, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall. Sixth year was starting to become a nightmare... a nightmare that made fourth year, look like a pleasant dream.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They walked out onto the pitch to tumultuous roars and boos. One end of the stadium was solid red and gold; the other a sea of green and silver. Many Hufflepuff's and Ravenclaws had taken sides too: Amidst all the yelling and clapping Phoebe could distinctly hear the roar of Luna Lovegood's famous lion-topped hat.

Harry stepped up to Madam Hooch, the referee, who was standing reading to release the balls from the crate.

"Captains shake hands," she said, and Harry had his hand crushed by the new Slytherin Captain, Urquhart. "Mount your brooms. On the whistle... three... two... one..."

The whistle sounded, Phoebe and the others kicked off hard from the frozen ground, and they were away.

"Well, there they go, and I think we're all surprise to see the team that Potter's put together this year. Many thought, given Ronald Weasley's patch performance as Keeper last year, that he might be off the team, but of course, a close personal friendship with the Captain does help..."

These words were greeted with jeers and applause from the Slytherin end of the pitch, and Phoebe didn't need to look to see who had taken over Lee Jordan's position as commentator. Zacharias Smith, the only Hufflepuff that she knew who could pass as a Slytherin.

Madam Hooch threw the Quaffle into the air, and pressed low against her broom handle, Phoebe swooped forward to grab it. Her fingers had barely brushed against the smooth surface when the Slytherin Captain snatched it away.

"Hey!" Phoebe yelled furiously, following after him as he zigzagged up the pitch towards Ron.

"Oh, and here comes Slytherin's first attempt on goal, it is Urquhart streaking down the pitch and -"

Phoebe's stomach turned over.

"- Weasley saves it, well, he's bound to get lucky sometimes, I suppose..."

_**Lucky**_ Phoebe thought a small frown on her face as Ron passed the Quaffle back to James. _**Luck... Pumpkin Juice... Harry and Hermione...**_ the elemental's eyes widened as she sought out Harry above her. Their gazes connected and instantly Phoebe understood what he had done to wrong.

_**Felix Felicis**_.

Shaking her head at her Captain, Phoebe flew off after James and Ginny, just as Urquhart and his second Chaser, whom Phoebe realized was none other than Ashlyn Black, closed in on the youngest Weasley as she grew closer to the Slytherin keeper.

"Ginny, reverse pass," Phoebe shouted, as she skimmed past the red head.

Ginny nodded and passed to the elemental, who instantly passed to James, who ducked under Ashlyn and looped over Blaise Zabini, and then passed to Ginny as she slid across the air in front of him. The red head grinned, faked a pass to James, effectively confusing Blaise and Urquhart who ambushed James, who hit the Quaffle at Phoebe, who put it through the centre hoop.

The Slytherin keeper blinked and looked around wildly, as the Gryffindor chasers laughed at his misfortune, snagged the Quaffle from the air and managed to score several more goals in under ten minutes.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With half an hour of the game gone, Gryffindor was leading sixty points to zero, Ron having made some truly spectacular saves, some by the very tips of his gloves, and Ginny having scored two of Gryffindor's six goals. This effectively stopped Zacharias wondering loudly whether the two Weasley's were only on the team because Harry liked them, and he started on Peakes and Coote instead.

"Of course, Coote isn't really the usual build for a Beater," said Zacharias loftily, "they've generally got a bit more muscle -"

"Hit a Bludger at him!" Harry called to Coote as he zoomed past, but Coote, grinning broadly, chose to aim the next Bludger at Harper instead, who was just passing Harry in the opposite direction. Harry was pleased to hear the dull thunk that meant the Bludger had found its mark.

It seemed as though Gryffindor could do no wrong. Again and again they scored, and again and again, at the other end of the field, Ron saved goals with apparent ease. He was actually smiling now, and when the crowd greeted a particularly good save with a rousing chorus of the old favourite 'Weasley is Our King,' he pretended to conduct them from on high.

"Thinks he's something special today, doesn't he?" said a snide voice, and Phoebe was nearly knocked off her broom by Urquhart, who had just collided with her hard, causing her to drop the Quaffle. "Your blood-traitor pal..."

Madam Hooch's back was turned, and though Gryffindor's below shouted in anger, by the time she looked around, Urquhart had already intercepted James, stolen the Quaffle and was pelting down the pitch towards Ron.

Phoebe seethed as she flexed her hand, her fingers hurt. Urquhart hadn't exactly been careful when he had rammed her, jamming her fingers between his knuckles and the Quaffle in the process.

"Phoebe," James called as he hovered in front of her. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Phoebe nodded, shooting off past her best friend, who soon joined her and Ginny as they battled the Slytherin's for the Quaffle.

"And I think Harper of Slytherin's seen the Snitch!" said Zacharias Smith through his megaphone. "Yes, he's certainly seen something Potter hasn't!"

Both Gryffindor and Slytherin Chasers whipped around to see what the Hufflepuff was talking about, Harper, the boy whom Draco has chosen as his substitute, had sped up instantly, his hand outstretched for the glittering golden ball that fluttered just in front of him.

Harry, who had realized too late what was happening, accelerated through the air to catch up.

Urquhart chuckled.

"He'll never catch up!" he sneered at Phoebe.

"Don't bet on it," Phoebe answered.

There was a great shout that interrupted any retort as Harry returned his hand in the air and the golden Snitch clutched between his fingers.

James punched the air in victory, as Phoebe grinned at Urquhart.

"Nothing personal," she said, wheeling around and shooting off towards her friend, Captain and Seeker, as the sound of the whistle blew, signaling the end of the game.

"Ginny, where are you going?" James yelled, as he and Phoebe joined the mid-air hug, trapping Harry in the middle along with Coote, Peakes and Ron, but Ginny sped right on past them until, with an almighty crash, she collided with the commentator's podium.

The crowd shrieked and laughed, the Gryffindor team landed beside the wreckage of wood under which Zacharias was feebly stirring; Phoebe heard Ginny saying blithely to an irate Professor McGonagall, "Forgot to brake, Professor, sorry."

Phoebe laughed, as Harry broke away from her and wrapped the younger red head in a hug, before breaking away and clapping Ron on the back. Leaving the elemental to hug her third Chaser in delight of, not only a delightful win against Slytherin, but the unexpected attack on Smith.

All enmity forgotten, the Gryffindor team left the pitch, arm in arm, punching the air and waving to their supporters.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The atmosphere in the changing room was jubilant.

"Party up in the common room, Seamus said!" yelled James exuberantly. "C'mon, Ginny, Phoebe!"

"You go on," Phoebe said, "I'll catch up!"

James shrugged and walked out with Ginny.

The door closed behind them and Phoebe turned onto Harry and Ron, who the only other two left.

"You shouldn't have done it, Harry," she said. "You heard Slughorn, it is illegal."

"What are you going to do, turn us in?" Ron demanded.

"What are you two talking about?" asked Harry, turning away to hang up his robes.

"You know perfectly well what we're talking about!" said Phoebe. "Hermione was right when she said that you had put something in Ron's drink at breakfast. I didn't see it myself, but I figured it out when Urquhart missed that first goal, Smith may be an ass, but he had it spot on! If only he knew how truthful his words were!"

Harry feigned confusion.

"You spiked Ron's juice with Felix Felicis at breakfast!"

"No, I didn't," said Harry, turning back to face them both. "Besides, you were the one to tell me to use it for a good cause... I thought you, of all people, would understand how much this game meant to us!"

""I didn't mean this!" Phoebe argued. "It's cheating! Urquhart, Ashlyn and Zabini kept missing all those goals and Ron kept saving everything, they didn't stand a chance, Harry, it was unfair!"

"Well, I guess it's a good thing I didn't put it in," said Harry, grinning broadly. He slipped his hand inside his jacket pocket and drew out the tiny bottle that Hermione had seen in his hand that morning. It was full of golden potion and the cork was still tightly sealed with wax. "I wanted Ron to think I'd done it, so I faked it when I knew Hermione was looking."

He looked at Ron.

"You saved everything because you felt lucky. You did it all yourself."

He pocketed the potion again.

"There really wasn't anything in my pumpkin juice?" Ron said, astounded. "But the weather's good... and Vaisey couldn't play... I honestly haven't been given lucky potion?"

Harry shook his head. Ron gaped at him for a moment, and then rounded on Phoebe, imitating her voice. "_You added Felix Felicis to Ron's juice this morning, that's why he saved everything_! See! I can save goals without help, Blackheart!"

"I never said you couldn't," Phoebe argued, "besides, you too thought you'd been given it!"

But Ron had already strode past her out of the door with his broomstick over his shoulder.

"Er," said Harry into the sudden silence; he had not expected his plan to backfire like this, "shall... shall we go up to the party, then?"

"You go!" said Phoebe, blinking back tears. "I'm _sick_ of Weasley at the moment... just make sure that he stays the hell away from Hermione, because I promise his parents will be recieving him in teeny, tiny pieces at the end of the year if he makes her cry!"

And she stormed out of the changing room too.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Reviewing is super easy now with the changes they've made to the site, so you all have no excuses! Haha, just kidding (but not really). Let me know what you thought of this chapter... and next chapter, we'll find out what is up with Phoebe and sudden hormonal surge.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 30 June 2012 at 03:13am**


	135. Chapter 135

**Author's Note: **I am so sorry! I would have had this chapter up last night but I had a serious panic attack, this is why my apologies stretch above and beyond, and I beg for your complete forgiveness.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Dark D-Knight, Fan of Fics, Evanescencefan97, BrightYellowSunflower, Dream Lighting, Pixiescale1185** and **KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs:** Thank you too **Dark D-Knight, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Pixiescale1185** for adding me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

All ready to find out what is wrong with Phoebe? Well... let's get too it!

* * *

><p>"She looks awfully pale!"<p>

"Where did you say you found her?"

"Aliyah, a girl from our Dance class found her, she was down by the lake with Robert, her boyfriend, and she said that she noticed something on the ground and the closer she got she realized it was a person! She was almost 20 yards away when she realized it was Phoebe!"

"Where is Aliyah now?"

"She and Robert have been drafted and taken to Professor Dumbledore - what do you think happened? Do you think she's been attacked?"

"It doesn't look like it,"

"Has Madam Pomfrey seen her yet?"

"She was checking her over when we arrived,"

"Yeah, she even confirmed that Phoebe was brought in like this, no marks to indicate that she had been attacked, no spell damage, nothing!"

"So it is safe to say that no Slytherin hunted her down then,"

"Seems like it."

Ashlyn sighed and run a hand through her dark locks; she was sitting on the edge of Phoebe's bed in the Hospital Wing. It had been almost 3 hours since the Gryffindor/Slytherin game, and during those four hours not a lot had really happened, that wasn't until Professor Snape had arrived in the common room and requested that she and Aiden join him in his office.

She remembered everything: the looks they were recieving from their fellow Slytherin's, there was probably a tremendous amount of whispering going on, people speculating what was happening to cause Professor Snape to take both herself and Aiden from the common room after the Slytherin/Gryffindor match, was he mad that they had lost? If so why was he punishing Aiden? It was she that had been chosen to play.

But that wasn't the case. Professor Snape, while upset that Slytherin had lost, had not come to retrieve she and Aiden for that reason. No, is reason was something completely different; something that he knew would strike both Ashlyn and Aiden dead, more than anyone else within Slytherin.

"Mrs. Blackheart was found unconscious," he had said, "down by the Black Lake an hour ago. She has been moved to the Hospital Wing... Professor McGonagall and Professor Blackheart wish to know if you noticed anything out of the ordinary when you left the stadium after the game."

Out of the ordinary? There was nothing out of the ordinary, other than the fact that Ron Weasley had played exceptionally well, other than that everything was exactly the same. The game had been played, Slytherin had lost and returned to the common room, sully, while the Gryffindor's cheered and raced back to their own common room to celebrate.

That had been almost 2 hours ago, now she had been sitting with the Golden Trio, Aiden, James and Amelia, all of whom surrounded Phoebe's bed as the elemental lay sleeping, propped up against her pillows. Her black hair was sprawled over the covers, and it contrasted eerily against the paleness of her skin and the sheer whiteness of the fabric.

_**She looks dead.**_

Ashlyn shook her head, ridding it of any inappropriate thoughts. She couldn't think like that! Phoebe wasn't dead, she was just unconscious!

Draco, who had been furious when Slytherin lost the match, had stormed out of the Slytherin common room and disappeared somewhere within the castle, he had no clue that his twin sister had been found unconscious down by the edge of the lake.

"Someone should go and find Draco," Aiden said, tearing his gaze away from his sister. "He has a right to know!"

Ashlyn nodded.

"I'll go," she said, her voice hollow.

"No," Aiden interrupted, grabbing her shoulder and pushing her back down onto the bed. "You stay here... he's my brother... I'll go!"

The two Slytherin's regarded one another for a split second, before Ashlyn caved and looked away. "Fine. But bring his straight back here! Hopefully she'll be awake by then."

"I shall," Aiden nodded, getting out of his seat and leaving the Hospital wing. It was just too much for him to handle! First Sarah and now Phoebe? What more was going to happen before this year was through? Who was next? Ashlyn? James? Amelia?

The fire elemental sighed and shook his head, no, no, he couldn't think like that! Sarah was safe, she was showing signs of recovery, although he understood that it was going to be a long and complicated process before she could ever be returned to him, and Phoebe's unconscious state was a simple accident, no one could have planned it.

_**What is happening?**_ Aiden thought, as he wandered through the castle in search of his younger brother. _**What the hell is happening to my family?**_

**~*Phoebe*~**

After another good hour, Phoebe opened her eyes.

She looked around the room, but through the haze and confusion, could not, for the life of her, figure out where she was. It was then that she noticed Ashlyn sitting beside her.

"Where am I?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

Ashlyn gave a start and look up.

"Oh, Phoebe," she sighed in relief, jumping up and hugging her best friend. "You're in the Hospital wing! Aliyah found you down by the lake, you had passed out don't you remember?"

"I was unconscious?" Phoebe asked. Ashlyn nodded.

"Aliyah and Robert brought you here," Ashlyn added. "Madam Pomfrey notified Professor McGonagall, who in turn contacted your godmother and then requested Professor Snape and Professor Sprout to get Aiden, Amelia and myself. You've been out cold for a little over six hours, Pheebs."

The doors to the dormitory opened and Aiden, followed closely by Draco, entered the ward.

"You're awake!" Aiden smiled, hugging his sister as he reached her bedside. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little," Phoebe nodded. "I just wish I knew what was going on!"

"That is a good question," Draco nodded. "Have you been eating?"

Phoebe nodded.

"I'll admit that I haven't been eating much," she answered, "but that is only because I always bring up whatever I take down!"

"Phoebe, that is not good enough!" Draco scolded. "You're a dancer! You need to eat, you healthy and stability depends on your energy, and the only way you'll get energy is if you eat like a normal person!"

Phoebe scowled, she had only just this minute woken up, and she didn't need a lecture off her brother on what she had to do. She knew the rules of health and safety when one was a dancer, she had studied them long and hard when she was learning to dance; but there had been nothing in the rules that described the lack of nutrition and sickness when one was around food that could help you.

"Madam Pomfrey wanted me to make sure that you drink this when you woke up," Ashlyn said bringing the conversation back on topic and handing Phoebe a glass that had been, up until now, been sitting on her side table.

Phoebe took it and drained the contents.

"Did Madam Pomfrey happen to tell you what was wrong with me?" she asked, she already figured that the nurse would have done tests while her head of house was off writing to Serefina and contacting Snape and Sprout.

"No," Ashlyn said, shaking her head and looking moderately worried. "No, she didn't say anything to us, but..."

"But -?"

Ashlyn sighed and looked towards Aiden. He hadn't been here when Madam Pomfrey had returned saying that the results on Phoebe's condition were shocking, slightly understandable, but also nerve-wracking to say the least.

"She did say that she wanted to speak with you as soon as you awoken," Ashlyn answered. "She looked apprehensive and her tone scared me... I don't think it is good news, Pheebs."

Phoebe frowned and opened her mouth to retort, however, Madam Pomfrey decided that this was perfect time to intervene and tell Phoebe the dire news... on that they were _all_ dying to know.

"How are you feeling, dear?" She asked smiling and straightening Phoebe's pillows.

"Fine," Phoebe nodded. "Uh, Madam Pomfrey? Do you mind telling us what the matter is?"

Madam Pomfrey's smile faltered as she took Phoebe's hands in her own.

Phoebe's heart was pounding, as Ashlyn, Aiden and Draco looked equally nervous.

"Well, dear," started Madam Pomfrey, "It looks like you are going to have a baby."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **I know that some of you did not want this to happen, but never fear, I have a plan that will accommodate both Phoebe and baby, one that will not turn her into a wimp before the battle. =)

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 2 July 2012 at 12:15am**


	136. Chapter 136

**Author's Note: **Happy Birthday to me! Yes, it is my 22nd birthday (I feel old!).

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, BrightYellowSunflower, Princessflag3998, Pixiescale1185** and an **Anonymous** review who didn't give a signature.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Princessflag3998** for adding me to their author alert. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer: **Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

**Author's Note two: **I really wanted to update tonight, but I was getting so tired of writing that this chapter just seemed endless. Anyway, I have decided that it will be cut into two parts. This one and then the party will be next. This chapter will set apart the dates (who goes with who) and then the next chapter will be the party itself. I hope that makes sense.

* * *

><p>Snow was swirling against the icy windows once more; Christmas was approaching fast. Hagrid had already single-handedly delivered the usual twelve Christmas trees for the Great Hall; garlands of holly and tinsel had been twisted around the banister of the stairs; everlasting candles glowed from inside the helmets of suits of armor and great bunches of mistletoe and been hung at intervals along the corridors.<p>

Large groups of girls tended to converge underneath the mistletoe bunches every time Harry went past, which caused blockages in the corridors; fortunately, however, Harry's frequent nighttime wanderings had given him an unusually good knowledge of the castle's secret passageways, so that he was able, without too much difficulty, to navigate mistletoe-free routes between classes.

Phoebe giggled as she reached for her copy of _Quintessence: A Quest_ and skimmed through it. She was sitting in the library with Harry and Hermione, taking notes and writing out her Charms and Potions essays, while the librarian Madam Pince, prowled the shelves behind them.

It was almost a week after she had found out that she was pregnant, each of her friends had been informed of her predicament and had taken the shocking news relatively well... unless you counted the fact that each of them had become overly protective of her since the big reveal.

"Did you write to Terence and tell him of your... predicament?"

"I did,"

"And -?"

"He is coming to the school at the end of the week," Phoebe answered. "He is doing business for the Order so he couldn't come now. But I know that he wishes to be here!"

"I bet he does," Hermione agreed, "Any guy in his position would."

"Don't you think it's too soon?" Harry asked.

"Maybe is it," Phoebe agreed, "but it is too late now."

"Would you change the past, if you could?"

Phoebe frowned. "What are you saying?"

"I just want to know that if you had a second chance would you get pregnant again."

"It is not like I planned it the first time, Harry,"

"No, no, I understand that," Harry nodded. "Sorry. I didn't mean -"

Phoebe smiled. "I know, Harry," she nodded. "I know. And to answer your question: if given a second chance, I probably wouldn't change a thing!"

Hermione grinned and returned to her essay. Harry said nothing, while Phoebe lightly pressed her hand to her stomach, her mind drifting back to the day that she found out that she was going to be a mother.

**~Flashback~**

_"I AM WHAT?"_

_Aiden, Draco and Ashlyn, all of whom had frozen at the news, jumped at the sudden outburst. Phoebe's face had drained of all colours and was staring, wide-eyed at Madam Pomfrey, as if waiting for her to say she was joking._

_"You're telling me that I have a tiny person growing inside of me?" Phoebe asked her voice barely above a whisper, tears in her eyes and her hands on her stomach._

_"Yes, my dear," Madam Pomfrey nodded. "I understand that this is awkward, embarrassing and scary for you, Mrs. Blackheart, but you can trust me that this will be kept strictly confidential and I will not repeat anything to anyone, unless I have your permission to do so."_

_Phoebe nodded as she slouched in her seat, phasing out, hardly conscious and not hearing anymore of the conversation. All she could think about was the fact that four months of being married, she was pregnant._

_Ashlyn nudged her, bringing her back to her senses._

_"Pheebs!"_

_"What?"_

_"Pay attention!"_

_Phoebe blinked. "Right. Sorry!"_

_"I understand that this is a lot to take in," Madam Pomfrey said, brushing Phoebe's hair from her face. "You have gotten yourself into a right mess! But I promise, that I will do everything that I can to keep you and the baby as healthy has possible, but I am afraid that I cannot stop the rumors."_

_"Rumors?" Draco repeated. "There will be no rumors! Not if I can help it!"_

_"I understand your concern, Mr. Malfoy," nodded Madam Pomfrey, "but this is Hogwarts, you, of all people, should understand how fast news flies."_

_Draco glared at the nurse._

_"Dragon," Phoebe whispered, shaking her head. "She is right. The whole school will know by the end of the month and it will be non-stop gossip from then on out!"_

_"Then you have to be taken out of school!"_

_"Don't talk stupid!" Phoebe snapped._

_"I'm being stupid?" Draco hissed. "Phoebe, you are __**pregnant**__!"_

_"Yes! I know!" Phoebe agreed. "But that does not mean I have to leave school! I am married, Draco, it is not like I am knocked up by some random student! The father of my baby is my husband! The rest of Hogwarts will understand that."_

_"The rest of Hogwarts do not know you are married!"_

_Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Really, Draco? You don't think that my engagement was broadcasted in the Daily Prophet? You don't think my wedding was broadcasted? My family is well known... our family is well known! The entire Wizarding world of knows of my marriage to Terence, and there is only one person who could get me pregnant and that is my husband!"_

_Aiden and Ashlyn, however, seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Draco, and neither one of them were looking forward to the start of the gossip, and were more than ready to protect Phoebe from the comments of the rest of the school._

**~Flashback~**

"And incidentally," said Hermione, bringing Phoebe back from her memories, "you need to be careful."

"For the last time," said Harry, speaking in a slightly hoarse whisper after three-quarters of an hour in silence, "I am not giving back this book; I've learned more from the Halfblood Prince than Snape or Slughorn have taught me in -"

"I'm not talking about your stupid so-called Prince," said Hermione, giving his book a nasty look as though it had been rude to her. "I'm talking about earlier. Phoebe and I went into the girls' bathroom just before we came in here and there were about a dozen girls in there, including that Romilda Vane, trying to decide how to slip you a love potion. They're all hoping they're going to get you to take them to Slughorn's party, and they all seem to have bought Fred and George's love potions, which I'm afraid to say probably work -"

"Why didn't you confiscate them then, Pheebs?" demanded Harry. It seemed extraordinary that Phoebe's mania for upholding rules could have abandoned her at this crucial juncture.

"They didn't have the potions with them in the bathroom," said Hermione scornfully.

Phoebe nodded. "And besides, I was too busy throwing up to worry about anything else."

"They were just discussing tactics. As I doubt whether even the _Halfblood Prince_ could dream up an antidote for a dozen different love potions at once, I'd just invite someone to go with you, that'll stop all the others thinking they've still got a chance. It's tomorrow night, they're getting desperate."

"There isn't anyone I want to invite," Harry mumbled.

"What about Ashlyn?"

Harry's face darkened. "No!"

"Why not? You two seem to get along great!" Phoebe grinned.

"She's dating Pucey," Harry answered. "I highly doubt -"

"Ah, so you're saying if Adrian wasn't in the picture, you'd ask her?"

"I didn't say that!"

"You implied it!"

Harry groaned and buried his face in his hands. "I'm sad to say that your pregnancy hasn't done anything to extinguish your irritable nature!"

"Nothing can extinguish my irritable nature," Phoebe grinned. "I'm a tease... what do you expect?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and brought the conversation back to the main topic. "Just be careful what you drink, because Romilda Vane looked like she meant business."

She hitched up the long roll of parchment on which she was writing her Arithmancy essay and continued to scratch away with her quill. Harry watched her with his mind a long way away.

"Hang on a moment," he said slowly. "I thought Filch had banned anything bought at Weasley's' Wizards Wheezes?"

"And when has anyone ever paid attention to what Filch has banned?" asked Phoebe, still concentrating on her essay.

"But I thought all the owls were being searched. So how come these girls are able to bring love potions into school?"

"Fred and George send them disguised as perfumes and cough potions," said Hermione. "It's a part of their Owl Order Service."

"You know a lot about it."

Hermione gave Harry the kind of nasty look she had just given his copy of Advanced_ Potion-Making_.

"It was all on the back of the bottles they showed Ginny and me in the summer," she said coldly. "I don't go around putting potions in people's drinks... or pretending to, either, which is just as bad..."

"Yeah, well, never mind that," said Harry quickly. "The point is Filch is being fooled, isn't he? These girls are getting stuff into the school disguised as something else! So why couldn't Malfoy have brought the necklace into the school -?"

Hermione paused and glanced sideways at Phoebe; the elemental had frozen in her writing, and was glaring at the parchment with in intense fury.

"Harry... not that again..." the bookworm started.

"Why not?" demanded Harry.

"Because Secrecy Sensors detect jinxes, curses and concealment charms," said Phoebe, "they're used to find Dark Magic and Dark objects. They'd have picked up a powerful curse, like the one on that necklace, within seconds. But something that's just been put in the wrong bottle wouldn't register - and anyway, love potions aren't Dark or dangerous -"

"Easy for you to say," muttered Harry, thinking of Romilda Vane.

"- So it would be down to Filch to realize it wasn't a cough potion, and he's not a very good wizard, I doubt he can tell one potion from -"

Hermione stopped dead; Harry and Phoebe had heard it too. Somebody had moved close behind them among the dark bookshelves. They waited, and a moment later the vulture like countenance of Madam Pince appeared around the corner, her sunken cheeks, her skin like parchment, and her long hooked nose illuminated unflatteringly by the lamp she was carrying.

"The library is now closed," she said. "Mind you return anything you have borrowed to the correct - _what have you been doing to that book, you depraved boy?"_

"It isn't a library's, it's mine!" said Harry hastily, snatching his copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ off the table as she lunged at it with a clawlike hand.

"Despoiled!" she hissed. "Desecrated! Befouled!"

"It's just a book that's been written on!" said Harry, tugging it out of her grip.

She looked as though she might have a seizure; Phoebe, who had hastily packed her things, grabbed Harry by the arm and frog marched him away, Hermione in tow.

"She'll ban you from the library if you're not careful. Why did you have to bring that stupid book?" the bookworm asked.

"It's not my fault she's barking mad, Hermione." Harry said.

"Maybe she overheard us being rude about Filch," Phoebe suggested. "I've always thought there might be something going on between them..."

Hermione shook her head as Harry chuckled in amusement.

Enjoying the fact that they could speak normally again, they made their way along the deserted, lamp-lit corridors back to the common room, discussing whether not Phoebe's unborn child was going to be a boy or a girl.

"It could be both," Hermione said, coming to a stop outside the Fat Lady. "You could be having twins!"

"Do not scare me!" Phoebe warned.

"Baubles," said Harry to the Fat Lady, this being the new, festive password.

"Same to you," said the Fat Lady with a roguish grin, and she swung forward to admit them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Hi, Harry!" said Romilda Vane, the moment he had climbed through the portrait hole. "Fancy a gillywater?"

Hermione gave him a 'what-did-I-tell-you?' look over her shoulders.

"Watch this," Phoebe whispered to her best friend and she turned to Romilda, who was still blocking Harry's way. "Did you know that Gillywater is dangerous for you? Too much of it can cause you break out in hives... or maybe there is something more _inside_, you ever think of that?"

Romilda's eyes narrowed.

"How about you, Harry?" Phoebe asked, turning to her friend. "You ever wonder what is inside Gillywater. Lemonade? Orange Juice? _Love potion?"_

"Love potion?" Harry and Romilda repeated.

"Aren't they banned?" Romilda asked.

"You tell me," Phoebe said.

Romilda stiffened angrily, shook her head and turned back Harry. "If you don't want the Gillywater, that is fine," said Romilda, "but please take these instead," she thrust a box into his hands. "Chocolate Cauldrons, they've got Firewhisky in them. My gran sent them to me, but I don't like them."

"Oh - right - thanks a lot," said Harry, who could not think what else to say. Romilda nodded and walked away.

"Told you," said Hermione succinctly. "Sooner you ask someone, sooner they'll all leave you alone and you can relax, without worrying about being poisoned."

Harry nodded. "Alright. I'll ask someone... someone I like... someone cool!"

"Someone who isn't Ashlyn?"

"Yes! Someone who isn't Ashlyn Black!"

"Aw, Ashlyn is going to be so upset," Phoebe said, "she was really hoping you'd ask her."

"Really? She seriously wanted me to -"

Harry broke off as he narrowed his eyes at Phoebe; she was sitting in front of him, grinning from ear to ear, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

"You were kidding?"

"Yup. I can't believe you fell for that!" Phoebe giggled. "Wait until I see Ashlyn tomorrow at Breakfast..."

She winked at her friend and got to her feet.

"C'mon, Hermione, bedtime."

"Alright, well, goodnight, Harry," she nodded at the boy in question, jumped to her feet and followed Phoebe upstairs to the girls dormitories, just as James and Ron joined Harry in front of the fireplace.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Transfiguration was the last lesson of the day the next morning, and Phoebe, who had been in a hurry to leave rushed off at the end of the lesson, leaving most of her things behind. Ashlyn and Hermione, who also took the class with her, rolled their eyes, packed up the elemental belongings and tracked her down.

They found her in the Entrance Hall, her arms thrown carelessly around the shoulders of Terence Higgs, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist and her legs locked behind his torso, their lips were attached together and they didn't seem to be letting the other up for air anytime soon.

"Ew!" Ashlyn said, wrinkling her nose as she stood on top of the Marble staircase with the Gryffindor bookworm, observing the scene beneath her. A few first year Hufflepuff's passed and giggled shyly at the public display of affection.

Hermione smiled at the Slytherin and descended the marble staircase, just as Phoebe and Terence let one another go.

"See, Ash, I told you they would need to breathe at some point." she told the Slytherin.

"I often wondered if an elemental could survive on something other than Oxygen," Ashlyn said. "Carbon Dioxide, maybe?"

"It is possible," Hermione nodded. "I mean, certain aspects of the Earth need Carbon Dioxide to survive, they use our Carbon Dioxide to survive and then, in turn, produce Oxygen for our survival. Being a controller of Earth could give you the same element as that!"

Ashlyn nodded in understanding. "So it is possible that Higgs was providing Phoebe with Carbon Dioxide and she was returning the favour with giving him Oxygen?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes, it would explain why neither of them seemed to have surface for nearly ten minutes!"

"You suck," said Phoebe, untangling herself from her husband and dropping to her feet beside him. "Just because Krum and Adrian can't survive more than two minutes without air -"

"I'll have you know Adrian can hold his breath for longer than ten minutes," Ashlyn defended.

Phoebe's eyebrows rose curiously. "Really?" she grinned.

"I'm going to shut up now!" Ashlyn nodded, holding out her best friend's backpack. "You left this in class."

"Thanks,"

Ashlyn nodded. "Yeah. Well, now i'm off to find Adrian."

"Going to learn to hold your breath?"

Ashlyn threw a glare over her shoulder as she hurried off down into the dungeons where the Slytherin common room was situated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You could've taken _anyone_!" said Ron in disbelief over dinner. "_Anyone_! And you chose Loony Lovegood?"

"Don't call her that, Ron," snapped Phoebe, sliding into her seat between Terence and Hermione. She had been in the Hospital Wing getting a tonic that would settle her stomach enough for her to keep a small amount of food down. "I'm really glad you're taking her, Harry, she's so excited."

Harry tried to feel pleased that Phoebe was glad he was taking Luna to the party, but could not quite manage it, not while she was sitting opposite him hugging, smiling, laughing and flirting with her husband.

"Do you have a date, Hermione?" Phoebe asked, looking up from her stew, and glancing subtly in Ron's direction.

The bookworm shook her head. "No, not yet."

"I overheard McLaggen telling his mates that he was going to ask you,"

Ron spluttered and Phoebe had to bite her lip to keep from grinning. Hermione blushed a beet red and stared down at her plate.

From across the table, James caught Phoebe's eye and nudged Ron, nodding his head in Hermione's direction.

"Ask her!" he whispered. "And quick, because here comes McLaggen!"

Ron looked around and spotted McLaggen making his way down the table towards Hermione. Glancing nervously at the bookworm, he said, "Hermione, do you want to go to Slughorn's party with me?"

"What?" Hermione blurted out.

McLaggen, who had been close enough to hear Ron, stopped dead, the look on his face dark and murderous. Phoebe grinned in his direction.

"Do you?" Ron repeated, sounding desperate.

"Alright," Hermione smiled. "Yeah. I'll go with you!"

Ron smiled, his face flushing pink.

McLaggen scowled, turned toe and stormed away, leaving Phoebe, Harry and James to grin widely at one another.

_**Well, at least it is a start**_ Phoebe thought.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, July 03, 2012 at 4:01am**


	137. Chapter 137

**Author's Note: **1) I would like to thank you all for the birthday wishes. It made me tear up. 2) Since Fanfiction seems to be a day behind my time zone, most of you wishes me Happy Birthday on the second, and although I thank you, I would just like to clarify that my birthday is the 3rd July. 3) IT IS SLUGHORN'S CHRISTMAS PARTY.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, LokiLova (Jojia), Evanescencefan97, Pixiscale1185, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn** and** Ava-Saphire-Clearwater**.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **LokiLova, Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn** and** Ava-Saphire-Clearwater** for adding me to their Author Alerts. I really appreciate it.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

To a certain someone, I won't say who because that's unfair, but just because Phoebe is pregnant does _**NOT**_ mean she is going to sit down and take abuse from Harry. She will go to the end of the earth and beyond to protect her family and that includes Draco. Just remember... Blood is thicker than water.

* * *

><p>"Why on earth would you bring her?" Phoebe exclaimed, as she stood opposite James in the Entrance Hall, they were waiting for Adrian, Ashlyn and their dates to join them, before making their way up to Slughorn's office for the party. Waiting for them, near the Marble staircase, was Harry and Luna, Ron and Hermione, and Lavender Brown.<p>

"You were the one who asked me to become involved with her," James pointed out.

"I asked you to keep her away from Ron and Hermione," Phoebe whispered. "I didn't ask you to become intimate with her! Damn it, James, I don't have a plan on how to break you up!"

"Don't worry," James reassured her. "I'll work something out!"

"Before or after she convinces you that you're destined to be together?" Phoebe snapped, irritable that her plan had backfired. It had worked, to an extent, it had managed to keep Ron and Hermione together, but it had backfired because she had not expected Lavender to latch herself onto the next available guy, especially not James.

James narrowed his eyes. "I wouldn't be so stupid," he answered, his voice barely above a whisper. "Now shut up, she's coming over here!"

And soon enough, Lavender popped up beside James, her arm looping through his and her blonde head resting on his shoulder.

"Jamie, darling, shouldn't we get going?" she crooned.

Phoebe shuddered and glanced up at James, his eyes were closed and a look of revulsion seemed to sweep over his features. "Don't call me that," he said, through clenched teeth. "And I told you, already, we have to wait for Ashlyn, Aiden and their dates. They shouldn't be much longer!"

"But why do we have to wait for them?" Lavender asked. "I am sure they know the way to Slughorn's office."

"Because it was pre-planned that we would all be attending the party together," James explained, for what felt like the hundredth time.

Phoebe smirked as she brushed past the couple, returning to her husband and the rest of her friends. "Oh yes, he has _everything_ under control!" she told them, shaking her head as Lavender's cooing reached her from across the Hall. "She is unbelievable!"

"I still cannot believe that James invited her," said Hermione.

She was wearing a beautiful sleeveless, cut-away shoulders, round neckline dress with cross back straps, her hair was done up in an elegant bun on the top of her head, and tendrils hung down, tickling her ears and framing her face. Ron kept staring at her, completely baffled by her beauty.

Meanwhile, Phoebe was wearing a green strapless sweetheart neckline dress, that fell to 3 inches above her knees, and was covered in sequins that made it look like the dress shimmered, and her hair was braided down her back.

Luna, who didn't have any fashion sense, had been completely made-over by Phoebe after the elemental had gone looking for her after Dinner and enquired what she was wearing to the party. When Luna had stated that she didn't really have any dresses, Phoebe had taken the Ravenclaw back to her godmother's office and skimmed through the dresses that she kept there.

After an hour of preparing, Luna's hair had been formed into a bun-tail. Phoebe, using snappy-clips that she had received several Christmases before, had section off the Ravenclaw's white blonde hair, rolled half of it up and formed a bun, before pulling the remaining strand of hair through the bun and clipping it all in place. As for the dress, Luna was wearing a silver sleeveless sequin dress, she looked amazing.

Finally, Ashlyn and Adrian arrived from the Slytherin dungeons; Ashlyn was wearing a perfect hybrid one shoulder pencil dress, and her hair had been curled left to hang loosely around her shoulders.

Opposite the two Slytherin's, coming up from the Hufflepuff common room, was Aiden and is substitute date: Amelia Winchester. Since Cedric had graduated and Sarah was still recovering in St. Mungo's Amelia had agreed to be Aiden's date for the evening, both agreeing that it was strictly platonic and nothing more.

Amelia had decided to wear a one-shouldered opulence sequin dress that glittered with every move she made and she had scrunched her hair so that it fell in light waves down her back. She looked positively stunning.

"Hey," Phoebe said, as the last of her friends joined her and the others. "Shall we get going then?"

"Where is the party?" Luna asked.

"Slughorn's office," said Harry, leading the way up the marble staircase. "Did you hear there's supposed to be a vampire coming?"

"Rufus Scrimgeour?" asked Luna.

James snorted and Amelia trod on his toe to silence him.

"I - what?" asked Harry, disconcerted. "You mean the Minister for Magic?"

"Yes, he's a vampire," said Luna matter-of-factly. "Father wrote a very long article on it when Scrimgeour first took over from Cornelius Fudge, but he was forced not to publish it by somebody from the Ministry. Obviously, they didn't want the truth to get out."

Phoebe grinned.

"I always said that the British government would go to the dogs!" she nodded. "First a bumbling fool and now a vampire? What next?"

The rest of the group, however, did not reply, James' eyes watering from when Amelia had trodden on his toes with the heal of her shoes. Who would have thought that 3 inch heels could be so deadly? Besides, they were already reaching Slughorn's office and the sounds of laughter, music, and loud conversation were growing louder with every step they took.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Whether it had been built that way, or because he had used magical trickery to make it so, Slughorn's office was much larger than the usual teacher's study. The ceiling and walls had been draped with emerald, crimson, and gold hangings, so that it looked as though they were all inside a vast tent.

The room was crowded and stuffy and bathed in the red light cast by an ornate golden lamp dangling from the centre of the ceiling in which real fairies were fluttering, each a brilliant speck of light.

Loud singing accompanied by what sounded like mandolins issued from a distant corner; a haze of pipe smoke hung over several elderly warlocks deep in conversation, and a number of house-elves were negotiating their way squeakily through the forest of knees, obscured by the heavy silver platters of food they were bearing, so that they looked like little roving tables.

"Winky!" Phoebe yelped as the little elf promptly placed her silver platter on a near-by table and scrambled through the forest of partiers towards the elemental, like a small child towards its mother. Phoebe stopped down and scooped up the helper and hugged her, it had been almost a year since they had last seen one another.

Hermione, Ashlyn and Amelia smiled at the gesture; they knew that Phoebe was going to make a great mother because she was practically a mother to the abandoned House-elf.

"Ah, yes," Slughorn boomed as he spotted the late arrivals. "Harry, m'boy! Phoebe! Miss. Black! Come in; come in, so many people I'd like you to meet!"

Slughorn was wearing a tasseled velvet hat to match his smoking jacket. Gripping Harry's arm so tightly, Slughorn led him purposefully into the party; Harry seized Luna's hand and dragged her along with him, the young Ravenclaw glancing anxiously over her shoulder at the rest of the group.

Ashlyn and Phoebe exchanged looks.

"Well, technically he did say that he had many people for us to meet not just Potter," Ashlyn said.

Phoebe groaned she really didn't want to follow Slughorn around all night and be introduced to several hundred people.

"Come on, Phoebe," said Terence, wrapping his arms around his wife. "Just a few more hours and then we'll be on our way back home for two whole weeks, we can do whatever we want!"

Ashlyn, who had caught the end of the conversation, wrinkled her nose.

"No you cannot!" she scolded. "She is already pregnant!"

Phoebe and Terence smirked and followed the Slytherin through the crowds of students. Hermione, Ron, Aiden, Amelia, James and Lavender following; the latter almost grudgingly.

"- five hours sessions, why, we could have the book finished within months. And all with very little effort on your part, I assure you - ask Sanguini here if it isn't quite - _Sanguini stay here!_" said a stern voice, as Phoebe and Ashlyn broke through the students and reached Harry and Slughorn's sides, they were standing in front of two elder gentlemen, both of whom looked bored, although the second man had begun edging towards a group of nearby girls, a rather hungry look in his eye. "Here have a pasty," he seized one from a near-by house-elf and stuffed it into Sanguini's hand.

He then turned back to Harry, although his gaze found Phoebe's instead.

"Oh," he said, his eyes widening. "And who do we have here?"

Slughorn beamed, wrapping a beefy arm around Phoebe's shoulders. "This is the exquisite Phoebe Blackheart, recently married, but a wonderful and exceptionally powerful young witch. You, I am sure, have heard of the Blackheart family of Portugal, Worple?"

"The Blackhearts," Worple said, eyeing Phoebe eagerly. "Of course! A very _powerful_ family. Element controllers, am I correct? Yes, my dear, I know very much of your history. Sanguini, you remember the Blackhearts, do you not?"

The Vampire, Sanguini, turned abruptly and his cold, black gaze locked with Phoebe's. His lip curled into a snarl and he narrowed his eyes dangerously at the elemental.

"A Blackheart!" he snarled. "Your ancestors tried to kill me! They succeeded in killing my family... now I will avenge the death of my fallen brothers and sisters, by eliminating the last of the elemental clan!" he lunged at the Gryffindor.

Phoebe screamed the vampire landed on her chest, knocking her to the ground, his nails turning into claws and cutting into her shoulders, drawing blood. His fangs elongated from his upper jaws and he snapped at her neck.

However, before he could break the skin, there was a flash of red light and the vampire was blasted off of the Gryffindor, throwing him through the air towards the buffet table at the back of the room. He would have collided with the food, had he not been a vampire, instead he seemed to somersault through the air and landed gracefully on his feet, on the other side.

Hundreds of house-elves and students scrambled aside to avoid being hit.

Still snarling Sanguini turned back to face Phoebe, only to find half a dozen wands aimed in his direction, Phoebe, who was still sitting on the floor, clutching Terence's arms as they wrapped around her, was staring at the Vampire with wide, terrified eyes.

_"Sanguini,"_ Worple roared, startling several more people_._

The vampire snarled at Phoebe as she got back to her feet, Terence was holding her close, and Aiden was looking murderous as he stood behind his sister, his eyes burning a bright cobalt blue.

"_That is enough!"_ Worple shouted, seizing the Vampire by the arm. "_Look, you have frightened the poor child!"_

"Let's get out of here," said Hermione, turning to Phoebe and Terence. The former Slytherin nodded, and still clutching Phoebe, withdrew into the crowd.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After healing the claw marks on Phoebe shoulders and arms; James and Ashlyn led their little group of friends to the otherside of the room, away from Worple and his vampire friend, they each scooped up goblets of mead on the way, realizing too late that Professor Trelawney was standing there alone.

"Hello," said Aiden politely to Professor Trelawney.

"Good evening, my dear child," said Professor Trelawney, focusing upon Aiden with some difficulty. Phoebe could smell cooking sherry, and her stomach churned.

"She's been drinking, again," she whispered. "I can handle the smell, it's too thick!"

Ashlyn smiled and held out her hand. "How about a dance?" she asked.

"Anything is better than here," Phoebe nodded, taking her best friends hand and allowing the Slytherin to pull her towards the dance floor, along with Terence, Adrian, Amelia and Aiden. Lavender, seemingly put off by James's lack of attention, scurried off to find someone else to fawn over, leaving the Black heir to flirt with as many females that would bat an eyelid at him.

Amelia, who was watching as James led a fellow Hufflepuff onto the dance floor, shook her head. "He's such a flirt!" she said, looking at Aiden.

"He's a Black," Aiden shrugged, holding his hand out to his girlfriend's best friend. "Would you like to dance?"

"I can't dance," Amelia admitted.

"I'll lead," Aiden smiled. "You'll be fine."

Amelia hesitated, before taking his hand and allowing him to lead her forward, leaving Hermione, Ron and Harry with Luna and Professor Trelawney. That was, however, until Phoebe called to the Bookworm and invited her over to dance with her and Ashlyn; they weren't dancing with their respective partners, but rather has one big group.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe laughed as Terence wrapped his arm around her waist and dipped her towards the ground. She really hated ballroom dancing, but being with her friends and her husband was proving more fun than she expected, especially when said husband was doing just about anything to make her smile.

_**Mission accomplished**_ she thought, grinning up at Terence and pushing up, their lips met and Terence pulled her up, his arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her closer. Unfortunately, the moment was ruined by the arrival of Filch and, much to everyone's surprise, Draco Malfoy.

"Professor Slughorn," wheezed Filch, his jowls aquiver and the maniacal light of mischief-detection in his bulging eyes. "I discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor. He claims to have been invited to your party and to have been delayed in setting out. Did you issue him with an invitation?"

Malfoy pulled himself free of Filch's grip, looking furious.

"All right, I wasn't invited!" he said angrily. "I was trying to gatecrash, happy?"

"No, i'm not!" said Filch, a statement at complete odds with the glee on his face. "You're in trouble, you are! Didn't the headmaster say that nighttime prowling's out, unless you've got permission, didn't he, eh?"

"He had permission," said Phoebe, darting out of the crowd and looping her arm through her brothers. "I asked Draco to meet me on the seventh floor after curfew. I wished to hear news about my father, who, has you all know, is in Azkaban, and I do not have direct contact with him. Draco provides me with information from home. I guess that I forgot that I was supposed to be meeting him. I apologize."

Draco, who looked momentarily stunned at his sister's actions, nodded. "Apology accepted," he nodded. "But just this once!"

Phoebe smiled and looked back at Filch.

"You are only a Prefect!" the caretaker wheezed.

"A Prefect who has permission from Headmaster Dumbledore to be out in the corridors after hours," Phoebe said. "If you do not believe me then you are welcome to ask the Headmaster yourself, he will confirm my story."

But before Filch could respond, Slughorn stepped in. "That's alright, Argus, that's all right. There will be no need to confer with the Headmaster about Mrs. Blackheart's adaption to the rules. After all it is Christmas, and it's not a crime to want to come to a party. Just this once, we'll forget any punishment; you may stay, Draco."

Filch's expression of outraged disappointment was perfectly predictable, but before the situation could register in the on-lookers minds, Filch was shuffling off, Draco was thanking Slughorn for his generosity, and Phoebe was staring at her brother fearfully.

He looked ill.

He had dark shadows under his eyes and a distinctly grayish twinge to his skin.

_**He looks dead,**_ Phoebe thought, clutching her brother's arm tightly.

Draco, who was still talking to Slughorn about their grandfather, glanced at her from the corner of his eye and knew instantly that she wanted to talk to him; it was written all over her face. However, before he could say anything or ask her to join him outside of the party, where they could talk, Professor Snape swooped down on them.

"I'd like a word with you, Draco," he said.

"Oh, now, Severus," said Slughorn, hiccupping, "it's Christmas, don't be too hard -"

"I'm his Head of House, and I shall decide how hard, or otherwise, to be," said Snape curtly. "Follow me, Draco," before adding, "there will be no need to follow us, Mrs. Blackheart!" to Phoebe.

Phoebe gripped Draco's arm tighter and pulled herself closer to his form.

"I will be alright," Draco whispered, cupping his sister's face. "Go back to Ashlyn. I will write as soon as I get back to Malfoy manor for Christmas."

"But what about -?"

"I will do it before he arrives," Draco promised, kissing her forehead in a brotherly manner. "Goodnight, Phoebe!"

"Goodnight, Draco!" Phoebe said, as she stepped away from her brother and watched as he left with Snape.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Who is going to be my lucky 750 reviewer? Yup, that is correct I have reached my target way before the end of Halfblood Prince and I am eternally in your debt for your unbelievable help! You are all amazing, you never fail to review, unless you have a reason, and I cannot fault you for them!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 4 July 2012 at 4:54am**


	138. Chapter 138

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. Got carried away on another story. We also need a new target… say 825 reviews by the end of Halfblood Prince? I know we can do it! Come on readers, make me proud!

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, HotaruKenobi, Pixiescale1185, Alaina08, Blue-Bubble-Rainbow-Boat** and** Miracleshappen**.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **Blue-Bubble-Rainbow-Boat** and** Misa-Misafictionlover** for adding me to their alerts. Appreciate mates.

**Special Dedication: **Big special shout out too: **Fan of Fics** for being my 750th reviewer.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

* * *

><p>Phoebe paused as she surveyed Aiden from across the clearing; he was standing a few meters away from a crevice that Serefina had created three years previous, while she stood, ankle deep in a small stream, the same stream she had stood in there years previous when she had been elemental fighting with her godmother.<p>

The clearing was silent. It was only the crack of dawn, a multitude of colours broke the surface of the horizon, and the sun started to raise, the rays hitting the trees that surrounded the siblings but not blinding them or distracting them from their reason of being out here. It was Christmas Eve, or, at least, the morning of Christmas Eve.

"I thought Grandma and Grandpa were going to have a hissy fit when you told them you were pregnant," Aiden called from across the clearing.

In the field, besides their clearing, two horses stood grazing, each waiting for their rider to finish their training and return them to Blackheart Manor.

Phoebe shrugged. "I guess it was expected," she answered. "Besides, I think grandma sort of knew that it wouldn't be long. She is a Seer after all!"

"True," Aiden nodded. "So, mother-to-be, make your move!"

He smirked.

"As you command," Phoebe answered, lifting her hand into the air as the water beneath her followed her command, the particles strung higher into the air and quickly streamlined, in one swift motion, Phoebe whipped the water at Aiden's chest, causing him to manipulate the Earth around him and block the attack with a thick vine from the earth's ground.

"Nicely played," Aiden nodded, as they began to circle one another.

"I'm not finished," Phoebe smirked, before blowing into her hand and manipulating the air to cause a strong current to push her brother back a few feet.

Aiden stumbled and hit the ground; vines and roots shot up from the crevice in front of him and shot at Phoebe. The female whipped the water around her body like a shield.

"Hey, no fair!" Aiden cried out.

"All's fair in Love and War!" Phoebe retorted as the water faded away. "You want to call it quits?"

"How is it fair when you get the easier battle elements?" Aiden pouted. "It's a full moon tonight; you are at your strongest!"

Phoebe shrugged. "It's actually because I have two of the easier elements," she answered. "You are using one element, I can use two!"

"True," Aiden nodded as he realized that she was speaking the truth. She had control over Water and Air and could manipulate both, he could only manipulate the Earth because there were masses of it around, fire on the other hand, the most deadliest and strongest of all the elements was a little harder to come by.

Looking towards the sky, Phoebe turned back to Aiden. "We should head back," she said, "before the others awaken and notice us gone."

Aiden nodded and picked himself up from the ground. While he fully understood that his mother and grandparents wouldn't think the worst if they noticed them missing, Phoebe's new husband and friends would probably have had a heart attack if they awoke to find her missing.

Climbing into the field that held the horses both Elementals returned to the Manor, just as Rose, Rachel and the other workers were preparing for the day ahead.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"_Stay still._"

Bambi, six and just beginning to fully understand the concept of her new life in Portugal, mentally forgave the maid, Annabeth, who dressed her and forgot to apologize s she tied tight bows and brushed down the girl's dress. The toddler _might_ have been responsible for making such a hassle of it; she strained on tiptoes and swung this way and that to catch a glimpse of the horses that grazed outside of her window.

"Where is Phoebe?" Bambi asked.

"Mistress Blackheart is busy with her brother," Annabeth answered. "You will see her at dinner."

"Ow!"

Now Annabeth had the brush, the one with the boar's hair spines, and was yanking it down Bambi's locks in back. The 6-year-old toddler had been playing out in the garden all day, running wild, from looking out of the highest gable windows in the attic to jumping in the hay in the stables, from catching frogs with Jackson and the other servants' children, to tiptoeing about the great hall when it was empty.

But during her play Bambi's curls had become entangled together and causing knots to form at the end, knots that hurt when the bristles of the brush locked onto them.

"Mother Cats are kinder when they groom their kittens, and they have long claws and teeth!" Bambi protested.

Annabeth giggled.

"Oh, I think you'd be glad I'm not cat," she said.

There was some excitement in the hall beyond her bedroom, and Bambi managed to squirm out of Annabeth's grasp just long enough to peek over the banister.

There was a crowd downstairs of porters, luggage carriers, drivers, servants and more foreign wait staff. Piles of trunks and suitcases littered the front hall. The crowd parted for just a moment, and in the middle was the most beautiful, tall, and stately woman Bambi had ever seen, as regal and pale as an ice queen.

She was delicately removing fawn-colored gloves and a matching bonnet when she seemed to sense Bambi's stare. The woman turned, locking eyes with her for a moment.

"Isabelle!"

Bambi watched as Rachel, one of the kitchen staffs threw her arms around the newcomer and hugged her, just as Annabeth grabbed Bambi from behind and pulled her down the hallway. The toddler did not object.

"There," Annabeth declared half an hour later, as she finished dressing the young toddler. "Now, you must play quietly in here, you will be called for when Dinner is ready."

Bambi blinked in confusion as Annabeth left the room, closing the door in her wake.

Why couldn't she leave?

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally, the day ended and Christmas Eve arrived without a problem.

The Blackhearts and their guests were sitting in the family room, which Phoebe, Ashlyn, Bambi; Hermione had decorated so lavishly that it was rather like sitting in a magical Christmas grotto. They were supposed to be listening to a Christmas broadcast of Elena Blackheart's favorite singer, Celestina Warbeck, whose voice was warbling out of the large wooden wireless set.

The new comer, Isabelle Odair, who seemed to find Celestina very dull, was talking so loudly in the corner that a scowling Phoebe kept shooting her dark looks from her place next to Terence.

Jackson started a game of Exploding Snap with Hermione, while James kept shooting Isabelle covert looks, causing Ashlyn to giggle every time she caught him looking in the Frenchie's direction.

_**"Oh, come and stir my cauldron**_

_**And if you do it right,**_

_**I'll boil you up some hot strong love**_

_**To keep you warm tonight."**_

Ashlyn frowned and glanced at her best friend. "What did she say?"

"Don't ask," Phoebe muttered, embarrassed by the lyrics of the song, but also thankful that it was sung in Portuguese and her friends could not understand the words.

"That bad, huh?"

"Not necessarily bad," Phoebe answered, "embarrassing? Yes!"

Ashlyn giggled and turned back to Adrian who was talking about the effort that had gone into making the family room of Blackheart manor so spectacular.

"Yes, well, since we do not have much snow out here," said Phoebe, "we integrate magical snow to fall inside the house."

"So it's not real?"

"Oh it is real," Phoebe smiled. "It is as real as the ice sculptures in the hall. It just disappears before it touches the floor."

"And the ice sculptures?" Ashlyn asked she had never been at Blackheart manor for Christmas.

"They disappear at midnight tomorrow," Phoebe answered with a smile. "We put them up every year and they are charmed to last for Christmas but then disappear when Christmas ends."

Ashlyn grinned. "Cool."

Phoebe nodded.

_**"Oh, my poor heart, where has it gone?**_

_**It's left me for a spell..."**_

"When is Potter supposed to be joining us?" Ashlyn asked, turning back to Phoebe.

"He's not," Phoebe answered. "He has requested to stay with the Weasley's. While Dumbledore was against it happening, he finally agreed, but I assume that Harry does not wish to come stay here because of something he overheard between Draco and Professor Snape the night of Slughorn's party."

"What do you mean?"

"Harry and Ron left the party and tailed Snape down an empty corridor," Phoebe explained. "Overheard them speaking in an empty classroom. It would seem that Professor Snape has made an Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa Malfoy."

"An Unbreakable Vow?" repeated Adrian. "Are you sure?"

"That is what they heard," Phoebe answered. "Snape wanted to know what task the Dark Lord has given Draco, but Draco refuses to tell him anything, in fear that Snape is trying to steal his glory. But it would seem that Narcissa fears Draco's life, as she should, he is, after all, her only son; and therefore went to Snape, Draco's godfather, to make an Unbreakable Vow."

"Do we know what the Vow was about?" Terence asked.

"I'm guessing protection," Phoebe answered. "Why else would Narcissa go to Snape? She would have been forbidden of speaking about anything outside of her house, but Draco is her only son and she wouldn't want to lose him now, would she?"

Terence inclined his head. "True. So, what does Potter think?"

"I don't know," Phoebe answered. "I kind of exploded at him when he told me, I couldn't believe that he couldn't leave well enough alone and just enjoy the festivities. I told him that Snape was probably just pretending to offer help so that he could find out what Draco has been up too."

"But you don't believe that, do you?" Ashlyn asked.

Phoebe hesitated. "No, I do not,"

"Then what do you think?"

"I believe that Draco was forced to become a Death Eater," Phoebe answered. "But has agreed to become one simply to protect me. What better way than to warn me of what Voldemort is doing than by getting information from a Death Eater?"

Ashlyn looked impressed. "But how can we be sure that Draco isn't about to be compromised?"

"That is why I am so worried," Phoebe said, "I do not want to lose Draco..."

"And you won't," Ashlyn promised. "We will save Draco!"

Phoebe smiled weakly.

"Do not make promises you can't keep," she said, sadly.

"But how do we know -?" James tried, interjecting himself into the conversation.

"It isn't our business to know," said Phoebe. "It is Dumbledore's business. Dumbledore trusts Snape, and that ought to be good enough for all of us."

"But," said James, "just say - just say Dumbledore's wrong about Snape -"

"It comes down to whether to trust Dumbledore's judgment. I do; therefore, I trust Professor Snape."

"But even Dumbledore can make mistakes," argued James.

"You are determined to hate him, James," said Phoebe, with a faint smile. "And I understand; with Sirius as your father, you have inherited an old prejudice, just as Harry has done from James Potter, but, by all means, let Harry tell Dumbledore, but I do not think Dumbledore will share the same views as him. It might have been on Dumbledore's orders that Snape questioned Draco."

_**"... and now you've torn it quite apart**_

_**I'll thank you to give back my heart!"**_

Celestina ended her song on a very long, high-pitched note and loud applause issued out of the wireless, which Elena joined in with enthusiastically.

"Eez eet over?" said Isabelle loudly. "Thank goodness, what an 'orrible -"

"How would you know it was horrible?" Phoebe snapped. "I bet you couldn't understand a word of it!"

Isabelle glared heatedly at the elemental, despite being Rachel's favourite cousin; Phoebe was the only person at Blackheart Manor that she did not get on with.

"Do Mistress and Master Blackheart wish for a nightcap?" interrupted Rachel, jumping to her feet and turning to Jacob and Elena.

"Splendid idea," Jacob nodded. "Who wants eggnog?"

"Yes, please!" came from several different directions and Rachel quickly departed for the kitchens.

She returned ten minutes later with the help of Rose, ever since Blake's death two years previous, Rose had been very withdrawn from the rest of her family; having lived with the Blackhearts, since her parents death, they had become her family, and she loved them dearly.

Phoebe pouted as she watched every indulge in their eggnog, since finding out she was pregnant she was unable to indulge in her favourites; eggnog being one of them.

Shortly after this, Isabelle decided to imitate Celestina singing "A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love," which was taken by everyone, once they had glimpsed Elena Blackheart's expression, to be the cue to go to bed.

Phoebe and Terence led the way up to the third floor, the elemental carrying the sleeping toddler into the room next to her own.

"Goodnight, Bambi," she whispered, tucking the toddler in under the blankets, running a finger through her curls before retreating into her own bedroom where Terence was waiting for her. "She's unconscious!"

"She's had a long day," Terence agreed. "We all have. Now, come to bed!"

He patted the bed beside him. Phoebe smiled and crawled under the covers, curling up beside him, her head on his chest, hand on his stomach and his arm around her shoulders.

"Goodnight, Phe,"

"Sweet dreams!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The next morning, Phoebe and Terence were awoken by Bambi jumping on them at the crack of dawn.

"Christmas! Christmas! Come on, Phoebe! Wake up!"

Bleary eyed, Phoebe sat up and pulled Bambi down onto her lap. "Good morning to you too, Thumper," she laughed.

"Santa! Santa, come on!" Bambi giggled, tugging at Phoebe's hand. "Presents!"

"Alright, alright," Phoebe laughed, getting swiftly out of bed and pulling on her dressing gown. "Let's go see what Santa's brought you - Terence, get up!" she added, tossing a pillow at her husband. "Shall we go wake the others first, Thumper?"

Bambi's eyes lightened and she tore from the room, intending to wake up the rest of the guests, while Phoebe set off to wake her godmother and grandparents in the Blackheart traditional way.

Once everyone was awake and settled in the family room, the students set about opening their presents.

"She's got to be joking..." said James, examining what appeared to be a thick gold chain.

"What's that?" Ashlyn asked.

"It's from Lavender," said James, sounding revolted. "She can't honestly think I'd wear..."

Ashlyn looked more closely and let out a shout of laughter. Dangling from the chain in large gold letters were the words: _My Sweetheart_

"Nice," she said. "Classy. You should definitely wear it at Hogwarts. We Slytherin's could use a good laugh!"

"I - I - I'll -"

"You'll what?" Ashlyn teased. "Stutter at me?"

"How could she think I'd like something like this?" James demanded of thin air, looking rather shocked.

"Well, think back," said Ashlyn. "Have you ever let it slip that you'd like to go out in public with the word's 'My Sweetheart' round your neck?"

James shook his head. "No. We weren't even dating until I asked her to Slughorn's Christmas party! How does one date constitute to a lifetime agreement?"

"Well, technically, you wouldn't have gone on a date unless you were thinking of dating her!" Ashlyn said. "It is obvious that she thought your invitation had some deeper meaning."

"Yes, but this is getting too serious too soon!"

"Then you have to tell her," Ashlyn said. "She's not a mind reader, James, tell her how you feel!"

James pouted and looked down at the necklace. "Can't you do it for me?"

"No!" Ashlyn snapped. "It's time to grow up, James!"

"He'll never grow up," said Phoebe, having been listening to the conversation.

"Growing up is overrated," James defended, turning back to his presents.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At midday everyone was sat in the dining room ready for the Christmas dinner that had been prepared by Rose and the other kitchen staff. Elena Blackheart was wearing a stunning midnight blue floor-length gown that shimmered and twinkled whenever she moved.

"Thomas, I cannot thank you enough for this dress, it is beautiful!" she smiled.

"It was my pleasure, Elena," Thomas said, brushing her off. "After all, you have kindly taken me in!"

"You raised our grandson," Elena replied. "We could never thank you enough for raising him!"

Phoebe smiled across the table at Aiden, as Rose placed a gravy boat in front of her along with a few other bowls of food, before leaving the room and returning to the kitchen to finish the desserts. However, she returned no less than five minutes later, looking rather frazzled.

_"Master Blackheart, sir!"_ she said rather quickly, startling Jacob who looked up perplexed. _"Master Blackheart! Minister Marques is in the study! He has brought Minister Scrimgeour with him!"_

_"What?"_ Jacob demanded, while Phoebe and Aiden exchanged looks. What would bring Rufus Scrimgeour all the way to Portugal and at Christmas no less?

_"He wishes to speak with Phoebe, sir,"_ Rose answered.

Jacob paused and glanced at his granddaughter and then around at his family and guests.

"If you would all excuse me, I have something to attend to!" he stood and quickly left the room.

"What was that about?" James asked, looking at Phoebe.

"Scrimgeour is here," Phoebe answered. "He wants to speak with me!"

Terence frowned. "Why?"

"That is a good question," Phoebe said, looking down the table at her godmother and grandmother. _"Should I -?"_

_"No, Phoebe, stay seated,_" Serefina answered.

Elena got to her feet. "Eat. Rose will be highly disappointed. She works hard on this dinner... I will be back!" she said to her guests and family, before leaving the room just as her husband had done.

Phoebe frowned and glanced at her godmother. "What would bring Scrimgeour all the way to Portugal?"

"I do not know, Phoebe," Serefina said, shaking her head. "Now, eat your dinner, I'm sure we will know soon enough."

The students and graduates around the table exchanged looks and returned to their dinner, although eating was not on their minds. At least quarter of an hour after Elena Blackheart had left the room, she returned.

"_Come with me, little star!"_

_"Mother?"_

_"All in due time, Serefina,"_ Elena nodded. "_Phoebe..."_

Phoebe frowned and looked around at her friends. "Excuse me," she said, getting to her feet and following her grandmother from the room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You must forgive my intrusion," said Rufus Scrimgeour the moment Phoebe had entered the study. "I wouldn't have come had it not been so important."

"What is so important that you could not wait for my return to England?" Phoebe asked. "You had to make this long trip to Portugal?"

"I was wondering if maybe we could talk in private."

Phoebe was not fooled; for all Scrimgeour's talk about not meaning to intrude, she knew that this was the real reason they he had come all the way to Portugal, so that he could speak to Phoebe alone.

"No," Phoebe said. "Anything you have to say you can say in front of my grandparents and my Minister!"

Scrimgeour glared at her.

"Fine," he huffed. "I'll just get straight to the point and then I'll be off."

There was a heavy silence, in which Phoebe cleared her throat and prompted for Scrimgeour to continue.

He did.

"I have wanted to meet you for a very long time," he said. "Did you know that?"

"Spare me the dramatics," Phoebe said. "What is your reason for interrupting my Christmas?"

"I have been hoping for an occasion to talk to you ever since I gained office, but Dumbledore has - most undoubtedly, as I say - prevented this."

He wanted for Phoebe to say something, but Phoebe did not oblige, so he went on, "The rumors that have flown around! Well, of course, we both know how these stories get distorted... all these whispers of a prophecy... of your friend, Mr. Potter being 'the Chosen One'"

_**That's it... a little closer... you are almost there,**_Phoebe thought _**Keep talking. I'll get the reason for your intrusion.**_

"... I assume that Dumbledore has discussed these matters with you?"

"Why would he?" Phoebe asked. "If the rumors are about Harry, why would Dumbledore discuss them with me?"

"Come now, Phoebe," Scrimgeour chuckled. "We all know how close you are the Dumbledore and Harry, I do not think, for one second that Dumbledore would not discuss something as important as 'the Chosen One' with you."

Still, Phoebe said nothing, waiting.

Scrimgeour huffed and pressed on. "Have you, have you..."

"Have I... what?" Phoebe shrugged. "Have I talked about Harry with Dumbledore? Of course I have... Will I discuss what we discussed with you? Not a chance!"

"May I ask why?"

"Because it is between the Headmaster and me," said Phoebe. "He told me everything in confidence, and I respect the headmaster too much to break a promise of silence."

"Oh, of course, if it's a question of confidences, I wouldn't want you to divulge... no, no... And in any case, does it really matter whether Mr. Potter is the 'the Chosen One' or not?"

Phoebe had to mull that one over for a few seconds before responding. "I don't really know what you mean, Scrimgeour.

"Well, of course, to Mr. Potter it will matter enormously," said Scrimgeour with a laugh. "But to the Wizarding community of England... it's all perception, isn't it? It's what people believe that's important?"

Phoebe said nothing. She though she saw, dimly, where they were heading, but she was not going to help Scrimgeour get there.

"People believe Mr. Potter _is_ 'the Chosen One', you see," said Scrimgeour. "They think he is quite the hero - which, of course, he is, Phoebe, chosen or not! How many times has Mr. Potter faced He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named now? Well, anyway," he pressed on, without waiting for a reply, "the point is, Mr. Potter is a symbol of hope for many, Phoebe. The idea that there is somebody out there who might be able, who might even be _destined_, to destroy He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named - well, naturally, it gives people a lift. And I can't help but feel that, once Mr. Potter realizes this, he might consider it, well, almost a duty, to stand alongside the Ministry, and give everyone a boost."

"Why are you not talking to Harry about this?" Phoebe asked.

"Well," said Scrimgeour. "We have already paid a visit to Mr. Potter; he has agreed to think about the position!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. Now that wasn't true. "He said no, didn't he?"

Scrimgeour nodded. "Yes. I thought that maybe you could talk to me... show him that this would be the best policy for all!"

"Oh, I get it!" Phoebe smirked. "You want _me_ to try and convince Harry to be the Ministry's poster boy?"

Scrimgeour barked out a laugh. "Colorful. But accurate!"

"Not interested!"

"It would give everyone a lift to think that Mr. Potter were more involved," said Scrimgeour, hastily. "'The Chosen One' you know... it's all about giving people hope, the feeling that exciting things are happening..."

"I have news for you, Scrimgeour. Harry does not agree with the methods that the Ministry are taking... he is not going to come at your beck and call and tell the citizens of England that you are doing things correctly, when in reality you are making things worse!" Phoebe interrupted. "You locked up an innocent man! That is something that we, Harry and I, do not agree with!"

"Innocent man?"

"Stan Shunpike," Phoebe nodded.

Scrimgeour did not speak for a moment but his expression hardened instantly. "I would not expect you to understand," he said, and he was not as successful at keeping the anger out of his voice. "These are dangerous times, and certain measures need to be taken. You, and Mr. Potter, are sixteen years old -"

"Professor Dumbledore is a lot older than sixteen, and he doesn't think Stan should be in Azkaban either," Phoebe yelled. "You're making Stan a scapegoat, just like you want me to convince Harry to be your mascot."

They looked at each other, long and hard.

Finally Scrimgeour said, with no pretense at warmth. "I see. You prefer - like your hero, Dumbledore - to disassociate yourself from the Ministry?"

"You are not my Ministry!" Phoebe snapped. "I have no obligations to you, your government or your rules! It is not my duty to be used by the Ministry of a country that I only reside in for 11 months! It is also not my duty to convince my friends that it is _their_ duty to be used by a Ministry that did everything within their power to discredit and punish him for accusations of truth a year ago!"

Elena, Jacob and Marques were silent.

"I am sorry that you travelled a long way, Scrimgeour," Phoebe added, "but the answer is no!"

They stood in silence.

"What is Dumbledore up to?" said Scrimgeour brusquely. "What does he go when he is absent from Hogwarts?"

"No idea," said Phoebe.

"And you wouldn't tell me if you knew," said Scrimgeour, "would you?"

"No, I wouldn't," said Phoebe.

"Well, then, I shall have to see whether I can't find out by other means."

"You can try," said Phoebe indifferently. "But you seem clever than that fool, Cornelius Fudge, so I'd have thought you'd have learned from his mistakes. He tried interfering at Hogwarts. You might have noticed he's not Minister anymore, but Dumbledore is still headmaster. I'd leave Dumbledore alone, if I were you."

There was a long pause.

"Well, it's clear to me that he has done a very good job on you," said Scrimgeour, his eyes cold and hard behind his wire-rimmed glasses. "Dumbledore's person through and through, aren't you, Blackheart?"

"Actually, I am not," Phoebe responded. "But if there was a choice between you and Dumbledore for Minister for Magic... I would choose Dumbledore in a heartbeat! He knows what he is doing!"

And turning her back on the Minister of England, Phoebe strode out of the study door and returned to the dining hall where her friends were finishing dessert.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, July 07, 2012 at 10:15pm**


	139. Chapter 139

**Author's Note: **I apologize for not updating this story for some time, I kinda got caught up in writing another story. But that story has been fully typed up now and it is just the point of uploading the chapters and planning the sequel. Anyway, here is the next chapter of Phoebe; I have been looking forward to this chapter for months.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics,** **Alaina08, KingdomHeartsNerd, Blue-Bubble-Rainbow-Boat** and **The Wind in the Leaves. **

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **SoulVirus, MiraclesHappen94** and** The Wind in the Leaves** for adding me to their alerts. Appreciate mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

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><p>Late in the afternoon, a few days after New Year, Phoebe, Hermione, Ashlyn, James, Aiden, Sarah and Adrian lined up beside the kitchen fire to return to Hogwarts. Only Terence, Bambi and Elena Blackheart were there to say goodbye, as Jacob and Serefina were at the Ministry, while Josephine and Philip had returned to England the night before, and Isabelle had returned to Beauxbatons already.<p>

"Promise me you'll look after yourself," Elena said, enfolding Phoebe in her arms. "Stay out of trouble!"

"I always do, Grandma," said Phoebe.

"Of course you do," Terence teased, hugging her from behind as Elena moved on to hug Aiden. "I'm not stationed in Hogsmeade this side of Christmas! So I won't see you now until June."

Phoebe pouted. "Aw, what am I going to do now?" she asked. "First they take Serefina and now you? Do they not want me to be happy?"

Terence chuckled. "Send Athena with your next Hogsmeade date and I will be there," he said. "I promise!"

"I will do that," Phoebe nodded, reaching up to kiss him.

"Alright. Let's go..." Ashlyn interrupted. "Before Phoebe decides she's not coming back!"

The elemental stuck her tongue out at her best friend and stepped into the fireplace, alongside Hermione. "Hogwarts!" she shouted and had one last fleeting view of her family before the flames engulfed them; spinning very fast, the two friends caught blurred glimpses of other Wizarding rooms, which were whipped out of sight before they could get a proper look; then they were slowing down, finally stopping squarely in the fireplace in Professor Dumbledore's office.

He beamed at them as they clambered out over the grate.

"Evening, Mrs. Blackheart, Miss. Granger."

"Evening Professor," Phoebe nodded.

Hermione flattened her hair as Sarah and Aiden came spinning into view. Next came James and finally Ashlyn and Adrian, once Ashlyn had clambered out of the grate, the whole group trooped out of Dumbledore's office.

"Mrs. Blackheart," Dumbledore said, stopping her before she could close the door. "Could you please give this to Mr. Potter when you see him?"

He handed over a scroll of paper.

Phoebe smiled. "Of course," she nodded. "Goodnight, Headmaster."

"Goodnight, my dear,"

Hermione and James returned to the Gryffindor common room, Adrian returned to the Slytherin common room, while Aiden walked Sarah back to the Hufflepuff common rooms, leaving Phoebe and Ashlyn to wander around the school before curfew set in.

Phoebe glanced out of the corridor window as they passed; the sun was already sinking over grounds carpeted in deep snow. In the distance, she could see Hagrid feeding Buckbeak in front of his cabin.

"Baubles," said a familiar voice confidently, and it was only then that the elemental realized that she and Ashlyn had wandered up to the Gryffindor tower, ahead of them, trying to gain access was Harry, Ron and Ginny.

"No," said the Fat Lady, she looked rather paler than usual and winced at the loudness of Ron's voice.

"What d'you mean, 'no'?"

"There is a new password," the Fat Lady said. "And please don't shout."

"But we've been away, how're we supposed to -?"

"_Abstinence,"_ Phoebe said as she grew closer, after saying goodbye to Ashlyn.

Harry, Ron and Ginny spun around at the sound of her voice.

"Hey, Phoebe," Ginny smiled as the Fat Lady swung forward to reveal the portrait hole. "What's up with the Fat Lady?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I don't know," she answered. "I only just got back! How was your Christmas?"

"Pretty eventful," said Ron. "Rufus Scrim -"

"Visited?" Phoebe interrupted. "Yeah, he came to Portugal too. Oh, I've got something for you, Harry," she added.

She rummaged in her pocket for a moment, and then pulled out the scroll of parchment that Dumbledore had given her.

"Great," said Harry, unrolling it at once to discover that his next lesson was scheduled for the following night. "I've got loads to tell him - and you. Let's sit down!"

They sat down at an empty table on the other side of the common room, while Ginny went off to find Dean; as soon as they had sat down Hermione joined them.

"Where is James?" Phoebe asked.

Hermione pointed towards the fireplace, where she could vaguely see James attempting to peel Lavender off of him, as she tried kissing every inch of his face she could reach.

"So, how was your Christmas?" Harry asked.

"Fun. Portugal is amazing," Hermione shrugged. "How was it at the Burrow?"

Phoebe grinned in respect.

"I'll tell you in a minute," said Harry, "first I want to know if you have heard of anyone called Fenrir Greyback?"

"Yes, I have!" said Phoebe, sounding startled.

"And so have you, Harry!" added Hermione, patting her best friend's hand, in a calming manner.

"When, History of Magic? You know full well I never listen..."

"No, no, not History of Magic - Malfoy threatened Borgin with him!" said Hermione. "Back in Knockturn Alley, don't you remember? He told Borgin that Greyback was an old family friend and that he'd be checking up on Borgin's progress!"

Harry's jaw hit the floor. "I forgot! But this _proves_ Malfoy's a Death Eater, how else could he be in contact with Greyback and telling him what to do?"

"Harry -" Phoebe started to argue.

"It is pretty suspicious," Ron interrupted. "You can't deny that, Blackheart!"

"No, I can't," Phoebe said. "But -"

"Oh, come on," said Harry in exasperation, "you can't get round this one!"

"It could have been an empty threat," Phoebe pointed out.

"You're unbelievable, you are," said Harry, shaking his head. "We'll see who's right... You'll be eating your words, Phoebe, just like the Ministry. Oh yeah, I had a row with Rufus Scrimgeour as well..."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, I know,"

"How do you know?" Ron asked.

"Because he interrupted my Christmas, idiot," Phoebe hissed. "He told me that he had been to see you about becoming the Ministry's mascot!"

Harry frowned. "Why did he come to you?"

"Because he wanted me to try and convince you to change your mind!"

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him where to shove it," Phoebe said. "He now knows that neither of us trust the Ministry, and since I only reside in Britain for 11 months he has no control over me. Actually had the nerve to turn up with my Minister for Magic, like that would do anything, Antonio would defend my family to the grave... both our families have been friends for generations."

**~*Phoebe*~**

APPARITION LESSONS

_If you are seventeen years of age, or will turn seventeen on or before the 31st August next, you are eligible for a twelve-week course of Apparition Lessons from a Ministry of Magic Apparition instructor. Please sign below if you would like to participate._

_Cost: 12 Galleons_

Ashlyn and Aiden joined the crowd that was jostling around the notice and taking it in turns to write their names at the bottom, making it to the front, Aiden signed both his name and Ashlyn's, before the two snake made their way up to the Great Hall for breakfast.

They bumped into Phoebe and Hermione in the Entrance Hall.

"Hey," Aiden said, smiling at his sister. "Did you see the signs?"

"Apparition lessons?"

Aiden nodded. "Did you sign?"

"Can't,"

"Why not?"

"Pregnant!"

"Oh, yeah," said Aiden sheepishly. "Guess you'll have to learn after the baby's born, eh?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, but I don't mind side-along Apparition,"

"Yeah, she and Terence get that extra few minutes together," Ashlyn teased, causing the elemental to blush and look down.

Aiden was not the only one excited at the prospect of Apparition. All that day there was much talk about the forthcoming lessons; a great deal of store was set by being able to vanish and reappear at will.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At 8:00pm later that evening, Phoebe found herself sitting in Dumbledore's office discussing her Christmas with the headmaster.

The lamps were lit, the portraits of previous headmasters were snoring quietly in their frames, and there was a Pensieve on the desk; Phoebe knew that this was for Harry, who was due any minute.

"Scrimgeour does not seem to be very happy with myself and Harry, Professor," said Phoebe.

"No," sighed Dumbledore. "He is not very happy with me either. We must try not to sink beneath our anguish, Phoebe, but battle on."

Phoebe smile.

"He wanted me to convince Harry to tell the Wizarding community that the Ministry's doing a wonderful job."

Dumbledore smiled.

"It was Fudge's idea originally, you know. During his last days in office, when he was trying desperately to cling to his post, he sought a meeting with Harry, hoping that him would give him their support -"

"After everything Fudge did last year?" said Phoebe angrily. "After _Umbridge_?"

"I told Cornelius there was no chance of it, but the idea did not die when he left office. Within hours of Scrimgeour's appointment we met and he demanded that I arrange a meeting with Harry -"

"So that's why you argued!" Phoebe blurted out, before blushing. "Sorry!"

Dumbledore chuckled. "There is no need to apologize, my dear child," he said. "But, yes, that is why we argued. But it would seem Rufus found a way to corner Harry at last."

"But why did he come to me?"

"I believe that after Harry told him no," said Dumbledore. "He thought that you, being one of Harry's close friends, and someone he trusted, would get him to see the good in helping the Ministry. I do not believe he understands how much you despise what he stands for..."

Phoebe's blush deepened.

"He accused me of being 'Dumbledore's person through and through.'"

"How very rude of him."

Phoebe smiled. "I told him that I wasn't," she said. "But I did say that I had more respect for you than I did for him."

"I suppose he did not like that?"

"No," said Phoebe. "He wanted to know where you go when you're not at Hogwarts."

"Yes, he is very nosy about that," said Dumbledore. "He has even attempted to have me followed. Amusing, really. He set Dawlish to tail me. It wasn't kind. I have already been forced to jinx Dawlish once; I did it again with the greatest regret."

"So they still don't know where you go?" asked Phoebe.

"No, they don't, and the time is not quite right for you to know either."

Phoebe nodded, she knew that Dumbledore would tell her when he was ready, plus there was also the fact that Harry would be along soon and she had to return to Gryffindor tower and start her patrol with Ron.

She groaned at the idea.

There was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Dumbledore said, and the door opened to reveal Harry standing on the otherside. He gave a start when he saw Phoebe sitting in front of the headmaster's desk.

"Phoebe?" he frowned. "I thought you were in the library?"

"I was," Phoebe nodded.

Harry opened his mouth to retort, but Dumbledore interrupted.

"So, Harry, we meet this evening to continue the tale of Tom Riddle, whom we left last lesson poised on the threshold of his years at Hogwarts."

Phoebe looked curious, but shook her head; she had other things that she needed to be doing. Getting to her feet, the elemental turned to Dumbledore.

"I'll be taking my leave now, sir," she said. "I have Prefect duties to attend to!"

"Of course, Mrs. Blackheart," Dumbledore nodded.

Phoebe smiled. "Goodnight, Professor," she said, before turning to Harry. "See you in the common room later."

Harry nodded and watched as Phoebe crossed the office and disappeared out of the office, closing the door behind her.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, July 14, 2012 at 5:55am**


	140. Chapter 140

**Author's Note:** More precious apologies for not updating sooner. Got caught up writing another story and its sequel... but i'm back now.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **DJScales, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Alaina08, TheMarauders'NewApprentice** and** Pixiescale1185.**

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **Alaina08, xPlaygroundLovex** and **Chinaluv** for adding me or this story to their alerts. Appreciate mates.

**Special Shout Out:** Big thank you to the awesome **Chinaluv** who took the time to review every chapter from chapter 1 to 125. Left me with 150 emails to skim through, but it was so worth it.

**Disclaimer: **Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

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><p>The next day Harry confided in Ron, Hermione and Phoebe the task that Dumbledore had set him. Ron, however, thought that Harry was unlikely to have any trouble with Slughorn at all.<p>

"He loves you," he said over breakfast waving an airy forkful of fried egg. "Won't refuse you anything, will he? Not his little Potions Prince. Just hang back after class this afternoon."

"That may be true, Ron," Hermione nodded. "But he must be determined to hide what really happened if Dumbledore couldn't get it out of him. Horcruxes... _Horcruxes_... I've never even heard of them, have you Phoebe?"

The elemental looked startled. "What? Oh, no! No, I haven't!"

"You haven't?" Harry asked, sounding disappointed, he had hoped that either Hermione or Phoebe would have been able to give him some clue as to what Horcruxes were.

"I'm guessing they are really advanced Dark Magic," said Phoebe, "why else would Voldemort have wanted to know about them? I think it's going to be difficult to get information, Harry, you'll have to be very careful about how you approach Slughorn!"

Hermione nodded. "You need to think out a strategy..."

Ron rolled his eyes but didn't comment, although the action didn't go unnoticed by Phoebe who narrowed her eyes at him. "We all know that you prefer to be brazen about all this, Weasley, but if Harry wants that memory then he has to be extra careful! Your plan simply won't work this time... approach this wrong and Harry could push Slughorn away and he'll never get the memory!"

The red head glared at the elemental, but before he could retort the post owls arrived and Athena was interrupted by the arrival of Athena with a letter from Serefina.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Settle down, settle down, please! Quickly, now, lots of work to get through this afternoon! Golpalott's Third Law... who can tell me -? But Miss. Granger can, of course!"

"Golpalott's-Third-Law-states-that-the-antidote-for-a-blended-poison-will-be-equal-to-more-than-the-sum-of-the-antidotes-for-each-of-the-separate-components," Hermione recited at high speed, she had opted from sitting beside Harry and Ron today and was sitting with Ashlyn, Aiden and Phoebe instead of James, who was sitting with Harry, Ron and Ernie.

"Precisely!" beamed Slughorn. "Ten points to Gryffindor! Now, if we accept Golpalott's Third Law as true..."

James was going to have to take Slughorn's word for it that Golpalott's Third Law was true, because he had not understood any of it. Nobody apart from Phoebe, Ashlyn and Hermione seemed to be following what Slughorn said next either.

"... which means, of course, that assuming we have achieved correct identification of the potion's ingredients by Scarpin's Revelaspell, our primary aim is not the relatively simple one of selecting antidotes to those ingredients in and of themselves, but to find that added component that will, by an almost alchemical process, transform these disparate elements -"

Phoebe glanced back at James, to find him with his mouth half open, doodling absently on his copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_. She rolled her eyes and turned back to Slughorn has he came to the end of his speech, the differences between her and James was that she didn't need to listen to Slughorn and she could still get the potion right.

"... and so," finished Slughorn, "I want each of you to come and take one of these phials from my desk. You are to create an antidote for the poison within it before the end of the lesson. Good luck, and don't forget your protective gloves!"

Hermione had left her stool and was halfway toward Slughorn's desk before the rest of the class had realized it was time to move, and by the time Phoebe and Ashlyn had returned to the table, she had already tipped the contents of her phial into her cauldron and was kindling a fire underneath it.

"It's a shame that the Prince won't be able to help you much with this, Harry is going to have to do it all alone!" she said, as Phoebe, Aiden and Ashlyn set up their cauldrons beside her.

"You underestimate him, Hermione," said Phoebe. "Harry will find a way around this, with or without the help of the Halfblood Prince!"

Hermione made a small noise of disagreement and returned to her cauldron, and started waving her wand enthusiastically over her cauldron.

Shaking her head, Ashlyn poured the contents of her phial into the cauldron and preceded onto the next set of instructions, and peered at her potions book as Phoebe let out a quiet moan from beside her, the Slytherin glanced up just in time to see the elemental press her hand to her head.

"Phoebe, what's wrong?" Ashlyn asked, turning to her best friend and reaching out to touch her.

Phoebe quickly pushed herself to her feet, drawing attention from the entire class; she swayed and lost her balance immediately as her energy seemed to disappear. Aiden immediately caught her, but as soon as he touched her, Phoebe let out an agonizing scream and pressed her hands to her head as hard as she could as she felt like it was going to explode.

"Phoebe!"

The elemental felt the last of her energy disappear and everything went dark.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What happened?"

Aiden looked up as his mother strode towards him from the corridor outside, she looked positively exhausted. "We don't know," he answered, deciding that it was better not to lie. "We were in Potions, she was fine up until it was time to start extracting ingredients from her poison... she then let out a tiny moan and collapsed."

"And -?"

"I grabbed her so that she wouldn't injure herself when she hit the floor," Aiden continued. "But as soon as I touched her, she let out an agonizing scream, and then she just passed out!"

Serefina sighed and glanced at her goddaughter who slept soundly in the bed. "Has Dumbledore been informed?"

"Yes," Aiden nodded. "He has told Madam Pomfrey that Phoebe is her number one priority. He understands that she has other patience but if Phoebe is to wake up or anything..." he trailed off; he knew that his mother understood what he was trying to say. "What's going on, Serefina?" he asked.

"I don't know, Aiden," she answered, glancing at her son and then back at her goddaughter. "I really wish I had the answer to your question... and you know that if I did, I would not hide it from you! But I simply do not know what is going on."

Aiden heaved a heavy sigh and turned to his sister. She looked peaceful, but it didn't take a genius to see that she was in pain... even while she slept.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Over the next few days Phoebe remained unconscious in the Hospital Wing, every day Madam Pomfrey attended to her and checked her over for any internal injuries, there was more of a fear of how her baby was reacting to whatever had happened Phoebe wasn't awake to eat which meant that the baby wasn't getting any nutrients.

Terence had come from Portugal the same day Phoebe had been admitted to the Hospital Wing and now refused to leave his wife's side, he spent most of his time just sitting beside the bed and holding her hand, often he would brush hair from her face and kiss her forehead and whisper for her to wake up, but nothing brought the elemental back to the land of the living.

Her friends, who had not been in Potions when she had fainted, visited every day hoping for some news... but they always left half-heartedly and disappointed.

Phoebe was simply not waking up.

"What the hell is wrong with her?" Sarah said, as she sat in the back of the library with Aiden, Ashlyn, James and Amelia. "What could make her scream and pass out?"

"No one knows," Amelia said. "In order to answer that question we'd need to understand more about Phoebe..."

"But we know everything about her!"

Aiden looked guilty. "Actually, you don't know _everything_," he admitted.

His friends looked surprised.

"What do you mean?" James asked. "What don't we know?"

"I can't tell you!"

"Why not?"

"Because Phoebe would kill me!"

"Phoebe is in no position to be killing anyone right now, Aiden!" said Ashlyn. "What aren't you telling us?"

Aiden sucked in a breath and looked around his friends. "Sorry, Pheebs," he muttered, before taking another deep breath and nodding. "Alright. At the end of last year, Phoebe had a reaction to Voldemort when he tried to possess Harry..."

"Yes, we know," Sarah nodded. "You reacted the same!"

"No, Sarah," Aiden said. "What happened to be was a backlash! It only happened because I am linked to Phoebe via our elemental connection. Phoebe is linked to Voldemort via her control over water!"

His friends stared at him dumbfounded.

Aiden sighed, it was complicated when Serefina had tried to explain it to him, and he had been half asleep at the end, now he had to try and explain it in a sense that his friends, who did not fully comprehend elemental connections, would understand.

"Okay, it's complicated to try and explain, so i'm just going to try and explain it in a way you might be able to understand. Phoebe and Voldemort are connected to one another through Salazar Slytherin. Voldemort and Salazar are from the same family and Phoebe is connected to Slytherin through her control over water..."

"How does that make her and Voldemort connected?" Amelia asked. "Does he have elemental powers too?"

"No," Aiden said, shaking his head.

"I'm confused,"

Aiden sighed. "Phoebe is connected to Voldemort via her elemental powers that are the same as Salazar Slytherin's, and Voldemort is a direct descendant of Slytherin but does not possess the elemental control of water, but due to the similar fact that they are both connected to Salazar, they are both connected to each other."

"So, Phoebe is connected to Voldemort through Salazar as they share the same connection like she does with you?" Ashlyn asked.

"Yes," Aiden nodded. "This is why Phoebe feels intense pain when Voldemort tried to possess Harry at the end of last year!"

"But how does that explain what happened in Potions?" James asked. "Harry was fine during the lesson; he showed no signs of being possessed."

Aiden shook his head. "What if Voldemort tried to possess Phoebe directly? Their link is not designed to do that... plus Phoebe is skilled in Occlumency, no one can gain access to her mind unless she lets them!"

"Phoebe is protected by the four founders, isn't she?" James asked.

"Yes," Ashlyn nodded. "What if Voldemort did try and access her mind directly and the founders blocked him? Would that cause her intense pain?"

"It could," Aiden nodded. "I would have to speak with Serefina or my grandparents to understand fully, but there is a chance that could happen!"

James, Sarah, Ashlyn and Amelia exchanged looks, before the five of them hastily shoved their work back into the backpacks, jumped to their feet and hurriedly left the library in search of Serefina.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I know this chapter isn't much… but for some reason I simply cannot think of how to word anything and I would much rather post it as it is than force anything else into and ruin it completely.

**A/N 2:** I don't know when the next update will be... but I'll try not to take months! I have to look over the rest of this year as things have changed and i'm not really happy about it! Next chapter should be posted sometime in the next couple of days.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, 17th July 2012 at 05:08am**


	141. Chapter 141

**Author's Note:** Whoo! I am back! This chapter was a right pain but it _**FINALLY**_ worked.

**Dedications:** Chapter dedicated to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, The Wind the Leaves, Alaina08, Pixiescale1185, Chinaluv** and an anonymous reviewer.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **mangotango4you** and** Bloody Hooker** for adding me or this story to their alerts. Appreciate mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

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><p>"I haven't found one single explanation of what Horcruxes do!" Hermione sighed. For once, in her entire six years at Hogwarts, the library had failed her. "Not a single one! I've been right through the restricted section and even in the most <em>horrible<em> books, where they tell you how to brew the most _gruesome_ potions - nothing! All I could get was this, in the introduction to _Magick Moste Evile_ - listen - "Of the Horcrux, wickedest of magical inventions, we shall not speak nor give direction..."

Ron frowned. "Well that was pointless," he sighed. "What's the point of mentioning it?"

"My thoughts exactly," Hermione nodded, looking up at the red head, and slamming the book shut so that it let out a ghostly wail. "Oh, shut up," she snapped, stuffing it back into her bag. "Anyway, anyone heard word of Phoebe?"

Harry shook his head. "Madam Pomfrey says she is stable," he answered. "But she's just not waking up!"

"I wonder what happened." Hermione said, looking curious. "Do you think Professor Blackheart has any idea?"

"I don't think she would tell us even if she did," Ron shrugged. "You know how secretive she and Phoebe are about anything that happens in the elemental world."

"She has every right to be,"

"I know," Harry nodded. "But it would be nice if they could trust us... I mean, Phoebe trusted us enough to tell us she was an elemental, and we haven't gone and told anyone or put her in danger... at least not in the sense where evil finds out about her!"

"Except Voldemort knows," Hermione pointed out. "Pettigrew told him... remember?"

"Yeah, but we didn't _tell_ Pettigrew ourselves," Ron added in. "Phoebe used her powers that night in the Shrieking Shack, remember? She gave herself away!"

Hermione sighed, that was true.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The snow melted around the school as February arrived, to be replaced by cold, dreary wetness. Purplish-gray clouds hung low over the castle and a constant fall of chilly rain made the lawns slippery and muddy. The upshot of this was that the sixth years' first Apparition lesson, which scheduled for a Saturday morning so that no normal lessons would be missed, took place in the Great Hall.

"I don't think I can enjoy it knowing that Phoebe is in the Hospital wing," Amelia said, as she met up with Adrian and Ashlyn in the middle of the Entrance Hall.

"Hey, c'mon," Ashlyn said, nudging her friend in the shoulder. "Phoebe wouldn't want us to give up everything just because she's indisposed. You know she would encourage you to go through with this even if she was awake... besides, she can't take the lessons with us!"

Amelia nodded. "True. But still, she could watch, and besides, she does side-along Apparition, she knows what it is like!"

Ashlyn smiled. "Doesn't make it any different," she answered. "I've done Side-Along Apparition too!"

"I hate purebloods," Amelia pouted. "You already know what to expect... does it hurt?"

"Feels like you're being sucked through a straw,"

Amelia's face paled. "I suddenly don't want to go through with it!"

Aiden chuckled and wrapped an arm around his girlfriends best friend as he made his way towards the Great Hall. "Don't worry, Amelia, you get used to it after a while," he promised.

"So the feeling goes away?"

"I said you get used to it," Aiden said. "I didn't say that the feeling goes away. You just learn to adjust... just like you do everything else!"

Amelia sighed heavily and crossed the threshold into the Great Hall along with her friends and the rest of the other sixth years that had signed up.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Phoebe groaned as she opened her eyes for the second time that evening, although the difference being this time she knew _exactly_ where she was._

_The elemental dimension hadn't changed that much since the last time she was here... and that had been a while ago._

_Pushing herself into a sitting position, Phoebe rubbed her eyes tiredly and looked around the room. It was the room that had been set up for her since the first time she had come here and met the four founders that had become her mentors._

_"Ah, so you've decided to rejoin us," said a sweet voice, one that caused Phoebe to smile and look up at Helga Hufflepuff. "How are you feeling, young one?"_

_"Like I've been run over by the Knight bus,"_

_Helga smiled and approached her young charge. "That was some nasty magic that attacked you," she said._

_"Do you know what happened to me?"_

_"I do," Helga nodded. "We all do. But Salazar wishes to explain it to you!"_

_"He does?"_

_Helga smiled. "Yes, he says to send you to his quarters when you are ready. But first... you must regain your strength. You have been asleep for a while, are you hungry?"_

_Phoebe smiled, next to Salazar, Helga was her favourite._

**~*Phoebe*~**

"How did you do?" asked Ron, hurrying toward Harry. "I think I felt something the last time I tried - a kind of tingling in my feet."

"If you had said your head I would have suggested you go see Madam Pomfrey, Weasley," said Ashlyn as she stepped out of the Great Hall with Amelia and Aiden. "You were lucky!"

Ron glared at her as they group of four hurried off.

"I wonder where James is?" Harry asked.

"Lavender hasn't left him alone all day," Hermione answered. "She just latched onto him as he was leaving with Ashlyn and them... I don't think Ashlyn likes her very much!"

"Can you blame her?" Harry asked.

Hermione shrugged. "I wonder if they've gone to visit Phoebe?"

"Probably," said Harry, glancing over his shoulder to see where Malfoy was, and speeding up as they came into the entrance hall. "Look, hurry up, will you, there's something I want to do..."

Perplexed, Ron and Hermione followed Harry back to the Gryffindor Tower at a run. They were temporarily detained by Peeves, who had jammed a door on the fourth floor shut and was refusing to let anyone pass until they set fire to their own pants, but Harry, Ron and Hermione simply turned back and took one of their trusted shortcuts.

Within five minutes, they were climbing through the portrait hole.

"Are you going to tell us what we're doing, then?" asked Ron, panting slightly.

"Up here," said Harry, and he crossed the common room and led the way through the door to the boys' staircase.

Hermione frowned. "Why are we up here?" she asked. "I thought we were going to visit Phoebe?"

"Why, so we can sit there and watch her sleep?" Ron asked.

"You know, one of these days you are going to say that and Phoebe is not going to wake up!" Hermione snapped at the red head. "Harry, what is more important than checking up on a friend?"

"Malfoy's using Crabbe and Goyle as lookouts. He was arguing with Crabbe just now. I want to know - aha."

He had flung open his trunk and began to rummage in it, finally finding a folded square of apparently blank parchment, which he now smoothed out and tapped with the tip of his wand.

"_I solemnly swear that I am up to no good..._ or Malfoy is anyway."

At once, the Marauder's Map appeared on the parchment's surface. Here was a detailed plan of every one of the castle's floors and, moving around it, the tiny, labeled black dots that signified each of the castle's occupants.

"Help me find Malfoy," said Harry urgently. He laid the map upon his bed, and he and Ron leaned over it, searching.

"C'mon, Hermione," said Ron, waving her over.

But the bookworm hung back. "No," she said.

"No? What do you mean, no?" Harry and Ron asked.

"No," Hermione repeated. "You promised Phoebe you wouldn't get involved with her brother, Harry!"

Harry glared at her. "No, I promised I wouldn't pursue her brother," he said. "Using the Lucky Potion!" he added as Hermione went to argue.

Hermione shook her head. "Whatever. I for one value my friendship with Phoebe and want nothing to do with this! I'm going to the hospital wing!"

And she left the room.

Harry and Ron exchanged looks.

"Priorities, much?" Ron frowned, looking back at the map and pin-pointing Malfoy's exact location.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Phoebe smiled as she sat in the high back chair in front of Salazar's desk; he wasn't looking at her, yet at something in front of him._

_"You do know that you're dead, right?" she asked._

_"Yes, Phoebe, I am aware of that," Salazar chuckled, looking up at last._

_Phoebe smiled sheepishly. "Sorry," she mumbled, blushing slightly. "It's just..."_

_"I know," he nodded, putting down the quill he had been using. "But with there only being four of us here, we have to keep busy somehow."_

_"So..." said Phoebe, swinging her legs childishly. "Helga said you knew what happened to me!"_

_"Yes, I do,"_

_"Are you going to tell me?"_

_Salazar couldn't help but smile as he gazed over the desk at her. "I think you already have a pretty good idea, don't you?"_

_"I'm thinking dark magic," Phoebe nodded. "But I'm not _completely_ sure that is the case."_

_"You are along the correct lines," Salazar nodded. "What happened exactly was that Voldemort tried to possess you -"_

_"What?" Phoebe yelped, jumping out of her seat and instantly regretting it as her stomach turned over. "Oh... sitting down now!" she mumbled, sitting on the edge of her seat and resting her head in her hands._

_Salazar shook her head. "You must be more careful, Phoebe, especially now you are with child."_

_"Salazar, I don't understand," Phoebe said weakly. "Why would Voldemort want to possess me?"_

_"Because of your powers, Phoebe," Salazar explained. "Voldemort wants you for your powers, if he can possess you then he can get you to do what he wants, when he wants, and he will have full access to your abilities!"_

_The young Gryffindor frowned innocently. "You mean he could control me enough to kill?"_

_"Unfortunately,"_

_A look of fear swept across Phoebe's face as she let the news sink in. Things were suddenly becoming very complicated and her life was becoming very scary... "I'm scared," she admitted._

_"I would consider you foolish if you weren't," Salazar nodded. "You are lucky, it could have been a lot worse."_

_Phoebe shivered at the tone of his voice but did not press the matter; she did not want to know how much worse it could have been. For once in her life she was thankful for the intense training that her grandparents had put her through, the ability to fight of the Imperius Curse and the Occlumency lessons, they were finally paying off._

_"You did something, didn't you?" Phoebe asked, looking up sharply._

_"We felt the intrusion," Salazar said. "Rowena and I, since we are your initial mentors, alerted the others to the predicament and together, the four of us, combined our elemental powers to force out the intruder, but you are skilled in the art of Occlumency, and while you may not have understood exactly what was going on, your wall was powerful enough to block out the presence of Dark Magic..."_

_Phoebe was silent throughout the whole explanation._

_Salazar smirked. "You truly are a powerfully gifted witch, Phoebe, you truly are!"_

_"Thank you," Phoebe said, unable to keep the small smile from her lips._

_"But I sense, this is not all that is bugging you?"_

_Phoebe was silent for a moment, before she shook her head. "No, I have one other question, before I wake up!"_

_"And that is?"_

_"My friend, Harry, has been given a task by our headmaster, Dumbledore," said Phoebe. "And he is curious as to what exactly this task links back to."_

_"What does the task involve?"_

_"As I understand it... a Horcrux,"_

_Salazar stared at her. "I beg your pardon?"_

_"Horcrux," Phoebe repeated. "I know that there is nothing on it within the Hogwarts library, I also know that no one is going to tell me what exactly a Horcrux is as they fear for my sanity as it is, but if it will help us in the fight against Voldemort, then, Salazar, you have to tell me! Please!"_

_The Slytherin founder hesitated, before nodding._

_"Okay," he said. "Just so that you understand the term... a Horcrux is an object in which a person has concealed a part of their soul."_

_"How?"_

_"One splits one's soul and hides part of it in an object," Salazar explained. "By doing so you're protected should you be attacked and your body destroyed."_

_"Protected because part of your soul that his hidden will live on," Phoebe theorized. "In other words, you cannot die. But, of course, existence in such a form-"_

_She cut off._

_Salazar stared at her, her mouth was hanging open slightly and her eyes were wide. "Oh, My God!" she whispered. "All this time... he was using..."_

_"Phoebe?" Salazar questioned, curious as to what she was thinking._

_"I have to wake up!" Phoebe said, abruptly. "I have to see Professor Dumbledore... I have to tell him!"_

_Salazar quickly stopped her. "Phoebe, I do not know what you have just figured out," he said, pushing her back into her seat. "But I would like you to exercise caution... you are vulnerable now... your body needs time to recover as well as your mind and powers! Do what you need to do, but do not put yourself in harm's way in order to achieve the expected!"_

_"I promise, Salazar," Phoebe nodded, resting back against the chair. She was ready to return to Hogwarts... she had information, information concerning Voldemort and she had to share it, immediately, with the one person that would understand it above anyone else._

She had to share it with Dumbledore.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, July 18, 2012 at 04:14pm**


	142. Chapter 142

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. But I am hoping to get a few more chapters updated before the 29th July, as it marks the day of the 1 year anniversary of The Dark Lord's Downfall, yup, that is correct, it has been a year since this story started, and it has been the best Harry Potter story I have written (yes, best, even better than MWS, and I never thought that to be possible) anyway, enough chit chat, continue reading and enjoy.

**Dedications:** Chapter dedicated to the following: **Pixiescale1185, ZabuzasGirl, Alaina08, KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, MiraclesHappen94** and** Blue-Bubble-Rainbow-Boat.**

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **Bellatrix and The Dark Lord** and for adding this story or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

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><p>"Horcruxes," said Phoebe. "Tom Riddle didn't just ask Slughorn what a Horcrux was, he actually used them. That is what I suspect the memory that Slughorn messed with is about... I think he told Tom Riddle what a Horcrux is and how to make one and now he feels guilty."<p>

Dumbledore, who was sitting behind his desk, surveying the young elemental, nodded in polite understanding. "You may be correct, Phoebe, but we must have the memory to be completely sure!"

"Of course," Phoebe nodded. "I understand that... there is nothing better than seeing it for your own eyes."

"I am glad you understand," Dumbledore smiled. "But do tell how did you find out this information? If I am not mistaken there is not a book on that kind of dark magic within the walls of Hogwarts."

Phoebe smiled. "I didn't get it from Hogwarts, headmaster," she answered. "And I know what you are thinking, no, I did not get it from my grandparent's either. In truth, I got it from Salazar Slytherin."

"Ah," the headmaster said, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "So it is true... you are being trained by the four founders of Hogwarts?"

"Yes sir,"

"And how is that going for you?"

"I am enjoying it a lot," Phoebe said. "The four founders are amazing teachers. Also, I do not believe the rumors that some people are saying about Salazar, he has been nothing but nice to me since the first time I arrived in the elemental dimension! He helped me with the Chamber of Secrets; he helped me save Hermione from being petrified! He may have started the blood purity thing, but I do not think he believes in it as much as those within his house!"

"I think you are correct, Phoebe," Dumbledore nodded. "Now, is there anything else you wish to discuss?"

Phoebe smiled and shook her head. "No headmaster that was the only thing... I must get back to the Hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey wishes to check my baby for any problems. She seems to think that things are fine, that my baby continued to grow healthily while I was at the Elemental dimension!"

"Well, that is a good thing," Dumbledore smiled. "I suggest you run along!"

Phoebe nodded, jumped to her feet and left the headmaster to his thoughts.

**~*Phoebe*~**

February moved toward March with no change in the weather except that it became windy as well as wet. To general indignation, a sign went up on all the common room notice boards that the next trip into Hogsmeade had been canceled. Ron was furious.

"It was on my birthday!" he said. "I was looking forward to that!"

"Not a big surprise, though, is it?" said James. "Not after what happened to Sarah."

She had still not returned from St. Mungo's. What was more; further disappearances had been reported in the _Daily Prophet_, including several relatives of students at Hogwarts.

"But now all I've got to look forward to is stupid Apparition!" said Ron grumpily. "Big birthday treat..."

Harry frowned and looked out of the window, three lessons on; Apparition was proving as difficult as ever, though a few more people had managed to Splinch themselves. Frustration was running high and there was a certain amount of ill-feeling towards Willkie Twycross, their instructor and his three 'D's, which had inspired a number of nicknames for him.

"What's up with this weather?" Hermione asked, as she sat in the seat beside Ron.

"Phoebe," answered James, much to the confusion of his friends. "Aiden told me that since Phoebe has control over Air and Water, whenever something bad happens to her it reflects in the weather. This weather should clear up as soon as Phoebe is back to full health, which, considering she woke up two days ago is not going to be long!"

"What?" Hermione shrieked. "She's awake? Why didn't you tell us?"

James shrugged. "We weren't allowed to broadcast it until Madam Pomfrey is completely sure that Phoebe is alright! They aren't just worried about her, you know, there is the baby to worry about too!"

The bookworm sighed. "Oh yeah, but I would still like to have known that my best friend was awake!"

"Sorry," James said, sheepishly. "We're allowed to visit her tomorrow!"

"Cool," Hermione nodded. "Well, I think i'm going to go to bed. Goodnight."

She left the three boys alone, all of them shouting goodnight after her as she disappeared upstairs to the girls' dorms.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Happy Birthday, Ron," said Harry, when they were woken on the first of March by Seamus and Dean leaving noisily for breakfast. "Have a present."

He threw the package across onto Ron's bed, where it joined a small pile of them that must, Harry assumed, have been delivered by house-elves in the night.

"Cheers," said Ron drowsily and, as he ripped off the paper, Harry got out of bed, opened his trunk, and began rummaging in it for the Marauder's Map, which he hid after every use. He turfed it out half the contents of his trunk before he found it hiding beneath the rolled-up socks in which he was still keeping his bottle of lucky potion, Felix Felicis.

The door opened and James was revealed to be standing on the otherside. "Happy Birthday, Ron," he said, tossing the red head his gift and nodding at Neville as he passed heading down to breakfast. "Oh, Madam Pomfrey says we can visit Phoebe as soon as breakfast is over!"

"She's allowed visitors?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Hermione, Amelia and Ashlyn are with her now," James nodded. "Madam Pomfrey won't let more than three to see her at the time. She said that you, me and Ron can see her after breakfast!"

"What about Aiden?"

"He and Malfoy are spending the afternoon with her," James answered.

"The entire afternoon?" Harry asked. "How is that fair?"

"They are her brothers," James shrugged. "I don't know... but I think Phoebe requested them for this afternoon. I think they have things to discuss!"

Harry frowned and looked back at the Marauders' Map. "Speaking of Malfoy, I don't think he's in his bed..."

James looked confused and glanced at the map as Ron did not answer; he was too busy unwrapping presents, every now and then letting out an exclamation of pleasure.

"Seriously good haul this year!" he announced, holding up a heavy gold watch with odd symbols around the edge and tiny moving stars instead of hands. "See what Mum and Dad got me? Blimey, I think I'll come of age next year too..."

"Cool," muttered Harry, sparing the watch a glance before peering more closely at the map. Where was Malfoy? He did not seem to be at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall, eating breakfast... He was nowhere near Snape, who was sitting in his study... He wasn't in any of the bathrooms or in the hospital wing with Phoebe, and then he remembered that James had said that the girls' were spending time with the elemental.

"Want one?" said Ron thickly, holding out a box of Chocolate Cauldrons.

"No thanks," said Harry, looking up.

"James?"

James shook his head.

"Malfoy's gone again!" Harry said.

"Can't have done," said Ron, stuffing a second Cauldron into his mouth as he slid out of bed and started to get dressed. "Come on, if you don't hurry up you'll have to Apparate on an empty stomach..." Ron looked thoughtfully at the box of Chocolate Cauldrons, then shrugged and helped himself to a third.

James nodded. "Yeah, might make it easier, I suppose..." he said.

Harry tapped the map with his wan, muttered, "Mischief managed," though it hadn't been, and got dressed, thinking hard. There had to be an explanation for Malfoy's periodic disappearances, but he simply could not think what it could be.

The best way of finding out would be to tail him, but even with the Invisibility Cloak this was an impractical idea: Harry had lessons, Quidditch practice, homework, Apparition and he had promised Phoebe he would not look too deeply into this, and he could not follow Malfoy around school all day without his absence being remarked upon.

"Ready?" James said, breaking through his thoughts.

He was halfway to the dormitory door when he realized that Ron had not moved, but was leaning on his bedpost, staring out of the rain-washed window with a strangely unfocused look on his face.

"Ron?" Harry called. "Breakfast?"

"I'm not hungry."

Harry and James exchanged looks.

"I thought you just said -?" Harry started

"Well, all right, I'll come down with you," sighed Ron, "but I don't want to eat."

James scrutinized him suspiciously.

"You've just eaten half a box of Chocolate Cauldron's, haven't you?"

"It's not that," Ron sighed again. "You... you wouldn't understand."

"Fair enough," said Harry, albeit puzzled, as he turned back to James who was standing with the door mid-way open and staring at Ron.

"Guys!" said Ron suddenly.

"What?" James and Harry asked.

"Guys, I can't stand it!"

"You can't stand what?" asked Harry, now starting to feel alarmed. Ron was rather pale and looked as though he was about to be sick.

"I can't stop thinking about her!" said Ron hoarsely.

James gaped at him. "I never thought I would hear him say that he couldn't stop thinking about Hermione," he whispered to Hermione. "But why does that stop you from having breakfast, Ron?"

"I don't think she knows I exist," said Ron in a desperate gesture.

"She definitely knows you exist," said Harry, bewildered. "I mean, you've been best friends for six years!"

Ron blinked. "Who are you talking about?"

"Who are _you_ talking about?" said James, with an increasing sense that all reason had dropped out of the conversation.

"Romilda Vane," said Ron softly, and his whole face seemed to illuminate as he said it, as though hit by a ray of purest sunlight.

Harry and James exchanged looks and turned to stare at Ron for almost a whole minute, before Harry said, "This is a joke, right? You're joking."

"I think... Harry, I think I love her," said Ron in a strangled voice.

"Okay," said Harry, walking up to Ron to get a better look at the glazed eyes and the pallid complexion, "okay... Say that again with a strange face."

"I love her," repeated Ron breathlessly. "Have you seen her hair, it's all black and shiny and silky... and her eyes? Her big dark eyes? And her -"

"This is really funny and everything," said Harry impatiently, "but jokes over, all right? Drop it."

He turned to leave; he had got two steps toward the door when James whipped out his wand and threw a Stunning spell over his shoulder. There was a crashing noise and Harry turned to see Ron lying on the floor, his arms and legs snapped together, and his eyes were the only things moving

"_What was that for?"_ Harry bellowed, looking between Ron and James.

"He went to hit you," James defended, waving his wand at Ron and releasing the spell. "What the hell is the matter with you?"

"You insulted her, Harry! You said it was a joke!" shouted Ron, as his legs sprang apart and he jumped to his feet.

"This is insane!" said Harry. "What's got into -?"

And then he saw the box lying open on Ron's bed, and the truth hit him with force of a stampeding troll.

"Where did you get those Chocolate Cauldrons?"

"They were a birthday present!" shouted Ron. "I offered you one, didn't I?"

"You just picked them up off the floor, didn't you?"

"They'd fallen off my bed, all right?"

"They didn't fall off your bed, you prat, don't you understand? They were mine, I chucked them out of my trunk when I was looking for the map, they're the Chocolate Cauldrons Romilda gave me before Christmas, and they're all spiked with love potion!"

But only one word of this seemed to have registered with Ron.

"Romilda?" he repeated. "Did you say Romilda? Harry - do you know her? Can you introduce me?"

Harry stared at him and turned slowly to face James, who was looking completely lost, and then back to Ron who was looking tremendously hopeful, and fought a strong desire to laugh. A part of him was quite keen on the idea on watching Ron run amok until the effects of the potion wore off.

But on the other hand, they were supposed to be friends, Ron had not been himself when he had attacked, and Harry thought that he would deserve another punching if he permitted Ron to declare undying love to Romilda Vane.

"Yeah, I'll introduce you," said Harry, thinking fast.

James frowned. "What are you doing?" he asked, whispering in Harry's ear.

"Shh," Harry whispered, turning back to Ron. "She'll be in Slughorn's office!"

"Why will she be in there?" asked Ron anxiously, following Harry from the dormitory.

"Oh, she has extra Potions lessons with him," said Harry, inventing wildly.

"Maybe I could ask if I can have them with her?" said Ron eagerly.

"Great idea," said Harry.

Lavender was waiting beside the portrait hole, and James couldn't help but groan when he saw her. "God, she is harder to get rid of than a Venus fly trap!" he complained as she spotted him, she did not look happy that he was late.

"You're late, Jamie!" she pouted.

"Uh, yeah," James nodded. "I've got other priorities at the moment..."

"Like what?"

"Like Phoebe," James said quickly. "She's being released from the Hospital wing today; I said I'd be there when she gets out!"

Lavender did not look amused. "Why would you be meeting her?" she demanded. "I know that she is one of the most wanted girls at Hogwarts but she is married, Jamie! And besides, she has other friends!"

She latched onto his arm.

James pried her off. "Look, Lavender, Phoebe happens to be my best friend!" he said. "She has been since first year, and right now, she means more to me than you do!"

And without another word to her, he pushed his way out of the portrait hole.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I know, it's not much, but I really needed to break Lavender and James up and fast… I was starting to get death threats from the person who created James a year ago. But anyway, to make it up to you, I will be giving you each a double update next Sunday in celebration of the 1 year anniversary, so I better get to work.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, July 23, 2012 at 3:40am**


	143. Chapter 143

**Author's Note: **I decided to leave out the scene where Ron is poisoned and jump straight to the Hospital Wing, seeing as there were no changes made except for James being there.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, DJScales, Pixiescale1185, SoPHie-sUNshInE-gIrl** and anonymous review **Iwantanaccount**.

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out to: **Kiba1278, Majorjewls, Sakura Tate** and** Cahsm** for adding this story or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

* * *

><p>"So, all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?" said Fred.<p>

It was evening; the hospital wing was quiet, the window curtained, the lamps lit. Ron and Phoebe were the only occupied bed. Harry, Hermione and Ginny were sitting around the red head, while Ashlyn, James, Amelia and Aiden sat around Phoebe's.

Up until an hour ago, all of them, save for Aiden, Draco and Phoebe, had been waiting outside the double doors, trying to see in or out. Madam Pomfrey had finally let them enter at eight o'clock. Fred and George had arrived at ten past.

"This isn't how we imagined handing over our presents," said George grimly, putting down a large wrapped gift on Ron's bedside cabinet and sitting beside Ginny.

"Yeah, when we pictured the scene, he was conscious," said Fred.

"There we were in Hogsmeade, waiting to surprise him -" said George.

"You were in Hogsmeade?" asked Ginny, looking up.

"We were thinking of buying Zonko's," said Fred gloomily. "A Hogsmeade branch, you know, but a fat lot of good it'll do us if you lot aren't allowed out at weekends to buy our stuff anymore..."

"We were only not allowed out this weekend because of what happened to Sarah," said Phoebe, "Dumbledore is afraid that whoever cursed her could try again!"

Fred nodded. "Well, never mind that now."

He drew up a chair beside Harry and looked at Ron's pale face.

"How exactly did it happen, Harry?"

Harry retold the story he had already recounted, it felt like a hundred times to Dumbledore, to McGonagall, to Madam Pomfrey, to Hermione, to Phoebe and to Ginny.

"... and then I got the bezoar down his throat and his breathing eased up a bit, James ran for help, McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey turned up, and they brought Ron up here. They reckon he'll be all right. Madam Pomfrey says he'll have to stay here a week or so... keep taking essence of rue..."

"Oh joy," Phoebe said. "I get a room-mate!"

"You're not allowed to leave yet?"

"I'm allowed to leave," Phoebe nodded. "I just have to return here for night time. Madam Pomfrey is still unsure whether my coma has affected my baby!"

James frowned, gingerly poking at Phoebe's stomach, where his honorary nephew was growing. "I thought you said everything was alright with Terence Jr?"

"Will you stop calling him that?" Phoebe asked, swatting away his hand and patting her swollen stomach.

"Ow," James sulked, withdrawing his hand and pouting at his best friend. "And to think I skipped out on Lavender to be here with you!"

"Oh please, you'd much rather be here being picked on," said Amelia, rolling her eyes.

"Shut it, Puffer!"

"That's Huffalump!" said Amelia, with a grin.

Phoebe and Ashlyn giggled as Aiden rolled his eyes.

"Anyway," said George from across the ward, "it was lucky you thought of a bezoar,"

"Lucky there was one in the room," said James, who kept turning cold at the thought of what would have happened if Harry had not been able to lay his hands on the little stone.

Hermione gave an almost inaudible sniff. She had been exceptionally quiet all day. Having hurtled, white-faced, up to Harry outside the hospital wing and demanded to know what had happened, she had taken almost no part in Harry and Ginny's obsessive discussion about how Ron had been poisoned, but merely stood beside them, clench-jawed and frightened-looking, until at last they had been allowed in to see him.

"Do Mum and Dad know?" Fred asked Ginny.

"They've already seen him, they arrived an hour ago - they're in Dumbledore's office now, but they'll be back soon..."

There was a pause while they all watched Ron mumble a little in his sleep.

"So the poison was in the drink?" said Fred quietly.

"Yes," said Harry at once; he could think of nothing else and was glad for the opportunity to start discussing it again. "Slughorn poured it out -"

"Would he have been able to slip something into Ron's glass without you seeing, Harry?"

"Probably," said Harry, "but why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?"

"No idea," said Fred frowning.

"What if he mixed the glasses up?" Fred asked. "What if he was initially intending to have you drink the poisoned glass?"

"Why would Slughorn want to poison Harry?" Ashlyn frowned.

"Why wouldn't he?" James asked, jumping into answer. "There must be loads of people who'd like to poison Harry, mustn't there? 'The Chosen One' and all that?"

"So you think Slughorn's a Death Eater?" said Ginny.

"That's impossible," said Phoebe.

"How?" Harry asked, turning to her quickly.

"Because Slughorn has been on the run from Death Eaters for almost a year," the elemental explained. "The poison could have been in the bottle, in which case it was probably meant for Slughorn himself."

"Who'd want to kill Slughorn?"

"Well, like I said, Slughorn was in hiding for a year before he came to Hogwarts. And... Well, maybe Voldemort wants him out of the way, maybe he thinks he could be valuable to Dumbledore."

"But Harry said Slughorn had been planning to give that bottle to Dumbledore for Christmas," Ginny reminded the elemental. "So the poisoner could just as easily have been after Dumbledore."

"The poisoner didn't know Slughorn very well," said Hermione, speaking for the first time in hours and sounding as though she had a bad head cold. "Anyone who knew Slughorn would have known there was a good chance he'd keep something that tasty for himself."

"Er-my-nee," croaked Ron unexpectedly from between them.

They all fell silent, watching him anxiously, but after muttering incomprehensibly for a moment he merely started snoring.

The dormitory doors flew open, making them all jump; Hagrid came striding toward them, his hair rain-flecked, his bearskin coat flapping behind him, a crossbow in his hand, leaving trail of muddy dolphin-sized footprints all over the floor.

"Bin in the forest all day!" he panted. "Aragog's worse, I bin readin' to him - didn' get up ter dinner till jus' now an' then Professor Sprout told me abou' Ron! How is he?"

"Not bad," said Harry. "They say he'll be okay."

"No more than six visitors at a time!" said Madam Pomfrey, hurrying out of her office.

"Hagrid makes six," George pointed out.

"Oh... yes..." said Madam Pomfrey, who seemed to have been counting Hagrid as several people due to his vastness. To cover her confusion, she hurried off to clear his muddy footprints with her wand.

"I don' believe this," said Hagrid hoarsely, shaking his great shaggy head as he stared down at Ron. "Jus' don' believe it... Look at him layin' there... Who'd want ter hurt him, eh?"

"That's just what we were discussing," said Harry. "We don't know."

"Someone couldn' have a grudge against your or Phoebe could they, Harry?" said Hagrid anxiously. "Firs' Sarah, now Ron..."

"You just listed three quarters of the Slytherin house," said Phoebe. "Except for Adrian, Aiden, Ashlyn and Draco in my case! All of Slytherin, save for Aiden, Ashlyn and Adrian, hate Harry!" she added.

"Well, I don't think it is house rivalry," said Hermione. "But I think there's a connection between the attacks!"

"How d'you work that out?" asked Fred.

"Well, for one thing, they both ought to have been fatal and weren't, although that was pure luck. And for one, neither the poison nor the necklace seems to have reached the person who was supposed to be killed. Of course," she added broodingly, "that makes the person behind this even more dangerous in a way, because they don't seem to care how many people they finish off before they actually reach their victim"

Before anybody could respond to this ominous pronouncement, the dormitory doors opened again and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hurried up the ward. They had done no more than satisfy themselves that Ron would make a full recovery on their last visit to the ward; now Mrs. Weasley seized hold of Harry and hugged him very tightly.

"Dumbledore's told us how you saved him with that bezoar," she sobbed. "Oh, Harry, what can we say? You saved Ginny... now you've saved Ron..."

"Don't be... I didn't..." muttered Harry awkwardly.

"Half our family does seem to owe you their lives, now I stop and think about it," Mr. Weasley said in a constricted voice. "Well, all I can say is that it was a lucky day for the Weasley's when Ron decided to sit in your compartment on the Hogwarts Express, Harry."

Phoebe smirked and caught Harry's eye, just as Madam Pomfrey returned to remind them that there was to be no more than six visitors around Ron's bedside at a time. It was then that Harry and Hermione rose at once to leave and Hagrid decided to go with them, leaving Ron with his family and Phoebe with her friends and brother.

"Goodnight, Phoebe!" Hermione said hugging her best friend. "Come back soon, I miss you at night!"

"I'll be back soon," Phoebe promised. "Sleep tight, Hermione!"

The bookworm nodded and left with Harry and Hagrid.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"How was practice?" Phoebe asked, she had been banned from playing Quidditch due to the fact her pregnancy was almost at an end, that and Madam Pomfrey wasn't entirely sure that her baby had been affected or not by the prolonged disturbance the coma had induced.

"Shit," James muttered. "McLaggen has taken over for Ron and a third year, by the name of Jonathan, has taken over for you!"

"And?"

"He's crap, Pheebs," James said. "He doesn't listen to a word Ginny and I tell him... and he keeps trying to be a one-man team! He refuses to work with us!"

Phoebe shook her head. "Please don't tell me you shouted at him!"

"He deserved it!"

"Maybe that's why he doesn't work well with you," Phoebe reprimanded him. "James, you and Ginny need to realize that we work well as a team because we know each other off the pitch... let Jonathan know that you have his back and he'll realize the importance of team work!"

James muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Nothing!"

Phoebe eyed him curiously. "I won't be allowed down to watch the match tomorrow," she said. "But I will be asking Ashlyn to keep an eye on you... I will expect a full report on everything that happened, and do keep an eye on Harry, I don't trust this McLaggen, Merlin knows what will happen during the match!"

James nodded and quickly left as Madam Pomfrey hurried over with Phoebe's dreamless sleep potion.

**~*Phoebe*~**

On the morning of the Quidditch match against Hufflepuff, Harry dropped in on the hospital wing before heading down to the pitch. Ron was very agitated, he, just like Phoebe, had been refused permission to go down and watch the match, feeling that it would overexcite them.

"So how's McLaggen shaping up?" Ron asked nervously.

"You already asked him that," Phoebe said, irritably. She had been very irritable since she had woken up, mostly because she kept getting an intense pain in the bottom of her back, it had been occurring every ten minutes for the last hour. "Harry has already said that he could be world-class but he wouldn't want to keep him, seriously Weasley, stop being dramatic! Harry wouldn't get rid of you even if Ollie came back!"

Harry nodded. "Are you okay?"

"Don't talk to me!"

"Wha -?" The Seeker frowned turning to Ron, who shook his head.

"She's been like it all morning," he answered. "Madam Pomfrey has given her pain relieving potions but they keep getting worse. She's asked me to time them, that's the fourth in the last ten minutes!"

Harry frowned and glanced across at Phoebe, who was lying flat on her back, her fists clenching the sheets and her eyes closed tightly against the pain that was written across her face. "Anyway, McLaggen keeps trying to tell everyone what to do, he think he could play every position better than the rest of us. I can't wait to be shot of him."

"Is James calling in before the match?" Phoebe asked.

"No, he's already gone down to the pitch with Jonathan and Ginny," Harry answered, shouldering his broomstick. "Jonathan is improving nicely, by the way, I don't know what you said to James but he is treating him more and more like a little brother now, rather than another player!"

Phoebe nodded and gasped as another pain caught her off guard. "That's good!" she whimpered.

"Phoebe, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah," Phoebe squeaked. "I'm fine... go... go hammer McLag - I mean, Smith!"

"I'll try," said Harry. "See you after the match."

Ron waved and then turned back to Phoebe who had started to whimper desperately in pain.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"What happened?" Phoebe demanded, sitting up in bed, the pain she had felt that morning had passed and Madam Pomfrey had reassured the elemental it was imply her baby moving around, she was, after all, coming to the end of her pregnancy.

"Cracked skull," said Madam Pomfrey, bustling up and pushing her back against her pillows as she attempted to get a better look at Harry who was unconscious in the bed beside her. "Nothing for you to worry about. I mended it at once, but we're keeping him in overnight."

"Oh, he is going to love that," said Phoebe glancing across at Ron who was also staring at Harry, as if hoping he would wake up just from the intensity of his stare.

"He shouldn't overexert himself for a few hours," said Madam Pomfrey, "but at least he will have company, neither yourself, Mr. Weasley or Mr. Potter will be leaving until tomorrow morning at the latest, and if you're pain returns you will be back in here until the baby is born!"

Phoebe pouted.

A groan came from Harry's bed and the three occupants turned to see him sitting up, he blinked and looked around, taking in the golden light on the shadowy ceiling, and the other's that were around him.

"Nice of you to drop in," said Ron, grinning.

"Don't grin at him, Ron!" snapped Phoebe, "are you okay, Harry?"

"What happened?"

Phoebe giggled. "You cracked your skull... although I am not sure _how_ you managed to do it! I was sleep when they brought you in!"

"McLaggen hit me with Coote's beater's bat!" Harry said angrily. "I'm going to kill him!"

He threw back the blankets and put his feet to the floor, Madam Pomfrey spun around and pushed him back into his pillows. "You are not leaving," she said, sternly. "You are spending the night here! As I was just saying to Mrs. Blackheart, neither of you are leaving until tomorrow morning at the latest!"

"But I don't want to stay here overnight," said Harry angrily, sitting back up and throwing back his covers again. "I want to find McLaggen and kill him."

"I'm afraid that would come under the heading of 'overexertion,'" said Madam Pomfrey, pushing him firmly back onto the bed and raising her wand in a threatening manner. "You will stay here until I discharge you, Potter, or I shall call the headmaster."

"Better do as she says, Harry," said Phoebe, playing with her wedding ring.

Harry sighed and sank back into his pillows, fuming, while Madam Pomfrey bustled back into her office.

"Do either of you know how much we lost by?" Harry asked, looking between his friends.

"Nope," said Phoebe, with a slight shake of her head. "Ron?"

"Yeah, I do," he nodded, apologetically. "Final score was three hundred and twenty to sixty."

"Ouch,"

"Brilliant," said Harry savagely. "Really brilliant! When I get hold of McLaggen -"

"You don't want to get hold of him, he's the size of a troll," said Ron reasonably. "Personally, I think there's a lot to be said for hexing him with that toenail thing of the Prince's!"

Phoebe glared suspiciously. "You will not use that book against another Gryffindor, I don't care who it is! Ron, you are a perfect, do not go giving him ideas!"

"Hark, look who is talking," Harry spat, glaring at her.

"Look, I said I was sorry about that," Phoebe hissed. "But that's not the point... I did that to help _you_! You're not helping anyone by using spells from a book, especially when you don't know where the book, or the person was to begin with! Didn't you learn anything from Ginny and the Chamber of Secrets?"

"Anyway, the rest of the team might've dealt with him before you get out of here, they're not happy," Ron said, interrupting Phoebe and turning back to his best mate.

There was a note of badly suppressed glee in Ron's voice; Harry and Phoebe could tell that he was thrilled that McLaggen had messed up so badly.

"I hope Luna commentates from now on," said Ron, "we could hear the match commentary from here..." he added, noticing the confused look on Harry's face. "_Loser Lurgy..."_

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "That has had him laughing all morning," she said to Harry as Ron started laughing all over again. "It's getting annoying! Ginny came in to visit while you were unconscious," she added, grinning as her friend sat up a little straighter and paid her more attention than he had been. "She said you were late to the match. How come? You left here with plenty of time."

"Oh..." said Harry, hesitating slightly. "Yeah... well, I saw Malfoy sneaking off with a couple of girls who didn't look like they wanted to be with him, and that's the second time he's made sure he isn't down on the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the school, he skipped his last match too, remember?" he sighed. "Wish I'd followed him now, the match was such a fiasco..."

"Don't be stupid," said Phoebe sharply.

Harry sat straight up and turned to glare at her. "Look, I didn't make any promises to not investigate your brother, I just promised that I wouldn't use Felix Felicis in order to investigate your brother!"

"That's not my point," Phoebe snapped. "You couldn't miss a Quidditch match to follow Draco, you're the Captain!"

"I want to know what he's up to," said Harry, turning wildly in Ron's direction. "And don't tell me it's all in my head not after what I overheard between him and Snape -"

"I wasn't about to say anything like that," Ron defended. "I was merely about to say that Phoebe has a point -"

Phoebe blinked.

"I do?" she asked, confusedly, this had been the first time that Ron had agreed with her on _anything_.

"She does?" Harry asked, earning a dark look from Phoebe in the process.

"You do," Ron nodded. "But there is no rule, Harry, to say that one person at a time can be plotting anything in this place! You're getting a bit obsessed with Malfoy. I mean, thinking about missing a match just to follow him..."

"I want to catch him at it!" said Harry in frustration. "I mean, where's he going when he disappears off the map?"

"I dunno... Hogsmeade?" suggested Ron, yawning.

"I've never seen him going along any of the secret passageways on the map. I thought they were being watched now anyway?"

"Well then, I dunno," said Ron.

Silence fell between them. Harry stared up at the ceiling, Ron fell asleep instantly and Phoebe was sat staring into space. "I can't believe I am saying this, but Ron is right, Harry," the elemental said after a short while. "You are becoming obsessed with Draco, it is kind of unnerving! And I'm not saying that because he is my brother... I am saying that because I do not want to see you getting hurt!"

"How am I going to get hurt?" Harry asked.

"By getting involved in things that do not concern you," Phoebe answered, sliding down under her blankets and turning onto her side. "This is why I beg you, Harry, please... stay away from Draco!"

"You know," said Harry, causing Phoebe to frown at him. "You know what he is doing... where he keeps disappearing too... you just won't tell me!"

Phoebe yawned. "No, Harry, I don't," she said, shaking her head. "But you are right about something..."

"And what's that?"

"If I _did_ know what Draco was up too, I wouldn't tell you!"

Harry glared at her. "You'd rather be an accomplice to the man that could have killed your best friend?" he accused.

"No, Harry," said Phoebe, patiently. "I wouldn't tell you because I would be doing everything within my power to stop him!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I have part of the double update already written and let me tell you... it's gonna be good! Well, I hope you think it's good. It's just finding time to write that is difficult, but never fear, I promised a double update and I will bring you a double update.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, July 25, 2012 at 10:28pm**


	144. Chapter 144

**Author's Note:** Guess what today is? Well, for me anyway as I am from the United Kingdom... as of offically an hour ago it became the 29th July 2012 which means : HAPPY ANNIVERSARY PHOEBE! Whoo!

**Special Author's Note:** Happy Anniversary everyone! That is correct… it is the 1 year anniversary of **The Dark Lords Downfall**. Yay! This story has officially been around for a year! Can't believe it! Fantastic, eh?

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Alaina08, Fan of Fics, SoPhiE-sUNshIne-gIrl** and **Pixiescale1185.**

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out to: **bapbby** for adding this story to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to her. You get the picture... hopefully.

What is the best present you can give us on the 1 year anniversary? Shall we try and get closer to 1,000 reviews? It would be most awesome if we could!

* * *

><p>"James and Lavender broke up," said Ashlyn as she and Phoebe walked down to breakfast on Monday morning, restored to full health by the ministrations of Madam Pomfrey and now able to enjoy the benefits of having been hauled up in a hospital bed for more than three months.<p>

"Yes, he said," Phoebe nodded. "But he refused to tell me what happened... do you know?"

"Something about her complaining that he was spending all his time with you," said Ashlyn, "I think she got jealous, she even reminded him that you were married!"

Phoebe stared at her friend with wide eyes. "As if me and James would ever happen!" she gasped.

"If you had grown up a Malfoy you may have ended up with him," Ashlyn pointed out.

"Doubt it," said Phoebe. "Lucius would go for someone a little more high up on the food chain... maybe Zabini -" she shuddered at the thought. "- he is more along the lines that Lucius would choose! He is a pureblood and his extremely rich..."

"Straight up Lucius's alley then,"

Phoebe nodded. "Sadly, I do not agree with such traditions!" she grinned.

Ashlyn smiled. "I fear what life will be like when I turn seventeen," she said after a moment's pause. "Adrian isn't my betrothed and I fear that his parents will separate us in order for me to marry my intended!"

"Wizarding laws change all over the world, Ashlyn," Phoebe said. "You don't have to marry in England... You could choose to go against the tradition and marry Adrian, take a stand, show that you're your own person and your life is your own!"

"Maybe I will," Ashlyn said.

"Lose the 'maybe' and we have the rebellious Ashlyn that I know and love," Phoebe said.

Ashlyn grinned and the two girls entered the Great Hall for breakfast.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_Sectumsempra!_

Phoebe frowned as she spied the word in the Prince's Potion book that was rest on the on coffee table beside her, Harry, who was sitting on the sofa behind her, had left it open to a designated page to help him with his Potion homework.

Underneath the title were the words: '_For Enemies_ and it was this that made the elemental wonder if Harry was itching to try it out as he had tried out every other spell he had come in contact with through the book.

"At least you can Apparate, though!" said Ron tensely. "You'll have no trouble come July!"

They were sitting beside the fire in the common room; the only other people awake were fellow sixth years. There had been a certain amount of excitement earlier when they had come back from dinner to find a new sign on the notice board that announced the date of their Apparition Test.

Those who would be seventeen on or before the first test date, the twenty-first of April, had the option of signing up for additional practice sessions, which would take place (heavily supervised) in Hogsmeade.

Ron had panicked on reading this notice; he had still not managed to Apparate and feared he would not be ready for the test. Hermione, who had now achieved Apparition twice, was a little more confident, but Phoebe and Harry, who did not turn seventeen until June and July, respectively, could not take the test whether they were ready or not.

"I couldn't take the test anyway," said Phoebe, patting her stomach.

"Have you had any more pains?" Hermione asked, reaching over and touching her best friends' stomach, hoping to feel movement or even a kick.

"No," said Phoebe, "I think I was just restless in the Hospital bed and wanted to come back here, or I think it may have something to do with his powers. He will, after all, inherit at least one of my powers!"

"Can't he inherit both?" James asked.

Phoebe nodded. "He could," she answered. "It all depends on how strong he is..."

"So are you having a boy?" Ron asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered with a shrug. "Madam Pomfrey, Josephine and Serefina know the sex... but Terence and I have decided that we don't want to know, it is only a month and a half due from being born, what's the point in ruining the surprise this close to the end?"

Hermione smiled before gasping as she felt a small bump against her hand. "I felt it!" she squeaked. "He kicked! He kicked!"

Phoebe giggled as her best friend gushed over the kick and before she knew it, Harry, Ron and James were crowding around her, each of them wanting to feel it for themselves.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe blinked as her eyes refocused in the darkness of her dormitory. Glancing around she noticed that Hermione had yet to come to bed and figured that she was still down in the common room, probably with Harry and Ron, seeing as James had gone to bed way before she had, and Hermione had returned downstairs to finish her essay, after helping the elemental upstairs, of course.

Slowly sliding out of bed, Phoebe slipped into her slippers, threw her dressing gown around her shoulders and made her way back down to the common room where she could hear muffled voices.

"... Have a look at what Malfoy's doing?" said Harry eagerly.

"No, Harry Potter, that is impossible," said Dobby.

Phoebe frowned, why was Harry conversing with Dobby at this time of the night? With this in mind she continued down the spiral staircase.

"No, it's not," said Harry at once. "Malfoy got into our headquarters there last year, so I'll be able to get in and spy on him, no problem."

"But I don't think you will, Harry," said Hermione slowly. "Malfoy already knew exactly how we were using the room, didn't he, because that stupid Marietta had blabbed. He needed the room to become the Headquarters of the DA, so it did. But you don't know what the room becomes when Malfoy goes in there, so you don't know what to ask it to transform into."

"There'll be a way around that," said Harry dismissively. "You've done brilliantly, Dobby."

"Kreacher's done well too," said Hermione kindly, causing Phoebe to frown further. Kreacher and Dobby? What where they doing - _**No... He wouldn't**_ she thought, aghast. Harry wouldn't have gone against her promise again, would he?

Reaching the bottom of the staircase, Phoebe looked out into the common room to find her worst fears come to pass. Harry Potter, a boy that she considered a brother, was conversing with both Dobby and Kreacher on ways to follow her brother around the school in hopes of finding out what he was up too.

"What's this?" she asked, stepping into the common room and approaching the fire, pleased with the fact that she had startled the five sitting there.

"Phoebe Blackheart, Miss," said Dobby, bowing so that his ears brushed the floor.

Kreacher followed Dobby's actions, his nose brushing against the rough carpeted floor. "Phoebe Blackheart has the air of nobility that befits her pureblood," he croaked at once. "Her features recall the fine bones of my mistress and her manners are those of -"

"That is enough, Kreacher," said Phoebe instantly. "I thank you for the compliments but there will be no need of it! I just want to know what is going on down here. Did I hear correctly that you have stuck Kreacher and Dobby on Draco?"

"Yes," said Harry, facing Phoebe. "I will find out what he is up to Phoebe! And since I cannot follow him around the school without people questioning my motives, I can set Dobby and Kreacher on him instead!"

"They are house elves, Harry," said Phoebe, "not search dogs!"

"He has been spending all his time in the Room of Requirements -"

"So did we!" Phoebe cut across him. "We spent hours on end in there all year last year! And we were doing something that was against Hogwarts rules! What does that say about us? Does that make us any less of a rule breaker than Draco?"

Harry looked as if she had slapped him across the face. "He is doing something dangerous..." he said after a while. "Something that could ruin -"

"Ruin what?" Phoebe interrupted. "Ruin Hogwarts? Ruin the Ministry? Since when do you care about the Ministry?"

"I don't," said Harry, "but his actions are not for the benefit of good!"

"Neither was what we were doing last year!" Phoebe argued. "Last year we housed a secret organization to teach us Defence Against the Dark Arts... that, in the Ministry's eyes, was an army that was training to take them on! You're intentions are good, Harry, but you are becoming involved in things that do not concern you! Take some advice and back off before you get hurt!"

"And who is going to hurt him?" asked Ron, coming into the conversation. "You? Your brothers? You can't touch Harry while Dumbledore is alive!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You're mistaken us with Voldemort, Ronald," she said. "Voldemort cannot touch Harry while Dumbledore lives!"

"I see no difference," Ron huffed, "your family has been faithful to You-Know-Who since the beginning, why should you be any different?"

The flames within the fire exploded, burning out most of the mantelpiece. Ron jumped, Hermione shrieked, Dobby and Kreacher disappeared with similar _CRACKS_ and Harry looked around wildly. Phoebe's eyes had turned violent cobalt blue and she was glaring at Ron as the flames raged higher.

However, they soon died as pain rocked Phoebe's entire body, starting with her lower back and round to her abdomen. She gasped as her knees buckled and her legs gave out, using his Seeker reflexes, Harry caught her by jumping over the back of the couch and wrapping his arms around her waist, just above her swollen stomach.

"Phoebe?" Hermione squeaked, jumping up and hurrying to her best friend's side. "What is it?"

"I think..." Phoebe whimpered, as the pain became more and more intense.

"What?"

Phoebe glanced up at the bookworm, her eyes swimming with tears of pain.

"I think my water just broke!" she whispered.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Part two coming in a few hours… be on the look out!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 29 July 2012 at 12:51am**


	145. Chapter 145

**Author's Note:** Here is the second update for today... this is also the end of the double update and I hope you all enjoyed them.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dream Lightning, Pixiescale1185, Chinaluv, ZabuzasGirl, Fan of Fics, SoPHiE-sUNshInE-gIrl, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Eternal Cosmic Sailor Saturn.**

**Disclaimer: **Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to her. No profit has been made in the making of this series. You get the picture... hopefully.

* * *

><p>"I need Serefina!"<p>

These were the first words out of Phoebe's mouth after Harry, Ron and Hermione had brought her to the hospital wing; Madam Pomfrey had been informed instantly of what had happened (the water breaking, not the fighting or the reason behind it) and she had sent the three Gryffindor's to wake the Headmaster, Professor McGonagall and message Serefina of the situation.

"Yes, yes," Madam Pomfrey nodded, waving her wan over Phoebe and checking her vitals all in one. "Yes, Miss. Granger has sent her an owl!"

"No, send Athena!" Phoebe pleaded. "Athena will find her quicker!"

"I'm sure your friends know what they are doing," Madam Pomfrey said. "Now, lay back! You're blood pressure will be up with the Hogwarts founders if you do not rest!"

"Where will I be taken?"

"A ward has been opened for you at St. Mungo's!"

Phoebe's eyes widened. "They'll put me in the Dark Creatures ward!" she yelled. "I don't want my baby born there! No! Please, transfer me to the Elemental Academy! Please, send for Catrin! I want my baby to be born in my home country... with people who understand me! _Please_!"

Desperate to have a normal birth in a familiar surroundings, Phoebe begged and pleaded with Madam Pomfrey before she caved and hurried off to Fire-call Catrin in Portugal.

As the door to the office shut, the hospital wing doors burst open, depositing Draco and Adrian into the dormitory. They both spotted their sister and rushed to her side.

"What happened?" they both demanded.

"My water broke," Phoebe explained in simple terms. "I'm in labour... slow labour, according to Madam Pomfrey."

Draco looked confused. "So your baby isn't coming yet?"

"Could be a few hours," Phoebe nodded.

Aiden suddenly looked relieved. "Where will they take you?" he asked.

"They wanted me to go to St. Mungo's," Phoebe answered, "but I don't want my baby being born in a Dark Creatures ward... I have requested to be transferred to the Elemental Academy in Portugal! Catrin will take care of me!"

Both brothers nodded and took each of Phoebe's hands in their own, as they stood either side of her. The three of them were silent for a few minutes, before two doors burst open at once and a handful of people entered the Hospital wing.

Madam Pomfrey and Catrin arrived from the office, followed closely by Serefina, Professor Snape, Professor McGonagall and Headmaster Dumbledore from the school beyond the doors. They each crowded around Phoebe, as Serefina and Catrin replaced Draco and Aiden.

"Shh, baby, it's going to be okay," Serefina soothed, brushing hair from Phoebe's face as pain ripped through her and the elemental gripped her bed sheets in pain, and Catrin waved her wand as an array of coloured lights burst from Phoebe's stomach.

"What does that mean?" Phoebe whimpered.

"_I'm just checking your baby's elemental powers, Phoebe," _said Catrin. "_We have to be sure that it is not their cause for this early delivery. Understand?"_

Phoebe nodded.

Serefina smiled and continued to run her fingers through Phoebe's hair and Catrin continued her work.

"It hurts!" Phoebe whimpered as she began to feel more and more pain in her stomach, her breathing had become harder.

"I know, Little One," said Serefina, pouring her goddaughter a glass of cool water. "Here, drink this!"

Phoebe gulped down the water, it was cold and helped redirect her mind off the pain... but Terence suddenly came to mind. She was about have her baby... his baby... _their_ baby.

"Terence," she said, after swallowing the water. "He -"

"Has been informed," Serefina soothed, "and he will be meeting us at the Elemental Academy with Grandma and Grandpa!"

"How are you getting her there?" Aiden asked.

"She will be transported via apparition. It is the safest way at the given time," Serefina answered. "You and Draco will stay here and I will send Athena with news!"

"I want them there," Phoebe said, as the pain started to become more intense. _**So much for hours!**_ She thought miserably. "I want them there! Please!"

Serefina hesitated before nodding. "Alright. I will inform Dumbledore. I'll be right back!"

She squeezed Phoebe's hand and walked away, leaving Draco to take her place.

"It is going to be okay, Phoebe," he promised, kissing her slightly damp forehead. "You'll see!"

"Mrs. Blackheart," said Professor Dumbledore. "Your godmother has informed me that you wish your brothers to join you in Portugal. I have given my permission for them both to leave the school for this occasion. Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape will also be accompanying you to ensure safety,"

Phoebe nodded. "Thank you headmaster."

"Best of luck," Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling.

Phoebe smiled the best she could, but it came out as a grimace of pain and her grip on Draco's hand tightened as another contraction took hold.

"It's time," said Serefina reappearing. "Draco and Aiden will go on ahead with Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall, while Catrin and I will travel with you. Alright?"

Phoebe nodded and watched as her brothers returned to the two heads of houses and disappear with a pop after Dumbledore had lowered the shields around the castle, seconds later she followed, the air being pushed out of her lungs and darkness enveloping her senses.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe felt tears sting her eyes as she was wheeled into the dormitory at the Elemental Academy, there, at the end of the ward, she could see several other healers waiting for her arrival. They were all dressed in their respective coloured elements and smiling at her as she was stationed at the end of the ward.

"_Hello sweetheart,"_ a mousey-haired blonde said. "_How are you feeling?"_

_"Is that a rhetorical question?"_

The blonde smiled. "_Well, I'm Elizabeth Zone,"_ she introduced. "_I teach water bending here at the academy. I'm going to be delivering your baby today. Catrin tells me that your blood pressure has yet to be checked?"_

Phoebe nodded.

"_Okay. I will send someone in soon to check that for you,"_ Elizabeth smiled, leaving the ward to converse with her colleagues.

No sooner had she left a middle-aged wizard entered the room.

"_Hello, pumpkin,"_ he smiled. "_I'm Dr. Thomas Waverly and I'll be taking care of you until Elizabeth is needed for your delivery, alright?"_

Phoebe nodded.

"_And you are?"_ Thomas inquired looking at Aiden and Draco.

"We're her brothers," Aiden answered, as Draco looked confused. Stupid language barrier. "Aiden Blackheart and Draco Malfoy."

Thomas's eyes widened. "_Blackheart?_" he questioned. "_Not of the Portuguese Blackhearts?"_

_"The very same,"_ Aiden nodded. "_My mother is Serefina, she is Phoebe's godmother._"

Thomas turned to Phoebe. "_Dear lord, it's true..."_ he whispered. "_You... you're... together..._" he looked between Phoebe and Aiden. "_You're the twin cores! The strongest Elementals in history!"_

Phoebe and Aiden smiled, sheepishly.

"I hope our combined powers are not going to be a problem," Phoebe winced.

"_No, of course not,"_ said Thomas with a reassuring smile. "_It is just I have hear so many stories... and told several of them myself, I never actually thought I would live to see the day where the twin cores would become reality!_"

Phoebe smiled.

_"So, how old are you, Phoebe?"_

"Sixteen," Phoebe answered.

The wizard nodded as he used his wand to fasten a blood pressure device to Phoebe's upper arm.

"_When is your birthday?_"

"June 5th 1980,"

Thomas nodded. _"And you are a resident here in Portugal?"_

"Been here ever since I was born," Phoebe smiled.

"_You were born here?"_ Thomas asked, mildly surprised. He would have remembered if the great prophesized child had been born in his country.

"No," said Phoebe. "I was born in England, to my parents Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy, but I was adopted by my godmother as soon as I was born... for my safety, you understand?"

Thomas nodded. "_Of course, pumpkin,_" he said. "_Well, your blood pressure is perfectly fine. 184 over 30. Given your extensive powers that is a good number to be at. Now, I just have to ask you a few more questions regarding the last nine months, if you could just answer them as honestly and accurate as possible, that would be great."_

"Alright," Phoebe said, as Thomas grabbed a quill and some parchment.

_"Have you been taking any medications?"_

"Dreamless sleep potions," Phoebe answered. "And some Pain relieving potions. I recently had accident which knocked me unconscious for a few months, but Madam Pomfrey, my school nurse, reassured me that everything was just fine."

Thomas nodded. "_Have you used any negative substances, drugs or alcohol?"_

"No,"

_"Good. Good. Have you been under high stress?"_

"I'm a sixteen year old elemental student preparing to sit her NEWTs," Phoebe said, somewhat sarcastically. "My powers have been haywire since I found out I was pregnant, not to mention I'm a Quidditch player to boot. So yes, I would say I have been under high stress!"

Thomas nodded and took note.

_"Have you had any abnormal pains or trouble sleeping?"_

Phoebe shook her head. "No,"

_"Have you slept with anyone besides the father or your child since you got pregnant?"_

"No,"

_"When was the last time you had sexual intercourse?"_

"What?" Phoebe yelped. "Is that really necessary?"

"_I understand that this is embarrassing," _Thomas smiled, "_but the more recent, the easier the birth will be on your body_."

"Oh," Phoebe nodded. "But no, I haven't had sexual intercourse recently. The last time was before I even found out I was pregnant... before Christmas!"

Thomas nodded. "_Alright, now, I am going to attach you to an IV,"_ he said, adding the small needle to her hand. "_Now, we need to check your contractions and see if you're fully dilated. I will send in Jezebel for this part of the procedure, if you need anything, Pumpkin, just press the button beside you and I'll be straight in, understand?"_

Phoebe nodded and was he left; she turned to Aiden and Draco. "Where is Terence?" she asked.

"I'll go find him," said Aiden, leaving his twin siblings alone.

**~*Phoebe*~**

By the time Aiden had returned, Phoebe's stomach pain had increased rapidly and were becoming unbearable. Jezebel had come and gone with the information that Phoebe was not that far away from giving birth.

"Do you want me to go and find him?" Draco asked, squeezing her hand.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, don't leave me, please!" she begged.

"I'm right here," Draco promised. "I'm not going to leave you!"

Tears streamed down Phoebe's face as another contraction ripped through her stomach, bringing a small scream to her lips.

Draco hit the button beside him and a warning bell echoed around the ward, the door crashed open seconds later and Thomas Waverly, followed by Serefina, Jezebel Winters and Catrin Holloway rushed inside.

"What is it?" Serefina asked, grabbing Phoebe's free hand and squeezing it. "Catrin... I think the time is now!"

"_She's not ready!"_ Jezebel argued.

"I think it is pretty clear that she is!" Serefina argued. "Phoebe would know if she was ready to push or not! Phoebe... are you ready?"

"I'm not sure," Phoebe whimpered. "It just hurts..." she cut off as a scream erupted from her lips and echoed around the room.

Jezebel jumped and rushed to check her over. "_She's fully dilated!"_ she exclaimed. "_I don't understand... there is no possible way... she had at least an hour to go!"_

_"Do you not know who this is?"_ Thomas asked. "_Anything can happen... especially when the mother has control over two elements, Jezebel."_

_"Two...?"_

_"This is Phoebe Blackheart, Jezebel,"_ Thomas explained. "_I assure you have heard the stories!_"

Jezebel gasped, she had, of course, heard the stories of Phoebe's heritage and powers, she, just like Thomas, never thought she would live to see the day or ever get to meet one of the Twin Cores.

"Can we marvel later?" Draco snapped, becoming frustrated with the language barrier, but also at the neglect his sister was recieving.

The Slytherin's voice seemed to snap the witch and wizard out of their thoughts and back the situation at hand, they both nodded as Jezebel returned to checking Phoebe over and Thomas continued to scribble on his clipboard as he watched the monitors.

"_Jezebel, I believe it is time to get Elizabeth,"_ Catrin said, turning to the nurse.

Jezebel nodded and left the room, however, she hadn't been gone for less than 2 minutes when the door opened again and Aiden entered, followed closely by Terence.

"What did we miss?" Aiden asked.

"A lot!" Phoebe snapped, as pain took hold of her once more.

Terence switched places with Serefina and squeezed Phoebe's hand and kissed her softly. "I'm sorry..." he whispered as he pulled away.

"_You're doing well, it's almost over,"_ Catrin said.

"C'mon, baby," Terence said. "That's it!"

"Argh!" Phoebe screamed, grabbing Terence's hand and squeezing it hard. "Owie!" she whimpered, as the line on the monitor beeped faster and faster by the second.

The door opened and Elizabeth Zone returned. "_Are you the father?"_ she inquired, looking at Terence. He nodded. "_Good. You may stay... however, I am afraid I must as the rest of you to leave!"_

_"Serefina,"_ Phoebe whimpered, catching her godmother. "_I want you to stay!"_

Elizabeth looked hesitant.

"Please..."

"_Alright,"_ Elizabeth nodded. "_Serefina you may stay, although everyone else has to leave!"_

Aiden nodded and nudged Draco towards the door, wishing Phoebe luck as he left. Phoebe smiled through her pain, but the second the door closed behind her brothers and the others, she let out a little cry as tears spilled over her cheeks.

"_You're fully dilated,"_ Elizabeth nodded. "_All we have to do now is start pushing!"_

Phoebe nodded, took a deep breath and started to push.

"Argh!"

"That's it, Little One!" Serefina coached from the sidelines, remembering what she was like when she was in labour with Aiden.

Phoebe whimpered.

"Good job, Phe," Terence said, letting her squeeze her hand as hard as she could.

"Argggggh!" Phoebe screamed as her face turned red.

"_That's it, sweetheart,"_ Elizabeth smiled. "_Just a few more..."_

Unable to move, think or speak, Phoebe continued to push.

_"I see a head of dark hair,"_ Elizabeth said, from the bottom of the bed.

"Push, Phoebe," Terence said.

Phoebe growled. "I'm pushing!" she snapped.

"_One more push, Sweetheart,"_

"It's almost over, Phoebe," said Serefina. "Deep breath and one more push, you can do it!"

"ARGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!"

"_And we're out!"_ Elizabeth said, and with a sigh of relief Phoebe collapsed against her pillows, her brow was sweaty and her breathing was ragged. Clutching the baby close to her, Elizabeth crossed the room and called for another healer, and Thomas returned, he smiled at Phoebe and crossed the room to help Elizabeth prepare the baby.

Meanwhile, Serefina and Terence made sure Phoebe was alright. "You did it, Phoebe," said Serefina. "I am so very proud of you!"

"Me too," Terence nodded. "I love you..."

"I love you, too," said Phoebe, reaching over to kiss him.

Finally the Elizabeth returned a bundle of blankets wrapped up in her arms. "_Congratulations, Phoebe,_" she said.

"Well, is it a boy or a girl?" Serefina asked.

"Did you have a specific gender in mind?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, as long as it is healthy," she said. "I could care less!"

Elizabeth nodded. "Well, then, I am proud to say that you are the mother to a beautiful baby boy!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 9:00pm**


	146. Chapter 146

**Author's Note:** Everyone wants to know the baby's name. I hope no one is disappointed with the name I have chosen. This is only a short chapter, but it includes some crucial points. Hopefully there will be a longer one next time.

**Dedications:** Chapter dedicated to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, ZabuzasGirl, MidnightReadingAddict, Chinaluv, SoPHiE-sUNshInE-gIrl, Fan of Fics, Alaina08, DJScales, Shikaruizumi97, MrIDome** and anonymous reviewer **Jo.**

**Shout Outs:** Big shout out too: **Love and Kill, Shikaruizumi97** and **MrIDome** for adding this story or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to her. No profit has been made in the making of this series. You get the picture... I hope.

* * *

><p>"A boy..." Phoebe whispered, looking down at the little bundle that had been placed in her arms, tears appeared in her eyes as she looked up at Terence, who was staring at his son with tear-filled eyes.<p>

"A boy..." Terence echoed, looking at his wife. "A son!"

"He's beautiful," Phoebe said, kissing her husband, and then kissing her son's forehead. "He looks just like you!"

Serefina, who was watching the family moment, smiled and brushed a strand of hair from her goddaughter's face. "I'll go inform the others," she said.

Phoebe nodded and watched as Serefina left the room, Thomas and Elizabeth left with her, leaving the new family alone.

"Are you crying?" Phoebe smiled, wiping a crystal-clear tear from Terence's face. He hadn't bothered to wipe it away because he knew that more would replace it. "Do you want to hold him?"

Terence nodded, wiped the tears on the back of his sleeve as Phoebe handed him the little bundle, he smiled when he took his son in his arms. "He needs a name," he said, looking up from his son's tiny face. "Any ideas?"

"One," Phoebe said.

"What is it?"

"I want to name him Blake Salazar."

"After Salazar Slytherin?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. I want him to be a descendant of a powerful Slytherin and I want him to know that if it wasn't for Blake, and for what he did for me, he wouldn't be here!"

"Alright then," Terence smiled, kissing her forehead. "Blake Salazar Higgs it is!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

After a few days, Phoebe and the baby were sent home, both incredibly healthy. Jackson had created emptied out the guest room that was situated next to Phoebe's and created a baby room for his new nephew, and once Blake was a few months older, he would be able to move in, but for now he would be sleeping in a bassinet in Phoebe and Terence's room.

Phoebe returned to England after two months along with Terence and the baby, they had permission off Dumbledore to move into the Hogwarts castle, primarily for the fact that Phoebe could finish her sixth year without being away from her son.

During her time off, she had gotten Ashlyn and James to send her homework via Athena and did all assignments from home. Some weekends, she went to school for tests and other important things for her examinations, but other than that, she was mostly at home with Blake.

However, on her first night back in the castle, Phoebe received an invitation from the headmaster to join him in his office.

"It's your first night back," Terence said, as Phoebe entered their quarters carrying a sleeping Blake in her arms. "What could he possibly want to see you about?"

"Probably to see how I am going to deal with the work I missed," said Phoebe, placing her son in his cradle and turning to her husband. "Don't wait up for me, alright?" she said, leaning over and kissing him once, after she had pulled away, Phoebe threw on her cloak and quickly hurried off to the Headmaster's office.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"The diary was a Horcrux. But this raised as many questions as it answered. What intrigued and alarmed me most was that diary had been intended as a weapon as much as a safeguard."

"I still don't understand,"

"Well, it worked as a Horcrux is supposed to work - in other words, the fragment of soul concealed inside it was kept safe and had undoubtedly played its part in preventing the death of its owner. But there could be no doubt that Riddle really wanted that diary read, wanted the piece of his soul to inhabit or possess somebody else, so that Slytherin's monster would be unleashed again."

"Well, he didn't want his hard work to be wasted. He wanted people to know he was Slytherin's heir, because he couldn't take credit at the time."

Phoebe frowned as she stepped off the top of the spiral staircase and approached Dumbledore's door, she could hear voices on the inside, voices that sounded very familiar. One of the voices belonged to Dumbledore, she was sure of that, and the other was Harry.

_**What is he doing up here at this time of the night?**_ The elemental frowned, checking her wrist watch to see that it was past midnight. She, Terence and Blake had only just arrived themselves, but that was because they had to travel all the way from Portugal and Apparating was out of the question, especially with a four month old baby.

"Don't you see, Harry, that if he intended the diary to be passed to, or planted on, some future Hogwarts student, he was being remarkably blasé about that precious fragment of his soul concealed within it. The point of a Horcrux is, as Professor Slughorn explained, to keep part of the self-hidden and safe, not to fling it into someone's path and run the risk that they might destroy it - as indeed happened!"

_**Slughorn?**_ Phoebe wondered curiously, as she listened outside the door. She knew that she was eavesdropping and she knew that it was wrong... but for the life of her she could not force herself to draw away, knock the door and interrupt the conversation that was taking place on the otherside.

What if they didn't continue it while she was present? Then she'd miss out on exactly what was happening, she always had a feeling that Harry kept several important key issues of his meetings with Dumbledore from her, Hermione and Ron, she just didn't understand why and for what reason, didn't he trust them?

"The careless way in which Voldemort regarded this Horcrux seemed most ominous to me. It suggested that he must have made - or been planning to make - more Horcruxes, so that the loss of his first would not be so detrimental. I did not wish to believe it, but nothing else seemed to make sense."

_**Harry must have retrieved the memory from Slughorn,**_ Phoebe nodded.

"Then you told me, two years later, that on the night that Voldemort returned to his body, he made a most illuminating and alarming statement to his Death Eaters," Dumbledore continued, "_I, who have gone further than anybody along the path that leads to immortality.'_ That was what you told me he said, '_Further than anybody,'_ and I thought I knew what that meant, though the Death Eaters did not."

_**He was referring to his Horcruxes,**_ Phoebe gasped.

"Horcruxes in the plural, Harry, which I do not believe any other wizard, has ever had. Yet it fitted: Lord Voldemort has seemed to grow less human with the passing years, and the transformation he has undergone seemed to me to be only explicable if his soul was mutilated beyond the realms of what we might call 'usual evil'..."

"So he's made himself impossible to kill by murdering other people?" said Harry. "Why couldn't he make a Sorcerer's Stone, or steal one, if he was so interested in immortality?"

"Well, we know that he tried to do just that, five years ago," said Dumbledore. "But there are several reasons why, I think, a Sorcerer's Stone would appeal less than Horcruxes to Lord Voldemort. While the Elixir of Life does indeed extend life, it must be drank regularly, for all eternity, if the drinker is to maintain their immortality. Therefore, Voldemort would be entirely dependent on the Elixir..."

_**And if it were to run out, or be contaminated or stolen, he would die just like any other man.**_ Phoebe finished Dumbledore's sentence without even thinking. So that was why he made a Horcrux... of Horcruxes! He needed nothing more, if only he could regain a human form. He was already immortal... or at least as close to immortal as any man could ever be.

"But now, Harry, armed with this information, the crucial memory you have succeeded in procuring for us, we are closer to the secret of finishing Lord Voldemort than anyone has ever been before. You heard him, Harry; 'wouldn't it be better, make you stronger, to have your soul in more pieces... isn't seven the most powerfully magical number...'"

_**Isn't seven the most powerfully magical number**_ Phoebe repeated, her eyes wide. Seven times. Seven murders. Seven Horcruxes.

"Oh Merlin..." the elemental whispered as another thought struck her, unexpectedly.

"He made _seven_ Horcruxes?" said Harry. "But they could be anywhere in the world - hidden - buried or invisible -"

"I am glad to see you appreciate the magnitude of the problem," said Dumbledore calmly. "But firstly, no, Harry, not seven Horcruxes: six. The seventh part of his soul, however maimed, resides inside his regenerated body. That was the part of him that lived a spectral existence for so my years during his exile without that, he has no self at all. That seventh piece of soul will be the last that anybody wishing to kill Voldemort must attack - the piece that lives in his body."

"But the six Horcruxes, then," said Harry, a little desperately, "how are we supposed to find them?"

"You are forgetting... you have already destroyed one of them. And I have destroyed another?"

Phoebe frowned; she wished she could see what was going on behind the closed door.

"You have?"

"Yes indeed," said Dumbledore. "The ring, Harry. Marvolo's ring. And a terrible curse there was upon it too. Had it not been - forgive my lack of seemly modesty for my own prodigious skill, and for Professor Snape's timely action when I returned to Hogwarts, desperately injured. I might not have lived to tell the tale. However, a withered hand does not seem an unreasonable exchange for a seventh of Voldemort's soul. The ring is no longer a Horcrux."

"But how did you find it?"

"Well, as you now know, for many years I have made it my business to discover as much as I can about Voldemort's past life. I have traveled widely, visiting places he once knew. I stumbled upon the ring hidden in the ruin of the Gaunts' house. It seems that once Voldemort had succeeded in sealing a piece of his soul inside it, he did not want to wear it anymore. He hit it, protected by many powerful enchantments, in the shack where his ancestors had once lived, never guessing that I might one day take the trouble to visit the ruin, or that I might be keeping an eye open for traces of magical concealment."

There was a pause.

"However, we should not congratulate ourselves too heartily. You destroyed the diary and I the ring, but if we are right in our theory of a seven-part soul, four Horcruxes remain."

"And they could be anything?" said Harry. "They could be old tin cans or, I dunno, empty potion bottles..."

Phoebe smirked at how naive Harry sounded. "Voldemort wouldn't use something as invaluable to hide his soul, Harry!" she muttered, shaking her head as she continued to listen to the conversation. Harry was foolish at times, she would admit that, but she never believed he could be _this_ foolish!

"Lord Voldemort liked to collect trophies, Harry, and he preferred objects with a powerful magical history," Dumbledore confirmed. "His pride, his belief in his own superiority, his determination to carve for himself a startling place in magical history; these things suggest to me that Voldemort would have chosen his Horcruxes with some care, favoring objects worthy of the honor."

"The diary wasn't that special,"

"The diary, as you have said yourself, was proof that he was the Heir of Slytherin; I am sure that Voldemort considered it of stupendous importance."

"So, the other Horcruxes?" said Harry. "Do you think you know what they are, sir?"

"I can only guess," said Dumbledore. "For the reasons I have already given, I believe that Lord Voldemort would prefer objects that, in themselves, have certain grandeur. I have therefore trawled back through Voldemort's past to see if I can find evidence that such artifacts have disappeared around him."

"The locket!" said Harry loudly. "Hufflepuff's cup!"

Phoebe gasped as she covered her mouth with her hand and took a hesitant step backwards.

"Yes," said Dumbledore. "I would be prepared to bet - perhaps not my other hand - but a couple of fingers, that they became Horcruxes three and four. The remaining two, assuming again that he created a total of six, are more of a problem, but I will hazard a guess that, having secured objects from Hufflepuff and Slytherin, he set out to track down objects owned by Gryffindor or Ravenclaw."

_**Four objects from the four founders**_ Phoebe thought as she nudged the top of step of the spiral staircase with her heel, her hand was still covering her mouth a she was staring at Dumbledore's office door with wide eyes. Her four mentors, their long lost objects had been re-created into four powerful dark objects, each one containing a single celled organism that related back to one person: Lord Voldemort.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, July 31, 2012 at 12:00am**


	147. Chapter 147

**Author's Note Two:** I know it is short! But it is a two parter. Second part will be posted tomorrow.

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. Here is the next chapter... oh and if you haven't noticed already this story, not only has reached its 1 year anniversary, it has also reached the ONE THOUSAND review mark and I owe that you lovely people and my close personal friend, Soul Virus who has done nothing for the last few days but read and review. I cannot thank you people enough.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, ZabuzasGirl, Pixiescale1185, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, SoPHie-sUNshInE-gIrl, DJScales** and **Alaina08.**

**Shout Outs: **Just wanted to say thanks to the following: **ryouXichogo lover** and** MidnightReadingAddict** for adding this story or me to any of their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to her. No profit has been made in the making of this series. You get the picture... I hope.

* * *

><p>"Oh, he's so cute!"<p>

"What's his name?"

"Look at his widde face!"

"Aw..."

Phoebe smiled as she sat at the Gryffindor table the next morning with Blake in her arms, the whole of sixth and seventh year girls cooing over how handsome, adorable and cute her son was. "His name's Blake," she answered, looking up at a seventh year that she knew as Ruby Blitz. "Blake Salazar Higgs!"

"Salazar?" Sophie Meyers, another seventh year asked. "As in Salazar _Slytherin_?"

Phoebe nodded.

"Why would you name your baby after that _snake_?"

"Because it fits," Phoebe answered, turning back to the baby she was feeding. "Plus Salazar means a great deal to me... you wouldn't understand!"

The girls backed off after that, dropping the subject and returning to their breakfast.

"Ginny and Dean split up too," said Hermione, causing Phoebe to look up quickly.

"They did?" she asked. "How come?"

"Oh, something really silly," answered Hermione. "She said he was always trying to help her through the portrait hole, like she couldn't climb in herself... but they've been a bit rocky for ages."

Phoebe glanced down the Gryffindor table to where Dean was sitting, he certainly looked unhappy. "Why do I get the feeling that you had something to do with their breakup?" she asked, turning back to Harry.

"Why would you think that?"

"You're saying that you had nothing to do with it?"

"Of course not!"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "Alright!" she shrugged, looking back at her son.

Harry sighed.

"Phoebe," Ashlyn yelled, running into the Great Hall. "Phoebe! She's back!"

"Who's back?"

"Sarah!" Ashlyn said. "Sarah's back! She's just returned!"

"What are you waiting for?" Phoebe asked, getting to her feet and cuddling Blake closer. "Lead the way!"

Ashlyn nodded and lead Phoebe from the Breakfast Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Sarah! You're back! Are you okay?"

James stared: It was indeed Sarah Prentiss, looking completely healthy and surrounded by a jubilant looking Amelia and Aiden.

"I'm really well!" Sarah said happily. "They let me out of St. Mungo's on Monday; I had a couple of days at home with Mum and Dad and then came back here this morning. Aiden was just telling me about you and Terence, Phoebe, is that him?"

She was staring at the bundle in her friend's arms.

Phoebe smiled. "Yes," she nodded. "This is Blake Salazar..."

"Oh?"

"Salazar means a lot to me," Phoebe explained. "Just like Blake does..."

"I think it's beautiful,"

Phoebe smiled.

"May I?"

"Of course," Phoebe nodded placing the bundle into her friend's arms.

"He's beautiful," Sarah murmured.

"Thank you," Phoebe said, reaching across and brushing a strand of golden curls from her son's face. "Sarah, I need to ask you about the necklace... can you remember who gave it to you?"

"No," said Sarah, shaking her head ruefully. "Everyone's been asking me, but I haven't got a clue. The last thing I remember was walking into the ladies' in the Three Broomsticks."

"Yes, I remember," Phoebe nodded. "We watched you disappear in through the door."

"Well, I guess whoever imperiused me was standing just behind it. After that, my memory's blank until about two weeks ago in St. Mungo's. Listen, I'd better go, I wouldn't put it past Snape to give me detention even if it is my first day back..."

She passed Blake back to Phoebe, snapped up her book bag and left for Defence with Amelia and Aiden.

"So it must have been a girl or a woman that gave Sarah the necklace," said Ashlyn, "to be in the ladies' bathroom."

"Or someone who looked like a girl or a woman," said James. "Harry did some research while you were in labor, Phoebe, he's figured out that Malfoy has got Crabbe and Goyle taking Polyjuice potion and transforming into girls to keep look out for him."

"You think Crabbe and Goyle would let Draco convince them to enter a ladies bathroom?" Phoebe asked. "No, James, even they would draw the line there!"

James shrugged. "Think what you want, but don't forget there was a cauldron full of Polyjuice Potion at Hogwarts. We know some of it got stolen..."

Ashlyn shook the image of a parade of Crabbe and Goyle's prancing around, all transformed into girls, from her minds' eye.

"Whatever," she muttered. "C'mon, we're going to be late for Transfiguration."

"Yeah, I'm already late for Divination," James sighed. "See ya!"

He snapped up his backpack and left, leaving Ashlyn and Phoebe to climb the stairs to the fourth floor, baby Blake asleep in his mother's arms.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The following fortnight saw the best Quidditch practices Harry had ever known as Captain. His team was so pleased to be rid of McLaggen, so glad to have Phoebe back at last, that they were flying extremely well.

Ginny did not seem at all upset about the breakup with Dean; on the contrary she was the life and soul of the team. Her imitations of Ron anxiously bobbing up and down in front of the goal posts as the Quaffle sped toward him, or of Harry bellowing orders at McLaggen before being knocked out cold, kept them all highly amused, especially Phoebe, who hadn't been able to play Quidditch due to her pregnancy.

The balmy days slid gently through May, and the interest in the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw game was running extremely high throughout the school, for the match would decide the Championship, which was still wide open, if Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw by a margin of three hundred points (a tall order, and yet Phoebe nor Harry had never known the Gryffindor team to fly better) then they were sure to win.

If they won by less than three hundred points, they would come second to Ravenclaw; if they lost by a hundred points they would be third behind Hufflepuff, and if they lost by more than a hundred, they would be in fourth place and nobody would forgive Harry for captaining Gryffindor to their first bottom-of-the-table defeat in two centuries.

"Concentrate, Harry!" Phoebe snapped as she blasted the Bludger away from her friend with her elemental control over the air, the ball swerved past Ginny and rocketed off around the pitch once more.

Harry blinked and looked across at the elemental. "Thanks," he said, shaking his head.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded, "just can't stop thinking about the match... if we lose -"

"We're not gonna lose!" Phoebe reminded him. "You're a great Captain, Harry, have some faith in yourself!"

The run-up to the crucial match had all the usual features; members of the rival Houses attempting to intimidate opposing teams in the corridors; unpleasant chants about individual players being rehearsed loudly as they passed; the team members themselves either swaggering around enjoying all the attention or else dashing into bathrooms between classes to throw up.

In the midst of all his preoccupations, Harry had not forgotten his other ambition: finding out what Malfoy was up to in the Room of Requirement. He was still checking the Marauder's Map, and as he was unable to locate Malfoy on it, deduced that Malfoy was still spending plenty of time within the room.

Phoebe, on the other hand, had other priorities, not only was she excited about the upcoming match, the first match that she had played since she had found out she was pregnant, and she also had a newborn to take off.

Blake, who had grown in the last month, was now kicking and gurgling happily whenever he saw or laid eyes on his mother; sometimes he would sleep throughout her lessons, or he would wake and everyone would coo over him as he giggled and blew bubbles in hopes of entertaining his mother.

**~*Phoebe*~**

A few days before the match against Ravenclaw, Harry found himself walking down to dinner alone from the common room, Ron having rushed off to a nearby bathroom to throw up yet again, Hermione having dashed off to see Professor Vector about a mistake she thought she might have made on her last Arithmancy essay, and Phoebe was in her dormitory preparing her son for dinner.

More out of habit than anything, Harry made his usual detour along the seventh-floor corridor, checking the Marauder's Map as he went. For a moment he could not find Malfoy anywhere and assumed he must indeed be inside the Room of Requirement again, but then he saw Malfoy's tiny, labeled dot standing in a boys' bathroom on the floor below, accompanied not by Crabbe or Goyle, but Phoebe Blackheart.

Harry only stopped staring at the map when he walked right into a suit of armor. The loud crash brought him out of his reverie; hurrying from the scene lest Filch turn up, he dashed down the marble staircase and along the passageway below. Outside the bathroom, he pressed his ear against the door. He could not hear anything. He very quietly pushed the door open.

Draco Malfoy was standing with his back to the door, his hands clutching either side of the sink, his white-blond head bowed.

"Don't..." Phoebe whispered she was standing at her brother's side, hand on his arm and looking at him with pleading eyes. "Don't... tell me what's wrong... I can help..."

"No one can help me," said Malfoy. His whole body was shaking. "I can't do it... I can't... it won't work... and unless I do it soon... he says he'll kill you..."

Phoebe reached across and took her brother's hand in her own, pulled him away from the sink and pulled him close, her arms wrapping around his waist and her head falling onto his chest. "I'm not going anywhere, Dragon," she murmured.

It was then Harry realized, with a shock so huge it seemed to root him to the spot, that Malfoy was crying - actually crying - tears streaming down his pale face and into Phoebe's hair. Malfoy gasped and gulped and then, as if he could feel Harry's gaze on him and his sister, gave a great shudder and looked up.

Immediately, as if he had been burned, Draco pulled away from Phoebe and wheeled around, drawing his wand. Instinctively, Harry and Phoebe pulled out their own.

Malfoy's hex missed Harry by inches, shattering the lamp on the wall beside him; Harry threw himself sideways, thought _Levicorpus_! And flicked his wand, but Phoebe blocked the jinx. "No! No! Stop it!" she yelled, her voice echoing loudly around the tiled room. "Stop! STOP!"

There was a loud bang and the bin behind Harry exploded; Harry attempted a Leg-Locker Curse that backfired off the wall behind Malfoy's ear and smashed the cistern beneath one of the toilets and expelled water throughout the whole bathroom.

Harry slipped as Malfoy, his face contorted, cried, _"CRUCIO!"_

_"SECTUMSEMPRA!"_

_"PROTEGO!"_

The three spells collided and bounced off of one another, Harry ducked as one spell struck the solid wall behind him, Malfoy ducked as another shattered the mirror above the water basin, while Phoebe gasped, her wand falling from her fingers and splashing as it hit the water covered floor.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, August 09, 2012 at 10:18pm**


	148. Chapter 148

**Author's Note: **I know! I know! It's short! But it is only a carry on from last chapter. Hopefully the chapters will get longer, but hey, we're coming up to the end of sixth year now, so does it really matter?

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Dream Lighting, Alaina08, Pixiescale1185, Chinaluv, PheonixMinx, Fan of Fics** and **MidnightReadingAddict**.

**Disclaimer:** Once again this is Kara's self-conscious bringing you the undeniably boring disclaimer. Kara does not own Harry Potter; it belongs to the awesome mind of Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. Kara is merely borrowing the characters for her own personal enjoyment. However, she does own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to her. No profit has been made in the making of this series. You get the picture... I hope.

* * *

><p>Blood spurted from Phoebe's face and chest as though she had been slashed with an invisible sword. She staggered backward and collapsed onto the waterlogged floor with a great splash.<p>

"No -" Harry gasped.

"PHOEBE!" Draco screamed, falling to his knees beside his sister, and pulling her head into his lap.

Slipping and staggering, Harry got to his feet and plunged towards the twins, Phoebe's face was now shining scarlet, as Draco's white hands scrabbled at his sister's blood-soaked chest.

"No - I didn't -"

Harry did not know what he was saying; he fell to his knees beside Malfoy, who was shaking uncontrollably in a pool of his sister's blood, and then there was a blood-curdling scream from Moaning Myrtle, who had come to investigate the shouts, bangs and explosions.

"MURDER! MURDER IN THE BATHROOM! MURDER!"

The door banged open and Harry looked up, terrified. Aiden had burst into the room, his face livid. Pushing Harry roughly aside, he knelt over Phoebe, took her hand in his, and held it beneath the water of the overflowing bathroom.

Phoebe's eyes flickered from silvery grey to cobalt blue and instantly the water started to skim up her arm, over her chest, and up to the scars on her face. The flow of blood eased, while Draco wiped residue from Phoebe's face and Aiden concentrated pointedly on his connection to his sister. Now the deep wounds Harry's curse had made seemed to be knitting.

Harry was still watching, horrified by what he had done, barely aware that he too was soaked in blood and water. Moaning Myrtle was still sobbing and wailing overhead. When Aiden had finished, he dropped Phoebe's hand and turned to his younger brother.

"Go!"

"But Phoebe -"

"GO!"

Draco stared at Aiden for a moment longer, before rising to his feet and stalking past Harry, he didn't say a word to the Gryffindor, or even look at him as he passed, he reached the door, wrenched it open and stormed out; where he was going, Harry did not know, but he didn't have the heart to follow him, not after what he had just witnessed... and worst of all... after what he had just committed.

Meanwhile, Aiden had half-lifted Phoebe into a standing position.

"You need the hospital wing," he said, as Phoebe fell against him. She was too weak to stand on her own, after having lost so much blood.

"Carry me," she pleaded.

Aiden nodded. "Alright," he whispered, placing his arm under her legs and scooping her up into his arms. He walked towards the door, turning to say in a voice of cold fury. "Potter... you will wait here! I will send someone down!"

It did not occur to Harry for a second to disobey, even if it was another student ordering him around, he stood up slowly, shaking, and looking down at the wet floor. There were bloodstains floating like crimson flowers across its surface.

"Potter!" Serefina's voice cut through the silence that had fallen and Harry only then realized that Aiden and Phoebe had gone. "Go!" the Care of Magical Creature's professor ordered Myrtle, and she swooped back into her toilet at once.

"I didn't mean it to happen," said Harry at once. His voice echoed in the cold, watery space. "I didn't know what that spell did."

But Serefina ignored this. "You have clearly been underestimated, Potter," she said quietly. "Who would have thought you knew such Dark Magic? Who taught you that spell?"

"I - read about it somewhere."

"Where?"

"It was - a library book," Harry invented widely. "I can't remember what it was call -"

"Lying will not help Phoebe, Harry," said Serefina. Harry's throat went dry. He knew what Snape was going to do and he had never been able to prevent it.

The bathroom seemed to shimmer before his eyes, he struggled to block out all thought, but try as he might, and the Half-Blood Prince's copy of _Advanced Potion-Making_ swam hazily to the forefront of his mind. And then he was staring at Serefina again, in the midst of this wrecked, soaked bathroom. He stared in Serefina's blue eyes, hoping against hope that she had not seen what he feared, but -

"To Gryffindor Tower, Potter," said Serefina softly. "I wish to inspect your schoolbooks. _All_ of them."

Harry's heart sank; he knew that there was no point in arguing, so he turned at once and splashed out of the bathroom, Serefina following behind him.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I won't say 'I told you so,'" said Hermione, an hour later in the common room.

"Leave it, Hermione," said Ron angrily.

James, who was also there, glared at the red head. "Why should she leave it?" he spat. "Phoebe could have died! Harry should feel guilty, he could have killed her!"

"But he didn't," Ron defended.

"But he could have!" James yelled, jumping to his feet. "That book was fun in the beginning, but we were stupid to encourage Harry to keep it! We should have listened to Hermione and Phoebe in the beginning and given the book back before something like this had happened, you should be thankful that Aiden had decided to come looking for Phoebe in the first place, Harry, if he hadn't Phoebe might've died!"

The news that Phoebe had been attacked had traveled very fast. Apparently Moaning Myrtle had taken it upon herself to pop up in every bathroom in the castle to tell the story; Phoebe had already been visited in the hospital wing by Ashlyn and James, who had lost no time in vilifying Harry far and wide, and Aiden had told the staff precisely what had happened, only for it to be confirmed by Serefina minutes later.

Harry had already been called out of the common room to endure fifteen highly unpleasant minutes in the company of Professor McGonagall, who had told he was lucky not to have been expelled and that she supported wholeheartedly Serefina's punishment of detention every Saturday until the end of term.

"I told you there was something wrong with that Prince person," Hermione said, evidently unable to stop herself. "And I was right, wasn't I?"

"No, I don't think you were," said Harry stubbornly.

"Of course she was right!" James snapped. "I can't believe you are actually defending the stupid book after what you just did!"

"I'm not defending what I did!" said Harry quickly. "I wish I hadn't done it, and not just because I've got about a dozen detentions. You know I wouldn't' ve used a spell like that on Phoebe, I wouldn't even use a spell like that on her brother, but you can't blame the Prince, he hadn't written 'try this out, it's really good' - he only copied it out! It's not like he was advising anyone to use it! For all we know, he was making a note of something that had been used against him!"

James looked livid.

"Give it a rest, James," said Ginny, and Harry was so amazed, so grateful, he looked up. "By the sound of it, Malfoy was trying to use an Unforgiveable Curse, you should be glad Harry had something good up his sleeve!"

"Yes, but he didn't hit Malfoy, did he?" James sneered. "No, he didn't hit his intended target, Ginny, he hit Phoebe! The same person he has been crushing on since fourth year! The same person he has protected since first year, the same person that has defended him against Draco since first year... so don't sit there and tell me he did the right thing, when you know very well that what he did was wrong!"

Ginny's eyes narrowed. "If Phoebe was defending that _rat_ then she deserved to get hit," she spat, acidly.

James saw red, sprang to his feet and lunged for the youngest Weasley sitting opposite him. "DO NOT SAY THAT ABOUT PHOEBE!" he yelled, struggling against Harry, who had sprang to his feet and was keeping him away from Ginny, while Ron, who had also sprang to his feet, stood protectively in front of his younger sister. "YOU'RE EXACTLY LIKE RON! YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYONE OTHER THAN YOUR OWN PATHETIC LITTLE LIVES!"

Pulling back his arm, James elbowed Harry in the stomach, causing the Quidditch captain to release his hold on the Chaser, who had set his gaze on Ron, who he sent hurling aside, before leaping at Ginny; the two crashed over the table (sending it clattering to the floor) as the sound of a slap echoed from behind it.

**~*Phoebe*~**

By next morning, James and Ginny were no longer on speaking terms, and everyone knew that it would only spell disaster for the Gryffindor team during Saturday's game.

Not only because two of their Chasers weren't speaking, the third, and possibly most important Chaser had been banned from playing due to her injuries, which had miraculously healed (only a select few knew what had truly happened to them), and their Captain had gone and got himself banned from the final match of the season.

But Saturday morning, whatever Harry might have told Hermione, he would have gladly exchanged all the Felix Felicis in the world to be walking down to the Quidditch pitch with Ron, Ginny and James (who was walking head with Dean Thomas and Jonathan Toshiba (today's chasers, seeing as Ginny was taking over as Seeker).

It was almost unbearable to turn away from the mass of students streaming out into the sunshine, all of them wearing rosettes and hats and brandishing banners and scarves, to descend the stone steps into the dungeons and walk until the distant sounds of the crowd were quite obliterated, knowing that he would not be able to hear a word of commentary or a cheer or a groan.

_**You think you're the only one who has it bad?**_ His mind questioned, _**what about Phoebe? She too is also missing out on the final match, not only was she looking forward to playing, but now she is even banned from attending! Way to go, Potter, you've not only ruined it for yourself, but you've also ruined it for her too! You'll be lucky if she ever speaks to you again!**_

Harry sighed heavily as the daunting thought stuck with him all the way to Snape's office, he stopped outside, raised his hand and knocked, why Serefina had suggested that he take detention with Snape was beyond his understanding, but he could only hope it was not because of what he had done to Phoebe; he could not apologize enough to the elemental's friends, but he knew that each and every one of them would never forgive him for what he had done... and in all honesty, he knew that he could never forgive himself for almost murdering her too.

**~*Phoebe*~**

At least three hours after the match, Phoebe was awoken by a roar of celebration from outside the hospital wing doors; she didn't know when she had fallen asleep, seeing as she was still sitting up, but her food tray had been removed from her lap and placed on the bedside table beside her.

Terence and Blake were missing, but the elemental could only guess that her husband had taken their son back to their dormitory for food, a bath and then bed.

Blinking and rubbing her eyes, Phoebe looked up as the Hospital wing doors burst open and thunderous footfalls made their way down the dorm towards her bed. She paused as the curtains were pulled back and the beaming face of James came into view.

"Guess what!" he said, grinning wildly, Ashlyn and the others were behind him, each of them pleased about something.

"We won?" Phoebe asked, her voice void of any emotions, seeing as she had only just woken up... _or been_ woken up.

"Yes!" James cheered. "We won! Four hundred and fifty to a hundred and forty! We won!"

Phoebe let the information penetrate her foggy mind, before jumping out of bed and throwing her arms around her best friend and fellow chaser. "We won!" she cheered, jumping up and down happily, she then extracted herself from James, threw her arms around Ashlyn and proceeded to perform a victory dance around the dormitory.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, July 11, 2012 at 12:00am**


	149. Chapter 149

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update. It's been what - Oh bloody hell, over a month! I am really, really sorry. Here is a long chapter to make up for the late review.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Chinaluv, MidnightReadingAddict, Alaina08, PheonixMinx** and** Bellatrix And The Dark Lord.**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>The first thing Phoebe did when she was released from the Hospital Wing on Saturday evening - with a stern warning from Madam Pomfrey - was go straight to the library. She wanted information on the person behind Harry's Potion book, which had now been confiscated and resided in Dumbledore's office.<p>

Pushing open the thick doors, the elemental hurried towards the section on Wizarding families and extracted a book labeled: _Old and Ancient Wizarding Families_, she knew that the Malfoy family was more than likely in here, along with the Blacks.

Finding a secluded table in the back of the library, Phoebe opened the book to the contents, run her finger down the hundreds of names before she reached 'P' and scanned for the name: Prince.

"Found it," she murmured, running her finger across the dotted line. "Page: 850."

Tapping the book with wand, Phoebe waited as the pages flipped to the designated page and presented the elemental with a small newspaper clipping of a skinny fifteen year old girl, she was anything but pretty, in fact she looked simultaneously cross and sullen, with heavy brows and a long, pallid face.

"Eileen Prince," Phoebe murmured as she read the caption underneath the name. "Captain of the Hogwarts Gobstones Team."

The elemental smirked, glanced around to make sure that no one was near her, then tapped the newspaper clipping with her wand. The page split neatly from the seams allowing Phoebe to roll it up and stuff it quickly into her robes.

And then, merely out of curiosity, the elemental closed the book and re-opened it to the contents page. Looked down the hundreds of names until she reached 'M' and then scanned for the name: Malfoy.

"Page 642."

Tapping the book again with her wand, the pages flipped to the designated page, and deposited the name "MALFOY" in block letters for the elemental to read.

_The Malfoy name comes from old French and translates as 'bad faith'._

_Armand Malfoy arrived in Britain with William the Conqueror as part of the invading Norman army. Having rendered unknown, shady (and almost certainly magical) services to King William I, Malfoy was given a prime piece of land in Wiltshire, seized from local landowners, upon which his descendants have lived for ten consecutive centuries._

_Armand encapsulated many of the qualities that have distinguished the Malfoy family to the present day. The Malfoy's have always had the reputation, hinted at by their not altogether complimentary surname, of being a slippery bunch, to be found courting power and riches wherever they might be found. In spite of their espousal of pure-blood values and their undoubtedly genuine belief in wizards' superiority over suits them. _

_The result is that they are one of the richest Wizarding families in Britain, and it has been rumored for many years (though never proven) that over the centuries the family has dabbled successfully in Muggle currency and assets. Over hundreds of years, they have managed to add to their lands in Wiltshire by annexing those of neighboring Muggles, and the favour they curried with royalty added Muggle treasures and works of art to an ever-expanding collection._

_Historically, the Malfoy's drew a sharp distinction between poor Muggles and those with wealth and authority. Until the imposition of the Statute of Secrecy in 1692, the Malfoy family was active within high-born Muggle circles, and it is said that their fervent opposition to the imposition of the Statue was due, in part, to the fact that they would have to withdrew from this enjoyable sphere of social life._

"Associated with Muggles?" Phoebe frowned, re-reading the small amount of text. There was a lot more to read, but she had a feeling that if she wishes to continue she would have to check the book out, it was nearing curfew and she wanted to speak with Harry before she returned to Terence and Blake.

_Thought hotly denied by subsequent generations, there is ample evidence to suggest that the first Lucius Malfoy was an unsuccessful aspirant to the hand of Elizabeth I, and some Wizarding historians allege that the Queen's subsequent opposition to marriage was due to a jinx placed upon her by the thwarted Malfoy._

Phoebe sniggered at the idea of her family being _that_ closely related to a Muggle Queen. She may have been royalty, but she was still a Muggle.

"Ah, so not _all_ Malfoy's cared about Bloody purity," she mused. "Draco is not going to like this!"

"Ahem,"

Phoebe gave a start and looked up. Madam Pince loomed over her. "Oh, hello, Madam Pince," the elemental smiled. "Closing time already?"

"Yes, Miss. Blackheart," the librarian nodded. "You will either have to check the book out or return it to its natural place."

"Of course," Phoebe nodded. "I'll like to take it with me!"

Madam Pince nodded and motioned for her to follow.

Phoebe did as instructed, and when she reached the front of the library she handed the book over, watched as it was stamped and then handed back to her.

"End of June," Madam Pince said, with a curt nod.

"Yes, Ma'am," Phoebe smiled, clutching the book close to her and hurrying from the library.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Finally making it to the Gryffindor tower, Phoebe smiled at the Fat Lady, gave the password and scrambled through into the common room.

There, sitting in front of the fireplace, working on his Herbology essay with Ron, Hermione and James, was Harry.

"Hey," Phoebe said, perching herself on the arm of the sofa. "How goes the homework load?"

"When did you get out?" James asked.

"This evening,"

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because I had to do something," Phoebe said. "This is why I am here. I have been in the library since I got out."

"Why?"

"Research,"

Ron snorted. "Trying to help that rat brother of yours, are you?" he asked.

Phoebe ignored the jab and turned to Harry. "I wanted to talk to you about the Halfblood Prince," she said, resting her book on her legs as she slid onto the couch beside James.

"Oh, not again," Harry groaned. "Will you please drop it?"

"No," Phoebe said. "You owe me, Harry!"

"Owe you?" Ron laughed. "What does he owe you for?"

"He nearly killed me!"

"He was aiming for Malfoy," Ron said. "You just interfered!"

"It doesn't matter who he was aiming for," Phoebe hissed. "If the spell had hit Draco, Harry would have nearly killed him!"

"And that's a bad thing?" Ron muttered.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. "Fine. Next time, I'll let _my_ brother die and you can watch _your_ best friend get tried for murder!"

Ron scowled and went back to his Herbology homework.

"After your last incident with the spells in that book," Phoebe said, "I decided that I wanted more information on the person behind it. I could have asked either Ashlyn or Terence to do research for me, but Ashlyn is preparing for her NEWTs and Terence has Blake to worry about. So it was left to me..."

"What did you find?" Hermione asked, cutting across Harry who had opened his mouth to fight.

"Only this," said Phoebe, removing the newspaper clipping from inside her robes. She unrolled it and using her wand smoothed it out for them to see. "It's an article on an Eileen Pince. She was the captain of the Gobstones Team here at Hogwarts in 1948-1949."

"So?" Harry blinked.

"Look at the name, Harry," Hermione said. "Eileen Prince. _Prince._"

Harry stared at the two girls, before exchanged a look with Ron and bursting into laughter.

"No way."

"What?"

"You think _she_ was the Halfblood Prince...? Oh, come on."

"Well, why not?" Hermione asked. "Harry, there aren't any real princes in the Wizarding world! It's either a nickname, a made-up title somebody's given themselves, or it could be their actual name, couldn't it? No, listen! If, say, her father was a wizard whose surname was Prince, and her mother was a Muggle, then that would make her a 'Halfblood Prince'!"

"Yeah, very ingenious, Hermione..." Ron laughed.

Phoebe glared at him. "Actually, Hermione has a very good point," she said. "But, she has the wrong concept!"

"Huh?" James blinked.

"You are thinking alone the right lines, Hermione," Phoebe nodded. "But I have another theory."

"What is it?" Ron asked. "I could use another laugh!"

"I would tell you," Phoebe nodded. "But I'm afraid your tiny brain would melt with too much information!"

Ron hissed and glared angrily at her.

The elemental shook her head. "You know what, think what you like, I'm gonna keep my theory and tell it to those who will actually listen and take it seriously. And I will find out more about Eileen Prince in the process; just you wait, Ronald Weasley, I will prove you wrong, again!"

She got to her feet and left the common room, snatching up the clipping in the process, now that she had the book on old Wizarding families she could thread it back in and no one would be any the wiser.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Aiden shook his head as he hurried up to the seventh floor.

He had just had a vision... a really bad vision, and he needed to see Phoebe as fast as possible.

"Phe - Phoebe!" he shouted, spotting her walking towards him, arms clutching a rather old-looking book. He shook the book from his head and skidded to a halt beside her. "We need to talk!"

"Did you run all the way up here from the Dungeons?"

"Yes,"

"Why?"

"Because I had a vision,"

Phoebe blinked. "About?"

"Draco..."

"And...?"

"He's done it!" Aiden said. "He's completed his task!"

"Do you know what it was?"

"No," Aiden said, shaking his head. "No, but he's done it! I saw... Death Eaters..."

"Death Eaters?"

"In the castle,"

"When?"

"Tonight!"

Phoebe stared at her brother; she was growing tedious of these one word questions and answers. "Alright, I want you to tell me everything!"

"Can we walk and talk?"

"Sure,"

They started walking away from the Gryffindor tower and towards the dormitory that Phoebe shared with Terence and their son on the sixth floor. They were just coming up the stretch of hallway in front of the Room of Requirements, and Aiden was telling her about his vision, when a voice screeched from around the corner.

"How - _dare_ - you - aaaaaaargh!"

Exchanging looks, both elemental hurtled around the corner, and saw Professor Trelawney sprawled upon the floor; her head covered in one of her many shawls, several sherry bottles lying beside her, one broken.

"Professor -"

Aiden hurried forward and helped Professor Trelawney to her feet. Some of her glittering beads had become entangled with her glasses. She hiccupped loudly, patted her hair, and pulled herself up on Aiden's helping arm.

"What happened, Professor?" Phoebe asked.

"You may well ask!" Trelawney said shrilly. "I was strolling along, brooding upon certain dark portents I happen to have glimpsed..."

Phoebe rolled her eyes and cast her gaze towards the wall opposite her: There on the right was the tapestry of dancing trolls, and on the left, that smoothly impenetrable stretch of stone wall that concealed -

"The Room of Requirement," Phoebe murmured. "Draco..."

"Phoebe...?" Aiden question as he allowed Trelawney to babble on about what she had seen in her crystal ball, while his sister circled him and pressed her hand against the cold surface of the wall. "What are you -?"

"Shush!"

Aiden fell silent and looked back at the Divination Professor. "Professor, maybe you should take this up with Professor Dumbledore?"

"Dumbledore?"

"Yes, the headmaster,"

"Yes, yes," Trelawney nodded. "Yes. I think I will... thank you, Chamberlain!"

She patted his shoulder and ambled off in the direction of the headmasters office, unknowing that she was about to walk straight into Harry Potter who was heading in that direction also.

Meanwhile, Aiden turned back to Phoebe. "What are you doing?" he asked, coming to stand behind her.

Phoebe had closed her eyes, and was pressing her hand against the wall.

"What are you doing, Draco?" she asked.

Suddenly her hand glowed amber and the wall shifted, revealing an old door, similar to the one that allowed them access to the DA training grounds a year previous.

"Whoa," Aiden murmured. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!" Phoebe said, reaching for the door handle. "I just wanted to know what Draco was doing..."

"I think you bonded with the magic here at Hogwarts,"

"Can that happen?"

Aiden shrugged. "I don't know, but do you have a better explanation?"

"No," Phoebe said shaking her head. "Should we go in?"

"You wanted to know what he was doing." Aiden said.

"And you said he had completed it," Phoebe pointed out.

"Then we can find out and celebrate..."

Phoebe frowned. "If it's anything to do with the Death Eaters you saw, I don't want to celebrate." she said.

"Point taken," Aiden nodded. "But the vision was incomplete. Besides, my Inner Eye says we need to go in!"

"Your Inner Eye?" Phoebe snorted. "Yes, okay, Professor!"

Aiden rolled his eyes. "Just open the door!"

Still giggling, Phoebe grasped the handle and pulled.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile on the otherside of the school, Harry had just bolted through the Gryffindor Common room, sprinted upstairs to his dorm, before returning to the common room where James, Hermione and Ron were staring at him in total confusion.

"Harry, what is -?" James started.

"I've got to be quick," Harry panted. "Dumbledore thinks I'm getting my Invisibility Cloak. Listen..."

He told them where he was going and why. He did not pause either for Hermione's gasps of horror or Ron and James's hasty questions; they could work out the finer details for themselves later.

"... you see what this means?" Harry finished at a gallop. "Dumbledore won't be here tonight, so Malfoy's going to have another clear shot at whatever he's up to. _No listen to me_!" he hissed angrily, as all three of them showed every sign of interrupting. "I know it was Malfoy celebrating in the Room of Requirement. Here -" He shoved the Marauder's Map into Hermione's hands. "You've got to watch him and you've got to watch Snape too. Use anyone else you can rustle up from the DA, Hermione, those contact Galleons will still work, right? Dumbledore says he's put extra protection in the school, but if Snape's involved, he'll know what Dumbledore's protection is, and how to avoid it - but he won't be expecting you lot to be on the watch, will he?"

"Harry -" began Hermione, her eyes huge with fear.

"I haven't got time to argue," said Harry. "Take this as well -"

He thrust the socks into Ron's hands.

"Thanks," said Ron. "Er - why do I need socks?"

"You need what's wrapped in them, it's Felix Felicis, I don't care about the promise I made to Phoebe, her brother is up to something and she's involved!"

"What -?" James snapped. "Phoebe's not -"

"She tried to stop me from stopping him," Harry hissed angrily. "Do not - I repeat - _do not_ tell her what it is you are doing! I'm sorry, James, but she cannot be trusted. Either you are with us or against us! In that case I'll have too -"

"What?" James hissed. "You'll have to what, Potter? Erase my mind? Stop me from spilling everything to Phoebe? Try it! But I can tell you now that you've got it wrong! Phoebe is not in line with Malfoy, she is just trying to save the little family that she has left can you blame her for that?"

Harry stared at him, before shaking his head and turning to Hermione and Ron. "Stay clear of Phoebe, do you hear me?"

"Yes," Ron nodded, instantly.

Hermione, however, was looking curious. "If we're not to tell Phoebe the plan, how do you propose we get the rest of the DA?"

"Wha -?"

James smirked. "Phoebe was in charge of changing the dates for the DA," he said. "You _have_ to tell Phoebe what is going on... she has the main coin!"

Harry growled in frustration. "I don't care how you get the DA involved," he almost shouted. "Just stay away from Blackheart! Share Felix between yourselves and give some to Ginny. Say goodbye to her for me. I'd better go, Dumbledore's waiting -"

"No!" said Hermione, as Ron unwrapped the tiny little bottle of golden potion, looking awestruck. "We don't need it, you take it, who knows what you're going to be facing?"

"I'll be fine, I'll be with Dumbledore," said Harry. "I want to know you lot are okay... Don't look like that, Hermione, I'll see you later..."

And he was off, hurrying back through the portrait hole and toward the entrance hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Jackson rand down the stairs at Blackheart manor, bumping into Rose and Rachel in the foyer.

"_What's going on?_" he asked.

_"We don't know_," Rose answered. _"Master Blackheart says there are intruders on the grounds. He has ordered us to stay inside; he and Mistress Elena have gone to speak."_

There were shouts from outside, causing the three to exchange looks. They had no idea what was being said, the shouts were indescribable, but the language was not.

"_That's Russian..._" Rachel whispered.

"_Where are Warren and the others?"_ Jackson asked, in a hushed voice.

"_We don't know,"_ Rose said, shaking her head. "_They did not come back for Lunch!"_

_"Where were they going?"_

_"In the woods,"_ Jackson answered. "_They wanted me to go with them!"_

Ever since he had graduated Hogwarts and started working at the Ministry, Jackson had been relieved of his chores at Blackheart Manor and simply resided there now because it was the only home that he had ever known; it had been ever since mother died when he was little.

The voices disappeared and seconds later the front door burst open and Elena rushed inside.

_"Jackson!"_

_"Yes, ma'am?"_

_"Go! You must go!"_

_"Madam what is it?"_ Rose asked as Rachel quickly ushered Jackson into the living room as the voices outside grew louder.

_"Not now, Rose,"_ said Elena. _"You and Rachel must also leave! Jackson, I am sending you to England. You must warn Phoebe!"_

Jackson stopped and wheeled around. "_Why? What is wrong?"_ he asked.

"_No, no time,"_ Elena said quickly. "_You must find Phoebe and Serefina... tell them not to come home! Tell them it is not safe! They must not return to Portugal!"_

_"But Ma'am -"_

Jackson cut off as Elena shoved a vase from the table into his hands, the vase glowed blue and he vanished instantly.

Elena then turned to Rose and Rachel. "_Now for you,"_ she said. _"Jacob and I, we must protect those in our care! You must go quickly... it is not safe here for you anymore!"_

_"Ma'am, what is it?"_ Rachel asked. _"What is happening?"_

_"Please tell us..."_ Rose begged tears of fear in her eyes now.

Elena shook her head and placed her hands on both girls' shoulders. "_I am afraid I cannot explain,"_ she said. "_It is safer that you do not know! You have both been exceptionally hard working, and it has been a joy to have you here at Blackheart Manor, but the time has come for you both to leave here for I fear that this may be the end of Blackheart Manor! Goodbye my girls... I wish you all the luck this world has to offer!"_

She kissed them both of the cheeks, waved her wand and watched as they each disappeared in a flash of blue light.

"_How very touching..."_ sneered a gruff voice.

Elena froze before turning slowly to face the person who had spoken, his face was smeared in blood and in his hand he held a wand, it was pointed directly at her.

_"Voldemort."_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Draco, you can't!" Phoebe screamed as she followed her brother towards the Astronomy tower. "Draco, please! You can't do this! There are innocents here..."

"It's too late, Phoebe," Draco said, catching her arm and stopping her in her tracks. "Please, do not follow me..."

Phoebe blinked back the tears that threatened to fall. "You're going to die," she whispered.

"I know,"

"You can't die."

Draco stared at her in sorrow, as he reached up and brushed away the tears that had leaked from her swimming silvery gaze. "I love you, Phoebe," he murmured, kissing her forehead. "I may not have known you all my life... but you are my sister, and while I may not make it out of this war alive, I will rest peacefully knowing that you have!"

"Dragon..."

"Go back to your quarters," Draco said, passing her to Aiden. "Go be with your son, your husband, and stay there! Do you understand me?"

"Dragon -"

"GO!" Draco shouted.

Phoebe stared at him, hurt reflected in her gaze.

Draco sighed and started to walk backwards, his hand was still caught in her's but it slipped through her fingers like water as she did nothing to try and stop him from leaving. "Look after her, Aiden," he said to his older half-brother. "Don't let her out of your sight!"

"I won't," Aiden nodded. He knew that he couldn't stop Draco, he could see the future unfolding in his mind, and while he promised to keep Phoebe away from the battle, he knew that was not going to happen.

As Draco disappeared around the corner, Aiden grabbed Phoebe and pulled her into the shadows behind a large statue.

"Wha -?" she started, but cut off as her brother put his hand over her mouth and motioned for her to be quiet.

Phoebe blinked in confusion but tensed as she heard a shuffling sound from around the corner. Peeking out from behind the statue, she zoned in on a rather large group, the head of the group was none other than Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Something smells... tantalizing," said a voice that made Phoebe's blood run cold.

"Easy, Fenrir," Bellatrix hissed. "Let us finish what we came here for first and then you can take your pick!"

Fenrir Greyback gave her a lopsided, hungry grin and seconds later they disappeared down the hallway and out of sight.

"Greyback!" Phoebe hissed coming out from behind the statue, her eyes flashing cobalt blue.

"We have to alert the order," said Aiden, taking her hand and sprinting down the hallway away from the Death Eaters.

"How?"

"Fawkes is still in Dumbledore's office!" said Aiden. "We can use him!"

They ran for a few more minutes, before voices reached their senses.

"Where are they, Remus?"

"Fourth floor,"

Phoebe grinned and looked around the corner that the voices had come from. "Tonks!" she exclaimed, startling the group that had their backs to her. "Professor Lupin! Professor Moody! Oh, thank goodness you are here!"

"Phoebe?" Tonks frowned, opening her arms and hugging the elemental. "Where are the others?"

"I don't know," Phoebe said. "The last I saw of Harry and them was in the Gryffindor Tower over two hours ago..."

"We had word from James that it was happening tonight!"

Aiden nodded. "The Death Eaters are here," he confirmed. "They are on their way up to the Astronomy Tower! Dumbledore and Harry should be back by now!"

Phoebe turned to her brother. "You knew - wait, of course you did, your Seer powers have grown stronger since the bonding ceremony, you can see things without visions now, can't you?"

"How did you know?"

"I read," Phoebe hissed, turning away from her brother. "I have to get back to my quarters. I have to warn Terence... Blake is still here!"

Remus nodded. "Go. We will hold them off as long as we can!"

Phoebe smiled. "Thanks. Aiden -"

"Go," Aiden said. "I'll try and find Ashlyn..."

"Be careful!"

"The Death Eaters are on the Astronomy tower," Aiden said. "I'm going to the Dungeons!"

Phoebe narrowed her eyes.

"Alright," Aiden said, holding his hands up in defence. "I'll be careful!"

Phoebe reached up and kissed his cheek, before she disappeared at the end of the corner and returned to her quarters.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I haven't got any options!" said Malfoy, and he was as white as a ghost. "I've got to do it! He'll kill me! He'll kill her! He said he would kill her... a-and it would be my fault! Don't you understand? I have to protect her!"

"I appreciate the difficulty of your position," said Dumbledore. "Why else do you think I have not confronted you before now? Because I knew that you would have been murdered if Lord Voldemort realized that I suspected you."

Malfoy winced at the sound of his name.

"I did not dare speak to you of the mission with whom I knew you had been entrusted, in case he used Legilimency against you," continued Dumbledore. "But now at last we can speak plainly to each other... No harm has been done; you have hurt nobody, though you are very lucky that your unintentional victims survived. I can help you, Draco, just like I have helped your sister."

"No, you can't," said Malfoy, his wand hand shaking very badly. "Nobody can. He told me to do it or he'll kill her. I've got no choice; I've got to protect her..."

"Who, Draco?" Dumbledore questioned. "Phoebe? She is safely protected. Come over to the right side, Draco, and we can hide you more completely than you can possibly imagine. What is more, I can send members of the Order to your mother tonight to hide her likewise. Your father is safe at the moment in Azkaban... But plans are being put in motion to rescue him, my people are thinking of ways to get to him."

"You mean Professor Blackheart?" Draco asked.

Dumbledore stared at him.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked.

"I know she still loves him!" Draco said. "I know Professor Blackheart still loves my father... and he... he still loves her! He loves my mother, I know he does, but it is not the same as the way he loves her! He has loved her since they were teenagers... you-you don't forget love like that!"

Dumbledore stared at Malfoy.

"No, you cannot forget love as strong as that," he agreed. "But come over to the light side, Draco, you can protect your sister... you will never have to leave her! You can watch your nephew grow up... isn't that all you want? To be with Phoebe? To be able to have a life with her... a life that was unfairly ripped from you as a child? And now, she has made you an uncle, don't you want to be able to protect your nephew?"

Draco stared, numbly.

"You are not a killer, Draco..."

"But I got this far, didn't I?" he said slowly. "They thought I'd die in the attempt, but I'm here... and you're in my power... I'm the one with the wand... You're at my mercy..."

"No, Draco," said Dumbledore quietly. "It is my mercy, and not yours, that matters now."

Malfoy did not speak. His mouth was open, his wand hand still trembling.

"You can protect her?" He asked.

"Who is it of which you wish to protect?"

"Phoebe," Draco answered. "Can you protect Phoebe?"

Dumbledore smiled. "Phoebe has informed me that she does not want my protection," he said.

"She doesn't?"

"No," Dumbledore said. "Although she did request one person..."

"Who?" Malfoy asked, eagerly.

"Yours..."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **Oh, what will Draco do?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, August 19, 2012 at 00:38am**


	150. Chapter 150

**Author's Note:** Here is another chapter. Two more chapters (possibly) and sixth year is over.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Dream Lighting, ZabuzasGirl, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, Phoenix Minx, Alaina08, MidnightReadingAddict, Jo, DJScales** and an anonymous guest. Thanks for your awesome comments.

**Warnings:** I will be going away on Saturday 1st September until the 8th. So there will be no updates that week. So I will try and get sixth year finished before then.

* * *

><p>"It's over, time to go!"<p>

Phoebe froze and turned to the sound of the voice, at the end of the corner she could see Snape and Draco disappear. Terror tore at her heart and before she knew what was happening, she was running, running in the same direction that her brother had gone.

"Draco!"

His name past his lips, but she wasn't sure if she had been the one to utter it.

She was running on auto-pilot now, her mind had frozen over as soon as Terence had Disapparated with Blake to his mother's home in London, she had made it back to their quarters just in time to see Jackson appear; he had explained to her everything that had happened at Blackheart Manor, told her that Voldemort had attacked and that he was searching for her.

_"It's not safe to go back,"_ Jackson's words echoed inside her mind. _"Your grandmother was adamant that you and Serefina stay in England! You are not to return to Portugal, it is the end of Blackheart Manor! It is no long the safe haven it used to be... i'm sorry, Phoebe!"_

Sorry? He was _sorry_. He had nothing to be _sorry_ about. He was just following orders. It was _she_ who should have been sorry. It was _her_ they were after... it was all _her_ fault!

The dimly lit corridor was full of dust; half the ceiling had fallen in; and a battle was raging amongst the wreckage. But Phoebe did not care about that at this particular moment, her husband and son were safe, her best friend was fighting somewhere behind her, she knew that he would be alright, all she cared about right now was her brothers - mostly Draco.

"Draco!" Phoebe yelled again, as she ducked and danced around fighters in her pursuit of her twin.

As she skidded around the corner, one of the fighters detached themselves from the fray and flew at her; it was the werewolf Fenrir. He was on top of Phoebe before the elemental could raise her wand: Phoebe fell backward, with filthy matted hair in her face, the stench of sweat and blood filling her nose and mouth, hot greedy breath at her throat -

"There you are, love," he rasped. "We figured you might be here..."

Phoebe struggled, grasping around for her wand, as Fenrir bore down on her, his weight pressed down on her chest making it almost impossible to breathe.

**Concentrate Phoebe!**

Phoebe gasped as a familiar voice echoed inside her head, and next thing she knew Greyback flew off of her, cracked his head on the solid wall opposite her and slumped down. The elemental coughed, rolled onto her stomach and then looked up, the battle continued to rage, but her thoughts were racing.

"Blake..." she whispered, as her breathing slowed and returned to normal, she let a small smile ease its way onto her lips. "I heard you, Blake..." she nodded. "I heard you!"

Pushing herself back to her feet, Phoebe ducked as a jet of green light came flying towards her and then run, headfirst, into the fight. Her feet met something squashy and slippery on the floor and she stumbled. There were two bodies lying there, lying face down in a pool of blood.

Swallowing her fear, Phoebe rolled them over onto their backs and inspected them. One was Bill Weasley, he had a gash that was bleeding profusely on his face, and the other was a Death Eater that she did not recognize.

"I'm sorry, Bill," she whispered. "I'll heal you when I get back!"

Looking up, Phoebe saw blonde hair flying like a candle in front of her; Sarah was locked in combat with a Death Eater that Phoebe recognized, it was Amycus Carrow, he was throwing hex after hex at the Hufflepuff while she dodged them. Amycus giggled, clearly enjoying the sport.

"_Crucio - Crucio -_ you can't dance forever, pretty -"

_"Impedimenta!"_ yelled Phoebe.

The jinx hit Amycus in the chest, he gave a pig like squeal of pain, was lifted off his feet and slammed into the opposite wall, slid down it, and fell out of sight behind Ron, Professor McGonagall, and Lupin, each of whom was battling a separate Death Eater.

Beyond them, Phoebe saw Serefina fighting an enormous blonde wizard who was sending curses flying in all directions, so that they ricocheted off the walls around them, cracking stone, shattering the nearest windows -

"Phoebe, where did you come from?" Sarah cried, turning to her friend.

"That doesn't matter," Phoebe said. "Sarah, where's Aiden?"

She knew that her brother would have gone looking for the Hufflepuff as soon as he had found Ashlyn, what she didn't know was that James had found her before Aiden had done.

"I don't know," Sarah said, shaking her head. "James came to the Hufflepuff common room and told me and Amelia that he needed as many DA members as possible..."

"Why would he need DA members?"

Sarah shrugged. "He didn't say," she answered. "He just said that something was happening and we all needed to be prepared. We would have used the coins, but you have the main one, we couldn't send the message!"

Phoebe plunged her hand into her robes. "Here," she said, stuffing the galleon into the blonde's hand. "Call in everyone. We need reinforcements!"

"Phoebe..."

"Just do it, Sarah!" Phoebe said, skirting around her friend. "I have to find Aiden and Draco..."

Sarah nodded and quickly let her go.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_**Being fifty times faster than the average human is perfect at a time like this**_ Phoebe thought as she skidded around another corner, her shoes slippery with blood, despite Snape and Draco having an immense head start on her, she knew that she could catch up to them in record time.

Her footsteps pounded against the corridor floor as she sprinted along the next empty corridor, but stopped as she spotted a bloody footprint on the floor ahead of her; she stopped to inspect the print and glanced down the corridor, it wasn't heading towards the Room of Requirements as she expected.

_**The front doors**_...

Skidding around another corner, Phoebe flourished her wand as she and deflected another spell that flew towards her.

"_Stupefy!"_ she yelled, pointing her wand in the direction the spell had come from, a satisfying smirk came to her lips as she heard a yelp and a person tumbled out from an alcove in the wall. "Lying down on the job," she taunted. "Tut tut. Your master will not be pleased!"

The eyes of the Death Eater were the only things moving and they were glaring at her from beneath the skull mask he was wearing.

"I have no time to see who you are," Phoebe said, flicking her wand and positioning him in the alcove away from Hogwarts students, professors and other Death Eaters. "So why don't you be a good little Death Eater and stay here... I'll come back for you later!"

Phoebe pelted toward a shortcut, hoping to overtake Snape and Draco, who surely had to be two or three floors beneath her.

She skidded onto the corridor that she had been attacked by Warrington the year before, fired a spell at the candleholder and slid through the secret door as it slid open. She hit the hidden panel on the inside wall, and run along the stone pathway that would bring her out onto the fourth floor.

Reaching the fourth floor, Phoebe pelted toward another shortcut, hoping to overtake her brother before he could reach the Entrance Hall. She jumped the vanishing step halfway down the concealed staircase, burst through a tapestry at the bottom and out into a corridor where a number of bewildered and pajama-clad Hufflepuff's were helping two of their own to their feet.

"Phoebe!" Amelia squealed, throwing her arms around the Gryffindor. "What's happening? Where's Sarah! I've lost her..."

"Sarah's on the sixth floor," Phoebe answered. "Don't go up there!"

"What? Why?" Ernie Macmillan demanded. "Black assembled the DA! What's going on?"

"Someone mentioned the Dark Mark," said Susan, she was clutching her nightgown close to her and her eyes were wide with fear. "Is it true?"

"I don't know," Phoebe said. "Amelia, have you seen Aiden or Draco?"

Amelia shook her head. "No, but Harry just disappeared down there..." she said, pointing to the end of the hallway. "He didn't stop; he just pushed Jordan and Callum over and carried on running!"

The two boys nodded.

"There are Death Eaters in the castle," Phoebe said, skirting around the Hufflepuff's, if Harry had just come through here then that meant he was after Draco and Snape too, she had to get to him before he got to them.

"Amelia, Ernie, Susan... none of you are to go to the sixth floor," said Phoebe. "Protect the ground level! Find Ashlyn and Aiden, they should be down here somewhere! None of the Death Eaters are to leave the castle, understand?"

The Hufflepuff's exchanged looks.

"Do you understand?" Phoebe yelled.

"Yes!" Amelia nodded, her head bobbing up and down quickly, startled by Phoebe's shouting. "Yes! Yes, we'll defend down here!"

Phoebe nodded. "Okay. Be careful!" she warned.

"You too!"

Phoebe smiled at her friend and took off in the direction of the Entrance Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The cold night air ripped at his lungs as he tore across the grounds; a flash of light in distance alerted him to the fact that they were getting closer to Hagrid's hut. Another flash, shouts, retaliatory jets of light, and he knew that Hagrid had emerged from his cabin and was trying to stop the Death Eaters escaping, and though every breath seemed to shred his lungs. He pushed onwards.

Something caught Harry hard in the small of the back and he fell forward, his face smacking the ground, blood pouring out of both nostrils. He knew, even as he rolled over, that the brother and sister he had overtaken using his shortcut were closing in behind him...

"Lookie what we have here, Amycus," the sister squealed, as she was upon him in seconds.

"I see, Alectro," the brother said. "The Dark Lord will reward us well if we kill him, don't you think?"

"Ohh,"

Harry fingered the grass looking for his wand.

The brother, Amycus, raised his own wand and aimed it at the place where Harry's heart laid beating. "You've outlived yourself, Potter," he sneered. "I'm sure your parents miss you! _Avada -"_

Suddenly it was as if the floor had come to life with snakes; vines shout out of the ground and wound themselves around the brother, squeezing his wrist and causing him to drop his wand, it hit Harry in the chest as he watched, horrified, as the vines wrapped themselves around the brother, his face slowly turning blue as his lungs compressed inside his ribcage and the blood was cut off from his vital organs.

Alectro, the sister, shrieked as a vine shot up from the ground and tripped her, sending her rolling away from her brother.

Harry knew that one of the three elements that inhabited Hogwarts had followed him down to the ground, but only two out of the three could control Earth. It had to be either Aiden or Serefina, there was no way it was Phoebe; she couldn't control Earth, and besides, why would she protect him, especially after the way he had treated her?

Glancing around Amycus, who was struggling to free himself from the tightening binds, Harry's felt shock overcome him as he spotted Phoebe standing a few feet away, her eyes burning a soft cobalt blue. Her wand hung limply at her waist, and her free hand was curling inwards, forming a perfect fist as she controlled the vines that coiled around Amycus.

"You little witch!" Alectro snarled, as he made it back to her feet, her wand pointed at Phoebe. "_Avada Kedavra!"_

_"Impedimenta!"_ Harry yelled, flourishing Amycus's wand at its owner's sister.

Phoebe, who had narrowly missed Alectro's spell, rolled across the ground and crouched against the dark ground, as Harry's jinx hit the sister and resulted with her ending up on her back, sliding to a halt near the lake. Amycus, however, was twitching slightly as he lay flat on his back, surrounded by what appeared to be dead vines from the earth.

Shakily, Harry got to his feet and looked across at Phoebe, who was picking herself up, her face was white and her eyes had returned to their usual colour of silvery grey.

"Phoebe..." Harry started.

"Draco..." Phoebe said, starting towards her fellow Gryffindor. "Where's Draco?"

Harry stared at her as something flared inside him... what was that? Anger? Hatred? Jealousy, perhaps?

_**She's not here for you, Potter!**_ The voice in his head sneered. _**Besides, you have Ginny now...**_

**Shut up!** Harry told himself as he narrowed his eyes at the elemental. "Why do you want to know where Malfoy is?" he snapped. "You helped him escape!"

"What?" Phoebe asked. "What are you talking about?"

"I saw you running after him," Harry said. "You were shouting his name! Do you know that he was ordered to kill Dumbledore? That's what his whole plan was! Voldemort wanted him to kill Dumbledore... and guess what Phoebe? He succeeded!"

Phoebe stared at him, her heart frozen. _**No...**_ She thought desperately. _**No! Draco is not a murderer, he wouldn't kill Dumbledore. He wouldn't... He couldn't...**_

"You're lying!" she spat, tears blurring her vision. "Draco... he wouldn't... he _couldn't_..."

"He did!" Harry spat, his heart sinking as he saw the tears spill down her cheeks, and for a split second he hated himself for lying to her, but it was the only way that he could deny the feelings that he still had for her. "Do you think _that_ is there for no good reason, Phoebe?" he was pointing over her shoulder into the night's sky, hovering over the Astronomy tower was the Dark Mark.

Phoebe shook her head. "No... Draco wouldn't do that!"

_**What are you doing?**_ Harry's subconscious screamed. _**Why are you breaking her heart? You love her! Stop it!**_

But he couldn't. He couldn't stop... not now. He knew that Malfoy had accepted Dumbledore's protection, he had just agreed for Dumbledore to protect him and his parents when the Death Eaters had charged into the tower and taken over the situation. Snape had killed Dumbledore, and then, without hesitation, cuffed Draco across the back of the head and steered him out of the room.

Harry stared, angrily at the elemental as more tears cascaded down her face.

_**Stop crying...**_ he said, mindfully, his heart aching at the sight. He wanted more than anything to take her in his arms and tell her that he was lying, he wanted to apologize for everything he had done, everything had said, but he couldn't. _**She will never forgive me... which is why she mustn't know.**_

_"Incendio!"_

An explosive bang startled to the two Gryffindor's, both of whom whipped around and saw dancing orange lights spilling all over the grounds: Hagrid's house was on fire.

"Fang's in there, year evil - !" Hagrid bellowed, as the wild yelping of the trapped boarhound echoed back to the two frozen Gryffindor's.

Phoebe's mind was reeling, she could see Draco and Snape making their way towards the front gates, and her heart ached. She knew that if Draco made it past the iron wrought gates he would be gone, and she'd possibly never see him again, but her mind was pulling her towards the yowling of the boarhound that was trapped in the house of flames.

_**Mind over matter... mind over matter... **_she chanted, as her feet started moving, and this time it was towards Hagrid's hut and not the front gates. She slid to a halt at the edge of the forest, and raised her wand, barely aware of the battle between Snape and Harry behind her.

"HAGRID!" Phoebe yelled as the Gameskeeper thundered back into the wooden house, flames licking their way around the structure. "HAGRID, GET OUT!"

"HAGRID?" Harry's shouts had joined Phoebe's as he stumbled towards the burning house, just as an enormous figure emerged from out of the flames carrying Fang on his back. With a sigh of relief and a cry of thankfulness from the two Gryffindor's, Harry sank to his knees as Phoebe dropped her wand, turned towards the Black Lake and summoned the dark water too her.

The water flowed through the air, around Phoebe, whipping her hair behind her, and then raised high into the dark sky, before depositing itself onto the cabin. The flames wilted and diminished, allowing Phoebe to turn her attention to Harry and Hagrid.

"Yeh all righ', Harry? Yeh all righ'? Speak ter me, Harry..." said Hagrid.

"Harry..." Phoebe murmured, kneeling beside her friend, he was shaking furiously and his breath was coming in painful stabs. Reaching out, Phoebe brushed Harry's fringe from his forehead, feeling him tense and then relax, he was cold, but sweating.

"I'm all right," panted Harry. "Are you?"

"'Course I am... take more'n that ter finish me," Hagrid said. "Phoebe?"

"I'm alright," Phoebe smiled, her gaze never wavering from Harry's.

Hagrid nodded, he then put his hands under Harry's arms and raised him up with such a force that Harry's feet momentarily left the ground.

Something splattered against Phoebe's hand and she looked down to see crimson liquid seeping between her fingers. _**Blood.**_ Frantically, the elemental looked up, Hagrid was looming over her and the blood was trickling down from his beard, from a gash that was right under his eye, which was swelling rapidly.

"Hagrid," Phoebe gasped. "Your face!"

"It's OK," Hagrid said. "Nothing Madam Pomfrey can't fix... as for me house, Dumbledore be able to fix her up!"

Phoebe felt a pang in her chest at the sound of the name. In the silence and the stillness, horror rose inside her and she turned, slowly, towards Harry as his words came flooding back to her.

"_Voldemort wanted him to kill Dumbledore... and guess what Phoebe? He succeeded!"_

"Hagrid..." Harry said, breaking through Phoebe's thoughts.

"I was bindin' up a couple o' bowtruckle legs when I heard 'em coming'," said Hagrid sadly, still staring at his wrecked cabin. "They'll've bin burnt ter twigs, poor little things..."

"Hagrid..." Harry rasped.

"But what happened, Harry? I jus' saw them Death Eaters runnin' down from the castle, but what the ruddy hell was Snape doin' with 'em? Where's he gone - was he chasin' them?"

"He..." Harry cleared his throat; it was dry from panic and the smoke. "Hagrid, he killed..."

"Killed?" said Hagrid loudly, staring down at Harry. "Snape killed? What're yeh on abou', Harry?"

"Dumbledore," said Harry. "Snape killed... Dumbledore."

Hagrid simply looked at him, the little of his face that could be seen completely blank, uncomprehending. Phoebe, on the other hand, was glaring at Harry with intense hatred.

"You lying little -" she growled, her hand clenching tightly into a fist as her eyes turned a soft cobalt. "You told me - You - You lied - HOW COULD YOU LIE TO ME, HARRY POTTER!" she exploded, and the surrounding area shook violently, as the trees on the edge of the forest collapsed, and Hagrid's charred house came crumbling down.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe hugged herself as she stood staring up at the many windows of the castle, all of which were lit now. She could imagine, clearly, the scenes inside as people moved from room to room, telling each other that Death Eaters had got in, that the Mark was shining over Hogwarts, that somebody must have been killed.

She was shaking uncontrollably as she made it back to the courtyard, the oak front doors stood open ahead of her, light flooding out onto the drive and the lawn. Slowly, uncertainly, dressing-gowned people were creeping down the steps, looking around nervously for some sign of the Death Eaters who had fled into the night.

As the school ground became alive with students, all congregating towards the base of the Astronomy tower, Phoebe let her shoulders sag, and fell to her knees. She had been keeping up a mask as she chased Draco through the castle, a mask that was slowly breaking away bit by bit, her heart was slowly breaking and she could feel tears clouding her vision some more.

Footsteps crunched on the grass, and she felt soft hands embrace her, helping her to her feet. "You alright, Phe?"

It was Aiden.

"No," she said, finding her voice was a little raspy and her throat burned as she fought to keep the tears in.

"What happened?" Ashlyn asked, pulling her best friend out of Aiden's grasp and into a tight hug.

Phoebe shook her head, unable to put her thoughts into words, and instead buried her face in Ashlyn's hair and allowed the on slaughter of emotions crash against her. Her frame shook violently as she cried silently into her best friend's shoulder.

"Shh," Ashlyn cooed, running her fingers through Phoebe's air. "Shh, it's okay!"

Startled Aiden exchanged a look with James, Amelia and Sarah, all of whom were staring at Ashlyn and Phoebe in total surprise. The last time they had seen Phoebe cry like this was when Blake had died two years previous.

"You don't think -?" James started.

"Jackson's alive," Aiden said. "He's in the hospital wing!"

"What about Terence?" Sarah asked. "Or Blake? They're not still in the castle are they?"

"I don't think Phoebe would be out on the grounds if her husband and child were still in the castle," Ashlyn said, shaking her head. "No. Terence knows that Phoebe would need to be here, he has probably taken Blake to safety."

"Then who -?" Amelia asked, before a soft gasp escaped her lips. "She was chasing after Mal - I mean, Draco!"

"He's gone," Phoebe said, through her tears as she looked up at her friends. "Draco's gone! Dumbledore's gone! Snape's gone! And Harry -"

But only one word had processed the thick fog that had settled within her friends.

_Dumbledore's gone._

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Hehe. Not a straight forward chapter on Draco's decision... but the answer is in the chapter. Can you see it?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 01:00am**


	151. Chapter 151

**Author's Note:** Everyone keeps asking me about Elena and Jacob, they are not dead! But I have big plans for them! So, just bear with me!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Chinaluv, ZabuzasGirl, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, PheonixMinx, Alaina08** and** Pixiescale1185.**

* * *

><p>"Is she alright?"<p>

"She's fine,"

"She just needs rest!"

"What happened?"

Nobody answered.

Phoebe blinked, lifted her head off of her brother's chest and looked around. She was in the Hospital Wing, Jackson was lying, apparently asleep, in a bed near the door, Ron, Hermione, Luna, Tonks, and Lupin who had been gathered around the bed at the far end of the ward had looked up, and Hermione had come hurrying forwards.

"Are you all right, Phoebe?" the bookworm asked.

"I'm fine," Phoebe nodded. "How's Bill? I tripped over him when I was chasing... when I was running through the corridor, I saw the gash on his face..."

Over Hermione's shoulder she could see Madam Pomfrey dabbing something on Bill's wounds.

"Can't you use a charm or something?" Ron asked, looking down at his brother's face as though he could force him to men just by staring.

"No charm will work on these," said Madam Pomfrey. "I've tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites."

"But he wasn't bitten at the full moon," said Ginny, who had just arrived with Harry. "Greyback hadn't transformed, so surely Billy won't be - a real - ?"

She looked uncertainly at Lupin.

"No, I don't think that Bill will be a true werewolf," said Lupin, "but that does not mean there won't be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and - and Bill might have some wolfish characteristics from now on."

"Dumbledore might know something that'd work, though," Ron said. "Where is he? Bill fought those maniacs on Dumbledore's orders, Dumbledore owes him, and he can't leave him in this state -"

"Ron - Dumbledore's dead," said Ginny.

"No!" Lupin looked wildly from Ginny to Phoebe to Aiden and lastly to Harry, as though the latters might contradict the red head, but when Phoebe ducked her head and nuzzled into Aiden's chest, and the two boys refused to meet his gaze or answer him, Lupin collapsed into a chair beside Bill's bed, his hands over his face.

"How did he die?" whispered Tonks. "How did it happen?"

"Snape killed him," said Harry, subtly glancing at Phoebe, who refused to look at him. "I was there, I saw it. We arrived back on the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was... Dumbledore was ill, he was weak, but I think he realized it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilized me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak - and then Malfoy came through the door and disarmed him -"

Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth and Ron groaned. Luna's mouth trembled.

"- more Death Eaters arrived - and then Snape - and Snape did it. The _Avada Kedavra_."

Harry shook his head, he couldn't go on.

"Why," Phoebe croaked, tears clouding her vision as she looked up at Harry. "Why did you tell me that Draco killed Dumbledore?" she asked.

Everyone fell silent and looked between Harry and Phoebe.

"Why did you say that Draco killed Dumbledore," Phoebe repeated her voice stronger than before. "Do you hate him that much, Harry that you'd rather view him as a murderer than someone who needs help? You're so blinded by your hatred for Draco that you missed the bigger picture!"

"And what's the bigger picture, Blackheart?" Ron sneered.

Phoebe's hands curled into fists and shook violently. "Put me down," she told Aiden, as she struggled against him. But the Slytherin held on tighter. "Put me down, Aiden... PUT ME DOWN!" she finally yelled, thrashing around in his arms until he finally put her back on her feet.

Once safely back on the floor, Phoebe rounded on Ron.

"The bigger picture," she spat, "is that Draco did all this so Voldemort wouldn't kill the one person he cares about above anyone else!"

"And what's that?"

"Me!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Hospital Wing was silent after Phoebe had explained her story. She had told them everything! Everything that she knew about Draco and Voldemort.

"My wedding day," Phoebe said. "The one day that was supposed to be about me and Terence, and I wanted my brother there to enjoy it with me, but I couldn't have that one wish because of Voldemort! He ruined my wedding day by taking my brother away from me! By giving him this job of trying to kill Dumbledore..."

She angrily brushed the tears away as her hands shook.

"Draco didn't want to kill Dumbledore," Phoebe pressed on, shaking her head. "He told me. He told me that he wanted it all too just disappear... he wished that he could run away, but Malfoy's don't back down! We're too stubborn! But he was so scared... he didn't care about himself... he cared about me and Blake."

She sighed, her shoulders sagging.

Aiden hugged her close. "When Draco left the Room of Requirements," he explained, "we tried to stop him, but he said that this was something he had to finish. He didn't want to do it, I could tell he didn't, the way he held Phoebe's hand, kissed her head and told her that he loved her..." he shook his head, and lowered his gaze. "It was his final goodbye."

Phoebe burst into tears again.

Harry, who had been redirected to a bed, stared sadly at the elemental as his heart sank and jealous raised its ugly head as he watched her cuddle into Aiden's side.

He wanted so badly to be the one that she turned to when she was upset, wanted to be the one in Aiden's place, holding her as she broke down, hell, he wanted to be in Higg's place, for her face to be the last thing he saw at night and the first thing he saw in the morning.

_**Stop it, Harry!**_ The voice in the back of his head scolded. _**You cannot think like that! You have a girlfriend!**_

Harry swallowed and glanced at Ginny, she was staring out of the window.

"Listen," Sarah whispered, as Aiden rocked his sister

Somewhere out in the darkness, a phoenix was singing a stricken lament of terrible beauty. Phoebe closed her eyes as she rested back against Aiden, she was completely drained of all her energy, she was still recovering from running through the entire castle after Draco, recovering from using her earth powers alone to save Harry, recovering from all the crying that she had done.

It felt like the Phoenix's music was inside her, not without. It was her own grief turned magically to song that echoed across the grounds and through the castle windows.

How long they all stood there, relishing in the silence, the last of the Fawkes song lingering into the night, but it felt a long time later that the hospital wing doors opened again and Professor McGonagall entered the ward.

"Molly, Arthur and Serefina are on their way," she said, and the spell of the silence and music was broken. Everyone roused themselves as though coming out of a trance, turning against to look at Bill, or else to rub their own eyes, shake their heads. "Harry, what happened? According to Hagrid you were with Professor Dumbledore when he - when it happened. He says Professor Snape was involved in some -"

"Snape killed Dumbledore," said Harry.

She stared at him for a moment, and then swayed alarmingly; Madam Pomfrey, who seemed to have pulled herself together, ran forward, conjuring a chair from thin air, which she pushed under McGonagall.

"Snape," repeated McGonagall faintly, falling into the chair. "We all wondered... but he trusted... always... _Snape_... I can't believe it..."

"Snape was a highly accomplished Occlumens," said Lupin, his voice uncharacteristically harsh. "We always knew that."

"But Dumbledore swore he was on our side!" whispered Tonks. "I always thought Dumbledore must know something about Snape that we didn't..."

"He always hinted that he had an ironclad reason for trusting Snape," muttered Professor McGonagall, now dabbing at the corners of her eyes. "I mean... with Snape's history... of course people were bound to wonder... but Dumbledore told me explicitly that Snape's repentance was absolutely genuine... Wouldn't hear a word against him!"

"I'd love to know what Snape told him to convince him," said Tonks.

"I know," said Harry, and they all turned to look at him. "Snape passed Voldemort the information that made Voldemort hunt down my mum and dad. Then Snape told Dumbledore he hadn't realized what he was doing, he was really sorry he'd done it, sorry that they were dead."

They all stared at him.

"And Dumbledore believed that?" said Lupin. "Dumbledore believed Snape was sorry James dead? Snape _hated_ James..."

"And he didn't think my mother was worth a damn either," said Harry, "because she was Muggleborn... _Mudblood_... that's what he called her."

Phoebe shook her head.

"You're wrong," she muttered. "You're wrong, Harry! Snape loved your mother... maybe more than your father did!"

"Yeah, that's why he called her a -"

"Friends say things without actually meaning too!" Phoebe snapped. "Or in your case," she added, "you say things with the intention of actually hurting the person you're speaking too!"

Harry narrowed his eyes at her; he knew what she was aiming at.

"This is all my fault," said Professor McGonagall suddenly. She looked disoriented, twisting her hands in her lap. "My fault. I sent Serefina to fetch Snape tonight, I actually sent for him to come and help us! If I hadn't alerted Snape to what was going on, he might never have joined forces with the Death Eaters. I don't think he knew they were there before Serefina told him, I don't think he knew they were coming."

"It wasn't your fault, Minerva," said Lupin firmly. "We all wanted more help, we were glad to think Snape was on his way..."

"So when he arrived at the fight, he joined in on the Death Eaters' side?" asked Harry, who wanted every detail of Snape's duplicity and infamy, feverishly collecting more reasons to hate him, to swear vengeance.

"I don't know exactly how it happened," said Professor McGonagall distractedly. "It's all so confusing... Dumbledore had told us that he would be leaving the school for a few hours and that we were to patrol the corridors just in case... Remus, Bill, and Nymphadora were to join us... and so we patrolled. All seemed quiet. Every secret passageway out of the school was covered. We knew nobody could fly in. There were powerful enchantments on every entrance into the castle. I still don't know how the Death Eaters can possibly have entered..."

Phoebe and Aiden lowered their gazes.

They did. They knew.

"I do," said Harry, and he explained briefly, about the pair of Vanishing Cabinets and the magical pathway they formed. "So they got in through the Room of Requirement."

Almost against his will he glanced from Ron to Hermione, both of whom looked devastated.

"I messed up, Harry," said Ron bleakly. "We did as you asked. We check the Marauder's Map and we couldn't see Malfoy on it, so we thought he must have been in the Room of Requirement, so me, Hermione and James went to keep watch on it... but Malfoy got past us."

"He came out of the room about an hour after we started keeping watch," said Hermione. "He was with Phoebe and Aiden -"

Everyone glanced at the two elementals.

"You were in on it?" Lupin asked his eyes hard and his voice harsh. "You helped him?"

Phoebe looked up and shook her head. "No!" she defended. "I tried to stop him!"

"You were in the room with him!" Lupin yelled.

"Remus," Tonks said, soothingly, touching his shoulder as Phoebe stared at the werewolf, betrayal reflected in her stormy grey eyes.

"I didn't betray any of you!" Phoebe said, looking around at her Professors, her friends. "I got into the room after running into Professor Trelawney who said that she had tried to get in there and was evicted. My elemental powers somehow connected with those of Hogwarts's magic and the room opened up to me, I just whispered Draco's name and the door appeared. I was trying to stop him!"

Lupin did not look convinced.

Hermione, who had witnessed the whole exchange between Draco and Phoebe, nodded in agreement. "She's telling the truth, Professor," she said, looking from McGonagall to Lupin. "I saw the whole thing! They came out of the room and Phoebe was trying to get him to reconsider... she kept reminding him that he was going to die! It was then that Malfoy confirmed her thoughts. He was going to die, but he was doing all this to protect her! He told her to go back to Blake and Terence, and he made Aiden promise that he would protect her."

Phoebe smiled, thankfully, at her best friend.

"He kissed her head and told her he loved her," James added. "He then left, clutching that awful shriveled arm -"

"His Hand of Glory," said Ron. "Gives light only to the older, remember?"

"Anyway," James went on, "he must have been checking whether the coast was clear to let the Death Eaters out, because the moment he saw us he threw something into the air and it all went pitch-black -"

"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder," said Ron bitterly. "Fred and George's. I'm going to be having a word with them about whom they let buy their products."

Lupin cast a glance at Phoebe and Aiden. "And what of them?" he asked. "Were they there?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. Phoebe and Aiden had already left the corridor by then," she said. "They were heading back to Phoebe's quarters!"

"That's when they found us," Tonks said, remembering how she had hugged Phoebe on the fourth floor. "Did you go back to Terence and Blake after that, Phoebe?"

"Yes!" Phoebe cried. "Yes! I got back just as Jackson arrived. I told them what was happening! Ask them... they'll confirm that I broke my heart when I got back! I told Terence that he had to get Blake out of the castle, and then Jackson told me about Blackheart Manor -" she gasped. "Grandma! Grandpa! Are they - they're not - please tell me -"

McGonagall shook her head. "Your godmother will explain," she said, in a faint voice.

Phoebe felt her heart constrict painfully in the chest and a fresh wave of tears overflowed from her eyes and down her cheeks. "No..." she moaned. "Please... no..."

"We tried everything," James pressed on, as Aiden rested his head on Phoebe's shoulder and hugged her from behind, tears falling from his own eyes. "Lumos, Incendio, nothing would penetrate the darkness; all we could do was grope our way out of the corridor again, and meanwhile we could hear people rushing past us. Obviously Malfoy could see because of that hand thing and was guiding them, but we didn't dare use any curses or anything in case we hit each other, and by the time we'd reached a corridor that was light, they'd gone."

"Luckily," said Lupin hoarsely, "Ron, Hermione and James ran into us almost immediately and told us what had happened. It wasn't long after Phoebe and Aiden left us. We found the Death Eaters minutes later, heading in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. Malfoy obviously hadn't expected more people to be on the watch; he seemed to have exhausted his supply of Darkness Powder, at any rate. A fight broke out, they scattered and we gave chase. One of them, Gibbon, broke away and headed up the tower stairs -"

"To set off the Mark?" asked Harry.

"He must have done, yes, they must have arranged that before they left the Room of Requirement," said Lupin. "But I don't think Gibbon liked the idea of waiting up there alone for Dumbledore, because he came running back downstairs to rejoin the fight and was hit by a Killing Curse that missed me."

"So if Ron was watching the Room of Requirement with Hermione and James," said Harry, turning to Ginny, "were you -?"

"Outside Snape's office, yes," whispered Ginny, her eyes sparkling with tears, "with Luna. We hung around for ages outside it and nothing happened. We didn't know what was going on upstairs; Ron had taken the map... It was nearly midnight when Professor Blackheart came sprinting down into the dungeons. She was shouting about Death Eaters in the castle. Luna and I hid in an alcove to avoid being detected, she burst into Snape's office and we heard her saying that Snape had to go back with her and help and then we heard a loud thump and then Snape came hurtling out of his room and he saw us and - and -"

"What?" Harry urged her.

"I was so stupid, Harry!" said Ginny in a high-pitched whisper. "He said Professor Blackheart had collapsed and that we should go and take care of her while he - while he went to help fight the Death Eaters -" she covered her face in shame and continued to talk into her fingers, so that her voice was muffled. "We went into his office to see if we could help Professor Blackheart and found her unconscious on the floor... it didn't look like she had collapsed, I cast the 'Finite' charm, just in case, and she woke up, she demanded to know where Snape had gone, so I told her, and she ordered us back to our common rooms before leaving the office in a haste."

"It's not your fault," said Aiden. "Ginny, had you and Luna not obeyed Snape and got out of the way, he probably have killed you, also you helped my mother, you strengthen the Order's chances, and for that I am grateful."

Phoebe nodded. "Me too," she smiled.

"So then Snape came upstairs," said Harry, "and he found the place you were all fighting..."

"We were in trouble, we were losing," said Tonks in a low voice. "Gibbon was down, but the rest of the Death Eaters seemed ready to fight to the death. Jackson had been hurt; Bill had been savage by Greyback... It was all dark... curses flying everywhere... The Malfoy boy had vanished, he must have slipped past, up the stairs... then more of them ran after him, but one of them blocked the stair behind them with some kind of curse... Jackson ran at it and got thrown up into the air -"

Phoebe glanced across at her best friend and shook her head.

"None of us could break through," said Ron, "and that massive Death Eater was still firing off jinxes all over the place, and they were bouncing off the walls and barely missing us..."

"And then Snape was there," said Tonks, "and then he wasn't -"

"I saw him running toward us, but that huge Death Eater's jinx just missed me right afterward and I ducked and lost track of things," said Ginny.

"I saw him run straight through the cursed barrier as though it wasn't there," said Lupin. "I tried to follow him, but was thrown back just like Jackson..."

"He must have known a spell we didn't," whispered McGonagall. "After all - he was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher... I just assumed that he was in a hurry to chase after the Death Eaters who'd escaped up to the tower..."

"He was," said Harry savagely, "but to help them, not to stop them... and I'll bet you had to have a Dark Mark to get through that barrier - so what happened when he came back down?"

"Well, the big Death Eater had just fired off a hex that caused half the ceiling to fall in, and also broke the curse blocking the stairs," said Lupin. "We all ran forward - those of us who were still standing anyway - and then Snape and the boy emerged out of the dust - obviously, none of us attacked them -"

"We just let them pass," said Tonks in a hollow voice. "We thought they were being chased by Death Eaters - and next thing, the other Death Eaters and Greyback were back and we were fighting again - I thought I heard Snape shout something, but I don't know what -"

"He shouted, 'it's over,"' said Harry. "He'd done what he'd meant to do."

They all fell silent.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Mum!" Phoebe and Aiden yelled as the Hospital Wing doors burst inwards and Serefina, followed by Mrs. and Mr. Weasley came striding up the ward, Fleur was behind them, her beautiful face terrified.

"Molly - Arthur -" said Professor McGonagall, jumping up and hurrying to greet them, while Serefina hugged Aiden and Phoebe close to them. Her arms wrapped around them so tightly it looked like she was cutting off their air supply, but the two elementals wrapped their arms around her and held on tighter. "I am so sorry -"

"Bill," whispered Mrs. Weasley, darting past Professor McGonagall as she caught sight of Bill's managed face. "Oh, _Bill_!"

Lupin and Tonks had got up hastily and retreated so that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley could get nearer to the bed. Mrs. Weasley bent over her son and pressed her lips to his bloody forehead.

"You said Greyback attacked him?" Mr. Weasley asked Professor McGonagall distractedly. "But he hadn't transformed? So what does that mean? What will happen to Bill?"

"We don't know yet," said Professor McGonagall, looking helplessly at Lupin.

"There will probably be some contamination, Arthur," said Lupin. "It is an odd case, possibly unique... We don't know what his behavior might be like when he awakens..."

Mrs. Weasley took the nasty-smelling ointment from Madam Pomfrey and began dabbing at Bill's wounds.

"And Dumbledore..." said Mr. Weasley, "Minerva, is it true... is he really...?"

As Professor McGonagall nodded, Phoebe burst into tears for what felt the hundredth time that night, and collapsed into Serefina's arms, while over beside Bill's bed, Mrs. Weasley and Fleur were crying over the unconscious long-haired Weasley.

"You see!" said a strained voice. Tonks was glaring at Lupin. "She still wants to marry him, even though he's been bitten! She doesn't care!"

"It's different," said Lupin, barely moving his lips and looking suddenly tense. "Bill will not be a full werewolf. The case is completely -"

"But I don't care either, I don't care!" said Tonks, seizing the front of Lupin's robes and shaking them. "I've told you a million times..."

"And I've told _you_ a million times," said Lupin, refusing to meet her eyes, staring at the floor, "that I am too old for you, too poor... too dangerous..."

"I've said all along you're taking a ridiculous line on this, Remus," said Mrs. Weasley over Fleur's shoulder as she patted her on the back.

"I am not being ridiculous," said Lupin steadily. "Tonks deserves somebody young and whole."

"But she doesn't want anyone else," Phoebe said. "She wants you! And after all, young and whole men do not necessarily remain so."

She turned towards Bill.

"I can't stop the contamination," she said, "but I can heal his wounds, if that will help!"

Mrs. Weasley and Fleur looked at the elemental.

"Please," Mrs. Weasley nodded.

Phoebe nodded and turned to Madam Pomfrey, "I will need water," she said.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Phoebe healing Bill in the hospital wing, Aiden and Serefina joined Professor McGonagall in the Headmaster office with Hagrid and the other Heads of Houses. Harry was also present.

"Snape!" ejaculated Slughorn, who had been called into represent Slytherin; he was looking the most shaken, pale and sweating. "Snape! I taught him! I thought I knew him!"

But before any of them could respond to this, a sharp voice spoke from high on the wall. A shallow-faced wizard with a short black fringe had just walked back into his empty canvas.

"Minerva, the Minister will be here within seconds, he has just Disapparated from the Ministry."

"Thank you, Everard," said Professor McGonagall, and she turned quickly to her teachers. "I want to talk about what happens to Hogwarts before he gets here," she said quickly. "Personally, I am not convinced that the school should reopen next year. The death of the headmaster at the hands of one of our colleagues is a terrible stain upon Hogwarts's history. It is horrible."

"I am sure Dumbledore would have wanted the school to remain open," said Professor Sprout. "I feel that if a single pupil wants to come, then the school ought to remain open for that pupil."

"But will we have a single pupil after this?" said Slughorn, now dabbing his sweating brow with a silken handkerchief. "Parents will want to keep their children at home and I can't stay I blame them. Personally, I don't think we're in more danger at Hogwarts than we are anywhere else, but you can't expect mothers to think like that. They'll want to keep their families together, it's only natural."

"I agree," said Serefina, placing her hand on Aiden's shoulder. "But not once, in all my years of knowing Dumbledore, did he ever envisage a situation in which Hogwarts might close. When the Chamber of Secrets reopened he considered the closure of the school - and I must say that Professor Dumbledore's murder is more disturbing to me than the idea of Slytherin's monster living undetected in the bowls of the castle..."

"We must consult the governors," said Professor Flitwick in his squeaky little voice. "We must follow the established procedures. A decision should not be made hastily."

"Hagrid, you haven't said anything," said Professor McGonagall. "What are your views, ought Hogwarts to remain open?"

Hagrid, who had been weeping silently into his large, spotted handkerchief throughout this conversation, now raised puffy red eyes and croaked. "I dunno, Professor... that's fer the Heads of House and' the Headmistress ter decide..."

"Professor Dumbledore always valued your views," said Professor McGonagall kindly, "and so do I."

"Well, I'm stayin'," said Hagrid, fat tears still leaking out of the corners of his eyes and trickling down into his tangled beard. "It's me home, its bin me home since I was thirteen. An' if there's kids who wan' me ter teach 'em, I'll do it. But... I dunno... Hogwarts without Dumbledore..." he gulped and disappeared behind his handkerchief once more, and there was silence.

"Very well," said Professor McGonagall, glancing out of the window at the grounds, checking to see if the Minister was yet approaching.

"The Minister has just arrived in Hogsmeade, Professor," Aiden said, his eyes a soft cobalt blue. "He is making his way towards the castle!"

"Right," McGonagall nodded. "Thank you, Aiden, in the course of what has happened, I must agree with Fillius that the right thing to do is to consult the governors, who will make the final decision. Now, as to getting students home... there is an argument for doing it sooner rather than later. We could arrange for the Hogwarts Express to come tomorrow if necessary -"

"What about Dumbledore's funeral?" said Harry, speaking at last.

"Well..." said Professor McGonagall, losing a little of her briskness as her voice shook. "I - I know that it was Dumbledore's wish to be laid to rest here, at Hogwarts -"

"Then that's what'll happen, isn't it?" said Harry, fiercely.

"If the Ministry thinks it appropriate," said Professor McGonagall. "No other headmaster or headmistress has ever been -"

"No other headmaster or headmistress ever gave more to this school," growled Hagrid.

"Hogwarts should be Dumbledore's final resting place," said Serefina.

"Absolutely," said Professor Sprout.

"And in that case," said Harry, "you shouldn't send the student's home until the funeral's over. They'll want to say -"

The last word caught in his throat, but Aiden completed the sentence for him.

"Goodbye."

"Well said," squeaked Professor Flitwick. "We said indeed! Our students should pay tribute, it is fitting! We can arrange transport home afterward."

"Seconded," barked Professor Sprout.

"I suppose... yes..." said Slughorn in a rather agitated voice, while Hagrid let out a strangle sob of assent.

"He's coming," said Aiden, his eyes flashing between grey and blue. "The Minister, he just reached the gates of the castle! And he's brought a delegation..."

Professor McGonagall leapt to her feet, as Serefina ushered Harry and Aiden to the door.

"Quickly," she said. "Both of you must leave, immediately! The last thing we need is an interrogation between Harry and the Minister, especially tonight. Return either to your common rooms or the hospital wing do not wander around the grounds, do you understand?"

Aiden and Harry nodded and hurried down the spiral staircase, as Serefina shut Dumbledore's door with a snap.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, August 30, 2012 at 12:13am**


	152. Chapter 152

**Author's Note:** Oh my god! I cannot believe that we have made it to the end of sixth year! It seems like only yesterday that I started writing and it has been over a year! Anyway, Dumbledore's funeral, and people wanted to know about Elena and Jacob, hopefully all your answers will be answered in this chapter.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Chinaluv, Pixiescale1185, Dream Lighting, DJScales, Alaina08, Fan of Fics** and **KingdomHeartsNerd**.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

**Warning: **There will be no updates until the 8th September when I have returned from my holiday. See you all in a week. Will miss you!

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><p>All lessons were suspended, all examinations postponed. Some students were hurried away from Hogwarts by their parents over the next couple of days - the Patil twins were gone before breakfast on the morning following Dumbledore's death, and Zacharias Smith was escorted from the castle by his haughty-looking father. Seamus Finnigan, on the other hand, refused point-blank to accompany his mother home; they had a shouting match in the entrance hall that was resolved when she agreed that he could remain behind for the funeral.<p>

She had difficulty finding a bed in Hogsmeade, Seamus told James, for wizards and witches were pouring into the village, preparing to pay their last respects to Dumbledore.

Some excitement was caused among the younger students, who had never seen it before, when a powder-blue carriage the size of a house, pulled by a dozen giant winged palominos, came soaring out of the sky in the late afternoon before the funeral and landed on the edge of the forest. Phoebe was out in the grounds as a gigantic and handsome, olive-skinned, black-haired woman descended the carriage steps and threw herself into the waiting Hagrid's arms.

Meanwhile a delegation of Ministry officials, including the Minister for Magic himself, was being accommodated within the castle. Harry and his friends, along with Phoebe and her own, carefully avoided any confrontation with them and spent most of their free time with their separate groups - Harry and Phoebe still refused to acknowledge one another. - The beautiful weather, however, seemed to mock them; neither of them could ignore the idea of what would really be happening right now, had Dumbledore survived.

Phoebe visited the hospital wing every day; Jackson had been discharged, but Bill remained under Madam Pomfrey's care, although his scars had been cleared up by Phoebe, all that appeared to have changed was that he now had a great liking for very rare steaks.

"... so eet ees lucky 'e is marrying me," said Fleur happily, plumping up Bill's pillows, "because ze British overcook their meat, I 'ave always said this."

"I suppose I'm just going to have to accept that he really is going to marry her," sighed Ginny, as she and Phoebe left the Hospital wing later that evening.

"She's not that bad," said Phoebe. "She can be a bit 'in your face' about something's, and she seems to love herself _a lot_, but shouldn't it be about Bill and how she makes him feel? If he is happy, shouldn't you be happy?"

Ginny looked thoughtful. "Well, I suppose if Mum can stand her, I can."

Phoebe smiled and together, arm-in-arm, she and Ginny returned to the Gryffindor common room.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The day of Dumbledore's funeral finally arrived.

Phoebe rose early to pack; the Hogwarts Express would be leaving an hour after the funeral, and while she did not have a home here in London, she knew that she could not return to Portugal as it was no longer safe. Voldemort had attacked the manor and taken both her grandparents hostage, at least that was what the letter said, the letter that Serefina had received two days ago.

"But why would he want your grandparents?" Ashlyn asked as she helped Phoebe back away Blake and Terence's belongings.

"Because he can't get me," Phoebe answered.

Ashlyn frowned.

"Serefina seems to think that he is going to use my grandparents to lure me out," Phoebe explained. "He has taken over Blackheart Manor, I believe he is keeping my grandparents hostage in their own home."

"But he is not situated in Portugal,"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes, I know," she agreed. "I believe he has some Death Eaters on watch out there..."

"Can't your grandparents handle a few Death Eaters?"

"Without a problem,"

"Then why don't -?"

"Because Voldemort has probably threatened them," said Phoebe. "I wouldn't put it past him to have threatened to kill either me, Serefina or Aiden..."

"Or Blake..." Ashlyn pointed out.

Phoebe tensed and her eyes flickered between cobalt blue and silvery grey, as the ground shook and several shelves fell from the wall, their contents smashing as they hit the floor.

"Phoebe..."

"Sorry," Phoebe apologized, shaking her head and lowering her gaze. "Sorry..."

Ashlyn squeezed her best friend's shoulder. "It's okay," she promised. "I'm the one who should be sorry..."

Phoebe sighed and looked back at her trunk, it was half empty. "My powers have been off lately," she explained, "and I don't know why..."

"You're upset," Ashlyn said, hugging her friend from behind. "Your powers are linked to your emotions, and while they are haywire then your powers are going to be haywire. It's natural."

"I'm scared,"

"Again, understandable."

The two were silent.

"We're all scared, Phoebe," Ashlyn murmured, resting her forehead on Phoebe's shoulder. "But you're not alone..."

Phoebe smiled, faintly.

"Thank you,"

"You're welcome!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The mood in the Great Hall was subdued. Everybody was wearing their dress robes and no one seemed very hungry.

Professor McGonagall had left the thronelike chair in the middle of the staff table empty. Hagrid's chair was deserted too, as was Serefina's and Snape's chair had been unceremoniously filled by Rufus Scrimgeour, among Scrimgeour entourage was Percy Weasley, both Ron and Ginny avoided his gaze and acted like they were not aware of his presence.

Over at the Slytherin table Crabbe and Goyle were muttering together. Hulking boys though they were, they looked oddly lonely without the tall, pale figure of Malfoy between them, bossing them around. Phoebe stared at her brother's empty seat, before glancing down the Gryffindor table as she felt eyes on her, she met Harry's gaze and then looked down at her gurgling son.

"He accepted Dumbledore's protection, you know," she murmured to Jackson and Terence, the latter had returned several nights ago. "Draco," she added, noticing their confused expressions. "Aiden told me, he'd had a vision, you see, of that night! He didn't see Dumbledore die or anything, but he saw Draco accepting Dumbledore's protection."

"Then why didn't he stay?" Jackson asked.

"The Death Eaters infiltrated the tower before he or Dumbledore could act," Phoebe sighed, heavily.

Blake cooed bringing a smile to Phoebe's lips.

Meanwhile, Harry, who had been watching Phoebe, heaved a sigh of regret as he watched her interact with Terence and Jackson, and place a kiss the baby in her arms. The green-eyed monster raised its ugly head again, and Harry had to force it back down.

He knew that Phoebe resented him for lying to her about her brother, but in all honesty he had not spared Malfoy much thought. His animosity was all for Snape, but he had not forgotten the fear in Malfoy's voice on the tower, nor the fact that he had lowered his wand and accepted Dumbledore's protection, in the name of Phoebe, before the Death Eaters had arrived.

Not for one second did Harry believe that Malfoy would have killed Dumbledore. He still despised Malfoy for his infatuation with the Dark Arts, but now the tiniest drop of pity mingled with his dislike. Where, Harry wondered, was Malfoy now and what was Voldemort making him do under threat of killing his sister and nephew?

Harry and Phoebe's thoughts were both interrupted by Professor McGonagall's voice.

"It is nearly time," she said, rising to her feet, chasing the mournful hum from the Hall. "Please follow your Heads of House out into the grounds. Gryffindor's, after me."

They filed out from behind their benches in near silence.

**~*Phoebe*~**

It was the most beautiful summer's day.

The warmth of the sun caressed Phoebe's face as she followed those in front of her towards the lake. They were heading towards the hundreds of chairs that had been set out in rows. An aisle ran down the center of them; there was a marble table standing at the front, all chairs facing it.

An extraordinary assortment of people had already settled into half of the chairs; shabby and smart, old and young. Most Phoebe did not recognize and some she did, including members of the Order of the Phoenix; Kingsley Shacklebolt, Mad-Eye Moody, Tonks, her hair miraculously returned to vividest pink, Remus Lupin, with whom she seemed to be holding hands, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill supported by Fleur and followed by Fred and George, who were wearing jackets of black dragon skin.

Then there was Madame Maxime, who took up two and a half chairs on her own, Tom, the landlord of the Leaky Cauldron in London, Arabella Figg, a Squib from Little Whinging, Surrey. Ernie Prang, driver of the Knight Bus, Madam Malkin, of the robe shop in Diagon Alley, and some people whom Phoebe merely knew by sight, such as the witch who pushed the trolley on the Hogwarts Express.

"_Isn't that -?"_ Jackson whispered, pointing at the barman from the Hogs Head.

Phoebe nodded. _"Aberforth Dumbledore!"_ she confirmed. "_Professor Dumbledore's brother!"_

The castle ghosts were there too, barely visible in the bright sunlight, discernible only when they moved, shimmering insubstantially on the gleaming air.

Phoebe, Jackson, Terence and James filed into seats at the end of a row beside the lake. People were whispering to each other; it sounded like a breeze in the grass, but the birdsong was louder by far. The crowd continued to swell; with a great rush of affection for both of them.

Cornelius Fudge walked past toward the front rows, his expression miserable, twirling his green bowler hat as usual, Phoebe next recognized Rita Skeeter, who, she was infuriated to see, had a notebook clutched in her red-taloned hand, and then, with a worse jolt of anger, Dolores Umbridge, an unconvincing expression of grief upon her toadlike face, a black velvet bow set atop her iron-coloured curls.

At the sight of the centaur Firenze, who was standing like a sentinel near the water's edge, she gave a start and scurried hastily into a seat a good distance away.

The staff was seated at last.

Scrimgeour looked grave, yet dignified in the front row with Professor McGonagall, and Phoebe couldn't help but wonder if the Minister or the other important people were really sorry that Dumbledore was dead. But then she heard music, strange, otherworldly music, and she forgot her dislike of the English Ministry in looking around for the source of it. She was not the only one. many heads were turning, searching, a little alarmed.

"_There," _Jackson whispered, pointing at the lake.

And she saw them in the clear green sunlit water, inches below the surface, a chorus of merpeople singing in a strange language he did not understand, their pallid faces rippling their purplish hair flowing all around them. The music made Phoebe shudder, and yet it was not unpleasant.

It spoke very clearly of loss and of despair. As she looked into the wild faces of the singers, she had the feeling that they, at least, were sorry for Dumbledore's passing.

"Phoebe," Terence whispered.

Looking around Phoebe noticed Hagrid walking slowly up the aisle between the chairs. He was crying quite silently, his face gleaming with tears, and in his arms, wrapped in purple velvet spangled with golden stars, was what Phoebe knew to be Dumbledore's body.

A sharp pain erupted in her heart at this sight, for a moment, the strange music and the knowledge that Dumbledore's body was so close seemed to take all warmth from the day.

James looked white and shocked, while tears were falling thick and fast into both Sarah and Amelia's laps as they sat in front of the Gryffindor friends, Phoebe's eyes, however, remained dry, she had cried enough over the past few days and believed that she had cried herself dry.

Hagrid placed the body carefully upon the marble table at the front of the aisle and then retreated to the back of the chairs to where Gwarp, Hagrid's giant half-brother, was sitting. He patted his brother on the head and Phoebe had to resist the urge to laugh as Hagrid's chair buckled and he landed on his butt.

As the music stopped, Phoebe turned back to the front, just as Serefina took to the alter.

"Nobility of spirit," Serefina said. "Intellectual contribution" ... "Greatness of heart" ... "these are a few words that explain Albus Dumbledore to anyone who did not know him! But to those who knew him for who he really was could possibly thing of a few more words that fit him. For me? Dumbledore was a great man! And I trusted him with my life!"

Phoebe blinked as her godmother continued, not much of the speech reached her ears, the blood was rushing to her ears in ways that it had never done before! As the merpeople broke the surface of the lake to listen to the earth elemental's speech, a cold and dreadful truth washed over Phoebe, it was as if, for the last few days, she had been denying everything that had happened.

Dumbledore was gone... and he was never coming back.

Her grandparents had been captured... and she had no clue how to get them back.

For some reason these two concepts were connected. If only Dumbledore was alive then he would have a plan on how to infiltrate Blackheart Manor, rescue those inside and return it to its rightful owners, but he was not alive, Blackheart Manor was now under the control of Voldemort and his Death Eaters, and Elena and Jacob Blackheart were hostage, if not already dead.

_**No!**_ Phoebe scolded herself. _**Do not think like that! They are alive!**_

_"They have to be alive..."_ she whispered.

Jackson, the only other person who was around and that could speak Portuguese, wrapped his arms around his best friend and kissed the top of her head. "_They are alive, Phoebe,_" he whispered. "_And we will take back what belongs to us... your grandparents will return! I promise!"_

Phoebe smiled and nodded, burying her face further into his chest.

Serefina had finished speaking and resumed her seat beside Professor McGonagall, who was crying into her handkerchief. The students waited for someone else to get to their feet, probably Professor McGonagall or even the Minister for Magic, but nobody moved.

Then several people screamed. Bright, white flames had erupted around Dumbledore's body and the table upon which it lay. Higher and higher they rose, obscuring the body. White smoke spiraled into the air and made strange shapes, and then, next second the fire had vanished and in its place was a white marble tomb, encasing Dumbledore's body and the table upon which he rested.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 31 August, 2012 at 12:11am**


	153. Chapter 153

**Author's Note:** Hello my lovely reviewers! I am back from my holiday and ready to continue on with this series. I have **many** series that need updating before I go back to University and so very little time. But never fear, I have decided, and/or figured out, that it is sometimes easier to finish **one** story at a time. This is why, you lovely people should be very lucky, for I have decided to finish this story before concentrating on my other story **Mystic Force: Against All Odds**. Anyway, without further ado, I hope you enjoy this final segment of **The Dark Lord's Downfall**.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, Leafstone, Alaina08** and** SoulVirus**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>The two men appeared out of nowhere, a few yards apart in the narrow, moonlit lane. For a few seconds they stood quite still, wands directed at each other's chests; then, recognizing each other, they stowed their wands beneath their cloaks and started walking briskly in the same direction.<p>

"News?" asked the taller of the two.

"The best," replied Severus Snape.

The lane was bordered on the left by wild, low-growing brambles, on the right by a high, neatly manicured hedge. The men's long cloaks flapped around their ankles as they marched.

"Thought I might be late," said Yaxley, his blunt features sliding in and out of sight as the branches of overhanging trees broke the moonlight. "It was a little trickier than I expected. But I hope he will be satisfied. You sound confident that your reception will be good?"

Snape nodded, but did not elaborate. They turned right, into a wide driveway that led off the lane. The high hedge curved with them, running off into the distance beyond the pair of impressive wrought-iron gates barring the men's way. Neither of them broke step: In silence both raised their left arms in a kind of salute and passed straight through, as though the dark metal were smoke.

The yew hedges muffled the sound of the men's footsteps. There was a rustle somewhere to their right: Yaxley drew his wand again, pointing it over his companion's head, but the source of the noise proved to be nothing more than a pure-white peacock, strutting majestically along the top of the hedge.

"He always did himself well, Lucius, _Peacocks_..." Yaxley thrust his wand back under his cloak with a snort.

A handsome manor house grew out of the darkness at the end of the straight drive, lights glinting in the diamond-paned downstairs windows. Somewhere in the dark garden beyond the hedge a fountain was playing. Gravel crackled beneath their feet as Snape and Yaxley sped toward the front door, which swung inward at their approach, though nobody had visibly opened it.

The hallway was large, dimly lit, and sumptuously decorated, with a magnificent carpet covering most of the stone floor. The eyes of the pale-faced portraits on the walls followed Snape and Yaxley as they strode past. The two men halted at a heavy wooden door leading into the next room, hesitated for the space of a heartbeat, and then Snape turned the bronze handle.

The drawing room was full of silent people, sitting at a long and ornate table. The room's usual furniture had been pushed carelessly up against the walls. Illumination came from a roaring fire beneath a handsome marble mantelpiece surmounted by a glided mirror.

Snape and Yaxley lingered for a moment on the threshold. As their eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light, they were drawn upward to the strangest feature of scene: an apparently unconscious human figure hanging upside down over the table, revolving slowly as if suspended by an invisible rope, and reflected in the mirror and in the bare, polished surface of the table below.

None of the people seated underneath this singular sight was looking at it except for a pale young man sitting almost directly below it. He seemed unable to prevent himself from glancing upward every minute or so.

"Yaxley. Snape," said a high, clear voice from the head of the table. "You are very nearly late."

The speaker was seated directly in front of it the fireplace, so that it was difficult, at first, for the new arrivals to make out more than his silhouette. As they drew nearer, however, his face shone through the gloom, hairless, snakelike, with slits for nostrils and gleaming red eyes whose pupils were vertical. He was so pale that he seemed to emit a pearly glow.

"Severus, here," said Voldemort, indicating the seat on his immediate right. "Yaxley - beside Flint."

The two men took their allotted places. Most of the eyes around the table followed Snape, and it was to him that Voldemort spoke first.

"So?"

"My Lord, the Order of the Phoenix intends to move Harry Potter from his current place of safety on Saturday night, at nightfall."

The interest around the table sharpened palpably: Some stiffened; others fidgeted, all gazing at Snape and Voldemort.

"Saturday... at nightfall," repeated Voldemort. His red eyes fastened upon Snape's black ones with such intensity that some of the watches looked away, apparently fearful that they themselves would be scorched by the ferocity of the gaze. Snape, however, looked calmly back into Voldemort's lipless mouth curled into something like a smile.

"Good. Very good. And this information comes -"

"- from the source we discussed," said Snape.

"My Lord."

Yaxley had leaned forward to look down the long table at Voldemort and Snape. All faces turned to him.

"My Lord, I have heard differently."

Yaxley waited, but Voldemort did not speak, so he went on, "Dawlish, the Auror, let slip that Potter will not be moved until the thirtieth, the night before the boy turns seventeen."

Snape was smiling.

"My source told me that there are plans to lay a false trail; this must be it. No doubt a Confundus Charm has been placed upon Dawlish. It would not be the first time; he is known to be susceptible."

"I assure you, my Lord, Dawlish seemed quite certain," said Yaxley.

"If he has been Confunded, naturally he is certain," said Snape. "I assure _you_, Yaxley, the Auror Office will play no further part in the protection of Harry Potter. The Order believes that we have infiltrated the Ministry."

"The Order's got one thing right, then, eh?" said a squat man sitting a short distance from Yaxley; he gave a wheezy giggle that was echoed here and there along the table.

Voldemort did not laugh. His gaze had wandered upward to the body revolving slowly overhead, and he seemed to be lost in thought.

"My Lord," Yaxley went on. "Dawlish believes an entire party of Aurors will be used to transfer the boy -"

Voldemort held up a large white hand, and Yaxley subsided at once, watching resentfully as Voldemort turned to Wormtail.

"Bring me the Seer," he ordered, quietly. "We shall see which story is correct!"

"Y-yes m-m-my Lord..." Wormtail stuttered, bowing out of the room.

"Where does the Order intend to hide the boy?" Voldemort asked, turning to Snape.

"At the home of one of the Order," said Snape. "The place, according to the source, has been given every protection that the Order and Ministry together could provide. I think that there is little chance of taking him once he is there, my Lord, unless, of course, the Ministry has fallen before next Saturday, which might give us the opportunity to discover and undo enough of the enchantments to break through the rest."

The door creaked open and Wormtail returned.

"My Lord?" he whimpered, pulling a struggling woman into the room. She was shouting in rapid Portuguese and trying to get back out of the room.

Voldemort clicked his tongue against the room of his mouth, waved his wand and the woman went rigid. "_Now, now, Elena..._" he said. "_You wouldn't want anything to happen to your precious elemental family now, would you?"_

_"Leave my family alone!"_

_"Answer my questions,"_ Voldemort slithered. _"And I'll consider your proposal!"_

Elena stiffened and then lowered her head. "_What is it you wish to know?"_ she asked, surrendering at will.

"_Your visions have been very helpful,"_ Voldemort said. "_They are needed for my service once more. Tell me, Seer, on which day will Harry Potter be removed from his Muggle home?"_

Silence followed Voldemort's question as Elena swallowed sharply.

"_Answer me!"_

Elena's eyes flashed a bright blue as she stared off into space, she hated that her powers were being abused and used for the forces of darkness, but if she was to save, not only herself, but her family as well, she knew that giving Voldemort what he wanted was the only choice she had. "Harry Potter will be moved this Saturday," she said, confirming Snape's theory.

The Potions master looked smugly at Yaxley.

Voldemort bowed his head and waved Wormtail and Elena away. "_You have done well, Seer,"_ he said. "Wormtail, return our guest to the cellar!"

"Yes, my Lord," Wormtail said, bowing once more out of the room.

"It would seem Dawlish cannot be reliable as we assumed," said Voldemort. "Which begs the question, Yaxley, _will_ the Ministry have fallen by next Saturday?"

Once again, all heads turned. Yaxley squared his shoulders.

"My Lord, I have good news on that score, I have - with difficulty, and after great effort - succeeded in placing an Imperius Curse upon Pius Thicknesse."

Many of those sitting around Yaxley looked impressed, his neighbor, Marcus Flint, former Slytherin at Hogwarts School and determined Death Eater, clapped him on the back.

"It is a start," said Voldemort. "But Thicknesse is only one man. Scrimgeour must be surrounded by our people before I act. One failed attempt on the Minister's life will set me back a long way."

"Yes - my Lord that is true - but you know, as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Thicknesse has regular contact not only with the Minister himself, but also with the Heads of all the other Ministry departments. It will, I think, be ways now that we have such a high-ranking official under our control, to subjugate the others, and then they can all work together to bring Scrimgeour down."

"As long as our friend Thicknesse is not discovered before he has converted the rest," said Voldemort. "At any rate, it remains unlikely that the Ministry will be mine before next Saturday. If we cannot touch the boy at his destination, then it must be done while he travels."

"We are at an advantage there, my Lord," said Yaxley, who seemed determined to receive some portion of approval. "We now have several people planted within the Department of Magical Transportation. If Potter Apparates or uses the Floo Network, we shall know immediately."

"He will not do either," said Snape. "The Order is eschewing any form of transport that is controlled or regulated by the Ministry; they mistrust everything to do with the place, and Mrs. Phoebe Blackheart's distrust in the Ministry of Magic has the entire Order on alert."

"All the better," said Voldemort. "Harry Potter will have to move in the open. Easier to take, by far. Am I also to believe that the elemental will be escorting him?"

"Yes, my Lord," said Snape. "There are some issues amongst the Order, but she is a part of his advanced guard, and probably the most powerful of them all."

"Naturally."

Again Voldemort looked up at the slowly revolving body as he went on, "I shall attend to the boy in person. There have been too many mistakes where Harry Potter is concerned. Some of them have been my own. That Potter lives is due more to my errors than to his triumphs."

The company around the table watched Voldemort apprehensively, each of them, by his or her expression, afraid that they might be blamed for Harry Potter's continued existence. Voldemort, however, seemed to be speaking more to himself than to any of them, still addressing the unconscious body above him.

"I have been careless, and so have been thwarted by luck and chance, those wreckers of all but the best-laid plans. But I know better now. I understand those things that I did not understand before. I must be the one to kill Harry Potter, and I shall be."

At these words, seemingly in response to them, a sudden wail sounded, a terrible, drawn-out cry of misery and pain. Many of those at the table looked downward startled, for the sound had seemed to issue from below their feet.

"Wormtail," said Voldemort, with no change in his quiet, thoughtful tone, and without removing his eyes from the revolving body above, "have I not spoken to you about keeping our prisoner quiet?"

"Yes, m-my Lord," gasped Wormtail. He scrambled from his seat and scurried from the room, leaving nothing behind him but a curious gleam of silver.

"As I was saying," continued Voldemort, looking again at the tense faces of his followers. "I understand better now. I shall need, for instance, to borrow a wand from one of you before I go to kill Potter."

The faces around him displayed nothing but shock; he might have announced that he wanted to borrow one of their arms.

"No volunteers?" said Voldemort. "Let's see... Lucius, I see no reason for you to have a wand anymore."

Lucius Malfoy looked up. His skin appeared yellowish and waxy in the firelight, and his eyes were sunken and shadowed. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse.

"My Lord?"

"Your wand, Lucius. I require your wand."

"I..."

Malfoy glanced sideways at his wife. She was staring straight ahead, quite as pale as he was, her long blonde hair hanging down her back, but beneath the table her slim fingers closed briefly on his wrist. At her touch, Malfoy put his hand into his robes, withdrew a wand, and passed it along to Voldemort, who held it up in front of his red eyes, examining it closely.

"What is it?"

"Elm, my Lord," whispered Malfoy.

"And the core?

"Dragon - dragon heartstring."

"Good," said Voldemort.

Just then a hiss sounded from beneath the table, and seconds later a huge snake emerged to climb slowly up Voldemort's chair. It rose, seemingly endlessly, and came to rest across Voldemort's shoulders: its neck the thickness of a man's thigh; its eyes, with their vertical slits for pupils, unblinking.

Voldemort stroked the creature absently with long thin fingers, still looking at Lucius.

"I have noticed that you and your family seem less than happy of late," he said. "What is it about my presence in your home that displeases you, Lucius?"

"Nothing - nothing, my Lord!"

"Such _lies_, Lucius... Why do the Malfoy's look so unhappy with their lot? Is my return, my rise to power, not the very thing they professed to desire for so many years?"

"Of course, my Lord," said Lucius Malfoy. His hand shook as he wiped sweat from his upper lip. "We did desire it - we do."

To Malfoy's left, his made an odd, stiff nod, her eyes averted from Voldemort and the snake. To his right, his son, Draco, who had been gazing up at the inert body overheard, glanced quickly at Voldemort and away again, terrified to make eye contact. He remembered Dumbledore's promise of protection, but then it was roughly ripped away when Snape had killed him.

_**Phoebe**_... Draco thought wistfully. Oh, how he missed his sister.

"My Lord," said a dark woman halfway down the table, her voice constricted with emotion, "is an honour to have you here, in our family's house. There can be no higher pleasure."

She sat beside her sister, as unlike her in look, with her dark hair and heavily lidded eyes, as she was in bearing and demeanor; where Narcissa sat rigid and impassive, Bellatrix leaned toward Voldemort, for mere words could not demonstrate her longing for closeness.

"No higher pleasure," repeated Voldemort, his head tilted a little to one side as he considered Bellatrix. "That means a great deal, Bellatrix, from you."

Her face flooded with colour; her eyes welled with tears of delight.

"My Lord knows I speak of nothing but the truth!"

"No higher pleasure... even compared with the happy event that, I hear, has taken place in your family these past few months?"

She stared at him, her lips parted, evidently confused.

"I don't know what you mean, my Lord."

"I'm talking about your nieces, Bellatrix. And your daughter, Lucius and Narcissa," Voldemort said. "Young Phoebe, as it would seem, has married a Halfblood and produced a child, and quite recently, your niece has married the werewolf, Remus Lupin. You must be so proud."

There was an eruption of jeering laughter from around the table. Many leaned forward to exchange gleeful looks; a few thumped the table with their fists. The great snake, disliking the disturbance, opened its mouth wide and hissed angrily, but the Death Eaters did not hear it, so jubilant were they at Bellatrix and the Malfoy's' humiliation.

Bellatrix's face, so recently flushed with happiness, had turned an ugly, blotched red.

"She is no niece of ours, my Lord," she cried over the outpouring of mirth. "We - Narcissa and I - have never set eyes on our sister since she married the Mudblood. This brat has nothing to do with either of us, nor any beast she marries."

"And what of young Phoebe, Bellatrix?" Voldemort chided.

"She has brought disgrace upon her family by marrying below her status!" said Bellatrix.

Draco stiffened, his hands curling into fists. How dare Bellatrix talk about Phoebe that way. His sister had done everything that was right by her; she had given herself a better life, built herself a better future, and provided him with a beautiful nephew.

_**You will not take that away from her, Bellatrix**_ he mused. _**I will not allow it to happen!**_

"What say you, Draco?" asked Voldemort, and though his voice was quiet, it carried clearly through the catcalls and jeers. "Will you babysit the cubs?"

The hilarity mounted; Draco Malfoy looked in terror at his father, who was staring down into his own lap, then caught his mother's eye. She shook her head almost imperceptibly, and then resumed her own deadpan stare at the opposite wall.

"Enough," said Voldemort, stroking the angry snake. "Enough."

And the laughter died at once.

"Many of our oldest family trees become a little diseased over time," he said as Bellatrix gazed at him, breathless and imploring. "You must prune yours, must you not, to keep it healthy? Cut away those parts that threaten the health of the rest."

"Yes, my Lord," whispered Bellatrix, and her eyes swam with tears of gratitude again. "At the first chance!"

"You shall have it," said Voldemort. "And in your family, so in the world... we shall cut away the canker that infects us until only those of the true blood remain..."

Voldemort raised Lucius Malfoy's wand, pointed it directly at the slowly revolving figure suspended over the table, and gave it a tiny flick. The figure came to life with a groan and began to struggle against invisible bonds.

"Do you recognize our guest, Severus?" asked Voldemort.

Snape raised his eyes to the upside-down face. All of the Death Eaters were looking up at the captive now, as though they had been given permission to show curiosity. As she revolved to face the firelight, the woman said in a cracked and terrified voice, "Severus! Help me!"

"Ah, yes," said Snape as the prisoner turned slowly away again.

"And you, Draco?" asked Voldemort, stroking the snake's snout with his wand-free hand. Draco shook his head jerkily. Now that the woman had woken, he seemed unable to look at her anymore. "But you would not have taken her classes," Voldemort continued. "For those of you who do not know, we are joined here tonight by Charity Burbage who, until recently, taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

There were small noises of comprehension around the table. A broad, hunched woman with pointed teeth cackled.

"Yes... Professor Burbage taught the children of witches and wizards all about Muggles... how they are not different from us..."

One of the Death Eaters spat on the floor. Charity Burbage revolved to face Snape again.

"Severus... please... please..."

"Silence," spat Voldemort, with another twitch of Malfoy's wand, and Charity fell silent as if gagged. "Not content with corrupting and polluting the minds of Wizarding children, last week Professor Burbage wrote an impassioned defense of Mudbloods in the _Daily Prophet_. Wizards, she says, must accept these thieves of their knowledge and magic. The dwindling of the purebloods is, says Professor Burbage, a most desirable circumstance... She would have us all mate with Muggles... or, no doubt, werewolves..."

Nobody laughed this time. There was no mistaking the anger and contempt in Voldemort's voice. For the third time, Charity revolved around to face Snape. Tears were pouring from her eyes into her hair. Snape looked back at her, quite impassive, as she turned slowly away from him again.

"_Avada Kedavra_."

The flash of green light illuminated every corner of the room. Charity fell, with a resounding crash, onto the table below, which trembled and creaked, as several Death Eaters leapt back in their chairs.

"Dinner, Nagini," said Voldemort softly, and the great snake swayed and slithered from his shoulders onto the polished wood.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I know... not that much of Phoebe or Aiden in this chapter, although the latter is mentioned. But this chapter was **way** to important to ignore and/or leave out. It is, after all, the beginning of the end.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 09 September 2012 at 08:47pm**


	154. Chapter 154

**Author's Note:** Yes, I know, things have gone very slow and that is my fault I am afraid. I have recently found someone new to obsess over. But I will try and get these chapters out as soon as possible. I have relatively two weeks left until I go back to University and I am hoping to get at least mid-way through this story by then. Anyway... enough chatting, let's get on with the story.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, ZabuzasGirl, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, Pixiescale1185, Alaina08, Fan of Fics** and **Dream Lighting**.

**Shout Out: **Big thank you too **Ninjagryffin18, cahsm** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Thank You:** A big thank you to **Short Stock** and **MiraclesHappen94** for letting me know that I had posted chapter 153 twice. Here is the correct chapter.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>The light was fading rapidly now, the street was full of shadows in the evening light. It felt almost strange to stand here in the silence and know that things were about to get dicey. Long ago, when she had been taken to the Blackhearts, she had no idea that she would one day be wishing that she could be a normal, everyday girl, with a normal everyday life.<p>

There was a sudden, deafening roar, and next second Hagrid landed in the back garden as around him the darkness seemed to ripple, the air itself quivering. Then, one by one, the Disillusionment Charms lifting, figures began to pop into sight one-by-one, dismounting broomsticks and, in two cases, skeletal, black winged horses.

The back door to the Dursleys house opened and Harry hurtled into their midst. There was a general cry of greeting as Hermione flung her arms around him, Ron clapped him on the back, Phoebe squeezed his arm resting her head on his shoulder and Hagrid said, "All righ', Harry? Ready fer the off?"

"Definitely," said Harry, beaming around at them all. "But I wasn't expecting this many of you!"

"Change of plan," growled Mad-Eye, who was holding two enormous, bulging sacks, and whose magical eye was spinning from darkening sky to house to garden with dizzying rapidity. "Let's get undercover before we talk you through it."

Harry led them all back into the kitchen where, laughing and chattering, they settled on chairs, sat themselves upon gleaming work surfaces, or leaned up against the spotless appliances: Ron, long and lanky, Hermione, her busy hair tied back in a high ponytail, Phoebe, black hair tied back in a long plait; Aiden, laid-back and serious; Fred and George, grinning identically; Bill, long-haired and happy; Mr. Weasley, kind-faced, balding, his spectacles a little awry; Mad-Eye, battle-worn, one-legged, his bright blue magical eye whizzing in its socket; Tonks, whose short hair was her favorite shade or bright pink; Lupin, grayer, more lined; Hagrid, with his wild hair and beard, standing hunchbacked to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling; and Mundungus Fletcher, small, dirty and hangdog, with his droopy basset hound's eyes and matted hair.

"Kingsley, I thought you were looking after the Muggle Prime Minister?" Harry called across the room.

"He can get along without me for one night," said Kingsley. "You're more important."

"Harry, guess what?" said Tonks from her perch on top of the washing machine, and she wiggled her left hand at him; a ring glittered there.

"You got married?" Harry yelped, looking at Lupin.

"I'm sorry you couldn't be there, Harry, it was very quiet."

"And beautiful," Phoebe smiled.

Tonks smiled and nodded her head in her direction.

"All right, all right, we'll have time for a cozy catch-up later!" roared Moody over the hubbub, and silence fell in the kitchen. Moody dropped his sacks at his feet and turned to Harry. "As Dedalus probably told you, we had to abandon Plan A. Pius Thicknesse has gone over, which gives us a big problem. He's made it an imprisonable offense to connect this house to the Floo Network, place a Portkey here, or Apparate in or out. All done in the name of your protection, to prevent You-Know-Who getting in at you. Absolutely pointless, seeing as your mother's charm does that already. What he's really done is to stop you getting out of here safely."

"Second problem: You're underage, which means you've still got the Trace on you," said Phoebe.

"I don't -"

"The Trace, the Trace!" said Mad-Eye impatiently. "The charm that defends magical activity around under-seventeens, the way the Ministry finds out about underage magic! If you, or anyone around you, casts a spell to get you out of here, Thicknesse is going to know about it, and so will the Death Eaters."

"Can't we just wait for the Trace to break?" Ron asked.

"No," said Aiden. "Because then Harry will lose all protection his mother gave her."

"In short: Pius Thicknesse thinks he's got you cornered good and proper, Harry," Phoebe nodded.

"So what are we going to do?"

"We're going to use the only means of transport left to us, the only ones the Trace can't detect, because we don't need to cast spells to use them: brooms, Thestrals, and Hagrid's motorbike."

Phoebe sighed, she could see flaws in this plan; however, she held her tongue to give Mad-Eye the chance to address them.

"Now, your mother's charm will only break under two conditions, when you come of age, or -" Moody gestured around the pristine kitchen, " - you no longer call this place home. You and your aunt and uncle are going your separate ways tonight, in the full understanding that you're never going to live together again, correct?"

Harry nodded.

"So this time, when you leave, there'll be no going back, and the charm will break the moment you get outside its range. We're choosing to break it early, because the alternative is waiting for You-Know-Who to come and seize you the moment you turn seventeen."

"The one thing we've got on our side is that You-Know-Who doesn't know we're moving you tonight," said Phoebe. "We've leaked a fake trail to the Ministry. They think you're not leaving until the thirtieth. However, this _is_ Voldemort we're dealing with, so we can't just rely on him getting the date wrong; he's bound to have a couple of Death Eaters patrolling the skies in this general area, just in case."

"So, we've given a dozen houses every protection we can throw at them. They all looking like they could be the place we're going to hide you, they've all got some connection with the Order; my house, Kingsley's place, Mrs. Weasley's Auntie Muriel's - you get the idea," added Aiden.

"Yeah," said Harry, not entirely truthfully, because he could still spot a gaping hole in the plan.

"You'll be going with to Tonk's parents," said Phoebe, noticing his hesitation. "Once you're within the boundaries of the protective enchantments we've put on their house, you'll be able to use a Portkey to the Burrow."

"Any questions?" Mad-Eye asked.

"Er - yes," said Harry. "Maybe they won't know which of the twelve secure houses I'm heading for at first, but won't it be sort of obvious once -" he performed a quick headcount "- fourteen of us fly off toward Tonks's parents?"

"Ah," said Moody, "I forgot to mention the key point. Fourteen of us won't be flying to Tonks's parents'. There will be seven Harry Potters moving through the skies tonight, each of them with a companion, each pair heading for a different safe house."

From inside his cloak Moody now withdrew a flask of what looked like mud. There was no need for him to say another word; Harry had understood the rest of the plan immediately.

"No!" he said loudly, his voice ringing through the kitchen. "No way!"

"I told you he'd take it like this," said Hermione.

"If you think I'm going to let six people risk their lives -!"

"- because it's the first time for all of us," said Ron.

"This is different, pretending to be me -"

"Well, none of us really fancy it, Harry," said Fred earnestly. "Imagine if something went wrong and we were stuck as specky, scrawny gits forever."

Harry did not smile.

"You can't do it if I don't cooperate; you need me to give you some hair."

"Well, that's that plan scuppered," said George. "Obviously there's no chance at all of us getting a bit of your hair unless you cooperate."

"Yeah, thirteen of us against one bloke who's not allowed to use magic; we've got no chance," said Fred.

"If it has to come to force, then it will," growled Moody, his magical eye now quivering a little in its socket as he glared at Harry. "Everyone here's overage, Potter, and they're all prepared to take the risk."

Mundungus shrugged and grimaced; the magical eye swerved to glare at him out of the side of Moody's head.

"Let's have no more arguments. Time's wearing on. I want a few of your hairs, boy, now."

"But this is mad, there's no need -"

"No need!" snarled Moody. "With You-Know-Who out there and half the Ministry on his side? Potter, if we're lucky he'll have swallowed the fake bait and he'll be planning to ambush you on the thirtieth, but he'd be mad not to have a Death Eater or two keeping an eye out, it's what I'd do. They might not be able to get at you or this house while your mother's charm holds, but it's about to break and they know the rough position of the place. Our only chance is to use decoys. Even You-Know-Who can't split himself into seven."

Aiden caught Phoebe's eye and looked away at once.

Harry glanced at Ron, who grimaced at him in a just-do-it sort of way.

"Now!" barked Moody.

"Merlin!" Phoebe gasped, hand over her heart. "I'm gonna have a freaking heart attack if you don't hand over some hairs, Harry," she said, her eyes narrowing at Mad-Eye.

With all eyes on him, Harry reached up to the top of his head, grabbed a hank of hair, and pulled.

"Good," said Moody, limping forward as he pulled the stopper out of the flask of potion. "Straight in here, if you please."

Harry dropped the hair into the mudlike liquid. The moment it made contact with its surface, the potion began to froth and smoke, then, all at once, it turned a clear, bright gold.

"Ooh, you look much tastier than Crabbe, Goyle and Bulstrode, Harry," said Hermione, before catching Ron's glare. "Oh, you know what I mean - Goyle's potion looked like bogies."

"Right then, fake Potters line up over here, please," said Moody.

Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Phoebe lined up in front of the gleaming sink.

"Hey, we're one short," said Aiden.

"Here," said Hagrid gruffly, and he lifted Mundungus by the scruff of the neck and dropped him down beside Phoebe, who wrinkled her nose pointedly and moved along to stand between Hermione and Fred instead.

"I've toldjer, I'd sooner be a protector," said Mundungus.

"Shut it," growled Moody. "As I've already told you, you spineless worm, any Death Eater we run into will be aiming to capture Potter, not kill him. Dumbledore always said You-Know-Who would want to finish Potter in person. It'll be the protectors who have got the most to worry about, the Death Eaters'll want to kill them."

Mundungus did not look particularly reassured, but Moody was already pulling half a dozen eggcup-sized glasses from inside his cloak, which he handed out, before pouring a little Polyjuice Potion into each one.

"Altogether, then..."

Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Phoebe and Mundungus drank. All of them gasped and grimaced as the potion hit their throats: At once, their features began to bubble and distort like hot wax. Hermione, Phoebe and Mundungus shot upwards; Ron, Fred and George shrunk; their hair was darkening, Hermione's and Phoebe's shot backwards into their skulls.

Moody, quite unconcerned, was now loosening the ties of the large sacks he had brought with him. When he straightened up again, there were six Harry Potters gasping and panting in front of him.

Fred and George turned to each other and said together. "Wow - we're identical!"

"I dunno, though, I think I'm still better-looking," said Fred, examining his reflection in the kettle.

"Those whose clothes are a bit roomy, I've got smaller here," said Moody, indicating the first sack, "and vice versa. Don't forget the glasses; there are six pairs in the side pocket. And when you're dressed, there's luggage in the other sack."

The real Harry thought that this might just be the most bizarre thing he had ever seen, and he had seen some extremely odd things.

Aiden, who was standing off to the side, blinked and watched as the six Potters rummaged in the sacks, pulling out sets of clothes, putting on glasses, stuffing their own things away.

"I knew Ginny was lying about that tattoo," said Ron, looking down at his chest.

"What tattoo?" asked Phoebe.

"The Hungarian Horntail," Hermione answered, putting on a pair of glasses. "Ginny told Romilda that Harry had a Horntail on his chest - Harry, your eyesight really is awful."

Phoebe sniggered and glanced at her friend. "A Horntail?" she repeated. "Wow, Harry, how very macho of you!"

Harry ducked his head as a dull crimson blush rose in his cheeks.

Once dressed, the fake Harry's took rucksacks and owl cages, each containing a stuffed snowy owl, from the second sack.

"Good," said Moody, as at last seven dressed, bespectacled, and luggage-laden Harry's faced him. "The pairs will be as follows: Mundungus will be travelling with me, by broom -"

"Why'm I with you?" grunted the Harry nearest the back door.

"Because you're the one that needs watching," growled Moody, and sure enough his magical eye did not waver from Mundungus as he continued. "Arthur and Fred -"

"I'm George," said the twin at whom Moody was pointing. "Can't you even tell us apart when we're Harry?"

"Sorry, George -"

"I'm only yanking your wand, I'm Fred really -"

"Enough messing around!" snarled Moody. "The other one - George or Fred or whoever you are - you're with Remus. Mrs. Blackheart -"

"Aiden and I are going by Thestral," said Phoebe.

Moody nodded.

"Miss. Granger with Kingsley, again by Thestral -"

Hermione looked reassured as she answered Kingsley's smile; Phoebe knew that while Hermione had done rather well in her flying lessons back in first year, she still lacked confidence whilst on a broomstick.

"Which leaves you and me, Ron!" said Tonks brightly, knocking over a mug tree as she waved at him.

Ron did not look quite as pleased as Hermione.

"An' you're with me, harry. That all righ'?" said Hagrid, looking a little anxious. "We'll be on the bike, brooms an' Thestrals can't take me weight, see. Not a lot o' room on the seat with me on it, though, so you'll be in the sidecar."

"That's great," said Harry.

"We think the Death Eaters will expect you to be on a broom," said Moody. "Snape's had plenty of time to tell them everything about you he's never mentioned before, so if we do run into any Death Eaters, we're betting they'll choose one of the Potters who look at home on a broomstick. All right then," he went on, tying up the sack with the fake Potters' clothes in it and leading the way back to the door. "I make it three minutes until we're supposed to leave. No point locking the door, it won't keep the Death Eaters out when they come looking... Come on..."

Harry hurried into the hall to fetch his rucksack, Firebolt, and Hedwig's cage before joining the others in the dark back garden. On ever side broomsticks were leaping into hands; Hermione had already been helped up onto a great black Thestral by Kingsley, Phoebe onto the other by Aiden.

Hagrid was standing ready beside the motorbike, goggles on.

"You might want to let Hedwig out now, Harry," said Phoebe. "Athena is flying around waiting for her..."

Harry nodded, opened the owl's cage, and watched as she soared into the air. There was a screech, a flash of golden feathers, and Phoebe's golden eagle, Athena, swooped into wing, took Hedwig under her left flank, and the two soared off into the night.

"All right then," said Moody. "Everyone ready, please; I want us all to leave at exactly the same time or the whole point of the diversions lost."

Everybody mounted their brooms.

"Hold tight now, Ron," said Tonks, and Phoebe saw Ron throw a furtive, guilty look at Lupin before placing his hands on either side of her waist, whilst she tightened her hold around her brother.

"Phoebe, you want to loosen up a touch?" Aiden spluttered. "I can't breathe!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Pansy!" she teased.

"Who you calling a pansy?" Aiden asked, outraged. "You try having your diaphragm crushed."

Hagrid kicked the motorbike into life; it roared like a dragon, silencing the siblings and quelling the brewing insults that were spewing from their lips.

"Good luck, everyone," shouted Moody. "See you all in about an hour at the Burrow. On the count of three. One... Two... THREE."

And they were off.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, September 15, 2012 at 4:55am**


	155. Chapter 155

**Author's Note:** I wasn't going to include the battle of the Seven Harry's but you all wanted to see it, so I hope you are not disappointed. I'll update again sometime this week as I go back to University next week.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Short Stock, MiraclesHappen94, ZabuzasGirl, Fan of Fics, Alaina08, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, Cahsm** and** MidnightReadingAddict**.

**Shout Out: **Big thank you too: **StarryNightxox, xLyraCharlottex, Phoeb17** and **AriesTanotage** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>Higher and higher they climbed into the sky -<p>

And then, out of nowhere, out of nothing, they were surrounded. At least thirty hooded figures, suspended in midair, formed a vast circle in the midst of which the Order members had risen, oblivious -

Screams, a blaze of green light on every side: there was a yell, and Phoebe whipped around to see Hagrid's motorbike flip over. Harry was thrown from the sidecar as his Firebolt spun to earth, but he managed to seize the strap of his rucksack just as the motorbike swung the right way up again.

"Good thing Hedwig wasn't in there," Aiden commented.

"Athena!" Phoebe gasped, spinning back around, her eyes searching the darkened skies for her beloved eagle. "Aiden, where's Athena?" she asked.

Aiden shook his head. "I haven't seen her since we took off," he answered. "I'm sure she is OK. Remember, Phoebe, she is a bird of prey, you'd have to be foolish to try and attack her."

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "But that does not mean I do not worry about her. What if they have attacked her? What if they capture her?"

"Phoebe!" Aiden snapped, cursing his sister for thinking too far into things. "Do not panic! Athena and Hedwig are fine. The Death Eaters are not going to attack them... it is Harry they are after! They want Harry, now relax!"

Phoebe glared at the back of his head.

"Relax?" she screeched. Aiden winced. "How the hell can I relax? We're being chased my freaking Death Eaters, Aiden!"

"OK. It was a bad choice of words," Aiden defended. "Do you need to blow my ears out?"

"Be thankful that is all I did!"

Aiden rolled his eyes. "Yeah. OK, princess," he nodded. "Threaten me when we're back on the ground, alright? I have to stay focused."

"Says the one who started the fight!" Phoebe muttered, smirking at the growl that rumbled in her brother's chest.

**~*Phoebe*~**

She glanced over her shoulder and saw a mass of people moving, flares of green light, two pairs of people on brooms soaring off into the distance, but she could not tell who they were -

"Aiden, we've got to go back, we've got to help the others!"

"We can't do that, Phoebe," Aiden answered. "You know the rules. Stick to the plan."

"They're friends!"

"Each Harry has a protector, yes?"

"Yeah! But -"

"Then each Harry is secured!"

"But -"

"If I told you we're all going to make it," Aiden said, "would you calm down?"

"Are we -?" she asked. "Are we all going to make it?"

Aiden hesitated.

"Just about..." he said, waiting for the explosion.

"Who dies?"

Aiden shook his head. "Let's just get to the burrow!"

"No," Phoebe argued. "Tell me... tell me who's died?"

"No one,"

"Then who dies!"

Aiden sighed, mentally wishing that he hadn't said anything. "Moody," he answered, sadly. "Moody dies!"

"But -"

"He is with Mundungus, Phoebe," Aiden answered. "You know how much of a rat he is! He's going to Disapparate - and no," he added quickly, knowing full well what she was going to say, "We cannot turn back. I'm sorry, Phoebe, I know you have a special bond with Alastor, especially after being stuck in a trunk with him for three hours three years ago, but we cannot turn around. He would not forgive you."

Tears blurred Phoebe's vision.

"But he's my friend," she whispered. "I have to help..."

"You can't," Aiden said, urging the Thestral onwards. "He's gone, Pheebs. I'm sorry!"

Biting back a sob, Phoebe buried her face in Aiden's shoulder and cried at the loss of her friend.

**~*Phoebe*~**

An explosion knocked the two siblings out of the silence that had fallen. No Death Eaters had followed after them - which was a strange fact - but instead had gone for the other six Harry's, following them off in different directions. Moody was dead - at least according to Aiden, and who was Phoebe to argue with someone who had visions? - But she had no idea how the others were fairing.

"Where did that come from?" Phoebe asked.

Aiden pointed ahead.

"There... look!"

"Harry!" Phoebe squeaked, as she watched the sidecar of the motorbike come away completely and fall to the ground. Death Eaters on its tail. "We have to help! I don't care about the rules, if Harry dies, we all die!"

Aiden sighed. "Alright. Hold on... not too tight."

Phoebe rolled her eyes and clenched her hands at his clothes, she felt the Thestral dip, chasing after the Death Eaters and the sidecar. Pointing her wand over her brother's shoulder and shouted, "_Impedimenta!"_

The jinx hit the middle Death Eater in the chest: For a moment the man was absurdly spread-eagled in midair as though he had hit an invisible barrier. One of his fellows almost collided with him -

The sidecar continued to fall in earnest, and the remaining Death Eaters shot a curse so close to Harry that he had to duck below the rim of the car.

"Hold on, Harry!" Phoebe yelled as the Thestral swooped under the Death Eaters. "Aiden! Get underneath him!"

"What are you going to do?"

"Just do it!"

Aiden sighed and looped over the sidecar, he nodded at Harry and dropped his altitude a few more knocks until he was hovering just underneath him. "Now what?" he asked.

"Harry, let go!" Phoebe instructed.

"Are you crazy?" Harry yelled, as Phoebe fired off another spell at the incoming Death Eaters. "I'm not letting go!"

"Unless you want to be a pancake, I suggest you do as I say!"

Glancing down at the nearing ground, Harry sighed, closed his eyes and let go of the sidecar. It dropped, without hesitation, and crashed into the pavement with an almighty explosion, while Harry, meanwhile, landed with a thump, in front of Aiden on the back of the Thestral.

"Go! That way!" Phoebe yelled, pointing in the direction of Hagrid's motorbike. "_Confringo!"_

The curse hit one of the two remaining Death Eaters, blasting him off of his broomstick, whilst his companion fell back and vanished.

"Harry, what happened?" Aiden asked.

"They ambushed us," Harry answered, flourishing his wand at a Death Eater who had just emerged from the darkness, he flew at them from the right, but disappeared from view as he dodged Harry's attack. "The sidecar broke, Hagrid tried to fix it but it didn't work - I thought you two were gone."

Aiden nodded. "We've had smooth sailing until now," he nodded.

"Then why did you intervene?" Harry asked.

"Because it's our job to keep you safe," Aiden answered. "How you doing back there, Pheebs?"

"Not a problem, just keep flying!" Phoebe shouted back.

More and more curses overlapped them as several more Death Eaters arrived out of the smoldering clouds, Aiden swerved and zigzagged, trying his hardest not to lose either Harry or Phoebe as he evaded the incoming Death Eaters. Phoebe sent Stunning Spell after Stunning Spell back at their pursuers, barely holding them off.

She shot another blocking jinx at them. The closest Death Eater swerved to avoid it and his hood slipped, and the by the red light of her next Stunning Spell, Phoebe saw the familiar face of Oliver Wood. He grinned as their gazes connected. "_No_!" she moaned. "I'm sorry, Ollie," she whispered, pointing her wand at him. "_Mutra Vento!"_ she yelled.

There was a crash of thunder and a spark of light; the Death Eaters screamed and dispersed as a strand of lightning struck them. Burning colours of red and yellow ignited from the end of someone's broom, and Phoebe watched as he toppled sideways, falling to the dark abyss below.

"It's her! We have her! We have the Elemental!"

The hooded Death Eater's shout reached Phoebe even above the thunder.

"Where's the boy?" another shouted.

"He's with her!" The first Death Eater shouted. "They're together! We have them! The real one and the elemental!"

Next moment, the Death Eaters had fallen back and disappeared from view.

"What's happened?" Aiden asked. "Where've they gone?"

"I don't know!" Harry answered.

But Phoebe was afraid. The hooded Death Eater had shouted "It's the real one and the elemental!" how had they known? Granted she had used a Lightning attack, but she had used her wand not her elemental control over the skies.

She gazed around at the apparently empty darkness and felt its menace. Where were they?

"I think we've lost them," said Harry.

"No," Aiden shouted over the thunder. "They're still here. I can see them!"

"Then why have they fallen back?" Phoebe yelled. "One still had a wand!"

Aiden shook his head. "I don't know," he answered. "I can see them... but..."

"But what?"

"I don't know," Aiden said his voice tense. "There is someone with them... I can't see who... something is blocking my powers!"

"What can do that?" Harry asked.

Phoebe gasped. "Another seer..." she breathed. "They have Grandmama! That's why you can't see anything! They're using her Seeing Eye... that's how they knew it was me! That's how they knew we had Harry! They are using grandmama's powers for darkness, Aiden!"

"But Grandmama can't see what we are doing," Aiden argued. "If I can't see them because of her, then she cannot see us because of me! They're tied!"

"Then they must know that they have the twin cores and Harry within reach," Phoebe yelled. "We have to get out of here! Now!"

"We're nearly there," Aiden answered. "We've nearly ma -"

Phoebe screamed as the Thestral dropped a little, Aiden slumped forward into Harry; his arm's falling to his side and his head lolling onto his shoulder. His eyes were open in shock, but they were unblinking and he was unmoving.

"Aiden! Aiden!" Phoebe screamed, shaking him by the shoulders. "Aiden! Please... Merlin, Aiden, please don't be dead!"

"Phoebe!" Harry shouted over her hysteria. Behind her, flying like smoke on the wind, without broomstick or Thestral to hold him was Voldemort. His snakelike face gleaming out of the blackness, his white fingers raising his wand -

There was a bellow of fear and next second Hagrid, on top of his motorbike, swerved in front of the Death Eaters. Clinging onto the Thestrals mane, Harry fired Stunning Spell after Stunning Spell at random into the whirling night. A body flew past him and he knew he had hit one of them.

Phoebe, however, still clung to Aiden's lifeless body.

Green jets of light shot past them again. Harry had no idea which way was up, which way was down; his scar was still burning, Phoebe was still sobbing and Aiden was still unmoving. A hooded figure on a broomstick was feet from them when -

"NO!"

To their horror, Phoebe and Harry saw both Hagrid and the Death Eater falling out of sight, their combined weight too much for the broomstick -

Barely gripping the immobile body of her brother, Phoebe heard a high pitched voice scream, "_Mine!_"

It was over. Phoebe could not see or hear anything. The pain that ripped through her head was one of intense fury and pleasure. It honestly felt like her head was going to explode. As she forced her head into her brother's side, the pain forced her eyes closed and then - there was a spurt of golden fire, whipped around a powerful forceful wind, then there was a _crack_ and a scream of fury.

The remaining Death Eaters yelled; Voldemort screamed. "_No!_"

And then - there was silence.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Mon**day, September 24, 2012 at 12:00am****


	156. Chapter 156

**Author's Note:** 1st October tomorrow! Why did I tell you that? Well, the answer is rather simple. On the first of October 2012 I go back to University for my second year for Creative and Professional Writing. In other words: Updates will be slow. I hope you all can be patient. Thanks.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, Dream Lighting, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, Cahsm, Bellatrix And The Dark Lord, SoulVirus, Alaina08** and** TheBloodyPhoenix**.

**Shout Out: **Big thank you too: **Zookster** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"Harry?"<p>

He opened his eyes and saw that he was lying on a sofa in an unfamiliar, lamp lit sitting room. His rucksack lay on the floor a short distance away, while Phoebe sat beside him, the look on her face was tiresome and she looked anxious and worried.

"Harry, are you OK?"

"What happened?" Harry asked.

Phoebe sighed in relief at the sound of his voice. "Voldemort knew," she answered. "He knew we were moving you tonight."

"Well, we know our protective charms hold, then, don't we?" said a fair-haired, big-bellied man from the doorway behind Phoebe. He was looking up at the ceiling as though he could see through it to the sky above. "They shouldn't be able to get within a hundred yards of the place in any direction."

Harry looked confused.

"It's why he disappeared, Harry," Phoebe explained. "We crossed the invisible barrier. The charms have been activated, Voldemort can't get in. You're safe."

"Where's Hagrid?" Harry asked. "And Aiden?"

"Aiden's OK," Phoebe answered. "He was hit with a Stunning Spell. I just didn't recognize it until I saw him for myself."

"What do you mean?"

"The spells colour was different," Phoebe answered. "To Stun someone is similar to paralyzing them. But the stronger the spell then the worse affect it has. The Stunning spell that was used against Aiden was much stronger than ones you are used too, which is why the colour was different. It was White and not Red."

"So Aiden wasn't paralyzed?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, he was rendered unconscious," she explained. "I was more preoccupied with keeping the Death Eaters at bay, you had Voldemort in your head, and Aiden was in control of Thestral. With Aiden unconscious, the Thestral didn't know where to go, so it did the only thing it knew how..."

"It landed," Harry finished.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. Thankfully enough it landed inside the protective barriers."

"So where are we?" Harry asked. "And where's Hagrid?"

"Hagrid's fine," said the man, "the wife's seeing to him now. What happened anyway? Something go wrong with the bike? Arthur Weasley overstretch himself again, him and his Muggle contraptions?"

Phoebe smiled lightly at the man.

"Phoebe..."

"Harry, this is Ted," Phoebe introduced. "Ted Tonks."

"Tonks?"

"Yes," Phoebe smiled. "Dora's father. We're at Dora's home."

Harry swung his legs off of the sofa and tried to stand; he needed to see Hagrid with his own eyes before he would believe that he was alive. He had barely stood up, however, when a door opened and Hagrid squeezed through it, his face covered in mud and blood, limping a little but miraculously alive.

"Harry!"

Knocking over two delicate tables and an aspidistra, he covered the floor between them in two strides and pulled Harry into a hug that nearly cracked his ribs. "Blimey, Harry, how did yeh get out o' that? I thought you were a goner!"

"He was a goner?" Phoebe asked. "Hagrid, we thought you were a goner!"

"Takes more than a little fall to knock me out, Phoebe," Hagrid nodded, patting her shoulder, he legs buckling under the weight of his hand.

Phoebe smiled. "That's good to know," she nodded, turning to Ted. "When will Aiden be fit enough to travel? We have to take the Portkey before it is too late!"

"I'll go see," Ted said. "Won't be a mo',"

And he disappeared from the room. He hadn't been gone two seconds, however, when the door opened and another person walked in. Harry, who had just pulled out of Hagrid's hug, pointed at the new person and thrust his hand into his pocket.

"You!" he shouted.

"You're wand is here, Harry," said Phoebe, tapping it on Harry's arm. "And that's Dora's mother you're shouting at."

"Oh, I'm - I'm sorry."

Phoebe smiled, lightly, although she knew exactly why Harry was shouting at the woman. Andromeda's resemblance to her sister Bellatrix was uncanny, although it became more pronounced as she stepped further into the room. Her hair was a light, soft brown and her eyes were wider and kinder.

"What happened to our daughter?" Andromeda asked. "Phoebe has told us you were ambushed, but she won't tell us where Nymphadora is! Why? Has something happened?!"

"It's not that I won't tell you," Phoebe said. "It's that I can't! I don't know what has happened to Dora. We haven't seen anyone else since we took off!"

Andromeda and Ted exchanged looks. A mixture of fear and guilt gripped Harry at the sight of their expressions; if any of the others had died, it was his fault, all his fault. He had consented to the plan, given them his hair...

"The Portkey," said Phoebe, cutting through the silence that had fallen. "Once I get back to the Burrow and find out what has happened, I will send word! I promise! But we have to go now before the Portkey dies."

"Dora will be OK, 'Dromeda," said Ted as he returned. "She knows her stuff; she's been in plenty of tight spots with the Aurors. The Portkey's through here," he added to Phoebe and Harry. "It's supposed to leave in three minutes, if you want to take it."

"Yeah, we do," said Harry. He seized his rucksack, swung it onto his shoulders. "I -"

He looked at Andromeda, wanting to apologize for the state of fear in which he left her and for which he felt so terribly responsible, but no words occurred to him that did not seem hollow and insincere.

"I'll tell Tonks - Dora - to send word, when she..." he trailed off.

"Come on," Phoebe said, tugging at his hand. "Aunt 'Dromeda, thank you for patching Harry, Hagrid and Aiden up," she added to the older woman. "I promise, as soon as I have returned to the Burrow, as soon as I have information on the others, I will send Athena. You have my word."

Andromeda stared at Phoebe for a split second.

"You are nothing like her, you know," she said. "My sister, Narcissa, you have her looks, but that is all you have of hers. She chose the life of a Trophy wife."

"Just because I am her daughter, does not mean I have to walk the same path she did," Phoebe answered. "She has her life, I have mine. And I am happy with the choices I have made!"

Andromeda smiled.

"Be careful, Phoebe," she warned. "There are powerful forces out there!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe pondered over her aunt's words as she followed Ted, Harry and Hagrid down a small hallway and into a bedroom. Aiden was sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked right as rain, but Phoebe could tell, by the bond that they shared, that he was feeling the pain of being unconscious internally.

It was obvious that whatever he had been hit with had been a mixture between a Stunning Spell and something else.

"There you go," said Ted, pointing at a small silver-backed hairbrush lying on the dressing table. "That's the Portkey."

"Thanks," said Harry, reaching out to place a finger on it, ready to leave.

Aiden, winced as he stood.

"I got you," Phoebe said, wrapping her arm around his back and half-carried him over to the dressing table. "As soon as we get to the Burrow I'll heal you myself!" she promised, reaching out a hand to touch the hairbrush as it glowed bright blue.

With a jerk behind the navel as though an invisible hook and line had dragged her forward, Phoebe was pulled into nothingness, spinning uncontrollably, her finger glued to the Portkey as she, Harry, Hagrid and Aiden hurtled way from Ted. Seconds later Phoebe's feet slammed onto hard ground and she fell forward onto the front lawn of the Burrow.

She heard screams.

Throwing aside the no longer glowing hairbrush, Phoebe rolled over and saw Ashlyn, James, Amelia, Sarah and Ginny running towards them from the back door of the Burrow.

"Phoebe," Ashlyn yelled. "What happened? Where are the others?"

"What d'you mean? Isn't anyone else back?" Phoebe asked.

"Aiden!" Sarah cried, throwing her arms around her boyfriend and kissing him. "What happened?"

"The Death Eaters were waiting for us," Harry answered getting to his feet and hugging Ginny. "We were surrounded the moment we took off - they knew it was tonight - I don't know what happened to anyone else, four of them chased us, it was all we could do to get away, and then Voldemort caught up with us -"

Phoebe placed a comforting hand on his arm. She could hear the self-justifying note in his voice, the plea for them to understand why he did not know what had happened to the others.

"Where are Mrs. Weasley and Serefina?" Phoebe asked.

"They are inside," Ginny answered. "Aiden, what happened?"

"He was hit with a Stunner," Phoebe answered. "Although I seem to think it was a mixture of two spells in one. We have to get him inside. Serefina will know what to do!"

James nodded and took that has his cue; he hurried forward, grabbed Aiden's arm and wrapped it around his shoulder.

"C'mon, mate," he said, half-carrying the elemental back inside, Sarah hurrying along in his wake.

"I wonder if Molly has go' any brandy," said Hagrid a little shakily. "Fer medicinal purposes, o' course!"

He clambered laboriously to his feet and headed for the back door of the Burrow. No sooner had he squeezed through, Terence hurried outside.

"Thank goodness you're all right," he said, pulling Phoebe into a hug. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you later," Phoebe said, shaking her head. "I just don't understand how we can be the only one's back! Ron and Tonks should have been back first -"

"They missed the Portkey," Amelia said, pointing at a rusty oil can lying on the ground nearby. "And that one," she pointed at an ancient sneaker, "should have been Mr. Weasley and Fred's; they were supposed to be second."

Phoebe nodded. "Harry, Hagrid, Aiden and I were third," she checked her watch, "and, if they've made it, George and Lupin ought to be back any minute."

There was a _crack_ - a sound that caused those out on the front lawn to jump and spin around - a blue light had appeared in the darkness. It grew larger and bigger, and next second, Lupin and George appeared, spinning and then falling. Phoebe knew immediately that there was something wrong. Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and whose face was covered in blood.

Harry and Terence ran forward and seized George's arms and legs. Together they carried George into the house as Phoebe and Ashlyn caught Lupin, who looked just about ready to collapse.

"Let's get him inside," Phoebe nodded.

Supporting the werewolf between them, Phoebe and Ashlyn helped him back into the house and through the kitchen to the sitting room, where George was now laying on the sofa, and Aiden was sitting in an armchair. Serefina was fussing over her son, while Mrs. Weasley knelt beside her own.

As the lamplight fell across George's head, Ginny gasped and Phoebe's stomach lurched: One of George's ears was missing. The side of his head and neck were drenched in wet, shockingly scarlet blood.

No sooner had Phoebe and Ashlyn stepped away from their former Professor, he was back on his feet, his hand curled around Harry's shoulder and dragged him, none to gently, back into the kitchen.

"Lupin!" Phoebe shrieked following him. "Let him go!"

Lupin ignored her.

"What creature sat in the corner the first time that Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?" Lupin asked, giving Harry a small shake. "Answer me!"

"A - a Grindylow in a tank,"

Lupin released Harry and fell back against a kitchen cupboard.

"Wha' was tha' about?" roared Hagrid.

"Safety," Phoebe answered. "But you could have just asked, Lupin! I kept my end of the plan! I made sure that Harry got here safe and sound!"

Lupin nodded. "There was no doubt that you wouldn't, Phoebe," he agreed. "But we've been betrayed."

"Yes, I know," Phoebe nodded.

"What are you talking about?" Adrian asked as he arrived behind Ashlyn.

"Voldemort knew that we were moving Harry tonight," Phoebe answered him, "and the only people who could have told him directly were the people involved in the plan. Lupin had to check that Harry wasn't an imposter."

"So why aren' you checkin' me?" panted Hagrid. "O' Phoebe an' Aiden?"

"You're half giant," said Lupin, looking up at Hagrid. "The Polyjuice Potion is designed for human use only."

"And what about them?" Adrian asked, pointing at Phoebe.

"Aiden and I are Elementals," Phoebe answered. "Our connections with the elements protect us from such things as Polyjuice Potion and Love Potions. I don't know how, I just know that we are stronger than normal forms of Potions."

"None of the Order would have told Voldemort we were moving tonight," said Harry. "Voldemort only caught up with me towards the end, he didn't know which one I was in the beginning. If he'd been in on the plan he'd have known from the start I was the one with Hagrid."

"Voldemort caught up with you?" said Lupin sharply. "What happened? How did you escape?"

Harry glanced at Phoebe.

"They recognized me," Phoebe answered, before briefly explaining how the Death Eaters pursuing them had realized who she was and how they had guessed that she would be with Harry. She still didn't understand how or why they believed that she would stick close to Harry, but guessed it they had.

No one would have been able to know that it was her job to make sure Harry got to the protective charms of Tonk's home.

"They abandoned the chase," Phoebe said. "They must have summoned Voldemort, who then appeared just before we reached the sanctuary of Tonk's parents."

"They recognized you? But how? What had you done?"

Phoebe swallowed. "I used my wand to manipulate the air around us," she explained. "I saw..." she cut off as the image of Oliver Wood flashed to mind, she still didn't want to believe that he was a Death Eater, there was no possible way that he would turn on them like that, turn on her, granted they had not been on speaking terms for some time now, but there was no way he would join Voldemort, right?

Ashlyn frowned and touched her friend's shoulder. "Who did you see?" she asked, softly.

"Oliver," Phoebe whispered. "I saw Oliver Wood."

Her friends looked aghast.

But any retort or comments were lost by the sound of scuffling outside. Lupin dived for the back door; Harry and Phoebe sprinted into the yard.

Two figures had appeared in the yard and as Phoebe ran towards them she realized they were Hermione, now returning to her normal appearance, and Kingsley, both clutching a bent coat hanger. Hermione flung herself into Phoebe's arms, but Kingsley showed no pleasure at the sight of any of them.

Instead he raised his wand and pointed it at Lupin's chest.

"The last words Albus Dumbledore spoke to the pair of us?"

"_Harry is the best hope we have. Trust him."_ said Lupin calmly. Kingsley turned his wand on Harry, but Phoebe stood in front of him.

"It's him," she said. "Lupin already checked!"

"All right, all right!" said Kingsley, stowing his wand back beneath his cloak. "But somebody betrayed us! They knew they knew it was tonight!"

"So it seems," replied Lupin, "but apparently they did not realize that there would be seven Harry's."

"Small comfort!" snarled Kingsley. "Who else is back?"

"Only Harry, Phoebe, Aiden, Hagrid, George and me.

Hermione stifled a little moan behind her hand.

"What happened to you?" Lupin asked Kingsley.

"Followed by five, injured two, might've killed one," Kingsley reeled off, "and we saw You-Know-Who, he joined the chase halfway through, but vanished pretty quickly. Remus, he can -"

"Fly," supplied Harry. "I saw him too; he came after me, Phoebe and Aiden."

"So that's why he left - to follow you!" said Kingsley. "I couldn't understand why he'd vanished. But what made him change targets?"

"Phoebe behaved a little too kindly to one of his newest Death Eaters," said Lupin.

"Oh?" Kingsley asked, turning in the elemental's direction.

Phoebe sighed. "Oliver Wood," she answered.

"Oliver?" repeated Hermione. "But I thought he was playing for Puddlemere United now?"

"He was," Phoebe nodded. "But he is also a Death Eater. Remember, he was there at the Department of Mysteries two years ago, too? He's one of Voldemort's men; I can't help but feel that it is my fault!"

"How is it your fault?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Because I chose a Slytherin," she whispered.

Hermione frowned and hugged her best friend. "We can't help who we fall in love with," she said. "You fell for Oliver, yes, but your love for Terence was stronger. Terence is who you are meant to be with; you know in your heart it is true."

Phoebe smiled. "Thanks Hermione," she said, hugging her back.

"What happened to you, Remus?" asked Kingsley. "Where's George?"

"He lost an ear," said Lupin.

"Lost an -?" repeated Hermione in a high voice.

"Snape's work," said Lupin.

"_Snape_?" shouted Harry. "You didn't say -"

"He lost his hood during the chase. _Sectumsempra_ was always a specialty of Snape's. I wish I could say I'd paid him back in kind, but it was all I could do to keep George on the broom after he was injured, he was losing so much blood."

Phoebe shivered at the thought of what George had gone through, she knew how Sectumsempra worked, after all, she had been on the recieving end of it once before.

Silence fell between the five of them as they looked up at the sky. There was no sign of movement; the stars stared back, unblinking, indifferent, unobscured by flying friends. Where was Ron? Where were Fred and Mr. Weasley? Where were Tonks, Mad-Eye and Mundungus?

"Aiden had a vision," Phoebe squeaked, breaking the silence.

"Of?" Kingsley asked, quickly.

"Mad-eye," Phoebe answered. "I'd forgotten until now... but... he's dead!"

"What?" shouted Kingsley. "How could you forget something like that?!"

"I've just been chased by Death Eaters and Voldemort!" Phoebe shot back. "I was concentrating on getting Harry, Aiden and myself to safety! Aiden had been Stunned! Harry was fighting an internal battle! Sorry for not being able to remember who had died and who hadn't!"

Kingsley bristled angrily, but turned away and started pacing.

Meanwhile, drawn out of the house by all the shouting, Ashlyn, James, Terence and Adrian joined their friends; Phoebe falling into Terence's embrace as her eyes glassed over with tears. "Where's Blake?" she asked, choking back the sobs.

"With my mum," Terence answered. "He's fine. Was asleep when I left."

"I want to see him,"

Terence nodded. "Serefina says she will send word as soon as everyone has returned," he explained. "It is the only way that we can be sure everyone is safe."

Phoebe nodded and buried her face further in his chest.

There was another crack and Mr. Weasley and Fred materialized in the yard.

"Are we the last back?" Mr. Weasley asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, we're waiting on Tonks and Ron," she answered. "But, Mr. Weasley, there is something you should know..."

"And that would be?"

"George," said Phoebe, her voice shaking. "He - He was hit -"

The colour drained from Mr. Weasley's face as he rushed across the front lawn towards the back door of his home, Fred hot on his heels.

"Ron and Tonks should be back by now," said James. "They didn't have a long journey; their aunt Muriel's not that far from here."

Ashlyn nodded as Harry and Ginny rejoined them in the garden.

Kingsley was striding backwards and forwards, glancing up at the sky every time he turned. Hagrid, James and Lupin were stood shoulder to shoulder, gazing upwards in silence, Hermione and Ashlyn were staring into the impending darkness that was growing around the yard, and Phoebe was nestled in Terence's arms, while Adrian hugged Ashlyn from behind.

The minutes stretched into what might as well have been years. The slightest breath of wind made them all jump and turn towards the whispering bush or tree in the hope that one of the missing Order members might leap unscathed from its leaves -

And then a broom materialized directly above them and streaked towards the ground -

"It's them!" screamed Hermione.

Tonks landed in a long skid that sent earth and pebbles everywhere.

"Remus!" Tonks cried as she staggered off the broom into Lupin's arms. His face was set and white: he seemed unable to speak. Ron tripped dazedly towards Harry and Hermione.

"You're OK," he mumbled, before Hermione flew at him and hugged him tiredly.

"I thought - I thought -"

"'M all right," said Ron, patting her back. "'M fine."

"Ron was great," said Tonks warmly, relinquishing her hold on Lupin. "Wonderful. Stunned one of the Death Eaters, straight to the head, and when you're aiming at a moving target from a flying broom -"

"You did?" said Hermione, gazing up at Ron with her arms still around his neck.

"Always a tone of surprise," he said a little grumpily, breaking free. "Are we the last back?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. Mad-Eye's dead." she said.

"We know," Tonks nodded. "About Mad-Eye. We saw it. It happened just after we broke out of the circle: Mad-Eye and Dung were close by us, they were heading north too. Voldemort - he can fly - went straight for them. Dung panicked, I heard him cry out, Mad-Eye tried to stop him, but he Disapparated. Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye full in the face, he fell backwards off his broom and -"

"There was nothing you could have done," Lupin assured her.

"Lupin's right," Phoebe agreed. "Although I don't think we'll be seeing Mundungus anytime soon."

Kingsley nodded in agreement.

"I'll go and tell Mum and Dad you're OK, Ron," said Ginny.

She ran back inside.

"So what kept you? What happened?" Lupin sounded almost angry at Tonks.

"Bellatrix," said Tonks. "She wants me quite as much a she wants Harry, Remus; she tried very hard to kill me. I just wish I'd got her, I owe Bellatrix. But we definitely injured Rodolphus... Then we got to Ron's Auntie Muriel's and we'd missed the Portkey and she was fussing over us -"

A muscle was jumping in Lupin's jaw. He nodded, but seemed unable to say anything else.

"So what happened to you lot?" Tonks asked, turning to Harry, Phoebe, Hermione and Kingsley.

They recounted the stories of their own journeys, but all the time the death of Mad-Eye seemed to lie upon them like a frost, its icy bite harder and harder to ignore.

"I'm going to have to get back to Downing Street. I should have been there an hour ago," said Kingsley finally. Lupin nodded. With a wave to the others, Kingsley walked away into the darkness towards the gate. There was a faint _pop_ has he Disapparated just beyond the Burrow's boundaries.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came racing out of the back door. Ginny behind them. Both parents hugged Ron before turning to Lupin and Tonks.

"Thank you," said Mrs. Weasley, "for our sons."

"Don't be silly, Molly," said Tonks at once.

"How's George?" asked Lupin.

"What's wrong with him?" piped up Ron.

"He's lost -"

But the end of Mrs. Weasley's sentence was drowned out by several cracks that echoed from beyond the boundaries of the Burrow. The gate opened at the end of the yard and three figures walked towards the group out of the mist.

Lupin and Tonks held out their wands at the approaching figures.

"Who goes there?"

"It's us, Remus," said Josephine Higgs as she came into view. In her arms she was carrying a bundle of blankets that Phoebe recognized instantly as her son.

"Blake!" the elemental cried running forward and taking her baby from her mother-in-law. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you so much!"

Josephine Higgs patted her shoulder. "He's my grandson, Phoebe," she said with a loving smile. "I am not going to let anything happen to him," with that, she scooped up Bambi and hugged her own daughter as Terence crossed the lawn and hugged his wife and son. "Are you all back?" she asked, looking up at Lupin.

"What happened?" Philip asked, noticing the looks on everyone's faces.

"Mad-Eye's dead," Lupin answered.

"What? How?"

"Mundungus Disapparated," Tonks answered. "Voldemort killed him!"

Mrs. Weasley choked back a sob and buried her face in her husband's shoulder.

They all stood looking at each other. And then, at last, it seemed to dawn on everyone, though nobody said it, that there was no point waiting in the yard any more, and in silence they followed Mr. and Mrs. Weasley back into The Burrow, and into the living room, where Fred, George, Aiden, Sarah and Amelia were laughing together.

"What's wrong?" said Fred, scanning their faces, as they entered.

"Mad Eye's -" Harry started.

"Dead," George nodded, looking solemn. "Yeah, Aiden told us."

"Where's Serefina?" Phoebe asked.

"She's tending to Athena," Aiden answered. "She and Hedwig are both alive; it's just one of the Death Eaters tried capturing Hedwig and it looks like Athena has clawed at him, she's covered in blood, but other than that she looks fine."

Phoebe smiled and kissed Blake's forehead. "She's such a good girl," she nodded.

"Truly," Sarah nodded.

Bill, who seemed to have been in the house this whole time, walked over to the sideboard and pulled out a bottle of Firewhisky and some glasses.

"Here," he said, and with a wave of his hand he sent several full glasses soaring through the room to each of them, holding his own aloft. "Mad-Eye."

"Mad-Eye," they all said, and drank.

"Mad-Eye," echoed Hagrid, a little late, with a hiccough.

"So Mundungus disappeared?" said Lupin, who had drained his own glass in one.

The atmosphere changed at once: everybody looked tense, watching Lupin, both wanting him to go on, and slightly afraid of what they might hear.

"I know what you're thinking," said Aiden, "and I've been thinking about that too, because they seemed to be expecting us, didn't they? But Mundungus can't have betrayed us. They didn't know there would be seven Harry's, that confused them the moment we appeared, and in case you've forgotten, it was Mundungus who suggested a little bit of skullduggery. Why wouldn't he have told them that essential point? I think Dunk panicked, it's as simple as that. He didn't want to come in the first place, but Mad-Eye made him, and Voldemort went straight for them: it'd be enough to make anyone panic."

"You-Know-Who acted exactly as Mad-Eye expected him too," sniffed Tonks. "Mad-Eye said he'd expect the real Harry to be with the toughest, most skilled Aurors. He chased Mad-Eye first, and when Mundungus gave them away he switched to Kingsley..."

"Yes, and zat eez all very good," snapped Fleur, "but still eet does not explain 'ow zey knew we were moving 'Arry tonight, does eet? Somebody must 'ave been careless. Somebody let slip ze date to an outsider. Eet eez ze only explanation for zem knowing ze date but not ze 'ole plan."

She glared around at them all, silently daring them all to contradict her.

Nobody did. The only sound to break the silence was that of Hagrid hiccoughing from behind his handkerchief. Phoebe glanced to Hagrid, who had risked his own life to save her's, Harry's and Aiden's - Hagrid, whom she loved, whom she trusted, who had once been tricked into giving Voldemort crucial information in exchange for a dragon's egg...

"No," Harry said aloud, and they all looked at him, surprised: the Firewhisky seemed to have amplified his voice. "I mean... if somebody made a mistake and let something slip, I know they didn't mean to do it. It's not their fault. We've got to trust each other. I trust all of you; I don't think anyone in this room would ever sell me to Voldemort."

More silence followed his words. They were all looking at him.

"Well said, Harry," said Fred unexpectedly.

"Yeah, 'ear, 'ear," said George, with half a glance at Fred, the corner of whose mouth twitched.

Lupin was wearing an odd expression as he looked at Harry; it was close to pitying.

"You think I'm a fool?" demanded Harry.

"No, I think you're like James," said Lupin, as he set down his glass, "who would have regarded it as the height of dishonor to mistrust his friends! There's work to do," he added to Bill. "I can ask Kingsley whether -"

"Where are you going?" said Tonks and Fleur together.

"Mad-Eye's body," said Lupin. "We need to recover it."

"Can't it -?" began Mrs. Weasley, with an appealing look at Bill.

"Wait?" said Bill. "Not unless you'd rather the Death Eaters took it?"

Nobody spoke. Lupin and Bill said goodbye and left.

The rest of them now dropped into chairs, all except Harry, who remained standing. The sadness and completeness of death was with them like a presence.

"I've got to go too," said Harry.

Everyone looked at him, startled.

"Don't be silly, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley. "What are you talking about?"

"I can't stay here."

He rubbed his forehead.

"You're all in danger while I'm here. I don't want -"

"But don't be so silly!" said Mrs. Weasley. "The whole point of tonight was to get you here safely, and thank goodness it worked. And Fleur's agreed to get married here rather than in France; we've arranged everything so that we can all stay together and look after you -"

She did not understand; she was making him feel worse, not better.

"If Voldemort finds out I'm here -"

"But why should he?" asked Mrs. Weasley.

"There are a dozen places you might be now, Harry," said Mr. Weasley. "He's got no way of knowing which safe house you're in."

"It's not me i'm worried about!" said Harry,

"We know that," said Mr. Weasley quietly, "but it would make our efforts tonight seem rather pointless if you left."

"Yer not goin' anywhere," growled Hagrid. "Blimey, Harry, after all we wen' through ter get you here?"

"Yeah, what about my bleeding ear?" said George, hoisting himself up on his cushions.

"I know that -"

"I took a Stunner mixed with a Knockout Jinx," said Aiden.

Phoebe turned to him quickly. "Knockout Jinx?" she asked. "So that's why you were unconscious!"

Aiden nodded.

"Plus, Mad-Eye wouldn't want -" started Sarah.

"I KNOW!" Harry bellowed, instantly regretting the decision to do so as Blake snapped awake and started crying, obviously startled by the sudden disruption of his sleep. Phoebe cradled him in her arms, rocking him and soothing him back to sleep.

Terence, meanwhile, was glaring at Harry.

The door leading to the upper levels of the Burrow opened, and Serefina re-entered the room. "Athena and Hedwig are with Pidwidgeon," she said, spotting Harry and Phoebe. "They have been fed, and Athena has been cleaned of all blood. I'm sure Aiden explained..."

"Yes," Phoebe nodded as she looked up at her godmother. "I'm just glad they are alive."

"I know," Serefina agreed. "Now, what is with all the shouting?"

"Harry wants to leave," Fred answered.

"What?" Serefina asked sharply. "You cannot leave, Harry, it has taken us a great loss to get you here tonight, if you leave then everything we've done in the last few hours will mean nothing! Mad-Eye would have died in vain; George would have lost his ear for nothing. For once, Harry now is not the time to think of yourself! Try putting others ahead of your feelings for once."

Harry's hand clenched around his glass and he drank the last of his Firewhisky to avoid answering back.

"Wait 'til it gets out yeh did it again, Harry," said Hagrid. "Escaped him, fought him off when he was right on top of yeh!"

"It wasn't me," said Harry flatly. "It was my wand. My wand acted of its own accord."

After a few moments, Hermione said gently, "But that's impossible, Harry. You mean that you did magic without meaning to, you reacted instinctively."

"No," said Harry. "Aiden had been Stunned; Phoebe was battling against the Death Eaters. I couldn't have told you where Voldemort was, but my wand spun in my hand and found him and shot a spell at him, and it wasn't even a spell I recognized. I've never made gold flames appear before."

"Often," said Mr. Weasley, "when you're in a pressured situation you can produce magic you never dreamed of. Small children often find, before they are trained -"

"It wasn't like that," said Harry through gritted teeth. "I need some air," he muttered, turning toe and stalking out of the house. He knew that no one believed him, why should they? They never did understand things that hadn't happened to them. But he wasn't lying, what he said happened was the truth! He just couldn't prove it.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 01 October, 2012 at 02:04am**


	157. Chapter 157

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the late update, but this chapter was a right pain in the ass to write, plus, I have started a new Power Ranger story, not to mention the three Ranger series' I have that are unfinished, needless to say my priorities have been shot. Also, the flu doesn't come without its disadvantages.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, Alaina08, MiraclesHappen94, TheBloodyPhoenix, Just one randomgirl** and **Bellatrix And The Dark Lord.**

**Shout Out: **Big thank you too: **Tangzilla** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>The shock of losing Mad-Eye hung over the house in the days that followed; Phoebe kept expecting to see him stumping in through the back door like the rest of the Order members, but he never did, she, above everyone else, seemed to be taking his death the worst; she had, after all, bonded with him during their short time locked in his trunk back in her fourth year.<p>

"Well, you can't do anything about the Horcruxes until your seventeen," she told Harry, one afternoon. They were in the laundry room, tidying up the clothes that Mrs. Weasley had asked Phoebe to help her with. "You've still got the Trace on you. And we can plan here as well as anywhere, can't we?"

"The Trace will break on the thirty-first," said Harry. "That means I only need to stay here four days. Then I can -"

"Five days," Phoebe corrected him firmly. "We've got to stay for the wedding. They'll kill us if we miss it. It's only an extra day, Harry," she added, when Harry looked mutinous.

"Don't they realize how important -?"

"Of course they don't," said Phoebe, picking up a T-shirt and folding it in two. "They haven't got a clue. Serefina knows, obviously, but Mr. and Mrs. Weasley don't have a clue... which reminds me, I've been meaning to warn you since we arrived..." she glanced over her shoulder toward the door, checking to make sure that Mrs. Weasley was not returning yet. "Mrs. Weasley's been trying to get it out of Hermione, Ron and me -"

"What -?"

"She wants to know what we're doing," Phoebe interrupted him, shaking her head and holding up her hand to silence him. "She's failed several times with Ron and Hermione, and she can't interrogate me too much, I have always had an excuse... perks of being a Mummy," she smiled, "but we think that she'll try you next, so brace yourself. Mr. Weasley and Lupin have asked as well, but when we said Dumbledore told you not to tell anyone except us, they dropped it. But Mrs. Weasley is determined."

Harry nodded and reached for the next piece of clothing, he folded it and placed it on the pile beside him, as the door behind him and Phoebe opened and Mrs. Weasley wobbled inside. "Oh, you've almost finished," she said, delightfully.

"Yes," Phoebe smiled. "Only this small pile left, we should be finished in ten minutes,"

"That's alright, Phoebe," Mrs. Weasley smiled. "Harry and I can finish the rest,"

"Oh, I don't mind, Mrs. Weasley,"

"No, I insist," Mrs. Weasley said, tugging the white shirt from the elemental. "I also think Blake just woke up..."

Phoebe's eyes brightened considerably, they always did when her son was mentioned. "What time is it?" she asked, glancing at Harry.

"Uh, 5 o'clock," he answered, checking his wrist watch.

"It's playtime," Phoebe smiled. "Excuse me, Harry, Mrs. Weasley," she said with a nod and hurried from the room.

Mrs. Weasley smiled and closed the door behind the elemental, she then turned to Harry, and by the expression on her face, Harry could tell that Phoebe's prediction was about to become true.

**~*Phoebe*~**

James was pulled from his thoughts when he heard a noise from next door. He put down his quill and ink bottle, paying closer attention to the noise, once he had worked out _exactly_ where the sound was coming from he smiled brightly. Blake was awake.

Racing out of his room, the Gryffindor turned the handle and darted into his nephew's room, with a flick of his wand he switched off the baby monitor so that Phoebe wouldn't come in and take the baby. He then leaned over the crib and scooped up the little boy.

"Hello tiger," he cooed, tickling Blake's stomach. The baby smiled and giggled, happy to see his uncle James.

James bounced the baby in his arms. "Is it playtime already?" he asked, holding up a stuffed lion from the crib. He waved it in Blake's face, causing the baby to giggle, stretch out his small fingers and tug at the furry mane of the toys. "I'll take that as a yes," he nodded, handing the toy over and collecting Blake's blanket, a few more toys, and the nappy bag. He then carried Blake back into his room.

Blake seemed to know what was happening and cooed happily, waving his arms in the air.

James chuckled and kissed the side of his head.

"Yes, you know what time it is, don't you?" he smiled. "Of course you do, it's always playtime when Uncle James."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Don't ever do that to me again, James!" Phoebe yelled as she stormed through the Burrow and into the living room. She was carrying Blake on her hip, his nappy bag over her shoulder, and James running after her from behind.

"I'm sorry, Phoebe," he apologized. "I thought you'd be busy! I didn't want to interrupt you!"

"You could have asked me!" Phoebe snapped as she stopped in her tracks and spun around to face him. "If you had wanted to spend time with Blake all you had to do was ask! I wouldn't have said no! But that was the lowest thing you could have done!"

Ashlyn, who had just come in front the kitchen, frowned. "What's happened?" she asked, holding her arms out to Blake. The baby kicked his legs and reached back for her, Phoebe handed him over without question.

"He took him from his crib," Phoebe answered, pointing at James. "He didn't ask he just took him!"

"He was awake," James cried.

"I was terrified," Phoebe yelled. "I went to check up on him and found nothing but an empty crib! Do you have _any_ idea what was going through my mind?"

"Well, no," said James, "it is, after all, your mind, and I can't read minds!"

Phoebe growled and James shrunk back, his eyes wide with fear. "Um... sorry?" he asked, sheepishly.

"Not as sorry as you should be," Phoebe hissed.

"Phoebe, don't you think you are overreacting?" Ashlyn asked. "James only took him from the crib, it's not like he took him out of the house. Blake was perfectly safe..."

"Yeah," James nodded pointing at his cousin. "He was perfectly safe! I wouldn't hurt the little rugrat! He's my nephew for Merlin's sake!"

"That's not the point, James," Phoebe yelled. "He's a baby -"

"I know how to handle a baby!" James shouted. "I helped Mum look after Henry and Melissa all the time growing up! Granted I dropped Melissa on her head four times before she was two..." he trailed off as Phoebe's eyes widened and then narrowed at him, and Ashlyn was shaking her head at his stupidity. "Um... I'm just gonna -" he pointed towards the kitchen and disappeared with a burst of speed.

Phoebe sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"He is not to be left alone with Blake," she said, turning to Ashlyn who was blowing on Blake's stomach much to his enjoyment.

"Alright," Ashlyn nodded, wrapping her arm around her best friend and leading her towards the sofa. "But you overreacted a little bit..."

"But -"

"James would never intentionally hurt Blake," Ashlyn said, pushing her friend down beside her. The fire blazed to life in front of them. "He hadn't left the house with him. He was perfectly safe."

Phoebe sighed. "I guess you're right," she nodded.

"Of course i'm right," Ashlyn grinned, flopping backwards and holding Blake in the air. She tossed him up a few times, but always made sure to catch him when he came back down. Blake giggled, happily, and squealed every time his auntie threw him in the air. "Looks like we've got a little daredevil on our hands," she laughed.

Phoebe smiled and flopped backwards beside her best friend.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Neither Phoebe nor Ashlyn knew how long they had been asleep. They hadn't even realized they had _fallen_ asleep in the first place, Blake, who had crawled out of his godmother's arms, gurgled as he lay between them, his hands and feet in the air. He had managed to grab one of his feet and rammed it into his mouth sucking on his toes.

He went unnoticed by his two sleeping family members, at least, that was until the door opened and Serefina, Terence, and Philip walked in.

"Hey," Terence whispered, leaning over the back of the sofa and shaking Phoebe and Ashlyn awake. He then scooped up his son and chuckled as the baby refused to drop his foot from his mouth. "Yucky," he said, tugging the foot away. "Daddy feed you?" he asked. Blake gurgled, his eyes shining excitedly at the prospect of food.

"I fell asleep again, didn't I?" Phoebe asked, as she blinked and sat up. She stretched, yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"Yeah," Serefina smiled. "Don't worry; it's natural to feel tired during this procedure."

Over a week ago, Serefina had taken Aiden and Phoebe into the Orchards behind the Burrow, and cast a protective-binding spell over them. Not only did it open their elemental cores more, allowing even more power to seep into their systems, but it allowed them to control their opposing elementals without the others help.

So Phoebe could control Earth and Fire without Aiden's help, and vice versa. The only problem was the spell was extremely draining for the participants.

"It'll fade in a few days," Serefina smiled, as Phoebe and Ashlyn staggered to their feet. "C'mon, dinner is almost ready."

They were often joined by other Order members for dinner now, because the Burrow had replaced number twelve, Grimmauld Place has the headquarters. Serefina had explained that after the death of Dumbledore, their Secret-Keeper, each of the people to whom Dumbledore had confided Grimmauld Place's location had become a Secret-Keeper in turn.

"And as there are around twenty of us, that greatly dilutes the power of the Fidelius Charm. Twenty times as many opportunities for the Death Eaters to get the secret out of somebody. We can't expect it to hold much longer."

"But surely Snape will have told the Death Eaters the address by now?" asked James.

"Well, Mad-Eye set up a couple of curses against Snape in case he turns up there again. We hope they'll be strong enough both to keep him out and to bind his tongue if he tries to talk about the place, but we can't be sure. It would have been insane to keep using the place as headquarters now that its protection has become so shaky."

The kitchen was so crowded that evening it was difficult to maneuver knives and forks.

"Any news about Mad-Eye?" Phoebe asked.

"Nothing," replied Bill.

They had not been able to hold a funeral for Moody, because Bill and Lupin had failed to recover his body. It had been difficult to know where he might have fallen, given the darkness and the confusion of the battle.

"The _Daily Prophet_ hasn't said a word about him dying or about finding the body," Bill went on. "But that doesn't mean much. It's keeping a lot quiet these days."

"And they still haven't called a hearing about all the underage magic I used escaping the Death Eaters?" Harry called across the table. He was sitting, crammed between Ginny and Ashlyn, both of whom were having trouble eating their food due to the enclosed table arrangements.

Mr. Weasley shook his head.

"Because they know I had no choice or because they don't want me to tell the world Voldemort attacked me?"

"The latter, I think, Scrimgeour doesn't want to admit that You-Know-Who is as powerful as he is, nor that Azkaban's seen a mass breakout," said Mr. Weasley.

Phoebe scoffed and looked up from Blake. "He's as bad as Fudge," she said, angrily. "Fudge was a fool too! He didn't believe us when we said that Voldemort was back, he didn't believe us when we said that Voldemort broke into Azkaban last time and look where that landed him, out of position and power! He worked his whole life to climb the Ministry ladder, only to be undermined by a couple of teenagers, and the way Scrimgeour is going, he'll be undermined too!"

"Or dead," Aiden said, quietly, but only Phoebe heard him. She shot him a look, one that Aiden was quick enough to ignore.

"Isn't anyone at the Ministry prepare to stand up to Scrimgeour?" asked Ron angrily.

"Of course, Ron, but people are terrified," Mr. Weasley replied, "terrified that they will be next to disappear, their children the next to be attacked! There are nasty rumors going around; I for one don't believe the Muggle Studies professor at Hogwarts resigned. She hasn't been seen for weeks now..."

"She's dead," Aiden answered, mournfully. "I know she is..."

"How?" Philip asked. After finding out that his new extended family was elementals, he had been quick to learn more about them, and never missed out on an opportunity to watch Phoebe or Aiden train with their powers.

Aiden glanced at Phoebe, she nodded, and he turned back to Philip.

"I had a vision," he answered. "She's dead. I watched her die."

"Oh," Philip nodded, silently going back to his food.

"For the time being," continued Mr Weasley, "Scrimgeour remains shut up in his office all day: I just hope he's working on a plan."

There was a pause in which Mrs. Weasley magicked the empty plates onto the work surface and served apple tart.

"We must decide 'ow you will be disguised, 'Arry," said Fleur, once everyone had pudding. "For ze wedding," she added, when he looked confused. "Of course, none of our guests are Death Eaters, but we cannot guarantee zat zey will not let something slip after zey 'ave 'ad champagne."

"Yes, good point," said Mrs. Weasley from the top of the table, where she sat, spectacles perched on the end of her nose, scanning an immense list of jobs that she had scribbled on a very long piece of parchment. "Now, Ron, have you cleaned out your room yet?"

"_Why_?" exclaimed Ron, slamming his spoon down and glaring at his mother. "Why does my room have to be cleaned out? Harry, James and I are fine with it the way it is!"

"We are holding your brother's wedding here in a few days' time, young man -"

"And are they getting married in my bedroom?" asked Ron furiously. "No! So why in the name of Merlin's saggy left -"

"Don't talk to your mother like that," said Mr Weasley firmly. "And do as you're told."

Ron scowled at both his parents, then picked up his spoon and attacked the last few mouthfuls of his apple tart.

"I can help, some of it's my mess," Harry told Ron, but Mrs. Weasley cut across him.

"No, Harry, dear, I'd much rather you helped Arthur muck out the chickens, and Hermione, I'd be ever so grateful if you'd change the sheets for Monsieur and Madame Delacour; you know they're arriving at eleven tomorrow morning."

Hermione frowned, "But I -" she started, only for Phoebe to cut across her.

"She'll do it," the elemental smiled, shaking her head at Hermione, a notion that went unnoticed by Mrs Weasley. The bookworm sighed and went back to her apple tart, as Phoebe returned to feeding Blake, she knew that Terence had already given him a bottle, but now, at five months, she knew that it was time to ween him off milk and onto solid foods.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe shook her head as she sorted through the pile of books in front of Hermione.

_"Numerology and Grammatic_," she read the title of the first book, before tossing it onto the pile beside her. "Nope. _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_, that could come in handy," she nodded, passing the book to Hermione as the door opened behind her. She glanced around and smiled as Harry stepped through. "You're just in time!"

"Oh?"

"We were just about to talk about Mad-Eye," said Ron, "Blackheart wanted to wait for you..."

Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, Ron?" she asked. "Six years and _still_ you haven't learned my name? I'm insulted!"

"Whatever," said Ron. "Just because you feel comfortable using my name doesn't mean I want to use yours."

"But I thought we were friends?"

"When hell freezes over,"

"Ouch," Phoebe said, clutching her chest as if she had been wounded. "I love you too, Weasley!"

Ron sneered and turned back to Harry. He was lying on his bed, his room was just as messy had it had been all week, he had not even bothered to start cleaning it up, although he had jumped up and started plumping his pillows when the door had opened and he had thought it was his mother. "Anyway, I reckon he might have survived," he said to Harry.

"But Tonks said you saw him get hit by the Killing Curse," said Harry.

"Yeah, but we were under attack too," said Ron. "We can't really be sure what we saw, can we?"

"Aiden had a vision," Phoebe answered. "He's dead..."

"And his visions are always reliable?"

"They haven't failed yet!" Phoebe snapped angrily.

Ron glared at her. "He screwed up two years ago," he hissed. "The Department of Mysteries, or have you forgotten? He said you were there being tortured... and we lost Sirius because he was wrong!"

"Harry had the same vision!" Phoebe shouted, jumping to her feet and pointing at Ron. "Don't sit there and blame my brother when he was just confirming what Harry saw, Weasley!"

_"_Even if the Killing Curse _did_ miss him," intervened Hermione, seeing as she didn't want to lure Mrs. Weasley to their shouting, "he still fell about a thousand feet."

"He could have used a Shield Charm -"

"Tonks said his wand had been blasted from his hand," said Harry.

"Well, all right, if you want him to be dead," said Ron grumpily, punching his pillow into a more comfortable shape.

"Of course we don't want him to dead!" said Hermione, looking shocked. "It's dreadful that he's dead! But we're being realistic!"

"The Death Eaters probably tidied up after themselves, that's why no one's found him," said Ron wisely.

"Yeah," said Harry. "Like Barty Crouch turned into a bone and buried in Hagrid's front garden. They probably transfigured Moody and stuffed him -"

"Don't!" squealed Phoebe. Startled, Harry looked over just in time to see her fall to her knees and burst into tears.

"Oh no," said Harry, struggling to get up from his old camp bed. "Phoebe, I wasn't trying to upset -"

Hermione shook her head at Harry, pushed herself to her knees and shuffled closer to her best friend. She wrapped an arm around the elemental and held her hand out to Ron, indicating that she needed something to dry Phoebe's tears.

Ron fished in his jeans pocket and withdrew a revolting-looking handkerchief that he had used to clean the over earlier. Hastily pulling out his wand, he pointed it at the rag and said, "_Tergeo_."

The wand siphoned off most of the grease. Looking rather pleased with himself, Ron handed the slightly smoking handkerchief to Hermione, who used it to dry Phoebe's tears.

"I'm sorry," Phoebe sobbed, blowing her nose and hiccupping. "It's just so awf-ful isn't it? R-right after Dumbledore... I j-just n-never imagined, Mad-Eye dying, somehow, he seemed so tough! He helped me calm down when we were trapped in his trunk three years ago; I was panicking so bad..."

"Shh, it's OK," said Hermione, giving the elemental a squeeze. "But you know what he'd say to us if he was here?"

"Constant vigilance," said Ron and Harry.

"That's right," said Hermione, nodding. "He'd tell us to learn from what happened to him. And what I've learned is not to trust that cowardly little squirt, Mundungus,"

Phoebe gave a shaky laugh, mostly because she had never heard Hermione curse before, but also because she was thankful that she had friends around her to cheer her up, even Ron had done his best to cheer her up, after all, he had given her a handkerchief.

"Better?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, dabbing the corner of her eyes. "Thank you..."

"What are friends for?"

"Indeed," Phoebe smiled, reaching forward for another book, but wrenched her hand back quickly as _The Monster Book of Monsters_ broke free from its restraining belt and snapped viciously at her hand. The elemental narrowed her eyes, snapped her fingers, and watched as the book burst into flames. "Sorry, Hermione, but that book nearly took my hand off!"

Hermione shook her head. "It's OK. I wasn't planning on taking it, anyway, I mean, why bother? We already have you!"

Phoebe frowned.

"You're a walking Encyclopaedia of Magical Creatures," Hermione said, earning another low giggle from her best friend.

"What are you doing with all those books anyway?" Ron asked, leaning over the side of his bed.

"Just trying to decide which ones to take with us," said Hermione. "When we're looking for the Horcruxes."

"Oh, of course," said Ron, clapping a hand to his forehead. "I forgot we'll be hunting down Voldemort in a mobile library."

"Ha ha," said Phoebe, looking down at _Spellman's Syllabary_. "Take it," she said to Hermione, passing her the book. "We may need to translate Runes, and I know your good at Ancient Runes, but I suck!"

Hermione nodded and dropped the syllabary onto the larger of the two piles, and then picked up _Hogwarts, A History._

"Listen," said Harry.

He had sat up straight. Ron, Phoebe and Hermione were looking at him with similar mixture of resignation and defiance.

"I know you said after Dumbledore's funeral that you wanted to come with me," Harry began.

"Here he goes," Ron said to the two girls, rolling his eyes.

"As we knew he would," Hermione sighed, turning back to the books. "You know, I think I _will_ take _Hogwarts, A History_. Even if we're not going back there, I don't think I'd feel right if I didn't have it with -"

"Listen!" said Harry again.

"No, Harry, _you_ listen," said Phoebe. "We're coming with you. That was decided months ago - years, really."

"But -"

"Shut up," Ron advised him.

"- are you sure you've thought this through?" Harry persisted.

"Let's see," said Phoebe, slamming _Travels with Trolls_ onto the discarded pile with a rather fierce look. "Hermione and I have been packing for days, so we're ready to leave at a moment's notice, which for your information has included doing some pretty difficult magic, not to mention smuggling Mad-Eye's whole stock of Polyjuice Potion right under Mrs. Weasley's nose..."

"I have also modified my parents' memories," added Hermione, "so that they're convinced they're really called Wendell and Monica Wilkins, and that their life's ambition is to move to Australia, which they have now done. That's to make it more difficult for Voldemort to track them down and interrogate them about me - or you and Phoebe, because unfortunately, I've told them quite a bit about you both."

Phoebe nodded as she went back to sorting through the books surrounding her.

"Assuming I survive our hunt for the Horcruxes, I'll find Mum and Dad and lift the enchantment. If I don't - well, I think I've cast a good enough charm to keep them safe and happy. Wendell and Monica Wilkins don't know they've got a daughter, you see."

Hermione's eyes were swimming with tears. Phoebe frowned at Harry as though reproaching him for lack of tact as she wrapped her arm around Hermione.

"I - Hermione, I'm sorry - I didn't -"

"Didn't realize that Ron, Phoebe and I know perfectly well what might happen if we come with you? Well, we do. Ron, show Harry what you've done."

"Nah, he's just eaten," said Ron.

"Go on, he needs to know!"

"Oh, all right, Harry, come here."

With a creak of bedsprings, Ron rose from his bed and stumped over to the door.

"C'mon,"

"Why?" Harry asked, following Ron out of the room onto the tiny landing.

When they had gone, Hermione turned to Phoebe. "Are you sure you're doing the right thing?" she asked. "I mean, what about Blake?"

"He has Terence," said Phoebe. "He'll be perfectly safe."

"But he needs his mum,"

"He'll have his mum," Phoebe nodded. "Once Voldemort is destroyed. Right now, i'm a hazard to be around him! He's only a baby; he could get hurt if I stay with him..."

"But -"

"No, Hermione," said Phoebe. "I won't put my son in danger! Terence will take care of Blake until I come home; he has already promised me that he won't let Blake forget me! He will tell him, every day if he has too, that his mummy is out there saving the world and trying to protect him from the monsters that reside in the darkness!"

Hermione sighed and looked around as the door opened and the boys returned.

"Once we've left, the ghoul's going to come and live down here in my room," said Ron. "I think he's really looking forward to it - well, it's hard to tell, because all he can do is moan and drool - but he nods a lot when you mention it. Anyway, he's going to be me with Spattergroit. Good, eh?"

Harry merely looked his confusion.

"It is!" said Ron, clearly frustrated that Harry had not grasped the brilliance of the plan. "Look, when we four don't turn up at Hogwarts again, everyone's going to think Hermione, Phoebe and I are with you, right? Which means the Death Eaters will go straight for our families to see if they've got information where you are."

"But hopefully it'll look like I've gone away with Mum and Dad; a lot of Muggleborns are talking about going into hiding at the moment," said Hermione.

"Josephine and Serefina have already agreed to take Blake and Terence as far away as possible," added Phoebe. "Hermione's parents are in Australia, James and Ashlyn are taking Sarah, Amelia, Aiden and Adrian to Italy to stay with Samantha, Henry and Melissa."

"What about Blake?"

"He'll be in France," said Phoebe. "Bambi is already looking forward to going!"

"And we can't hide my whole family, it'll look too fishy and they can't all leave their jobs," said Ron. "So we're going to put out the story that I'm seriously ill with Spattergroit, which is why I can't go back to Hogwarts. If anyone comes calling to investigate, Mum or Dad can show them the ghoul in my bed, covered in pustules. Spattergroit's really contagious, so they're not going to want to go near him. It won't matter that he can't say anything, either, because apparently you can't once the fungus has spread to your uvula."

"And your mum and dad are in on this plan?" asked Harry.

"Dad is. He helped Fred and George transform the ghoul. Mum... well, you've seen what she's like. She won't accept we're going till we've gone -"

There was silence in the room, broken only by gentle thuds as Phoebe and Hermione continued to throw books onto one pile or the other, Ron sat watching them, and Harry looked from one to the other, unable to say anything. The measures they had taken to protect their families made him realize, more than anything else could have done, that they really were going to come with him and that they knew exactly how dangerous that would be.

Through the silence came the muffled screams of Blake, who had been napping, and obviously been rudely awoken by the shouts of Mrs. Weasley four floors below.

"Better go," Phoebe said, handing Hermione the book in her hand and rushing from the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 17 October, 2012 at 04:09am**


	158. Chapter 158

**Author's Note:** Hi... I have not forgotten you. Updates on all my stories are slow at this point.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, Fan of Fics, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** Alaina08.**

**Shout Out: **Big thank you too: **chino8008** and **benperez31** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>The Burrow had never been so tidy. The rusty cauldrons and old Wellington boots that usually littered the steps by the back door were gone, replaced by two new Flutterby bushes standing either side of the door in large pots; though there was no breeze, the leaves waved lazily, giving an attractive rippling effect.<p>

The chickens had been shut away; the yard had been swept, and generally spruced up, although it looked rather forlom without its usual contingent of capering gnomes. The number of security enchantments that had been placed upon the Burrow by both the Order and the Ministry made it impossible for anyone to travel by magic directly into the place.

So on the morning of the Delacour's arrival, Mr. Weasley had to go and meet them on top of a nearby hill, where they were to arrive by Portkey. The first sound of their approach was an unusually high-pitched laugh, which turned out to be coming from Mr. Weasley, who appeared at the gate moments later, laden with luggage and leading a beautiful blonde woman in a long, leaf-green robes.

This woman could only have been Fleur's mother.

"Maman!" cried Fleur, rushing forward to embrace her. "Papa!"

Monsieur Delacour was nowhere near as attractive as his wife; he was a head shorter and extremely pulp, with a little, pointed black beard. However, he looked good-natured. Bouncing toward Mrs. Weasley on high-heeled boots, he kissed her twice on each cheek, leaving her flustered.

"You 'ave been too much trouble," he said in a deep voice. "Fleur tells us you 'ave been working very 'ard."

"Oh, it's been nothing, nothing!" trilled Mrs. Weasley. "No trouble at all."

Ron relieved his feelings by aiming a kick at a gnome who was peering out from behind one of the new Flutterby bushes.

"Dear lady!" said Monsieur Delacour, still holding Mrs. Weasley's hand between his own two plump ones and beaming. "We are most honored at the approaching union of our two families! Let me present my wife, Apolline."

Madame Delacour glided forward and stooped to kiss Mrs. Weasley too.

"_Enchantee_," she said. "Your 'usband 'as been telling us such amusing stories"

Mr. Weasley gave a maniacal laugh; Mrs. Weasley threw him a look, upon which he became immediately silent and assumed an expression appropriate to the sickbed of a close friend.

"And, of course, you 'ave met my leetle daughter, Gabrielle!" said Monsieur Delacour. Gabrielle was Fleur in miniature; eleven years old, with waist-length hair of pure, silvery blonde, she gave Mrs. Weasley a dazzling smile and hugged her, then threw Harry a glowing look, batting her eyelashes.

Ginny cleared her throat loudly.

Blake gurgled happily in his mother's arms.

Madame Delacour glanced in Phoebe's direction and cooed. "'Ow cute,"

"Thank you," Phoebe smiled, cuddling her son close to her chest.

"Well, come in, do!" said Mrs. Weasley brightly, and she ushered the Delacour's into the house, with many "No, please!"s and "After you!" and "Not at all!"s

**~*Phoebe*~**

The Delacour's, it soon transpired, were helpful, pleasant guests. They were pleased with everything and keen to assist with the preparations for the wedding. Monsieur Delacour pronounced everything from the seating plan to the bridesmaids' shoes.

"_Charmant_!" Madame Delacour was most accomplished at household spells and had the over properly cleaned in a trice; Gabrielle followed her elder sister around, trying to assist in any way she could and jabbering away in rapid French.

On the downside, the Burrow was not built to accommodate so many people. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were now sleeping in the sitting room, having shouted down Monsieur and Madame Delacour's protests and insisted they take their bedroom. Gabrielle was sleeping with Fleur in Percy's old bedroom; Bill was sharing with Charlie, his best man, once Charlie arrived from Romania.

Opportunities to make plans together became virtually nonexistent and it was in desperation that Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe took to volunteering to feed the chickens just to escape the overcrowded house.

Terence, who was now working full-time for the order, was never around that much anymore to take care of Blake, which left the baby in the company of his godparents, James and Ashlyn, or with Phoebe, out in the garden; he wasn't walking yet, but he still sat and played happily with his favourite toys.

"But she _still_ won't leave us alone!" snarled Ron, as their second attempt at a meeting in the yard was foiled by the appearance of Mrs. Weasley carrying a large basket of laundry in her arms.

"Oh, good, you've fed the chickens," she called as she approached them. "We'd better shut them away again before the men arrive tomorrow... to put up the tent for the wedding," she explained, pausing to lean against the henhouse. She looked exhausted. "Millamant's Magic Marquees... they're very good, Bill's escorting them. You'd better stay inside while they're here, Harry, I must say it does complicate organizing a wedding, having all these security spells around the place."

"I'm sorry," said Harry humbly.

"Oh, don't be silly, dear!" said Mrs. Weasley a once. "I didn't mean - well, your safety's much more important! Actually, I've wanted to ask you how you want to celebrate your birthday, Harry. Seventeen after all, it's an important day..."

"I don't want a fuss," said Harry quickly. "Really, Mrs. Weasley, just a normal dinner would be fine. It's the day before the wedding..."

"Oh, well, if you're sure, dear. I'll invite Remus and Tonks, shall I? And how about Hagrid?"

"That'd be great," said Harry. "But please don't go to loads of trouble."

"Not at all... it's no trouble..."

She looked at him, a long, searching look, then smiled a little sadly, straightened up, and walked away. Phoebe scooped up Blake and hurried after her.

"Mrs. Weasley," she said, stopping beside the older woman. "You look exhausted. Why don't you take a break?"

"Oh, that's sweet of you, Phoebe," Mrs. Weasley smiled, "but I have too much work to do."

She ticked Blake's stomach causing him to giggle.

Phoebe smiled and held out Blake. "I'll trade you," she said. "You look after Blake for the rest of the afternoon, and I will finish your chores. I'll start with hanging this lot up..." she took the laundry basket from the older woman, who balanced Blake on her hip in exchange. "And then I will check to make sure that everything else is done, I know five people who can help."

"If you're sure,"

"I know what it is like to plan a wedding, Mrs. Weasley," Phoebe nodded. "Mine was exactly the same. Now, please, rest?"

Mrs. Weasley smiled tiredly, nodded, and then returned inside with Blake chatting happily.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_He was walking along a mountain road in the cool blue light of dawn. Far below, swathed in mist, was the shadow of a small town. Was the man he sought down there, the man he needed so badly he could think of little else, the man who held the answer, the answer to his problem...?_

"Oi, wake up."

Aiden opened his eyes. He was lying again on the camp bed in the room he shared with Jackson. The sun had not yet risen and the room was still shadowy. Athena was perched on the window's ledge, her amber eyes watching him scornfully, as if knowing that something was wrong.

"You were muttering in your sleep again."

"Was I?"

"Yeah. You kept saying Gregorovitch, why were you muttering his name?"

"I don't know," Aiden muttered, rubbing his eyes and sitting up. "Isn't he -?"

"A famous wandmaker in Russia," Jackson nodded.

"I think Voldemort is looking for him,"

"Poor bloke,"

Aiden tried to remember exactly what he had seen in his vision, but all that stood came back to him was a mountainous horizon and the outline of the little village cradled in a deep valley.

"Jackson, are there are villages surrounded by mountains in Russia?"

Jackson frowned. "Yeah," he nodded. "Hundreds, thousands even, why?" he asked.

"I think Voldemort has gone to one," Aiden said, fully awake now. "He is looking for Gregorovitch there..."

"You think he's still abroad?"

"It didn't look like anywhere in London," Aiden answered. "And we know that he's not in Salem or Portugal. Why not go to Russia?"

Jackson shrugged.

"I think you should talk to Phoebe, mate," he suggested. "Maybe she can help you."

Aiden sighed. It was at times like this that he wished his godfather was still alive. Thomas Chamberlain had died in the raid on Blackheart Manor a few months prior, during the time that Jacob and Elena Blackheart had been taken prisoner by Voldemort.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Happy Birthday, Harry!" Phoebe smiled, as she fed Blake his breakfast. She beckoned him closer as he approached her side of the table, and kissed his cheek as he leaned down. "Have you used Magic yet?"

Harry nodded and told her everything he had done upstairs.

"Did your fly by hand, did you?" she teased, causing his face to burn crimson. "Serefina and Terence told me to wish you a happy seventeenth, they had to leave early they are doing work for the Order again. They should be home for dinner with Mr. Weasley later. Here, this is off me, Terence and Blake..."

She handed him a present of red and gold wrapping.

"Go on," she prompted. "Open it!"

Harry unwrapped the parcel. It was a book. Bound in red leather with gold accents lining the outer edges.

"Don't make me repeat myself," Phoebe smiled.

Harry returned the smile, opened the book and read the verse printed on the inside.

**'To Harry James Potter**

**Just a little something to**

**Remember the adventures**

**We've had together.**

**Love Phoebe'**

Turning the next page, Harry smiled at the picture that appeared before his eyes. It was one of him, Phoebe and the Gryffindor Quidditch team at Hogwarts; he and Phoebe looked no older than 13 years old, and he remembered the day perfectly, although the caption underneath made it pretty clear what memory the picture linked back too.

It was the day he had won the Quidditch cup for Gryffindor.

"This one's off Arthur and I, dear," said Mrs. Weasley passing Harry his second present.

Placing Phoebe's book on the table, Harry sat down and unwrapped the square parcel Mrs. Weasley had handed to him. Inside was a watch very like the one Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had given Ron for his seventeenth; it was gold, with stars circling around the face instead of hands.

"It's traditional to give a wizard a watch when he comes of age," said Mrs. Weasley, watching him anxiously from beside the cooker. "I'm afraid that one isn't new like Ron's, it was actually my brother Fabian's and he wasn't terribly careful with his possessions, it's a bit dented on the back, but -"

The rest of her speech was lost; Harry had got up and hugged her.

Blake gurgled cheerfully from Phoebe's arms, as the elemental placed his bottle of milk back on the table, held him firmly on her knee and started patting his back; the baby burped, several times, before a smile lighted his face and he started blowing bubbles.

Bill and Monsieur Delacour smiled at the baby, as Mrs. Weasley chuckled. Blake had captured the hearts of everyone within the Order, the Weasley's simply loved him, and within the last two days he had weaved his way into the hearts of the Delacour's too.

"Happy Birthday, Harry!" said Hermione, hurrying into the kitchen and adding her own present to the top of the pile. "It's not much, but I hope you like it. What did you get him?" she added to Ron and Phoebe, the former did not seem to hear her, but the latter pointed at the leather bound photo album beside her.

"Come on, then, open Hermione's!" said Ron.

She had bought him a new Sneakoscope. The other packages contained an enchanted razor from Bill and Fleur, chocolates from the Delacour's, and an enormous box of the latest Weasley's' Wizard Wheezes merchandise from Fred and George.

The Golden Trio and Phoebe did not linger at the table, as the arrival of Madame Delacour, Fleur, and Gabrielle made the kitchen uncomfortably crowded.

"I'll pack these for you," Hermione said brightly, taking Harry's presents out of his arms as the four of them headed back upstairs. "How's your packing going, Pheebs?"

"I'm nearly done," Phoebe answered; bouncing Blake and making him giggle. She smiled and kissed his forehead. "I'm gonna see if I can persuade Ashlyn and James to babysit for a few hours, then I'll come help you finish packing the books. OK?"

Hermione nodded.

"Do you have much left to pack?" Phoebe asked stopping outside the room she, Blake and Terence were sharing.

"I'm just waiting for the rest of Ron's underpants to come out of the wash," Hermione answered.

Ron's face burned crimson.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Where's Phoebe?"

"She said something about stages of planning with Hermione,"

"I think that was a jab at us."

"You think?" Ashlyn asked looking over at James.

The Gryffindor shrugged his shoulders, just before as foul stench overtook his nostrils. "Oh! Now I think I know why Phoebe passed her baby off onto us... that's rank!"

Ashlyn looked down at Blake, he was lying on his back on her bed, his little hands grasping his feet and pulling them backwards into his mouth. His nappy was full and needed to be changed. Unfortunately, this one was a stinker, and with Phoebe busy with the Golden Trio, it was up to Ashlyn and James to change him.

They had never done so before, so they had no idea what they were getting themselves into and both hoped that they could pass the responsibility of their nephew off to the other.

Blake looked up at his godparents and gurgled sweetly.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" James asked looking at Ashlyn.

"What are _you_ waiting for?" Ashlyn shot back. "You're the one who's been dying for some playtime with him."

"Yeah, _playtime_," James stressed. "Last I checked playtime did not include stinky nappies."

Ashlyn glared at her cousin.

"Looking after a baby requires _everything_, James, not just playtime."

"Hey, I'm the fun uncle," James protested.

"How about we tag team him?" Ashlyn suggested. James got to his feet.

"Awesome idea. I'll go get the nappy bag. You open him up."

James grinned and shot across the room, he ripped open the door and disappeared out onto the landing, almost crashing into Aiden who was on the otherside.

"James!" Ashlyn yelled, before shaking her head and looking back at Blake with a sigh. "I walked right into that one," she muttered, reaching for the nappy. "Well, here goes nothing..."

**~*Phoebe*~**

As Harry's birthday dinner would have stretched the Burrow's kitchen to breaking point even before the arrival of Charlie, Lupin, Tonks and Hagrid, several tables were placed end to end in the garden. Fred and George bewitched a number of purple lanterns, all emblazoned with a large number 17, to hang in midair over the guests.

Thanks to Phoebe's elemental control over water, George's wound was neat and clean. Not even the powers of healing water could replace what he had lost, but the fact that it was no long gushing blood was enough for the twins and Mrs. Weasley.

Hermione and Ashlyn made purple and gold streamers erupt from the end of their wands and drape themselves artistically over the trees and bushes.

"Nice," said Adrian, as with one final flourish of her wand, Ashlyn turned the leaves on the crabapple tree to gold. "You've really got an eye for that sort of thing."

"What do you want?"

"Nothing," Adrian chuckled leaning into kiss her.

Ashlyn kissed him back, before hurrying off to find Phoebe.

"You're heading for something," Terence said as he approached his best mate, Blake gurgling happily in his arms.

"What makes you think that?" Adrian asked.

Terence shot him a look.

"I'm not stupid, Adrian," he said. "I practically pampered Phoebe before I worked up the nerve to ask her to marry me. You're petting Ashlyn, what are you aiming for? Her hand?"

"What if I am?"

Terence shook his head.

"I'm not saying anything," he said. "You and Ashlyn are perfect together. Just warning you to be sensitive, she's been through a lot, and I don't think Phoebe would react to well if she found out her best friend has been hurt, you heard what she did to Warrington."

"Warrington deserved everything that was coming to him!" Adrian defended. "Don't tell me you disagree."

"Of course no!" Terence snapped. "He attacked my girlfriend!"

Adrian held his hands up in surrender.

"I'm not going to hurt Ashlyn," he said. "I love her too much to see her hurt."

"Alright," Terence nodded. He turned back towards the Burrow, just in time to see Phoebe and Aiden approaching with Jackson.

**~*Phoebe*~**

By seven o'clock all the guests had arrived, led into the house by Fred and George, who had waited for them at the end of the lane. Hagrid had honored the occasion by wearing his best, and horrible, hairy brown suit. Although Lupin smiled as he shook Harry's hand, he looked rather sad, but Tonks made up for it as she smiled radiantly.

"Seventeen, eh!" said Hagrid as he accepted a bucket-sized glass of wine from Fred. "Six years ter the day since we met, Harry, d'yeh remember it?"

"Vaguely," said Harry, grinning. "Didn't you smash down the front door, give Dudley a pig's tail, and tell me I was a wizard?"

"You smashed down the front door?" Phoebe squealed.

"And threatened to give Dudley a tail," Harry repeated.

"Hagrid!" Phoebe scolded, scooping up Blake and walking away. She trotted off towards Tonks and Lupin, determined to find out what was up with her former professor's unhappy expression. "Hi," she smiled, brightly, as Tonks reached across and took Blake out of Phoebe's arms. "What's going on?"

Lupin shook his head. "Nothing. How are you, Phoebe?" he asked.

"Been better," Phoebe shrugged. "Nothing, eh? Then why the long face, Professor?"

"I'm not your Professor anymore,"

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "It's just, I have so much respect for you, and it would be weird calling you anything other than Professor."

Lupin chuckled. It was a nice sound to both Tonks and Phoebe.

"So, are you going to tell me?" Phoebe persisted. "I could always go and find Aiden, he would know, you know?"

Lupin sighed and turned back to his former student. She had always been a curious child, even in school.

"We're pregnant," he said, gesturing towards himself and Tonks.

Phoebe's jaw dropped, before she let out a high-pitched squeal and threw herself at him, hugging him tightly, muttering "Congratulations," and "When were you planning on telling us?" over and over again. Once she had hugged him, nearly to death, Phoebe turned on Tonks and hugged her just as tightly.

"We haven't decided how we are going to break the news yet," Tonks informed her. "We don't want to take the main focus off of the wedding, you know?"

"Of course," Phoebe nodded. "I won't say a word. I promise."

Tonks smiled and nodded. She knew that she could count on Phoebe to keep her promises.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Aiden looked up as Phoebe sat beside him.

"_He's coming, Phe,_" he muttered in Portuguese.

"_Who?_" Phoebe frowned, looking away from Bambi who was playing with Gabrielle on the other side of the yard.

But before Aiden could answer her question, a streak of light came flying across the yard and onto the table, where it resolved itself into a bright silver weasel, which stood on its hind legs and spoke with Mr. Weasley's voice.

"Josephine, Philip and I are on our way home," it said.

"Oh, thank Merlin," sighed Mrs. Weasley. But the Weasel hadn't finished.

Phoebe glanced at Aiden from the corner of her eye, her brother was staring at the table top and not the Patronus, his eyes were hard, as if he was concentrating on something in a far off place. Somewhere that only he could see.

It must have sucked to have visions all of the time, to know what was going to happen _before_ it happened... and sometimes... not being able to do anything to stop them from happening.

"_Who is __**he**__, Aiden?"_ Phoebe repeated.

Her answer, however, did not come from her brother's mouth. It came from the Weasel's.

"Minister of Magic coming home with us."

Phoebe spun around to face the silver creature just as it dissolved into thin air, leaving a stunned silence in its wake.

"_The Minister? Why is he coming here?"_

_"It's to do with the reading of Dumbledore's Will!"_

_"What's that got to do with anything?"_

Aiden sighed. "_It would seem that -"_

But he was no time to discuss the matter; a second later, Mr. Weasley and Josephine and Philip Higgs had appeared out of thin air at the gate, accompanied by none other than Rufus Scrimgeour, who was instantly recognizable by his mane of grizzled hair.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 27 October, 2012 at 04:51am**


	159. Chapter 159

**Author's Note:** Nothing to say... except maybe... enjoy.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, MiraclesHappen94, Chinaluv, Pixiescale1185, SoulVirus, MidnightReadingAddict** andanonymous reviewer: **Soccerpieface.**

**Shout Out: **N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"I have some questions for the three of you, and I think it will be best if we do it individually. If you two -" he pointed at Harry and Hermione - "can wait upstairs, I will start with Ronald."<p>

"If you wish to ask them questions, Scrimgeour," said a voice from the doorway. The Golden Trio and the Minister looked up to see Phoebe standing there. "Then you can do so when they are together."

Scrimgeour glared at the elemental.

"I do not remember asking for you to follow us, Ms. Blackheart," he replied.

"No, you didn't," Phoebe said, shaking her head. "But as a part of Harry's advanced guard, it is my duty to make sure that he is protected at all times. Harry, Hermione, sit!" she ordered, pointing at the sofa. "You too, Ron, we're going to hear what Scrimgeour has to say, and then we are going to return to the celebrations."

The Golden Trio exchanged looks and sat down.

Phoebe turned her attention back to the Minister. "Now, you said you had some questions?"

Scrimgeour gave Phoebe a cold, appraising look. Phoebe had the impression that he was wondering whether it was worthwhile opening hostilities this early.

"Very well then, together," he said, shrugging. He cleared his throat. "I am here, as I'm sure you know, because of Albus Dumbledore's will."

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at one another.

"A surprise, apparently! You were not aware then that Dumbledore had left you anything?"

"A-all of us?" said Ron. "Me and Hermione too?"

"Yes, all of -"

"Hang on," Harry interrupted. "Dumbledore died over a month ago. Why has it taken this long for us to get what was left to us?"

"Because they wanted to examine whatever Dumbledore left you," Phoebe answered. "You had no right do that!"

"I had every right," said Scrimgeour dismissively. "The Decree for Justifiable Confiscation gives the Ministry the power to confiscate the contents of a will -"

"That law was created to stop wizards passing on Dark artifacts," said Phoebe, "and the Ministry is supposed to have powerful evidence that the deceased's possessions are illegal before seizing them! It sounds like you're trying to accuse Dumbledore of passing them something cursed."

"Are you planning to follow a career in Magical Law, Ms. Blackheart?"

"Do I _look_ like I would like to work under you?" Phoebe retorted. "Even if you erased my memory, I wouldn't work for you. My instincts would still tell me that there is something not quite right about you, Scrimgeour. I wouldn't work for you or your Ministry for Magic, if you were the last position on earth."

"So why have you decided to let us have our things now?" asked Harry, drawing Scrimgeour's attention away from Phoebe and onto him. "Can't think of a pretext to keep them?"

"No, it'll be because the 31 days are up," said Phoebe at once, her eyes still trained on Scrimgeour. "They can't keep the objects longer than that unless they can prove they're dangerous."

Ignoring Phoebe, Scrimgeour addressed Ron first.

"Would you say you were close to Dumbledore, Ronald?"

Ron looked startled.

"Me? Not - not really... It was always Harry who -"

"_Shut up, Ron!_" Phoebe hissed in a low voice.

Ron looked around at his friends. They were all staring at him, their expressions hard. But the damage had been done; Scrimgeour looked as though he had heard exactly what he had expected, and wanted, to hear. He swooped like a bird of prey upon Ron's answer.

"If you were not very close to Dumbledore, how do you account for the fact that he remembered you in his will? He made exceptionally few personal bequests. The vast majority of his possessions - his private library, his magical instruments, and other personal effects - were left to Hogwarts. Why do you think you were singled out?"

"I... dunno," said Ron. "I... when I say we weren't close... I mean, I think he liked me."

"You're being modest, Ron," said Hermione. "Dumbledore was very fond of you."

Phoebe shook her head and turned back to Scrimgeour.

"Can we get on with this?" she asked. "It's almost bath time for my son, and I wish to spend some time with my husband before he's shipped out again."

"You are not needed," Scrimgeour said.

"I told you, Scrimgeour," Phoebe hissed. "I am not leaving you alone with them! I do not trust you enough with the life of the Wizarding world, much less with the lives of the only savior we have."

Hermione, Harry and Ron exchanged looks.

Scrimgeour cleared his throat and then put his hand inside his cloak. He drew out a drawstring pouch and from it, he removed a scroll of parchment which he unrolled and read aloud.

"_The Last Will and Testament of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore'_... Yes, here we are... _'To Ronald Bilius Weasley, I leave my Deluminator, in the hope that he will remember me when he uses it."_

Scrimgeour took from the bag an object that Phoebe had seen before. It looked something like a Muggles cigarette light, but it had the power to suck all light from a place, and restore it, with a simple click.

"That is a valuable object," said Scrimgeour, as he handed over the item to Ron. "It may even be unique. Certainly it is of Dumbledore's own design. Why would he have left you an item so rare?"

Ron shook his head, looking bewildered.

"Dumbledore must have taught thousands of students," Scrimgeour persevered. "Yet the only ones he remembered in his will are you three. Why is that? To what use did he think you would put his Deluminator, Mr. Weasley?"

"Put out lights, I s'pose," mumbled Ron. "What else could I do with it?"

Evidently Scrimgeour had no suggestions. After squinting at Ron for a moment or two, he turned back to Dumbledore's will.

"_To Miss. Hermione Jean Granger, I leave my copy of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_, in the hope that she will find it entertaining and instructive."_

Scrimgeour now pulled out of the bag a small book. Its binding was stained and peeling in places. Hermione took it without a word. She held the book in her lap and gazed at it.

"Why do you think Dumbledore left you that book, Miss. Granger?" asked Scrimgeour.

"He... he knew I liked books," said Hermione in a thick voice, mopping her eyes with her sleeve.

"But why that particular book?"

"I don't know. He must have thought I'd enjoy it."

"Did you ever discuss codes, or any means of passing secret messages, with Dumbledore?"

"No, I didn't," said Hermione, suppressing a sob.

"Look, if the Ministry hasn't found any hidden codes in this book in 31 days," snapped Phoebe. "I doubt either myself or Hermione will. Now you're upsetting my friends! Give Harry what is his, and then you can leave!"

Scrimgeour glared at her.

"Your lack of respect for authority is going to get you into trouble one day, Ms. Blackheart," he said.

Phoebe shrugged.

"I have respect for authority," she said. "I just have no respect for _your_ authority!"

Scrimgeour turned back to the will.

"_To Harry James Potter,"_ he read. "_I leave the Snitch he caught in his first Quidditch match at Hogwarts, as a reminder of the rewards of perseverance and skill."_

Scrimgeour pulled out the tiny, walnut-sized golden ball. Its silver wings fluttered rather feebly.

"Why did Dumbledore leave -?"

"Oh for the love of -" Phoebe seethed. "Dumbledore has already listed the reasons he left them these items. If that is not good enough for you Minister, then you are obviously barking up the wrong tree! They -" she pointed to the Golden Trio, "have no idea has to why they were singled out of every other student that Dumbledore has taught, the fact is they were! Now, is there anything else or are they free to go?"

"I'm asking the questions," said Scrimgeour, shifting his chair a little closer to the sofa. Dusk was falling outside now; the marquee beyond the windows towered ghostly white over the hedge. "I notice that your birthday cake is in the shape of a Snitch, Potter," he added. "Why's that?"

"Oh, maybe because Harry is a great Seeker," Phoebe growled. Scrimgeour was starting to annoy her - no, wait, scratch that - he had annoyed the moment he Mr. Weasley's Patronus had announced that he would be arriving. "Or, maybe, Dumbledore left specific instructions to Mrs. Weasley to create the icing with a spell that would leave a hidden message for Harry."

"There is no such spell..."

Phoebe glowered.

"Then stop asking stupid questions, Minister, and get to the point!"

"A Snitch, I am sure you know, Ms. Blackheart, what with being related to a famous Quidditch chaser, have flesh memories." said Scrimgeour.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. Of course she knew that.

"What?" Harry and Ron asked together.

Phoebe sighed, frustratingly.

"A Snitch is not touched by bare skin before it is released, not even by the maker, who wears gloves. It carries an enchantment by which it can identify the first human to lay hands upon it, in case of a disputed capture. This Snitch -" he held up the tiny golden ball, "- will remember your touch, Potter. It occurs to me that Dumbledore, who had prodigious magical skill, whatever his other faults, might have enchanted this Snitch so that it will open only for you."

Harry shot Phoebe a fleeting glance. How could he take the Snitch without exposing it to Scrimgeour?

"You don't say anything," said the Minister. "Perhaps you already know what the Snitch contains?"

"No," said Harry.

"Take it, Harry," said Phoebe.

"What?"

Phoebe glanced at the Seeker. "Go on," she nodded. "Take it."

"But, Phoebe -"

"It's OK, Hermione," Phoebe said, reassuringly. "I know what I'm doing."

Harry frowned. Could he trust Phoebe's instincts? Why not? When had she ever let him down in the past? She may have gone against him on a few things, may have fought against him when it came to her brother, Draco Malfoy, but she had never intentionally done anything to harm him.

Meeting Phoebe silvery gaze, Harry felt his heart skip a beat, before he held out his hand, and Scrimgeour leaned forward again and placed the Snitch, slowly and deliberately, into Harry's palm.

Nothing happened.

Harry's fingers closed around the Snitch, its tired wings fluttered and were still.

Phoebe smiled in satisfactory.

Scrimgeour, Ron and Hermione continued to gaze avidly at the now partially concealed ball, as if still hoping it might transform in some way.

"That was dramatic," said Phoebe coolly. Hermione and Ron laughed.

"That's all, then, is it?" asked Hermione, making to pries herself off the sofa.

"Not quite," said Scrimgeour, who looked bad-tempered now. "Dumbledore left you a second bequest, Potter."

"What is it?" asked Harry.

Scrimgeour did not bother to read from the parchment.

"The sword of Godric Gryffindor," he said.

Hermione, Ron and Phoebe stiffened. Harry looked around for a sign of the ruby-encrusted hilt, but Scrimgeour did not pull the sword from the leather pouch, which in any case looked much too small to contain it.

"So where is it?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Unfortunately," said Scrimgeour, "that sword was not Dumbledore's to give away. The sword of Godric Gryffindor is an important historical artifact, and as such, belongs -"

"To Harry!" said Phoebe hotly. "It chose him. He was the one who found it; it came to him in the Chamber of Secrets!"

"The sword may present itself to any worthy Gryffindor," said Scrimgeour. "That does not make it the exclusive property of Mr. Potter, whatever Dumbledore may have decided." He gave Harry a searching look. "Why do you think -?"

Phoebe's eyes flashed cobalt blue.

"If you ask that questions _one more time_..." she seethed.

"I have to be thorough, Ms. Blackheart!"

"You have been thorough!" yelled Phoebe. "This is borderline intrusive! We have told you_ everything,_ Minister! If there is nothing else you have for us, and then please leave! You have overstayed your welcome!"

Scrimgeour ignored her and turned back to Harry.

"Do you think Dumbledore left you this sword because he believed that the sword of Gryffindor could defeat the Heir of Slytherin? Did he wish to give you that sword, Potter, because he believed, as do many, that you are the one destined to destroy He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"

"That's an interesting theory," said Phoebe. "Is that all you've been doing these past few months, Minister? Stripping down Deluminator and covering up breakouts from Azkaban? People are dying - _your_ people are dying - and all you care about is why Dumbledore has left three significant artifacts to Harry, Ron and Hermione! You cover the truth just too simply save your own ass, and you still expect us to cooperate with you!"

"You go too far!" shouted Scrimgeour, standing up, and limping across the room to where Phoebe stood. He drew his wand and stabbed it against Phoebe's chest with it.

Phoebe hissed, her eyes flashed Cobalt blue as the Dragon necklace around her neck flashed white. There was a split second pause, and next second Scrimgeour was lifted off of his feet and thrown across the room, crashing into the bookcase that was set against the far wall. He crumpled to the ground, his walking stick clattering to the floor beside him.

"Phoebe!" Hermione squealed, her hands covering her mouth.

"You've just given him an excuse to arrest you!" said Harry.

"He can't arrest me," said Phoebe. "He has no authority over me. I'm not at school, which means I do not have to listen to his rules. If he wishes to arrest me then he'll have to go through official charges with the Portuguese Ministry for Magic. My Minister would love to hear _why_ you wish to arrest me, see how far you get when you tell them that _you_ attacked me first!"

Scrimgeour glowered angrily, pushed himself to his feet and snatched up his walking stick.

"You are in my country," Scrimgeour said. "You abide by my rules!"

"I am here on Dumbledore's request..."

"Dumbledore does not control this country!"

"No, he does not," Phoebe agreed, "because if he did, we would not be having this conversation. If Dumbledore were in charge, Voldemort would be history by now. All would be well. Harry would be safe. My grandparents would be free... and my brother... my brother would not be hunted down by people who swore to protect the innocent!"

She shook her head.

"You're a joke, Minister," she pressed on, "instead of protecting the innocent; you cause more fear and panic than Voldemort. There are innocent people out there who are afraid to leave their homes because they do not know if they are safe, they're hugging their children and not making a sound just like they did before!"

"I protect the magical world!" Scrimgeour announced. "It is my job to protect the magical world."

"Not much good now are you?"

"It is time you learned some respect!"

"No, Minister," said Phoebe, angrily. "Respect is not something that can be taught. It is something that must be earned!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 28 October, 2012 at 05:58am**


	160. Chapter 160

**Author's Note:** This is just a quick chapter to fill-in the end of the last chapter. The next one, which will be the Wedding, should be considerably longer. It is currently in the forms of being edited. I will try and get it up sometime this week.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **ZabuzasGirl, Pixiescale1185, Fan of Fics, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, MidnightReadingAddict** and anonymous reviewer** Felicity**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Crlor, PaulH024** and** BACswimma** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

**Special Announcements** This is a special tab that speaks to the several anonymous reviews I have received over the past couple of days. All of which belong to a guest reviewer who has had nothing nice to say about Phoebe. OK! I get it! You don't like her! Whoop-de-doo! What do you want? A ribbon? An announcement... well, guess what? You got an announcement, but do I really care that you don't like my character? No, I don't. So you think Phoebe is a bitch. She was stupid for doing what she did to protect Draco! It is easy to see that you are one of these people who judge books by their covers, it is not difficult to see that you believe Slytherins are evil, including Draco, well I am sorry to hear that, and I can't really change your mind on it, this story is not to try and change people's minds on Slytherin, this story is purely fan made, and is for my own personal enjoyment, and for others to read and enjoy themselves. If you don't like what I have done with the story... or you don't like the way I portray canon characters, or even if you don't like my development of Original Characters... then why the hell did you decide to read the story after the first chapter? If you really don't like a story why bother to keep reading? Honestly!

Last special shout out goes to **Felicity**: I appreciate your concerns and your views. I understand each point you made about Phoebe staying behind. But, if you looked closely enough at the series as you read through, then you would realize that Phoebe is a danger to her son and her family and friends at the moment. Voldemort wants her powers... he has tried, several times in the past, to acquire her elemental powers in order to bring himself to power faster. So therefore, if Phoebe sticks around Blake for a long period of time and Voldemort finds her, then Blake, and everyone else is as good as dead.

And that's the last of the special announcements. Enjoy the story.

* * *

><p>"I'm going to put Blake to bed," said Phoebe as she and Hermione climbed the stairs. It was many hours after Scrimgeour had left. They had celebrated Harry's birthday and were now preparing to meet in Ron's room to discuss the items that Dumbledore had left, and Hermione wanted to know what Phoebe had prompted Harry to take the Snitch. Didn't she fear that it would open when he touched it?<p>

Hermione nodded. "OK. I'll see you up there."

Phoebe smiled and opened the door to her bedroom and closed it behind her. Terence was already there.

"Hey," he smiled when he saw her. "Are you OK?"

"Of course," Phoebe nodded. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because of Scrimgeour,"

Phoebe shook her head. "Don't worry about that," she smiled. "He didn't even harm me."

"Potter said he drew his wand,"

"He did," Phoebe nodded. "Singed through my shirt -"

"What?" Terence exploded. Blake shifted and cried. "Sorry. What do you mean he singed through your shirt?"

Phoebe showed him the hole in the shirt she was wearing.

"It's nothing fatal," she reassured him. "I didn't even feel it. I think my adrenaline was pumping so much that it barely felt like a sting. I've had worse."

Terence did not look convinced.

"Hey," said Phoebe as she set Blake down in his crib. "Don't worry about it OK? I'm fine. I think Scrimgeour got the worst end of it. Teach him to mess with an elemental, I guess."

"But are you sure -?"

"Terence!" Phoebe sighed, spinning around and catching his hands. "I'm fine. Seriously... no harm done."

"You'd tell me if something was wrong?"

"Of course," Phoebe promised. "Whenever have I not turned to you?"

Terence sighed. "OK. If you're sure." he nodded.

Phoebe smiled. "Now, I have to go meet Hermione, Harry and Ron," she said. "There's something we have to discuss. I won't be late."

"I'll stay awake,"

"If you must," Phoebe nodded. She really didn't want him too, but there was a limitation on how many days they had together, so really did want to spend as much time with him and Blake as possible. With one final kiss, Phoebe turned toe and disappeared back through the door and hurried up Ron's attic bedroom.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Up in the attic bedroom, Ron examined his Deluminator, and Harry filled Hagrid's moleskin purse, not with gold, but with those items he most prized, apparently worthless though some of them were; the Marauder's Map, the shard of Sirius's enchanted mirror, and RAB's locket. He pulled the strings tight and slipped the purse around his neck, then sat holding the old Snitch and watching its wings flutter feebly.

At last, there was a tap on the door and Phoebe tiptoed inside.

"_Muffliato,"_ she whispered, waving her wand in the direction of the stairs.

"Hermione doesn't approve of that spell," said Ron.

Phoebe shrugged. "Times are changing," she said, glancing across at the bookworm who was looking through _Tales of Beedle the Bard_. "Now, you wanted to know why I told Harry to take the Snitch."

"Yes," said Hermione at once. "If they have flesh memories why did you -?"

"Because Harry never caught that Snitch with his hand," Phoebe said, pointing at the item in question. "It's the Snitch from his first _ever_ Quidditch match."

Hermione and Harry looked bemused, but Ron, however, gasped, and started pointing frantically from Harry to the Snitch and back again until he found his voice. "That was the one you nearly swallowed!"

"Exactly," said Phoebe. "The Snitch doesn't remember the flesh of his hand; it remembers the flesh of his mouth. So it won't open in his hand."

"But if it touches his lips -?"

"It should," Phoebe nodded.

"Go on, Harry," prompted Hermione.

Heart beating fast, Harry pressed his mouth to the Snitch.

It did not open.

The Golden trio sighed in disappointment.

"You didn't think it would be _that_ easy, did you?" asked Phoebe. "Whenever have you known Dumbledore to give us something that easy? He is a teacher. It is his duty to teach us!"

"What do you mean?"

"Does it again, Harry," said Phoebe, "but before you sigh in disappointment take a good look at the Snitch."

Frowning, Harry repeated the procedure, and examined the Snitch. What was Phoebe - he gasped. "Writing!" he said, "Look! Quickly come here!"

Hermione and Ron jumped to their feet and rushed over, reading the thin slanting handwriting that they recognized as Dumbledore's.

_I open at the close._

The words vanished.

"'I open at the close...' What's that supposed to mean?"

Hermione and Ron shook their heads looking blank.

"Phoebe, do you know?" Harry asked looking towards the elemental.

"Sorry, Harry, that is something that you have to figure out on your own!"

"But you do know," said Ron. "C'mon, you were Dumbledore's right hand woman last year. You can't seriously tell us that you don't know what he was up too."

Phoebe smiled knowingly. "Dumbledore told me a lot of things last year, Ronald, but he also told me that Harry had to learn a few things himself. I am only coming with you to _protect_ and _assist_ Harry when he is lost. I am not coming to _tell_ you what Dumbledore has told me."

"So, you're going to be our teacher?" Hermione asked.

"Among other things," Phoebe nodded. "Now, onto other things. Show us the Deluminator, Ron."

Ron obliged at once. Holding it up in front of him, he clicked it. The solitary lamp they had lit went out at once.

"The thing is," whispered Hermione through the dark, "we could have achieved that with Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder."

There was a small _click_, and the ball of light from the lamp flew back to the ceiling and illuminated them all once more.

"Still, its cool," said Ron, a little defensively. "And from what they said, Dumbledore invented it himself."

"I know, but surely he wouldn't have singled you out in his will just to help us turn out the lights!"

"D'you think he knew the Ministry would confiscate his will and examine everything he'd left us?" asked Harry.

"Definitely," said Phoebe. "It was sort of the reason he wrote the will, to be honest. He couldn't give you these specific instructions at school, and he couldn't write a play-by of what he wanted you to do with them in his will either."

"Why couldn't he have told us while we were at school?" Ron asked, looking confused. "It would be really easy for him..."

"How do you think it would have looked, Ron?" asked Phoebe. "Dumbledore suddenly calls you, Hermione and Harry to his office, he gives you three items that, at the time, meant absolutely nothing, but were very important and personal to him. He's was a teacher, they aren't supposed to have favourite among students."

Ron shrugged. "I still say it would have been easier," he said, going back to looking at the Deluminator.

"Of course it would have been easier," Phoebe agreed, "but I come back to my earlier point; he is a teacher. Their jobs are to teach their students, not give them the answers. This is just another test that you have to pass in order to succeed."

"You know, don't you?" said Harry, looking suspicious.

"I have my suspicions," Phoebe nodded. "And before you ask, no, I cannot tell you why Dumbledore left these items to you. It is not my place."

"Your place?" Harry repeated. "Dumbledore is dead, Phoebe, he can't tell us what he wants us to do!"

"He wants you to hunt down the Horcruxes," Phoebe replied. "Simple has that!"

"Kinda difficult to do that if we don't know where to start," sighed Hermione, "plus we don't have anything to destroy them with!"

"How _do_ we destroy a Horcrux?" Ron frowned.

Hermione shrugged. "No idea. Phoebe?" she added turning to the elemental. "Do you know?"

"Well, Tom Riddle's diary," Phoebe said, "it was a Horcrux, and Harry, you destroyed that with a Basilisk fang, right?" Harry nodded. "Well, what properties are in a Basilisk fang that isn't in many other substances?"

"Venom?" Ron asked.

Hermione, Phoebe and Harry blinked as they turned their full attention to the red head. "What?" he asked.

"That was fast, Ron," said Hermione. "Even for your standards!"

"I have my moments!" Ron defended.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, you sure do," she agreed. "Maybe the Basilisk's venom is the only thing that can be used to destroy a Horcrux."

"That's great," said Harry. "But where are we going to get Basilisk's venom?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and exchanged a look with Phoebe. Boys really were stupid.

"Don't you see, Harry?" the Bookworm asked.

"See what?"

"Dumbledore left you the sword of Gryffindor," Hermione said. "You destroyed the Basilisk with the sword of Gryffindor..."

"Yeah, and?"

Phoebe sighed. "The Sword of Gryffindor is Goblin made," she explained. "Rust and dirty have no effect on it..."

"What are you getting at?"

"The sword is designed to absorb that in which makes it stronger," Hermione said. "Rust and dirt have no effect on it, and you destroyed the Basilisk with it..."

Harry's eyes widened. "Oh! It only takes in that which makes it stronger! The venom from the Basilisk... it's... it's..."

"It's in the sword!" Ron gasped.

"Yes!" Phoebe and Hermione exclaimed, more out of delight than anything else. Maybe there was hope for these two yet.

"Yes," Hermione nodded. "The Sword of Gryffindor is impregnated with Basilisk venom... maybe that is why Dumbledore left it to you in his will."

"But why didn't he just give it to me?" Harry frowned. "It was _there_, right there on the wall of his office during all the talks last year! If he wanted me to have it, why didn't he just give it to me then?"

Phoebe and Hermione shook their heads that was one question that they could not answer.

"And as for this book," said Hermione, "_The Tales of Beedle the Bard_'... I've never even heard of them!"

"You've never heard of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_?" said Ron incredulously. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm not!" said Hermione in surprise. "Do you know them, then?"

"Well, of course I do!"

Phoebe and Harry exchanged looks. The circumstances of Ron having read a book that Hermione had not been unprecedented. Ron, however, looked bemused by their surprise.

"Oh come on! All the old kids' stories are supposed to be Beadle's, aren't they? 'The Fountain of Fair Fortune'... 'The Wizard and the Hopping Pot'... 'Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump'..."

"Excuse me?" said Hermione, giggling. "What was that last one?"

"Come off it!" said Ron, looking in disbelief from Harry to Hermione. "You must've heard of Babbitty Rabbitty -"

"Ron, you know full well Harry and I were brought up by Muggles!" said Hermione. "We didn't hear stories like that when we were little; we heard 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' and 'Cinderella' -"

"What's that, an illness?" asked Ron.

It was Phoebe's turn to giggle.

"Well, what about you?" asked Harry, turning to her quickly. "Have you ever heard of these?" he pointed at Hermione's new book.

Phoebe nodded. "I've heard of them in passing," she said. "But Serefina used to sing a lot of songs to me. Whenever I _did_ request a bedtime story, it was always of one specific story..."

"And that was?"

"The Circle of Elementals," Phoebe answered. "It's an old legend that has passed down through Serefina's line for centuries. It tells about five sisters, all witches and elementals, and how they terrorized a local village and were burnt at the stake. Their final words before passing on through the veil were that they would one day return a lot stronger than before."

"_That_ was a bedtime story?" Hermione squeaked.

Phoebe smiled. "It really depended on if you believed in all that... I didn't," she shrugged.

The bookworm nodded.

"So these are children's stories?" asked Hermione, bending again over the runes.

"Yeah," said Ron, uncertainly. "I mean, that's just what you hear, you know, that all these old stories came from Beedle. I dunno what they're like in the original versions."

"But I wonder why Dumbledore thought I should read them?"

Something creaked downstairs.

"Probably just Charlie, now Mum's asleep, sneaking off to regrow his hair," said Ron nervously.

"All the same, we should get to bed," whispered Hermione. "It wouldn't do to oversleep tomorrow."

"No," agreed Phoebe. "A brutal quadruple murder by the bridegroom's mother might put a bit of a damper on the wedding. Ron, get the lights."

Ron nodded.

He clicked the Deluminator once again as Phoebe and Hermione left the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 05 November, 2012 at 09:28pm**


	161. Chapter 161

**Author's Note:** Has promised here is the next chapter. Updated faster than normal too. But we're getting into the thick of things now...

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, SoulVirus, Pixiescale1185, Chinaluv, Alaina08, Felicity** and** Fan of Fics**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Twigeek24** and** aaron-graves-900** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>Three o'clock the following afternoon found Phoebe braiding Hermione's hair in one of the bedrooms overlooking the Burrow's garden, from where they were situated, they could see the great white marquee in the orchard, and Harry, Ron, Fred and George who were awaiting the arrival of the wedding guests.<p>

Harry had taken a large dose of Polyjuice Potion and was now the double of a redheaded Muggle boy from the local village, Ottery St. Catchpole, from whom Fred had stolen hairs using a Summoning Charm. The plan was to introduce Harry as 'Cousin Barney' and trust to the great number of Weasley relatives to camouflage him.

"He's hardly recognizable," said Hermione, glancing out of the window.

"Yeah, but then again, from up here, they all look the same," Phoebe shrugged, pulling the Bookworm back into her seat. "Now stop moving! I'm almost finished!"

Hermione sighed and sat back. The last time she had had a complete makeover was for Phoebe's own wedding, where she had played one of the Bridesmaids alongside Sarah Prentiss and Amelia Winchester, both of whom were getting dressed next door, with Ashlyn Black.

The door to the bedroom creaked open, and Bambi Higgs, Phoebe's youngest sister-in-law, crept inside. She was wearing a stunning green shimmer waterfall dress, and her hair had been braided into two plaits, both of which were hanging over shoulders, lightly tapping her arms as she walked.

"Hello, beautiful," Phoebe smiled as Bambi turned to face her. "And where have you been?"

"With Terry and Blake," Bambi answered.

"And how are they doing?"

"Blakey looking lovely,"

Phoebe smiled. "I'd hate to take the attention off of the bride today," she said, "but i'm guessing you and Blake will look exceptional next to her and Bill, eh?"

Bambi giggled and clambered up onto the bed, over which lay Phoebe's own dress. "Why you not dressed yet?" she asked.

"I'm finishing up Hermione's hair," Phoebe nodded. "You be careful now, you might ruin your dress!"

"OK," Bambi smiled as she lay on her stomach, careful not to rip or ruin her dress, she then placed her chin in her palm and watched as Phoebe turned her attention back to Hermione, she twisted the bookworm's hair several more times, before tapping it with her wand, the loose bits at the bottom tied together firmly without the use of an elastic band.

"There! Finished!"

Hermione smiled and admired herself in the mirror. "Thank you. What are you doing yours like?" she added, glancing up at her best friend.

"You'll see," Phoebe smiled, knowingly.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Wow..." Ron breathed; blinking rather rapidly as Hermione came hurrying towards him and Harry. "You look great!"

"Always a tone of surprise," said Hermione, though she smiled. She was wearing a floaty, lilac-coloured dress with matching high heels. "Your Great Aunt Muriel doesn't agree. I just met her upstairs while she was giving Fleur the tiara. She said: 'Oh dear, is this the Muggleborn?' and then 'Bad posture and skinny ankles.'"

"Don't take it personally, she's rude to everyone," said Ron.

"She seems to like Phoebe, mind you," Hermione pointed out.

"What did she say to her?" Harry asked as he looked around, in hopes of catching a glance of the elemental.

Hermione smiled faintly. "Only that she had a good posture," she answered. "But what do you expect? Phoebe was practically born into royalty. She was raised to have good posture, and was taught proper etiquette from a young age, it is why she curtseys' to respectable people, and why Aiden kisses the back of every female's hand. They were raised that way."

"True," Ron nodded.

"So where _is_ Phoebe?" Harry asked.

"She's upstairs," Hermione answered, nodding back to the Burrow. "Ashlyn needed help in getting Sarah and Amelia's hair done. Phoebe is fantastic with hairstyles."

"She did yours?" Ron asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. She has done mine on the last three occasions: Fleur's wedding, her own wedding and the Yule Ball."

"Nice," Harry smiled.

"Oh, and Ron? You should be thankful that Phoebe didn't meet your Aunt Muriel _before_ she married Terence," Hermione added, turning to the red-head beside her.

"Why?" Ron asked, suspiciously.

"Because I think, if she had had the chance, she would have insisted that Phoebe and Charlie get married."

Ron spluttered. "What?!" he yelped. "Why?"

"Aunt Muriel thinks that they make a beautiful couple," Hermione explained. "She just saw them talking in the kitchen, and assumed that they were dating, according to Muriel, they were doing more than chatting. The word 'Flirting' comes to mind."

Ron's eyes widened and he made a mental note to have a word with Charlie the next time he saw his older brother.

"Who was flirting?" inquired George, reemerging from the marquee with Fred.

"Phoebe and Charlie," said Ron.

"At least that is what your Great Aunt Muriel seemed to think," added Hermione.

Fred smirked. "Well, it would seem Phoebe can't avoid the old Weasley charm, after all, eh, George?"

"Apparently so, Fred," George nodded. "Shame she went and married the Slytherin."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Terence is good to her," she pointed out, "and Phoebe loves him! Charlie has even said that he only views her as a sister, anyway."

"Shame," said Fred. "She'd make a beautiful Weasley."

"That she would," George nodded. "Oh, here she comes now," he added, spotting the elemental approaching from a distance. She was surrounded by her usual group of friends; which consisted of Ashlyn Black, Sarah Prentiss and Amelia Winchesters, all of whom were looking undeniably lovely in their dresses.

Phoebe, who was also carrying Blake, wore a knee-length black glitter halter neck dress that shimmered in the afternoon sun as she walked, while Blake, who was no more than a few months old, wore a black tuxedo, and was gurgling in his mother's arms as she drew closer.

"Well, hello, Ms-Could've-Been-The-Future-Charlie-Weasley," Fred teased.

"Charlie's amazing," Phoebe smiled. "But so not my type! I see him as more of a brother than I do anything else."

During their conversation all of them failed to notice the latecomer, a dark-haired young man with a large, curved nose and thick black eyebrows, until he hold out his invitation to Ron and said, with his eyes on Hermione. "You look vunderful!"

"Viktor!" Hermione shrieked, and dropped her small beaded bag, which made a loud thump quite disproportionate to its size. As she scrambled, blushing, to pick it up, she said, "I didn't know you were - goodness - it's lovely to see - how are you?"

Ron's ears had turned bright red again. After glancing at Krum's invitation as if he did not believe a word of it, he said, much too loudly, "How come you're here?"

"Fleur invited me," said Krum, eyebrows raised. "Phoebe..." he added, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.

"Hello, Viktor," Phoebe smiled, reaching up and kissing her cheek. "It's been a while. How are you?"

"Very vell," Viktor nodded. "Vhose is this?" he added, indicating to Blake.

"_Mine,"_ Phoebe said, shifting from English to Russian. "_This is Blake."_

_"He is beautiful,"_ Viktor smiled, happy for the language change. "_Just like his mother!"_

Phoebe smiled. "Barney," she said, jumping back to English, and speaking to Harry. "Show Viktor to his seat, please,"

Harry nodded, and despite Phoebe's instructions, he knew that he had to get Krum out of Ron's presence. He gestured to the Marquee and led the way to an empty seat somewhere in the middle.

"As for the rest of us," Phoebe added, turning to Fred, George, Hermione and Ron, (Ashlyn, Sarah and Amelia had already taken their seats) "we best sit down too, or we are going to get run over by the bride!"

They quickly took their seats, Phoebe finding Terence, Jackson and Aiden in the crowd, and took her seat on the end of the aisle, as silence fell and music swelled from the golden balloons, as Fleur arrived at the back of the Marquee.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Bill and Fleur took to the floor as the band started to play.

After the first dance, the bride and groom were joined by Mr. Weasley and Madame Delacour, followed closely by Mrs. Weasley and Monsieur Delacour.

While the others danced, Viktor tracked Phoebe down through the crowd of people, avoiding the Veela cousins in his pursuit of the elemental. "_Who is that man in the yellow?_" he asked, pointing at an older gentleman across the dance floor.

"_That's Xenophilius Lovegood,"_ Phoebe answered.

"_You know him?"_

_"He's the father of a friend. Why?"_

Krum glowered over the top of his drink, watching Xenophilius, who was chatting to several warlocks on the other side of the dance floor.

"_Because_," said Krum, "_if he vas not a guest of Fleur's, I vould duel him, here and now, for vearing that filthy sign upon his chest."_

Jackson frowned. "Sign?" he said, looking over at Xenophilius too. The strange triangular eye was gleaming on his chest, and Jackson could understand _why_ Viktor had taken so badly to Luna's father. "Ah, yes," he nodded. "That sign!"

"What sign?" Terence frowned.

"Grindelwald. That's Grindelwald's sign..."

"The Dark wizard, Grindelwald?" Terence asked. "The one that Dumbledore defeated?"

"Yes,"

Krum's jaw muscles worked as if he were chewing, then he said, "Grindelwald killed many people, my grandfather, for instance. Of course, he vos never poverful in this country, they said he feared Dumbledore - and rightly, seeing how he vos finished. But this -" he pointed his finger at Xenophilius "- this is his symbol. I recognized it at vunce: Grindelwald carved it into a vall at Durmstrang ven he vos a pupil there. Some idiots copied it onto their books and clothes, thinking to shock, make themselves impressive - until those of us who had lost family members to Grindelwald taught them better."

He cracked his knuckles menacingly.

"Alright, easy," said Phoebe, putting a hand on his arm. "Xenophilius may not even know what the symbol means. You cannot go accusing him of just _wearing_ the symbol without proof that he is a supporter of Grindelwald, it would be like attacking an English wizard and accusing him of being in league with Voldemort."

"Are you quite sure it is Grindelwald's sign?" Terence asked.

"I am not mistaken," said Krum coldly. "I valked past that sign for several years, I know it vell."

Jackson nodded. "He's telling the truth," he confirmed. "But Phoebe has a point, Viktor, you cannot attack Xenophilius over a sign, I know what that sign means, and I know it is difficult, but Xenophilius is not a student at Durmstrang, and we are not at school."

"Yeah, the Lovegood's are rather... unusual," Terence said, as he took Blake from Phoebe. "Xenophilius could have easily picked the symbol up somewhere and though it's a cross section of the head of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack or something."

"The cross section of a vot?"

Phoebe and Jackson snickered into their hands.

"Well, I don't know what they are, but apparently he and his daughter go on holiday looking for them..."

"That's his daughter?" Phoebe said pointing Luna out, she was dancing alone, waving her arms around her head like someone attempting to beat off midges.

"Vy is she doing that?" asked Krum.

"Probably trying to get rid of a Wrackspurt," said Harry, as he joined the group.

Phoebe smirked, but Krum did not seem to know whether he was being made fun of or not. He drew his wand from inside his robes and tapped it menacingly on his thigh; sparks flew out of the end.

"Gregovitch!" said Harry loudly, startling those around him.

"Vot about him?" asked Krum suspiciously.

"He's a wandmaker!"

"I know that," said Krum.

"He made your wand! That's why I thought - Quidditch -"

Krum was starting to look more and more suspicious, and Phoebe was looking more and more confused.

"How do you know Gregorovitch made my vand?" asked Krum.

"I..."

"I told him," said Phoebe. "We were discussing wandmakers when we heard that Ollivander had been reported missing at the beginning of the summer,"

Harry glanced at Phoebe, and then nodded at Krum.

"So... er... where is Gregorovitch these days?" Harry asked.

Krum looked puzzled.

"He retired several years ago. I vos one of the last to purchase a Gregorovitch vand. They are the best - although I know, of course, that you Britons set much store by Ollivander."

Phoebe nodded.

"This girl is very nice-looking," Krum said, pointing at Ginny, who had just joined Luna. "She is also a relative of yours?"

"Yeah," said Harry, suddenly irritated, "and she's seeing someone. Jealous type. Big bloke. You wouldn't want to cross him."

Jackson snorted as Phoebe tried her hardest to conceal her grin.

Krum grunted.

"Vot," he said, draining his goblet, "is the point of being an international Quidditch player if all the good-looking girls are taken?"

And he strode off.

Phoebe smirked and turned to Harry. "Big and Jealous, eh?" she asked.

Harry grinned and shrugged.

"I thought you and Ginny broke up?" Phoebe asked.

"We didn't break up, exactly," said Harry. "We're just taking a short break!"

"Yeah, and the promise you made to Ron -?"

Harry scowled. "Fine. We've broken up!" he huffed. "But I still -"

"Love her?" Phoebe interrupted, nodding slightly. "I know. Which is why i'm gonna make sure you make it back to her..." she winked and turned to take Blake from Terence. "C'mon, dance with Mummy!" she cooed, tickling his stomach.

Blake grasped a strand of her fringe and tugged, squealing happily as he kicked his legs.

"I'll take that as a yes," Jackson chuckled, poking his nephew in the stomach. "Excuse me, I'm off to get another drink, can I get you anything?"

"No thanks," Phoebe smiled.

Jackson nodded, kissed her cheek and wandered off through the crowd, as Phoebe disappeared out onto the dance floor with Blake and Terence.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As the evening drew in, and moths began to swoop under the canopy, now lit with floating golden lanterns, the revelry became more and more uncontained. Fred and George had long since disappeared into the darkness with a pair of Fleur's cousins; Charlie, Hagrid, and a squat wizard in a purple porkpie hat were singing 'Odo the Hero' in a corner.

"Are you alright, Barney?" Phoebe asked, appearing out of the crowd and sitting down beside him. "Oh, hello Aunt Muriel, Mr. Doge, how are you both? Are you enjoying the celebrations?"

Mr. Doge smiled, rather strained at Phoebe, before rising to his feet and walking away. Aunt Muriel, however, leaned over the table and patted Phoebe's hand. "Has my great-nephew given you the slip, dearie? Never you mind, he'll come back, simply cannot take his eyes off you from what I saw in the kitchen."

"Actually, Aunt Muriel," Phoebe sighed, holding up her hand and showing her Wedding ring. "I am already married."

Aunt Muriel gasped. "Arthur did not tell me Charlie had - well, I never - he could have at least let me know, my Tiara would have looked wonderful in your hair. So much better than Fleur's... she's French, you know, but you..." she wagged her finger at Phoebe, "you... you're Portuguese, a much better language if you ask me!"

Phoebe exchanged a look with Harry.

"Actually," she said. "Charlie and I -"

"You're not going to tell me you're expecting are you?" Muriel interrupted, glancing at Phoebe's stomach. "Oh, another Weasley! They breed like Rabbits - Oh, dear, I must find Arthur... I'll have him for not telling me about Charlie's wedding and keeping my future great-niece or nephew a secret... Oh I'll have him!"

She got to her feet, and with the speed of a cheetah, which was rather impressive for someone who was a hundred and seven, shuffled off through the crowd.

"Oh! Damn it!" Phoebe cursed slumping in her seat. "She's a nightmare!"

"I think it's kind of funny," Harry chuckled.

"Funny?" Phoebe asked. "She thinks i'm married to Charlie and expecting his baby!"

Harry grinned.

Phoebe glared at him. "Stop smiling!" she cried. "It's not funny, Harry, it could cause a lot of problems, not just for me and Terence, but between me and the Weasley's too."

"I'm sure Mr. Weasley will set her straight," Harry reassured. "Don't worry nothing bad is going to happen!"

"So, before Aunt Muriel interrupted with an impossible prediction of my future," said Phoebe, "answer my question."

"Which question?"

"Are you alright?" repeated Phoebe. "You look -"

She broke off as something large and silver came falling through the canopy over the dance floor. Graceful and gleaming, the lynx landed lightly in the middle of the astonished dancers. Heads turned, as those nearest it froze absurdly in mid-dance. Then the Patronuses mouth opened wide and it spoke in the loud, deep, slow voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"_The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming."_

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 07 November, 2012 at 03:37am**


	162. Chapter 162

**Author's Note:** Getting into the thick of it now.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Pixiescale1185, SoulVirus, Felicity, Chinaluv, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics** and** Alaina08**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Da Devils Daughter** and** Darkened-moon101** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>Everything seemed fuzzy, slow. Harry and Phoebe jumped to their feet and drew their wands. Many people were only just realizing that something strange had happened; heads were still turning toward the silver cat as it vanished. Silence spread outward in cold ripples from the place where the Patronus had landed.<p>

Then somebody screamed.

Harry and Phoebe threw themselves into the panicking crowd. Guests were sprinting in all directions; many were Disapparating; the protective enchantments around the Burrow had broken.

"Hermione!" Phoebe cried. "Hermione! Ron, where are you?"

As they pushed their way across the dance floor, Phoebe saw cloaked and masked figures appearing in the crowd; then she saw Serefina and Jackson, their wands raised, and heard both of them shout, '_Protego_!", a cry that was echoed on all sides -

"Terence!" Phoebe whispered as she spotted her husband. He was holding Blake close to him, and battling against another masked figure in a black cloak. "Find Hermione and Ron!" she hissed to Harry, before proceeding to push her way through the crowd. She drew her wand, aimed it at the Death Eater, and said, "_Stupefy!"_

The Death Eater dropped his wand and toppled over, landing face down on the floor.

Terence blinked and looked up. "What are you still doing here?" he yelled over the noise.

"I -"

"Phoebe!" Hermione's voice echoed through the ruckus.

"Hermione!"

"Harry!"

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder, the Golden Trio had found one another, but was now looking for her.

"Phoebe, go!" Terence said. He grabbed her hand and kissed the palm of it.

"But -"

"We know the plan," Terence reassured her. "It's been set for months... now go... and be careful!"

Phoebe felt her eyes filling up with tears, her vision had started to blur and she found that leaving her family behind was not what she wanted, but it was too late to go back now. Plans had been set in motion, and she was not a part of them. It was her duty to go with Harry, she had to protect Harry, and she had promised Dumbledore.

"I love you," she whispered, kissing him slowly.

"I love you too," Terence answered.

"Be good," Phoebe said, kissing Blake's forehead. "Mummy loves you... more than anything in this world!"

Blake stared at his mother, unblinking, before reaching out and tugging at her fringe. "Mama!" he squealed.

Phoebe felt her heart sink. "I love you, Blakey," she whispered, as she stepped backwards into the crowd. There was a faint _pop_ and right before her eyes Terence Disapparated.

"Phoebe! Phoebe!" Hermione called.

"There!" Ron shouted, pointing the elemental out of the crowd.

"Phoebe!" Harry yelled, reaching out his hand.

Reaching out, Phoebe grasped his hand, his fingers curling around her wrist, as Hermione turned on the spot, and next second, sight and sound were extinguished as darkness pressed in from all corners. The four of them were squeezed through space and time, away from the Burrow, away from the descending Death Eaters, away, perhaps, from Voldemort himself.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Where are we?"

Harry opened his eyes.

"Tottenham Court Road," panted Hermione.

Still holding Harry's hand, Phoebe tugged him along behind her. "Walk," she urged. "Just walk. We need to find somewhere for you to change."

They half walked, half ran up the wide street thronged with late-night revelers and lined with closed shops, stars twinkling above them. A double-decker bus rumbled by and a group of merry pub-goers ogled them as they passed.

"But we haven't got anything to change into," said Ron, as a young woman burst into laughter at the sight of him.

"Why didn't I make sure I had the Invisibility Cloak with me?" said Harry, inwardly cursing his own stupidity. "All last year I kept it on me and -"

"We've got the cloak," said Hermione. "And I've packed clothes for both of you. Just try and act naturally until - this will do."

She led them down a side street, then into the shelter of a shadowy alleyway.

"When you say you've got the Cloak and clothes..." said Harry, frowning at Hermione, who was carrying nothing except her small beaded handbag, in which she was now rummaging.

"Yes, they're there," confirmed Phoebe, as the bookworm, much to Harry and Ron's astonishment, pulled out a pair of jeans, a sweatshirt, some maroon socks, and finally the silvery Invisibility Cloak.

"How the ruddy hell -?"

"Undetectable Extension Charm," said Hermione. "Tricky, but Phoebe managed to pull it off. I managed to fit everything we need in here." She gave the fragile-looking bag a little shake and it echoed like a cargo hold as a number of heavy objects rolled around inside it. "Oh, damn, that'll be the books," she said, peering inside, "and I had them all stacked by subject..."

"It doesn't matter," said Phoebe. "Harry, you'd better take the Cloak. Ron, hurry up and change..."

"When did you do all this?" Harry asked as Ron stripped off his robes.

"We told you at the Burrow," said Hermione. "Phoebe and I have had the essentials packed for days, you know, in case we needed to make a quick getaway."

"I packed your rucksack this morning, Harry, after you changed, and put it in there," said Phoebe, nodding at Hermione's bag. "I just had a feeling..."

"You're feeling wouldn't have been named 'Aiden', would it?" Ron asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "Aiden didn't see this happening," she sighed, "if he had, I would have made sure to warn Serefina and the rest of the Order. The wedding would have been cancelled and we would have all headed to a new location."

"New location?"

"There is more than one safety house, Harry," Phoebe explained. "Now, please, get the Cloak on!"

Harry threw the Invisibility Cloak around his shoulders and pulled it up over his head, vanishing from sight. "Hey, wait a minute," he gasped. "What about the others - everyone at the wedding -"

"We can't worry about that now," whispered Hermione. "It's you they're after, Harry, and we'll just put everyone in even more danger by going back."

"She's right," said Ron. "Most of the Order was there, they'll take care of everyone."

"Yeah," Harry said, but Phoebe could tell he was still nervous.

"Come on, I think we ought to keep moving," said Phoebe.

Hermione nodded and led the way out the alley.

They moved back up the side street and onto the main road again, where a group of men on the other side were singing and weaving across the pavement.

"Just as a matter of interest, why Tottenham Court Road?" Ron asked.

"I've no idea, it just popped into my head, but i'm sure we're safer out in the Muggle world, it's not where they'll expect us to be."

"True," said Ron, looking around, "but don't you feel a bit - exposed?"

"Where else is there?" asked Phoebe, cringing as the men on the other side of the road started whistling. "We can hardly book rooms at the Leaky Cauldron, can we? Oh, I wish they'd shut up!"

"All right, beautiful," the drunkest of the men on the other pavement was yelling. "Fancy a drink? Ditch ginger and come and have a pint!"

"Let's sit down somewhere," Hermione said hastily as Ron opened his mouth to shout back across the road. "Look, this will do, in here!"

It was a small and shabby all-night cafe. A light layer of grease lay on all the Formica-topped tables, but it was at least empty. Phoebe allowed Harry to slip into a booth first and then sat beside him, while Ron and Hermione sat opposite them, their backs to the doors.

After a minute or two, Ron said, "You know, we're not far from the Leaky Cauldron here; it's only in Charing Cross -"

"Ron, we can't!" said Hermione at once.

"Not to stay there, but to find out what's going on!"

"We know what's going on! Voldemort's take over the Ministry, what else do we need to know?"

"Okay, okay, it was just an idea!"

They relapsed into a prickly silence. The gum-chewing waitress shuffled over and Hermione ordered three cappuccinos. Since Harry was invisible, it would have looked weird to have ordered four. A pair of burly workmen entered the cafe and squeezed into the next booth. Hermione dropped her voice to a whisper.

"I say we find a quiet place to Disapparate and head for the countryside. Once we're there, we could send a message to the Order."

"Can either of you do that talking Patronus thing then?" Ron asked, looking between Hermione and Phoebe.

Phoebe nodded. "Since I was eight," she shrugged.

"Well, as long as it doesn't get them into trouble, though they might've been arrested already. God, that's revolting," Ron added after one sip of the foamy, grayish coffee.

The waitress had heard; she shot Ron a nasty look as she shuffled off to take the new customers' orders. The large of the two workmen, who was blond and quite huge, now that Phoebe came to look at him, waved her away. She stared, affronted.

"Let's get going then, I don't want to drink this muck," said Ron. "Hermione, have you got Muggle money to pay for this?"

"Yes, I took out all my Building Society savings before I came to the Burrow, I'll bet all the change is at the bottom," Hermione sighed, opening the bag.

"Don't move!" Phoebe hissed, her senses zeroing in on the men across from them.

Hermione froze. "What is it?" she asked, turning to glance over her shoulder. "Death -"

"_STUPEFY!"_ Phoebe yelled, flourishing her wand in the direction of the two Death Eaters.

The great blond Death Eater was hit in the face by a jet of red light. He stumped sideways, unconscious. His companion, fired off another stunner, his wand pointed at Hermione. Ron lunged forward and pushed Hermione sideways out of the booth. The force of the Death Eaters' spell shattered the tiled wall where Ron's head had just been, as Harry, still invisible, yelled, "_Stupefy!"_

"_Protego! Expluso!"_

A table behind Phoebe exploded. The force of which slammed her into the wall and she felt her wand leave her hand.

The waitress screamed and ran for the door - Harry sent another Stunning Spell at the Death Eater, but the spell missed, rebounded on the window, and hit the waitress, who collapsed in front of the door.

"_Petrificus Totalus!"_ screamed Hermione from out of sight, and the Death Eater fell forward like a statue to land with a crunching thud on the mess of broken china, table, and coffee. Hermione crawled out from underneath the bench, shaking bits of glass ashtray out of her hair and trembling all over.

Phoebe winced as she picked up her wand and climbed over all the debris to where the large blond Death Eater was sprawled across the bench. "His name's Rowle," she said, looking up as Harry appeared at her shoulder. "Thorfinn Rowle."

"And what about this one?" Harry asked as he turned over the darker Death Eater with his foot, the man's eyes moved rapidly between the four of them.

"Lestrange," Phoebe answered. "Rabastan Lestrange!"

"Never mind what they're called!" said Hermione a little hysterically. "How did they find us? What are we going to do?"

"Lock the door," Harry told her, "and Ron, turn out the lights."

He looked down at the paralyzed Lestrange, as the lock clicked and Ron used the Deluminator to plunge the cafe into darkness. Phoebe could hear the men who had jeered at her and Hermione earlier, yelling at another girl in the distance.

"What are we going to do with them?" Ron whispered. "Kill them? They'd kill us. They had a good go just now."

Hermione shuddered and took a step backwards.

Harry shook his head. "We just wipe their memories," he said. "It's better like that; it'll throw them off the scent. If we killed them it'd be obvious we were here."

"You're the boss," said Ron, sounding profoundly relieved. "But I've never done a Memory Charm."

"Nor have I," said Hermione.

"I know the theory," said Phoebe, pointing her wand at Lestrange's forehead. She took a deep, calming breath, and then said, "_Oblivate_!"

At once, Lestrange's eyes became unfocused and dreamy.

"Brilliant!" said Harry, clapping her on the back. Phoebe hissed and coughed. "Are you OK?" he added with concern.

Phoebe smiled. "Yeah," she nodded. "I'll take care of Rowle and the waitress, you, Ron and Hermione clear up."

"Clear up?" said Ron, looking around the partly destroyed cafe. "Why?"

"Don't you think they might wonder what's happened if they wake up and find themselves in a place that looks like it's just been bombed?"

"Oh right, yeah..."

Ron struggled for a moment before managed to extract his wand from his pocket.

"It's no wonder I can't get it out, Hermione, you packed my old jeans they're tight."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," hissed Hermione, as she hurried off to help Phoebe drag the waitress out of sight of the windows. Phoebe giggled as the bookworm muttered a suggestion of where Ron could stick his wand instead.

Once the cafe was restored to its previous condition, they heaved the Death Eaters back into their booth and propped them up facing each other.

"But how did they find us?" Hermione asked, looking from one inert man to the other. "How did they know where we were?"

She turned to Harry.

"You - you don't think you've still got the Trace on you, do you, Harry?"

"He can't have," said Ron. "The Trace breaks at seventeen, that's Wizarding law; you can't put it on an adult."

"As far as you know," said Hermione. "What if the Death Eaters have found a way to put it on a seventeen-year-old?"

"But Harry hasn't been near a Death Eater in the last twenty-four hours. Who's supposed to have put a Trace on him?"

Hermione did not reply.

"If I can't use magic, and you can't use magic near me, without us giving away our position -" Harry began.

"We're not splitting up!" said Phoebe firmly.

"We need a place to hide," said Ron. "Give us time to think things through."

"Grimmuald Place," said Harry.

Hermione and Ron gaped at him.

"Don't be silly, Harry, Snape can get in there!"

"Jinxes have been put in place to stop Snape from gaining access," said Phoebe. "Moody did them himself. Grimmuald Place is safe."

Harry pointed at the elemental and nodded. "See, and besides, if the jinxes haven't worked against him, so what? I swear I'd like nothing better than to meet Snape!"

"But -"

"Hermione, where else is there? It's the best chance we've got. Snape's only one Death Eater. If I've still got the Trace on me, we'll have whole crowds of them on us wherever we go."

Hermione could not argue, though she looked as if she would have liked to. While she unlocked the cafe door, Ron clicked the Deluminator to release the cafe's light. Then, on Harry's count of three, Phoebe reversed the spells upon their three victims, and before the waitress or either of the Death Eaters could do more than stir sleepily, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe had turned on the spot and vanished.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe coughed as her lungs expanded gratefully and she opened her eyes. They were standing in the middle of a familiar small and shabby square. Tall, dilapidated house looked down on them from every side. Number Twelve was visible to them, for they had been told of its existence by Dumbledore, its Secret Keeper, and they rushed toward it, checking every few yards that they were not being followed or observed.

They raced up the stone steps, and Phoebe tapped the front door with her wand. There was a series of metallic clicks and the clatter of a chain, then the door swung open with a creak and they hurried over the threshold.

It looked just as remembered; eerie, cobwebbed, the outlines of the house-elf heads on the wall throwing odd shadows up the staircase. Long dark curtains concealed the portrait of Sirius's mother. The only thing that was out of place was the troll's leg umbrella stand, which was lying on its side as if Tonks had just knocked it over again.

"I think somebody's been in here," Hermione whispered.

"That could've happened as the Order left," Ron murmured.

"Wait," Phoebe said, stopping Ron from taking a step further in the hall.

"Why?"

"_Severus Snape?"_

Mad-Eye Moody's voice whispered out of the darkness, as something shifted in the shadows at the end of the hall. A figure had risen up out of the carpet, tall, dust-coloured, and terrible, it glided towards them, faster and faster, its waist-length hair and beard streaming find it, its face sunken, fleshless, with empty eye sockets. Horribly familiar, dreadfully altered, it raised a wasted arm and pointed at them.

"No!" Harry shouted, raising his wand.

"It was not us who killed you, Dumbledore!" said Phoebe.

The dust image exploded, showering them from head-to-foot.

"What was that?" Hermione whimpered.

"One of Moody's jinxes," said Phoebe. "It was backed up by a Tongue Tying Jinx. If we had been Snape, our tongues would have rolled backwards on themselves, and we would have lost the ability to talk. By saying that we did not kill Dumbledore... well, you understand."

Hermione nodded and followed the elemental down the hall.

"How did you know to do that?" Ron asked.

"Moody told me," said Phoebe.

"Why did he tell you?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Maybe because he trusted me," she answered. "You know, Ron, if this whole Horcrux hunt is going to work, you're going to have to start trusting me. I get that you don't like me, I'm not particularly fond of you, either, but without trust, we're not going to get anywhere. So what do you say? At least until the battle is over... after that, you can go back to hating me for all I care!"

Ron scowled. "Fine," he grumbled.

"Before we go any further I think we had better check," whispered Hermione, and she raised her wand and said, "_Homenum revelio_."

Nothing happened.

"Well, you've just had a big shock," said Ron kindly. "What was that supposed to do?"

"It did what it was meant to do!" said Hermione crossly. "That was a spell to reveal a human presence, and there's nobody here except us!"

"And old Dusty!" said Ron, glancing at the patch of carpet from which the corpse-figure had risen.

"Let's go up," said Hermione with a frightened look at the same spot, and she led the way up the creaking stairs to the drawing room on the first floor.

Phoebe waved her wand to ignite the old gas lamps.

Hermione shivered slightly in the drafty room as she perched herself on the sofa, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. Ron crossed to the window and moved the heavy velvet curtain aside an inch.

"Can't see anyone out there," he reported. "And you'd think, if Harry still had the Trace on him, they'd have followed us here. I know they can't get in the house, but - what's up, Harry?"

Harry had given a cry of pain.

"It was your scar, wasn't it?" Phoebe asked, softly.

"What did you see?" Ron asked, advancing on Harry. "Did you see him at my place?"

"No, I just felt anger - he's really angry -"

"But that could be at the Burrow," said Ron loudly. "What else? Didn't you see anything? Was he cursing someone?"

"No, I just felt anger - I couldn't tell -"

"Your scar?" Hermione repeated. "But what's going on? I thought that connection had closed!"

"It did, for a while," muttered Harry. "I - I think it's started opening again whenever he loses control, that's how it used to -"

"But then you've got to close your mind!" said Hermione shrilly. "Harry, Dumbledore didn't want you to use that connection, he wanted you to shut it down, that's why you were supposed to use Occlumency! Otherwise Voldemort can plant false images in your mind, remember -"

"Yeah, I do remember, thanks," said Harry through gritted teeth.

Phoebe placed a hand softly on his arm. "Alright, everyone just calm down," she ordered, looking around at Ron and Hermione. "Harry, I know it's difficult, but Hermione's right," she nodded. "You _have_ to close your mind off to him."

"I _know_!" Harry stressed.

"Please don't bite our heads off," said Phoebe. "We're just trying to help!"

"Sorry," Harry sighed. "I didn't -"

"I know you didn't mean it," Phoebe nodded. "We're going to get through this... I'll help you close off your mind."

"How?"

"The same way Dumbledore ordered Snape," said Phoebe. "Through Occlumency!"

Harry smiled, faintly, before nodded. He then turned his back on them and pretended to examine the old tapestry of the Black family tree on the wall.

Then Hermione shrieked; Harry drew his wand again and spun around to see silver Patronus soar through the drawing room window, circle the room, and then perch itself on the desk at the back of the room, where it solidified into an Eagle that spoke with the voice of Serefina Blackheart.

"_Everyone is safe, do not reply, we are being watched."_

The Patronus dissolved into nothingness. Ron let out a sigh of relief and dropped onto the sofa, as Phoebe's legs buckled and she dropped to her knees, her face buried in her hands as she started to cry, her breathing coming in short gasps.

Hermione joined her best friend, wrapping her arms around the elemental.

"They're all right, they're all right!" the bookworm whispered, and Phoebe smiled through her tears and hugged her best friend.

"Harry," said Ron, looking up at his _own_ best friend. "I -"

"It's not a problem," said Harry, sickened by the pain in his head. "It's your family, 'course you're worried. I'd feel the same way... I _do_ feel the same way," he added, his mind flashing to that of Ginny.

"We should get some sleep," said Phoebe, drying her tears on the back of her sleeve. "And I'd like to get out of this dress."

Hermione nodded. "Do you think we could use the sleeping bags I have packed and camp in here tonight?"

"Of course," Phoebe agreed. "It is best that we stick together... at least until we are comfortable enough to stay on our own."

"Thanks," Hermione smiled. "Are you OK?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. I just thought of Blake," she whispered. "He said 'Mama!'"

"What?" Hermione asked her eyes wide.

"Blake said 'Mama'," Phoebe answered.

"When?"

"Just before we left," Phoebe murmured. "He just stared at me... he didn't have a clue what was going on... he just lay in Terence's arms and stared at me, grabbing at my fringe, he tugged at it, and said 'Mama'."

Hermione covered her mouth with her hands as she fully understood why Phoebe was so upset. The elemental may have been good at hiding her emotions, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that she was second guessing her choices of leaving Blake behind.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, November 08, 2012** **at 10:35pm**


	163. Chapter 163

**Author's Note:** Hi... back again with another update. I will, eventually, create an updating timetable, because I seem to have scheduled myself into an update trail. So this story may possibly get updated every Saturday, giving me a chance to update my other stories but also focus on my Uni work too. Have fun.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, Dream Lighting, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, SoulVirus** and** BlueRose22**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **BlueRose22** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>Phoebe woke early the next morning, coughing painfully, it was if a rattle snake had grown inside her chest and was shaking its tail angrily. She was still wrapped in a sleeping bag on the drawing room floor. A chin of sky was visible between the heavy curtains; it was the cool, clear blue of watered ink, somewhere between night and dawn, and everything was quiet except for the heavy breathing of her room-mates.<p>

The elemental glanced over at the dark shapes of the Golden Trio, before realizing that they were one short. Harry was not there. Where had he gone? She knew, better than Ron and Hermione that Harry had thought about leaving. What if he had gone? What if he had left them during the night? If that _was_ the case, she was going to hunt him down and kill him, before Voldemort had a chance.

Unable to lie on the floor worrying about Harry any longer, Phoebe shuffled out of her sleeping bag and stood. She swayed slightly the moment she stood up, and braced herself against the mantelpiece, regaining her sense of balance. She wasn't tired, but she was feeling dizzy and extremely light-headed.

In fact, she had been feeling dizzy, light-headed and nauseated ever since the attack from Rowle and Lestrange the previous evening. The explosive jinx may have missed her and hit a table, but the force of the explosion had been enough to lift her off of her feet, had there been another spell mixed with the Expluso jinx?

That is what had happened to Aiden, hadn't it? The Death Eaters had strengthened a Stunning spell and changed it into a Knockout Jinx. Aiden had been rendered unconscious rather than stunned. But what had the Death Eaters hit _her_ with. She couldn't think of a spell that had the power to turn her insides into the likes of a rattle, at least not an English spell anyway, maybe a foreign one? She wasn't sure.

Other than the rattling in her chest, Phoebe felt fine. Completely and utterly fine. She had to be fine. The others needed her! Harry needed her! She was the only form of protection that he had left now, the Order was set to disband in the upcoming months and with Dumbledore dead and buried, and she was the only surviving chance that Harry had of making it both to and out of this war alive.

Creeping down the room, Phoebe placed her hand over her heart, the coughing had subsided but the pain was increasing. It was unbearable, but she had to push through it. She couldn't let a simple heart ache keep her down, may she just homesick, missing Blake, missing Terence. It was easy to mistake symptoms of something less frightening for something dangerous.

She'd be fine.

"_Lumos_," Phoebe muttered, holding up her wand. The tip ignited and flooded the landing and stairs with a bright white light, the second she was sure that everything was quiet and safe, she started to climb.

On the second landing was the bedroom in which she and Ashlyn had shared the last time they had been here; the door had been opened, and she could see right into the room. On the far wall, near the window, sat an old wardrobe, its doors were also open and it looked like it had been ransacked. The beds were untidy, clothes strewn across the floor, bedside lamps knocked over.

Someone had obviously been in here since the order had left.

_**Can't have been Snape**_ Phoebe thought as she set the lamp nearest the door back on its stand, and cast another look around. _**It could, very well, have been Mundungus.**_ _**Slippery snake!**_ She hissed, turning way and stalking out of the room. Opposite her, on the other side of the landing, had been the room that Harry and Ron had shared.

The elemental gasped as an unlikely thought popped to mind.

"Phineas!" she whispered, opening the door and creeping inside.

Phineas Nigellus Black, Sirius's great-great-great grandfather's portrait hung on the wall, but the frame was empty, showing nothing but a stretch of muddy backdrop. It was obvious that Phineas was spending the night in the headmaster's study at Hogwarts.

"Sorry, Phineas," Phoebe muttered, flicking her wand and taking the picture from the wall. She grabbed onto the frame, tapped it with her wand, and within the blink of an eye, a black blindfold wound itself around the picture, covering the spot where Phineas' eyes would be when he returned. "But I can't risk you telling Snape where we are."

With another flick of her wand, Phoebe placed the picture frame back on the wall, and left the bedroom.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Leaving the second floor landing, Phoebe continued up the stairs, still in her search of Harry Potter - Merlin she was going to kill him when she got her hands on him. Reaching the topmost landing, Phoebe noticed that there were only two doors up here, the one facing her bore a nameplate reading SIRIUS on it, but what was more, the door was slightly ajar.

Had Mundungus been in there too?

Deciding to check it out, the elemental crossed the landing, and peeked inside. She sighed in relief when she spotted Harry sitting on the bed. "You complete jerk, Harry Potter!" she snapped, throwing open the door and walking inside. "Why didn't you wake one of us and tell us you were going exploring? It would have been nicer than waking up to just find you gone!"

"Sorry," Harry apologized. "You looked peaceful. And after last night... well... I just didn't want to bother you."

"You mean me crying myself to sleep?"

Harry nodded. "I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Phoebe, I shouldn't have done it. It was wrong!"

"Hey," Phoebe cut across him. "You didn't drag me into this! Voldemort did! He involved me when he attacked me in first year, when he ordered Ginny to kidnap me in second year, when Barty Crouch Jr. kidnapped me in fourth year, when he tried to kill me in fifth year, and when he threatened to kill me in sixth year! So it's not your fault, it is his! A lot of things are his fault, and you've just been forced to take the blame!"

Harry smiled, faintly.

Phoebe shuffled closer and sat beside him on the bed. "What's that?" she asked, pointing at the letter in his hand.

"My mum sent this," Harry explained, handing her the letter and photograph.

Phoebe smiled as she looked at the photo. A black-haired baby was zooming in and out of the picture on a tiny broomstick, roaring with laugher, and a pair of legs that must have belonged to his father, James Potter, was chasing after him. "Aw, you were a cute baby, Harry," she cooed. "No wonder you're such a natural on a broomstick, been flying since you were small!"

"To bad I can't remember it,"

"No one can really remember what they were like at that age, Harry," Phoebe reassured him. "Apparently I flooded Blackheart Manor when I was that age, but I can't remember doing it. Serefina said they were all swimming in the main hall and kitchen, and it wasn't until they opened the doors did the water drain out."

"Why didn't they just cast a spell?"

"It was elemental magic," Phoebe said. "It's kinda the same with untrained magic in young witches and wizards. The only difference is it is unreversiable. Muggle techniques are really the only way to end it. Besides, no one wanted an indoor pool."

Harry smiled again, but just like before, it fell quickly. "I want to go there," he said.

"Go where?"

"Godric's Hollow,"

Phoebe sighed. "Harry, I -"

"I want to see them, Phoebe," Harry interrupted. "I want to be able to say goodbye to them. I never had the chance before, I was just a baby, and I didn't know what was happening."

Phoebe hesitated, glancing from Harry to the picture and back again. "I'll think about it," she said. "OK? I make no promises right now... but I have a feeling we might end up there eventually," she handed him back the picture, and got to her feet. "I'm going to keep looking around. I think Hermione was right when she said that someone had been in here after the Order left."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe stopped outside the second door on the landing.

There were deep scratch marks in the paintwork below a small sign that read:

_Do Not Enter_

_Without the Express Permission of_

_Regulus Arcturus Black_

"Hello cousin," she murmured, touching the door. She tried to open it - it was locked. "No matter!" she shrugged, pointing her wand at the door handle and muttering, "_Alohomora_!" There was a click, and the door swung open.

Phoebe moved over the threshold, gazing around. Regulus's bedroom was slightly smaller than Sirius's, though it had the same sense of the Black's grandeur. His bedroom was full of the Slytherin colours of emerald and silver, where has Sirius had covered his in Gryffindor colours of gold and scarlet. The Black family crest was painstakingly painted over the bed, along with its motto, TOUJOURS PUR.

Beneath this was a collection of yellow newspaper cuttings, all stuck together to make a ragged collage. Phoebe crossed the room to examine them. They were all about Voldemort. It was obvious that Regulus had been a fan of Voldemort's long before he had considered joining them.

Shaking her head, Phoebe turned away from the clippings and spotted a picture; a Hogwarts Quidditch team was smiling and waving out of the frame. She recognized the snakes emblazoned on their chests: Slytherin's. Regulus was instantly recognizable as the boy sitting in the middle of the front row.

"Seeker..." she breathed. "You were a Seeker. Ashlyn failed to mention that!" she huffed, looking away from the picture, as the sound of her name being called echoed throughout the house.

"Phoebe?! Harry?!"

"In here!" she called, at the same time as Harry.

"What's happened?" Harry added, appearing in the doorway to Sirius's room. Phoebe opened Regulus's room and stepped outside.

Hermione sighed, breathlessly, but in relief. "We woke up and didn't know where you were!" she said, before turning to shout over her shoulder. "Ron! I've found them!"

Ron's annoyed voice echoed distantly from several floors below.

"Good! Tell them from me that they're a right pair of gits!"

"Love you too, Weasley," Phoebe said, rolling her eyes.

"Please don't just disappear like that, we were terrified! Why did you come up here anyway? What have you been doing?"

"Well, I, just like you, woke up to find Harry gone," Phoebe explained. "I thought he had gone off and left us here alone, so I came looking for him. I found some interesting discoveries on my way up here; I think you were right last night when you said someone had been here before us! Every room looked like it had been ransacked."

"What do you think they were after?"

"Information on the Order, if it was Snape."

"But you'd think he'd already have all he needed, I mean, he was _in_ the Order, wasn't he?"

Phoebe shrugged. "We have too possibilities on who could have done all this," she said. "Snape or Mundungus. He did literally ransack this place when Sirius was alive, remember? And Sirius did say that he could have whatever he wanted, I just wish he had given us time to mourn Sirius! It looks like he came straight back here seconds after hearing Sirius was gone! The little Snake!"

"What have you got there, Harry?" Hermione asked, noticing the crumpled up letter.

Harry held out his mother's letter. Hermione took it and read it. When she reached the end of the page she looked up at him.

"Oh, Harry..."

"And there's this too."

He handed her the torn photograph he had shown Phoebe. Hermione smiled at it.

"I've been looking for the rest of the letter," Harry said, "but it's not here. What if whoever ransacked the house before us, what if it was Snape? But he wasn't looking for information on the Order, what if he was looking for information on Dumbledore? The second page this letter could have held information on him, it mentioned a Bathilda Bagshot, she knew him, you know? She knew my mum and dad too."

"Who?" Hermione asked, vaguely paying attention.

"Bathilda Bagshot," Phoebe repeated. "The incredible magical historian. She wrote many books, one of which we know fluently - _A History of Magic_!"

Hermione gasped and stared at Harry with wide eyes. "Your parents knew her?"

"It seems that way," Harry nodded. "She's still alive, you know, she could still be living at Godric's Hollow. Ron's Auntie Muriel was talking about her at the wedding. She knew Dumbledore's family too. Be pretty interesting to talk to her, wouldn't it? Phoebe already said -"

Phoebe held up her hand and silenced him. "Before you drag me through the mud," she said, "and twist my words around to suit your needs, I would just like to point out that I would _think_ about us going to Godric's Hollow. I may have a feeling that we may end up there at some point, but I honestly don't think that talking to some batty old historian is going to help us in the search for the Horcruxes!"

"Plus the Death Eaters will know where your parents are buried," Hermione nodded. "They will be expecting you to turn up there, a final goodbye, sort to speak; they could ambush us for all we know, Harry. I honestly don't think it is a good idea."

"It's not just that," said Harry, hotly. "Muriel said some stuff about Dumbledore at the wedding. I want to know the truth..."

"But it's not Dumbledore's past we are hunting, Harry," said Phoebe. "It is Voldemort's. It is our duty to find the Horcruxes and put an end to his reign of terror, not go chasing after a story that was created by Rita Skeeter. I know your upset about Dumbledore, but -"

"I'm not upset," he lied. "I'd just like to know whether or not what Muriel said was true or -"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks.

"You know what?" Harry sighed, shaking his head and snatching back the letter. "Forget it! Forget I said anything... we'll just carry on with the task at hand. Business as usual."

"We just don't want to tarnish your image of Dumbledore, Harry," said Phoebe. "But do you really think you'll get the truth from a malicious old woman like Muriel, or from Rita Skeeter? How can you believe them? You knew Dumbledore!"

"I thought I did," he muttered.

"But you know how much truth there was in everything Rita said about you! Doge is right, how can you let these people tarnish your memories of Dumbledore?" asked Hermione.

Phoebe shook her head and touched his shoulder. "Don't fall for everything you are told, Harry," she said. "Dumbledore may have been a great man, and yes, everyone liked him, but not _everyone_ as anyone! Dumbledore had his own haters and enemies, just like everyone in this world does. Not everyone loved him for what he did, plus Rita is good at bending the truth, she makes a living out of other people's suffering, you know that better than anyone."

Harry sighed and nodded, but he _still_ refused to look at them.

"Shall we go down to the kitchen?" Hermione suggested. "Find something for breakfast?"

"Yes," Phoebe said, "i'm starved!"

Harry agreed, grudgingly, but he followed them down nonetheless.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After managing to scrounge some breakfast from the pantry, Phoebe and the Golden Trio sat down to eat.

Phoebe's mind was churning over everything that had been said upstairs, and her mind kept flashing back to Regulus's bedroom. There was something about it that she knew was important, but for the life of her, she could not figure out what it was.

"Are you OK?" Hermione asked, interrupting the elemental's thoughts. "Thinking about Blake? He's safe, you know, Terence and Serefina... they are all with him!"

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "But I wasn't thinking about that..."

"Oh, sorry,"

Phoebe smiled and waved her off. "Hey, Harry, do you have that fake locket handy?" she asked.

"Yes, why?"

"Can I see the note?"

Harry frowned, reached for the thread around his neck, and pulled the pouch that Hagrid had made for him over his head. He opened it and pulled out the locket. "Why do want it?" he asked, handing it over and watching as Phoebe opened the golden clasps, and removed the note. She read through it in silence, before gasping. "What? What is it?"

"R.A.B!"

"Yeah, what about -?"

"Regulus Arcturus Black!"

"Who?" the Golden Trio asked together.

"Ashlyn's dad!" Phoebe cried. "He was a Death Eater who fought back when he learned his wife was pregnant, remember? He stole the necklace! The real locket! He put the fake in its place with this note inside! He tried to foil Voldemort! But I think he failed in doing so, and paid the price for her treachery."

Ron scoffed.

Phoebe growled. "You got a better explanation?" she snapped, angrily.

"If that _is_ the case," Ron sneered. "Then that should mean the _real_ locket is in his bedroom. Let's go look..." he got to his feet.

"I've already checked," Phoebe said, turning to Harry and Hermione. "There was nothing in there. But Regulus didn't live here when he was older; he had his own place when he got married. I just never thought to ask Ashlyn where she lived _before_ she returned to this place and then went to live with the Pucey's!"

"She lived here?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. After her mother died she was returned to Walburga, who despised Sirius and Sam, and therefore, when she died, she made it so Ashlyn went to live with her Godmother. Adrian's mother was her mother, Thalia's, best friend."

"Do you think Walburga knew that the Pucey's were Death Eaters?"

"I don't think she cared," Phoebe said, shaking her head. "Anyway, I checked the room, there is nothing out of place up there; but there isn't much of value in there either. But, if you remember to the last time we were here, there was a locket in the drawing room..."

Harry nodded as a cold dread engulfed his stomach. "Yeah, I remember it," he said. "None of us could open it so we - oh no..."

"We tossed it in the trash," Hermione said, finishing his trail of thought.

Ron sighed and dropped his head onto the table. "Wait - Kreacher nicked loads of things back from us," he said, looking up at them. "He had a whole stash of stuff in his cupboard..." his eyes travelled to the little cubby in the corner. "You don't think -?" he trailed off.

"It's the only chance we've got," Hermione shrugged, getting up and rounding the table with Ron, as Harry and Phoebe reached the cupboard first, and wrenched open the door.

There was the nest of dirty old blankets in which the house-elf had once slept, but they were no longer glittering with trinkets Kreacher had salvaged. The only thing there was an old copy of _Nature's Nobility: A Wizarding Genealogy_.

Snatching up the blankets, Harry shook them. A dead mouse fell out and rolled dismally across the floor. Ron groaned as he threw himself into a kitchen chair; Hermione closed her eyes.

"Wait," said Phoebe, putting her hand on Harry's shoulder as he started to curse loudly. "There's still hope."

"How?" Harry asked, brushing past her. "There is nothing -"

"Just because we can't _find_ anything, doesn't mean there is nothing to know!" Phoebe said. "We can still find out information."

"How?" Ron asked.

"Like this," said Phoebe. "_Kreacher!"_

There was a loud crack and the house-elf that James had inherited from Sirius appeared out of nowhere in front of the cold and empty fireplace; tiny, half human-sized, his pale skin hanging off of him in folds, white hair sprouting copiously from his bat like ears.

"Mistress Malfoy," he croaked as he looked up at Phoebe, before bowing, his ears touching the floor. "Back in my Mistress's old house with the blood traitor Weasley, Mudblood Granger and that Potter boy!"

"Now, now, Kreacher," Phoebe scolded. "You are forbidden, from here on out, to call _anyone_ a blood traitor or Mudblood! We've got some questions for you; do you think you could answer them for us?"

"For Mistress Malfoy," Kreacher nodded. "Anything!"

"Good. I want them answered truthfully, Kreacher, understand?"

"Loud and clear!"

Phoebe nodded and looked at Harry, who prompted her to continue.

"Two years ago there was a big gold locket in the drawing room upstairs. We threw it out. Did you steal it back?"

There was a moment's silence, during which Kreacher straightened up and looked at the four Gryffindor's fully. "Yes."

"Where is it now?" asked Harry jubilantly.

Kreacher closed his eyes.

"Answer him, Kreacher," Phoebe ordered.

"Gone."

"Gone?" echoed Harry. "What do you mean, it's gone?"

The elf shivered. He swayed.

"Kreacher, my orders are clear!" Phoebe said. "Truthfully answer my questions! Now, where has the Locket gone?"

"He came in the middle of the night," Kreacher croaked. "Stole the Miss Bella's and Miss Cissy's pictures, my Mistress's gloves, the Order of Merlin, First Class, the goblets with the family crest, and - and -"

Kreacher was gulping for air. His hollow chest was rising and falling rapidly, then his eyes flew open and he uttered a bloodcurdling scream.

"_- and the locket, Master Regulus's locket, Kreacher did wrong, Kreacher failed in his orders!"_

"Grab him!" Phoebe shrieked, reacting instinctively.

Harry launched himself upon the elf that had lunged for the poker standing in the grate. Hermione screamed as Harry flattened the elf beneath him.

"Kreacher!" Phoebe yelled. "I order you to stay still!"

Harry felt the elf freeze and released him. Kreacher lay flat on the stone cold floor, tears gushing from his sagging eyes.

"Phoebe, let him up!" Hermione whispered.

"So he can beat himself up with the poker?" snorted Harry, kneeling beside the elf. "I don't think so."

"Harry's right, 'Mione," Phoebe nodded. "But I still want the truth. Kreacher, how do you know it was Mundungus Fletcher that took the locket?"

"Kreacher saw him," Kreacher answered. "I saw him come out of Kreacher's cupboard with his hands full of Kreacher's treasures. Kreacher told the sneak thief to stop, but Mundungus Fletcher just laughed and r-ran..."

"You called it Master Regulus's locket," said Harry. "Why? Where did it come from? What did Regulus have to do with it?"

Kreacher shook his head.

"Kreacher, sit up," Phoebe ordered. "Sit up and tell us everything you know about the locket, and everything Regulus had to do with it."

The elf did as told, but before he started speaking, he curled into a ball and started rocking back and forth; and when he spoke, his voice was muffled but quite distinct in the silent, echoing kitchen.

"Master Sirius ran away, good riddance, for he was a bad boy and broke my Mistress's heart with his lawless ways. But Master Regulus had proper pride; he knew what was due to the name of Black and the dignity of his pureblood. For years he talked of the Dark Lord, who was going to bring the wizards out of hiding to rule the Muggles and the Muggleborns... and when he was sixteen years old, Master Regulus joined the Dark Lord. So proud, so proud, so happy to serve..."

Phoebe leaned forward onto the table, listening intently to the story.

"But one day, a month after joining, Master Regulus received news," Kreacher continued. "His girlfriend, Thalia, was expecting an heir. Master Regulus was afraid to tell my Mistress, but he told Kreacher, he told Kreacher of how much he loved Thalia, he wanted to marry her, to raise his child, but he couldn't do that when he was in league with the Dark Lord. He wanted to leave, but he knew that he couldn't."

Hermione glanced at Phoebe. She was staring at the table, but the bookworm knew that she was listening intently to the story.

"A year after Master Regulus had joined; he came down to the kitchen to see Kreacher. Master Regulus always liked Kreacher. And Master Regulus said... he said..."

The old elf rocked faster than ever.

"... He said that the Dark Lord required an elf."

"Voldemort needed an elf?" Harry repeated, looking around at his friends, all of whom looked puzzled, well, all of them except Phoebe, whose face was looking vacant, her eyes were distant, and it looked like she was no longer apart of the conversation.

"Oh yes," moaned Kreacher. "And Master Regulus had volunteered Kreacher. It was an honor, said Master Regulus, an honor for him and for Kreacher, who must be sure to do whatever the Dark Lord ordered him to do... and then to c-come home."

Hermione frowned. "But if Regulus had a wife and child," she murmured, "why didn't he just leave?"

"Because to become a Death Eater means you pledge allegiance to Voldemort," said Phoebe, "and when you pledge allegiance to Voldemort the only way out is death."

"But isn't that what happened?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, but we don't know the whole story," she shrugged. "Why did Regulus reform? Why did he eventually leave Voldemort? We can't make any assumptions without the full facts. Kreacher, what did Voldemort want an elf for?"

"The Dark Lord did not tell Kreacher what they were to do, but he took Kreacher with him to a cave beside the sea. And beyond the cave there was a cavern, and in the cavern was a great black lake... There was a boat... There was a b-basin full of potion on the island. The D-Dark Lord made Kreacher drink it..."

The elf quaked from head to foot.

"Kreacher drank, and as he drank, he saw terrible things... Kreacher's insides burned... Kreacher cried for Master Regulus to save him, he cried for his Master Regulus, but the Dark Lord only laughed. He made Kreacher drink all the potion... he dropped a locket into the empty basin... he filled it with more potion."

"And then he left," Phoebe said. "Leaving you on the island."

Kreacher nodded.

"Kreacher needed water, he crawled to the island's edge and he drank from the black lake... and hands, dead hands, came out of the water and dragged Kreacher under the surface..."

"How did you get away?" Harry asked.

Kreacher raised his ugly head and looked at Harry with his great, bloodshot eyes.

"Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back," he said.

"I know - but how did you escape the Inferi?"

Kreacher did not seem to understand.

"Master Regulus told Kreacher to come home," he repeated.

"I know, but -"

"He Disapparated!"

"But you couldn't -"

"Elf magic is different to our magic, Harry," Phoebe explained.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, they can Apparate and Disapparate inside Hogwarts, we can't!" he pointed out.

"But how could Voldemort have missed this?"

"Because he cared as much about Elf magic as he did about Muggles and Muggleborns," said Phoebe.

"Of course!" Hermione gasped. "He would have believed it beneath his notice. It would never have occurred to him that they might have magic he didn't."

"Kreacher was told to come home," Phoebe nodded. "So Kreacher came home! He was following orders. A House-elf's highest law is his Master's bidding! You did the right thing, Kreacher, you didn't disobey any orders!"

"What happened after you came back?" Harry asked.

"Master Regulus was very worried," croaked Kreacher. "He told Kreacher to hide, to stay hidden and not to leave the house. And then... it was a while later... Master Regulus came to find Kreacher in his cupboard one night, and Master Regulus was strange, not as he usually was, disturbed in his mind, Kreacher could tell... and he asked Kreacher to take him to the cave, the cave where Kreacher had gone with the Dark Lord..."

Phoebe swallowed and exchanged a look with Harry.

"Did he," she breathed out. "Did he ever tell you when he - he wanted to go there?"

"He wanted to protect his wife and child," Kreacher answered. "The Dark Lord had found out. Master Regulus was worried that the Dark Lord would hold them over his head, he was already planning to send Death Eaters to Thalia's home, and he wanted the baby! He wanted an heir himself! Master Regulus wanted to die in order to save his child!"

"And die he did!" Phoebe said, bitterly.

Kreacher's eyes watered and nodded. "M-Master Regulus drank the potion in the basin. He had told Kreacher that he would do it... and that Kreacher must put a fake locket in place of the real one! He ordered - Kreacher to leave - without him. And he told Kreacher - to go home - and never to tell my Mistress - what he had done - but to destroy - the first locket. Kreacher was only following orders."

Phoebe nodded. "Kreacher was only following orders!" she repeated, glaring, tearfully at the table top.

Ashlyn had grown up without a father, because he had decided to give his life to save hers and her mothers. He had died a hero, and no one had ever known. He had been, for years, marked a Death Eater, a follower of Voldemort, shunned by people who did not know the truth.

"Kreacher," said Phoebe, as the house-elf sobbed into his knees. "I have a job for you!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione turned, questionably, in Phoebe's direction. What was she doing? What as she up too?

"A- A job?" Kreacher repeated.

"When you are feeling better," Phoebe nodded; she wasn't as cold as the people in which she had come from. Her family - not her parents or her brother - but the family before them may have believed in everything that the Dark Lord believed in, but she did not! She was a new and reformed Pureblood. She was a fighter. She was like Regulus and Sirius rolled into one.

She was a black sheep like Sirius, and a fighter, willing to protect her family against Voldemort like Regulus. Voldemort had made things personal when he had gone for Ashlyn when she was a baby, and she, Phoebe, Ashlyn's best friend, was determined to avenge Regulus's name.

After several more minutes, after which Kreacher hiccupped himself into silence, did he sit up, rubbing his knuckles into his eyes like a small child.

"Kreacher there is only two things that I want you to do for me now," said Phoebe. "1) I want you to take Master Regulus's locket -" she held the fake locket in her palm, and, whilst kneeling down beside Kreacher, she clipped it around his neck, "and 2) I'd like you to bring Mundungus Fletcher here to me! Do you think you can do that?"

Kreacher blinked as he stared up at Phoebe, he then nodded, bowed low and Disapparated with a loud _crack_!

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next Saturday.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 11 November, 2012 at 12:21am**


	164. Chapter 164

**Author's Note:** Here is the new chapter. Sorry this has taken forever. The editing took me into the early mornings of Sunday, mostly because I had an accident a few nights ago, and managed to accidentally stab myself with a kitchen knife a few nights ago. It caught me right under the fingernail, and I now have a massive bruise forming and it is really difficult to type with. Enjoy the chapter.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, ZabuzasGirl, Dream Lighting, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, SoulVirus, Alaina08** and an anonymous reviewer **Trish**.

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"They are definitely Death Eaters," Ron confirmed as he and Phoebe watched, hidden by the long-drawn curtains, in the drawing room. "Reckon they know we're in here?"<p>

"I don't think so," said Phoebe.

"You're probably right," Ron nodded, much to Phoebe's amazement. "If they did they would've probably sent Snape in after us. Do -" he paused, he was still struggling with this agreed friendship between them. "Do you think he's already been in here and had his tongue tied by Moody's curse?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I dunno," she said, "it is possible!"

"I think he might have," said Ron. "Otherwise those Death Eaters would have stormed in here by now. I think they may be waiting for us to turn up, I mean, this was Headquarters, and we did stay here once, and the Ministry would know that James inherited this place after Sirius -"

"Well they will be waiting a very long time," said Phoebe, withdrawing from the window. "Because they don't know we are in here, and now that we know they are out there, we will be extra careful when leaving, won't we?"

Ron paused, before he smiled and nodded. "Yes, we will!" he agreed.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Kreacher did not return for almost a week after Phoebe had set him the task of finding Mundungus for her, and during those two days the tensions within Grimmuald Place heightened considerably, the presence of the Death Eaters outside did not help, and the fact that they had not heard word from anyone beyond the protective enchantments, not since Serefina's Patronus, did not to ease the worry on the four Gryffindor's either.

Ron, who had developed a nervous habit of playing with his Deluminator, was annoying Hermione, who was whiling away the wait for Kreacher by studying _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_ and did not appreciate the way the lights kept flashing on and off.

"Will you stop it!" she cried on the third evening of Kreacher's absence, as all light was sucked from the drawing room yet again.

"Sorry, sorry!" said Ron, clicking the Deluminator and restoring the lights. "I don't know I'm doing it!"

"Well, can't you find something useful to occupy yourself?"

"What, like reading kids' stories?"

"Dumbledore left me this book, Ron -"

"- and he left me the Deluminator, maybe I'm supposed to use it!"

Unable to stand the bickering, Harry slipped out of the room unnoticed by either of them. He headed downstairs toward the kitchen, where he found Phoebe, sitting at the table, nursing a mug of steaming hot tea. During their search of the kitchen, Phoebe had managed to find a few cases of English tea, but hardly any food.

"They arguing again?" she asked when he entered the room.

"Yes," Harry nodded. "I don't understand them."

"It's a little obvious, Harry," said Phoebe.

"It is?"

Phoebe smiled and nodded. "Yes, they love each other," she said. "I know, hard to believe, but it is true. The constant bickering? It is their way of showing their feelings. It is not easy being in love with one of your best friends, you know, rather than admit how you feel, and possibly ruin your friendship, you either keep your feelings locked away, or you fight constantly, which is what Hermione and Ron are good at."

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "I know that feeling..."

"What feeling?" Phoebe frowned. "Of constantly fighting with someone?"

"No," Harry said, shaking his head.

"Then what?"

"Being in love with one of your best friends,"

Phoebe cocked her head to the side as she looked up at him, her frown deepening. "You're in love with Hermione too?" she asked.

"No, not Hermione," said Harry, quickly. "I'm in love with -"

Phoebe felt her senses heighten. "Someone's coming..." she whispered.

"What?"

But he never got his answer. For as soon as the words have left his lips, Phoebe had jumped from her seat, brushed past him, whipped around the door, up the stairs, and into the hallway. Harry followed, pulling out his wand as he chased after her.

Their footsteps clattered on the wooden flooring; as they stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

The dust figure of Albus Dumbledore rose out of the carpet in front of them and rushed at the intruder, raising its dead hand.

"It was not I who killed you, Albus," said a quiet voice.

The jinx broke. The dust-figure exploded again, and it was impossible to make out the newcomer through the dense grey cloud it left behind.

Harry raised his wand, but Phoebe put her hand on his arm, and pushed it back down.

"Phoebe," he said, "it could be -"

"Werewolf." Phoebe answered.

Harry frowned. "Greyback?" he questioned, dumbly.

Phoebe shot him a look. "Do you honestly think we would be standing here if it was Greyback?" she asked. "No. Werewolf. Remus."

The newcomer stepped into the light and lowered his hood, revealing the tired and worn face of Remus Lupin.

"How can we be sure?" Harry asked.

"Superhuman abilities," Phoebe answered. "Werewolves and Elementals are on the same dark creature's wave length. We can tell one another apart without a visual of the other. But if you wish to question him, ask him a question that only the real Remus Lupin would know."

Harry paused and then said, "What is my Patronus?"

"Your Patronus takes the form of a stag, Harry," answered Remus.

"Satisfied?" Phoebe asked.

Harry lowered his wand. "Sorry," he apologized.

Phoebe smiled and shook her head. "No need," she answered. "I never really explained this whole Elemental thing to you. It is difficult at times to understand, I do not blame you for wanting to double check. Anyway, what are you doing here, Remus?" she said, turning to the werewolf. "Not that it is not nice to see you. How is everyone else? How is Tonks?"

Wrapped in a thick black travelling cloak, Remus looked exhausted, but very pleased to see them. "Where are Ron and Hermione?" he asked, frowning when he did see the last two of the group of four.

"In the drawing room," Phoebe answered. "Harry, go get them, Remus, would you like some tea?"

"Oh, yes, please," Remus smiled, thankfully, and as Harry climbed the stairs, Phoebe led Remus down into the kitchen.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"No sign of Severus, then?" asked Remus.

"No," said Phoebe, as she set the steaming mug of tea in front of her friend. "But I don't expect him to turn up. What's going on, anyway? Is everyone OK?"

"Yes," said Lupin, "but we're all being watched. There are a couple of Death Eaters in the square outside -"

"We know -"

"I had to Apparate very precisely onto the top step outside the front door to be sure that they would not see me. They can't know you're in here or I'm sure they'd have more people out there; they're staking out everywhere that's got any connection with you or Harry."

Phoebe sighed. "I assumed they would," she nodded. "But Grimmauld Place has very little to do with me," she added. "So I am guessing that cottage that Serefina owns is being watched too? The one in South-East London?"

"Sadly, yes," Remus nodded, taking a sip of tea.

"Did Terence make it to Italy?" Phoebe asked. "And Blake -"

Reaching across the table, Remus grabbed Phoebe's hand as it shook. "They are fine," he promised. "Josephine is still in England, she has to put up appearances and continue to work, but there is also the matter of her husband, but Philip, Bambi, Terence and Blake are all safe in Italy. Aiden's godfather really pulled through with the safe house."

"And Aiden, Sarah, Ashlyn and Amelia?"

"All safe," Remus promised. "James has gone to France with his mother, brother and sister. It would have been more established if they had gone to Italy, because of Sam's parents, but we figured that the Death Eaters would have known that, so we had to send them somewhere that they would not expect. Fleur suggested France; her parents were more than happy to take them in."

Phoebe felt her heartbeat return to normal.

"And how are you?" she asked, once she was sure that she could speak again.

"I'd have been here three days ago but I needed to shake off the Death Eaters tailing me," said Lupin. "So, you came straight here after the wedding?"

"No," said Harry as he returned with Hermione and Ron, both of whom were delighted to see Remus and, in Ron's case, bombarded him with questions almost immediately.

"Everyone is fine, Ron," Phoebe reassured the red head.

Ron sank into a chair beside Hermione, sighed, and buried his head in his arms, as, with a flick of her wand, Phoebe brought a tray of cups and a full teapot, floating towards them. She made the trio a mug each and handed it out as Harry finished what he had been saying when he walked in.

"We Apparated here after we ran into a couple of Death Eaters in a cafe on Tottenham Court Road."

Lupin choked on his tea.

"_What_?"

They explained what had happened, when they had finished Lupin looked aghast.

"But how did they find you so quickly? It's impossible to track anyone who Apparates, unless you grab hold of them as they disappear!"

"We wondered," said Hermione, "whether Harry could still have the Trace on him?"

"Impossible," said Lupin. "Apart from anything else, they'd know for sure Harry was here if he still had the Trace on him, wouldn't they? But I can't see how they could have tracked you to Tottenham Court Road, that's worrying, really worrying."

He looked disturbed.

"Tell us what happened after we left," said Harry. "We haven't heard a thing since Professor Blackheart told us everyone was safe."

"Well, Kingsley saved us," said Lupin. "Thanks to his warning most of the wedding guests were able to Disapparate before they arrived."

"Were they Death Eaters or Ministry people?" asked Hermione.

"A mixture; but to all intents and purposes they're the same thing now," said Lupin. "There were about a dozen of them, but they didn't know you were there, Harry. Arthur heard a rumor that they tried to torture your whereabouts out of Scrimgeour before they killed him; if it's true, he didn't give you away."

Phoebe glanced at Harry, his expression was enough to tell her that he was feeling a mixture of shock and gratitude of Scrimgeour's sacrifice, she couldn't lie, after everything they had done to and for the Minister, which was very little, and he had still saved them.

"The Death Eater's searched the Burrow from top to bottom," Lupin went on. "They found the ghoul, but didn't want to get too close - and then they interrogated those of us who remained for hours. They were trying to get information on you, Harry, but of course nobody apart from the Order knew that you had been there."

"What about the rest of the Order?" asked Phoebe.

"More Death Eaters forced their way into Order connected homes all over London," Remus answered. "They set fire to Dedalus Diggle's house, but as you know he wasn't there, and they used the Cruciatus Curse on Tonk's family. Again, trying to find out where you went after you visited them!"

Hermione gasped and covered her mouth. "Are they OK?" she asked quickly.

"They are shaken," Remus nodded. "But otherwise OK."

"As anyone else died?" Ron squeaked.

Remus shook his head. "No, thankfully," he answered.

Ron nodded his face green with worry and fear.

"How did the Death Eaters get through the protective enchantments around the Tonks' home?" Harry asked

"Harry," said Phoebe, softly. "The Death Eaters have full control of the Ministry now. They've got the power to perform brutal spells without fear of identification or arrest. They managed to penetrate every defensive spell we'd cast against them, and once inside, they were completely open about why they'd come."

"And are they bothering to give an excuse for torturing Harry's whereabouts out of people?" asked Hermione, an edge in her voice.

"Do they need one?" asked Ron.

"Well," said Lupin. He hesitated, and then pulled out a folded copy of the _Daily Prophet_. "Here," he said, pushing it across the table to Harry, who passed it to Phoebe, "you'll know sooner or later anyway. That's their pretext for going after you."

Phoebe smoothed out the paper. A huge photograph of Harry's face filled the front page. She read the headline out loud.

_WANTED FOR QUESTIONING ABOUT THE DEATH OF ALBUS DUMBLEDORE_

Ron and Hermione gave roars of outrage, as the paper caught fire, as Phoebe's elemental control kicked into overdrive. The paper burned slowly, before the elemental tossed it into the grate behind her. "This is ridiculous!" she snarled. "Dumbledore has been dead for several months! Everyone knows that Harry had no reason to kill him! And if Rita Skeeter wrote that crap, everyone who read her crap three years ago knows that she enjoys terrorizing Harry, so why should they believe it?"

"The coup has been smooth and virtually silent," said Lupin. "The official version of Scrimgeour's murder is that he resigned; he has been replaced by Pius Thicknesse, who is under the Imperius Curse."

"Why didn't Voldemort declare himself Minister for Magic?" asked Ron.

Lupin laughed.

"He doesn't need to, Ron. Effectively he _is _the Minister for Magic, but why should he sit behind a desk at the Ministry? His puppet, Thicknesse, is taking care of everyday business, leaving Voldemort free to extend his power beyond the Ministry."

"And this dramatic change in Ministry policy," said Phoebe, "involves warning the Wizarding world against Harry instead of Voldemort!"

Lupin nodded. "That is part of it," he agreed. "And it is a masterstroke. Now that Dumbledore is dead, Harry - the Boy Who Lived - was sure to be the symbol and rallying point for any resistance to Voldemort. But by suggesting that he had a hand in the old hero's death, Voldemort has not only set a price upon his head, but sown doubt and fear amongst many who would have defended him."

"So, what about Phoebe?" Hermione asked, "Doesn't Voldemort want her now too?"

"Yes, very much so," Lupin nodded. "But he has already set in motion his plans to obtain the ultimate power. He has kidnapped her grandparents; he had hoped that would have been enough to cause her to come running to the rescue. But he has underestimated you, Phoebe, he has second guessed your intentions, he does not fully understand how smart you really are; you have not given into temptation, you have put plans into actions to save, not only your grandparents, but everyone else too."

"So he has figured out that he needs more leverage to get her to do what he wants?" Hermione asked.

Lupin nodded. "Yes, but in sending her husband, son and best friends away, Phoebe has made it very difficult for him to get any more leverage over her," he explained. "Think of it as a chess game," he added. "At the moment Phoebe is two steps ahead of Voldemort, and she needs to stay two steps ahead of him in order to survive this war. Despite what you might think," he half glanced at Ron, "Phoebe knows exactly what it is she is doing."

He reached into his traveling cloak and pulled out a second copy of the _Daily Prophet_. "I had a feeling," he said, looking at Phoebe, "that you would disintegrate the first copy..."

"So you came prepared," Phoebe nodded.

"Well, correct me if I am wrong, but did you not act like the spokesperson for the whole of class six years ago?"

Phoebe smiled and took the paper. "What am I - oh, no..." she murmured, as she turned to the second page. "'_Muggleborn Register,'_" she read aloud. "_'The Ministry of Magic is undertaking a survey of so-called Muggleborns, the better to understand how they came to possess magical secrets. Recent research undertaken by the Department of Mysteries reveals that magic can only be passed from person to person when Wizards reproduce. Where no proven Wizarding ancestry exists, therefore, the so-called Muggleborn is likely to have obtained magical power by theft or force."_

Ron glanced at Hermione.

_"The Ministry is determined to root out such usurpers of magical power, and to this end has issued an invitation to every so-called Muggleborn to present themselves for interview by the newly appointed Muggleborn Registration Commission."_

"People won't let this happen," said Ron.

"It _is_ already happening," said Phoebe, her hands curling around the papers edges.

Lupin nodded. "Muggleborns are being rounded up as we speak," he said.

"But how are they supposed to have 'stolen' magic?" Ron asked. "If that were possible then there would be no such thing a squib."

"I know," said Lupin. "Nevertheless, unless you can prove that you have at least one close Wizarding relative, you are not deemed to have obtained your magical power illegally and must suffer the punishment."

"What if purebloods and Halfbloods swear a Muggleborns apart of their family? I'll tell everyone Hermione's my cousin -"

Hermione covered Ron's hand with her own and squeezed it.

"Thank you, Ron, but I couldn't let you -"

"You won't have a choice," said Ron, gripping her hand back. "I'll teach you my family tree so you can answer questions on it."

"Ron, as we're on the run with Harry Potter, the most wanted person in the country, I don't think it matters. If I was going back to school it would be different. What's Voldemort planning for Hogwarts?" she asked Lupin.

"Attendance is now compulsory for every young witch and wizard," Lupin replied. "That was announced yesterday, it's a change, because it was never obligatory before. Of course, nearly every witch and wizard in Britain has been educated at Hogwarts, but their parents had the right to teach them at home or send them abroad if they preferred."

"What's that going to prove?" Ron asked.

"This way, Voldemort will have the whole Wizarding population under his eye from a young age," said Phoebe. "And it's also another way of weeding out Muggleborns, because students must be given Blood Status - meaning they have proven to the Ministry that they are of Wizard descent - before they are allowed to attend."

"It's... it's..." Harry muttered, struggling with the intense anger and fury that was bubbling beneath the surface.

"I know," Lupin said softly, before hesitating. "I'll understand if you can't confirm this, Harry, but the Order is under the impression that Dumbledore left you a mission."

"He did," Harry replied, "and Ron, Phoebe and Hermione are in on it and they're coming with me."

"Can you confide in me what the mission is?"

"I can't, Remus, I'm sorry. If Dumbledore didn't tell you I don't think I can."

"I thought you'd say that," said Lupin, looking disappointed. "But I might still be of some use to you. You know what I am and what I can do. I could come with you to provide protection -"

"Thank you for the offer, Remus," Phoebe nodded. "But we have all the protection we need!"

"There will not be much you can do, Phoebe," said Remus. "You too will be on the run. You're powers must be kept to a minimum, there aren't, as you know, very many elementals in Britain."

"I am aware of that," Phoebe nodded. "I have promised Serefina that I will only use my powers if I need too. Besides, I figured you would want to stay here. Especially now that Tonks is -"

"Tonks will be perfectly safe," Remus interrupted. "She'll be at her parents' house."

The Golden Trio frowned.

"But would she be fine with you running off with us?" Phoebe asked. "You're married, Remus!"

"You left your husband!"

"And you think that is what I _wanted_?" Phoebe snapped. "To be away from my husband and my baby? To not know that they are safe every day? To know that I will be missing out on my son's life? Do you know he said his first word, Remus? The night of the wedding, when the Death Eaters attacked, do you think I wanted to leave him after that?"

"But you did -"

"I didn't have a choice!" Phoebe yelled. "I _had_ to leave him! I was putting him in danger! If I could change who I am I would! If I could give up my powers, take myself off of Voldemort's hit list, I would. I would give anything to be back to Terence and Blake. I may never see them again! But at least you will get a chance to do everything I may never get the chance to do!"

Harry and Ron exchanged looks with Hermione.

"Are we missing something?" Harry asked.

"Yes!"

"No!"

Phoebe and Remus glared at one another from across the table.

"Tell them, Remus," said Phoebe. "Tell them _why_ you want to come with us?"

Remus remained silent.

"Well, go on," Phoebe pushed. "Tell them!"

"Tonks is going to have a baby," Lupin said, addressing the Golden Trio, but his glare remained firmly on Phoebe.

"Oh, how wonderful!" squealed Hermione.

"Excellent!" said Ron.

"Congratulations!" said Harry.

Lupin gave an artificial smile. "So... do you accept my offer? Will four become five? I cannot believe Dumbledore would have disapproved, he appointed me your Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, after all. And I must tell you that I believe that we are facing magic many of us have never encountered or imagined."

Phoebe shook her head. "I told you, Remus," she said. "We thank you for the offer, but we will be perfectly safe."

"You don't understand," said Remus.

"I understand just fine!" Phoebe retorted. "You believe you have made a grave mistake in marrying Tonks, you did it against your better judgment, and have regretted it very much ever since, and you think that now, after marrying her and learning that you are going to be a father, that the correct solution to turning her life around is to just dump her and run off with the first available position."

Remus jumped to his feet, his chair toppled over backward, and he glared at the elemental. "You of all people shoulder understand what I have done, Phoebe!" he growled. "I have endangered my wife and my unborn child. I should never have married Tonks; I've made her an outcast!"

"And I did the same to Terence," Phoebe argued. "I married him, but I have not regretted my decision, and neither has he! We do not regret having Blake! It may have been at an inconvenient time, but we would never change it for the world. I have endangered both my husband and son, just as much has you have endangered Tonks and your baby."

"You have only ever seen me amongst the Order or under Dumbledore's protection at Hogwarts! You don't know how most of the Wizarding world sees creatures like me! When they know of my affliction, they can barely talk to me! Don't you see what I've done? Even her own family is disgusted by our marriage, what parents want their only daughter marrying a werewolf? And the child - the child -"

"What parents want their only daughter marrying a werewolf?" Phoebe repeated. "A _werewolf_! Remus Lupin, you are so much more than just _a werewolf_! Tonks loves you that should be enough! It has nothing to do with her parents on whom she marries! If she wishes to marry you then that is her choice! As for your child, I understand that werewolves usually do not breed, but the fact remains, if the child is like you, then at least you will understand what he goes through! You will be able to teach him, train him; he will not have to deal with it alone!"

"I passed my own condition onto an innocent child -"

"And so did I!" Phoebe yelled. "Blake, he will inherit one, if not all of my powers! Do you think I want that for him? Do you even begin to think what I have done to my own flesh and blood? I have started a new generation of elementals! I am a much discriminated against as you are, Remus, but I am not running because of that, I am running so to put an end to it all. People fear our kind because of people like Fenrir Greyback, because of my ancestors. Fear has had time to grow, Remus, but we can put an end to it, if we give ourselves the chance!"

"But I -"

"But nothing," Phoebe argued, shaking her head. "How are other people supposed to give us a chance, if we refuse to give ourselves a chance?" she asked. "How do you expect 'Dromeda and Ted to accept your decision to marry Tonks and have a child with her, if you refuse to accept it yourself?"

"So that is your final answer, yes?" Remus asked.

Phoebe stood her ground, and firmly nodded her head. "Yes, Remus," she answered. "That is my final answer."

"Well then," said Remus, getting to his feet. "Then I have no more business here. Harry, Ron, Hermione," he nodded at each of them in turn, before turning back to Phoebe, "I really hope you know what you are doing, Phoebe, the choices you are making."

"You said it yourself, Remus," Phoebe replied. "I am two steps ahead of Voldemort, and believe it or not, _you_ will always be two steps behind me!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

EXCLUSIVE EXTRACT FROM THE

UPCOMING

BIOGRAPHY OF ALBUS DUMBLEDORE

By Rita Skeeter

Phoebe frowned and settled back in her chair in the kitchen, it had been several hours since Remus had left, since Hermione, Harry and Ron had disappeared back upstairs. She had decided to stay in the kitchen, and hopefully she would be there when Kreacher returned, if he returned tonight that was.

She wasn't sure if she _wanted_ to read about Dumbledore by Rita Skeeter or not, she remembered the hell that Skeeter had put her and Harry through before, the lies that she had assembled to make herself a story, she remembered well how Terence had ignored her because of the fact that her life had become so much more clearer to him, and the fact that he believed her to be dating Harry, all because of Rita Skeeter.

However, before she could even read the first line, and take it in fully, there was a loud _CRACK_ that echoed around the kitchen.

With a startled yell, Phoebe flew from her chair; the _Daily Prophet_ fluttering to the floor, while on the opposite side of the table was a mass of struggling limbs that had appeared out of thin air. Placing a hand over her beating heart, Phoebe hurried around the table, leaned down, and pulled, what she believed to be Kreacher off of Mundungus.

"Mistress Phoebe!" squeaked Dobby.

"Dobby!" Phoebe smiled. "And Winky! What are you doing here?"

"Phoebe Blackheart, ma'am!" Winky squealed, wrapping her tiny arms around Phoebe's neck and hugging her tightly. "Phoebe Blackheart! Winky has missed her!"

"Phoebe has missed you too, Winky," Phoebe smiled hugging the tiny elf back. She felt her heart ache as the tiny body reminded her of Blake.

"Kreacher has returned with the thief Mundungus, Mistress Phoebe," Kreacher croaked.

"Kreacher has done really well," Phoebe nodded. "Well done, Kreacher."

"Thank you, Mistress Phoebe,"

"Kreacher," Phoebe said. "Call me Phoebe. All this Mistress stuff... I am not your mistress..."

"Mistress Phoebe belongs to the noblest of families in the Wizarding world," Kreacher said, still speaking to his knees. "The Malfoy's are very rich and well known. Kreacher understands this... Kreacher will address Mistress Phoebe as her rightful title."

Phoebe sighed. "Fine!" she grumbled. "Dobby, Harry, Ron and Hermione are in the drawing room upstairs, please, go get them."

Dobby nodded and disappeared.

"_Experlliarmus!"_ Phoebe added, as, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mundungus draw his wand. The wand soared into the air and Phoebe caught it.

Wild-eyed Mundungus dived for the stairs.

With a wave of her hand, Phoebe caught him in the stomach with a wave blast of air, knocking him backwards. Mundungus hit the floor with a heavy crunch.

"What?" he bellowed. "Wha've I done? Setting bleedin' 'ouse-elves on me, what are you playing at, wha've I done, lemme go, lemme go, or -"

"You're not exactly in any position to me making threats, Fletcher!" Phoebe hissed, her eyes flashing between cobalt blue and stormy grey.

"Kreacher apologizes for the delay in bringing the thief, Mistress," croaked Kreacher. "Fletcher knows how to avoid capture, has many hidey-holes and accomplices. Nevertheless, Kreacher cornered the thief in the end."

"You've done really well, Kreacher," repeated Phoebe, and the elf bowed low. "I've got a few questions for you," she added to Mundungus, who shouted at once.

"I panicked, OK? I never wanted to come along, no offense, but I never volunteered to die for Potter, an' that was bleedin' You-Know-Who come flying at me, anyone woulda got outta there, I said all along I didn't wanna do it -"

"For your information, none of the rest of us Disapparated," said Phoebe.

"Well, you're a bunch of bleedin' 'eores then, aren't you, but I never pretended I was up for killing meself -"

"No, you're just a bloody coward, Dung!" snapped Phoebe, and the pressure on Mundungus chest grew heavier. He gasped for breath, his eyes bulging, his mouth opening and closing like a goldfish as he tried to suck in air, in hopes of his lungs expanding.

"Fortunately for you," Phoebe said, lightning up on the pressure, "I'm not interested in what happened that night, although we may very well come back to it, because of you, Mad-Eye is dead, and he was a good friend of mine! But for now, let us concentrate on _why_ I set Kreacher on you in the first place."

"If it's 'bout 'em goblets again, I ain't got none of 'em left, or you could 'ave 'em -"

"It's not about the goblets ether, although you're getting warmer," said Phoebe.

Mundungus started to splutter.

"Oh, just shut up and listen!" Phoebe snapped "When you cleaned out this house of anything valuable..." but Mundungus interrupted her again.

"Sirius never cared about any of the junk -"

"I said shut up!" Phoebe hissed, squeezing her hand into a fist. The pressure inside Mundungus chest tightened considerably again.

The kitchen door crashed open.

"Phoebe!" Hermione squealed. "What are you doing? Let him breathe!"

"We need him conscious, Phoebe," said Harry, crossing the room and touching Phoebe's shoulder. Glancing over her shoulder, Phoebe caught his eye and relaxed her fingers. Mundungus breathed in deeply, his lungs expanding.

"If he keeps interrupting me," Phoebe started.

"I'm sure he won't," promised Harry "isn't that right, Dung? I mean, you want to live, don't you?"

Mundungus wheezed out a 'yes' along with a shallow nod. Of course he wanted to live, but he would much rather have died at the hands of Voldemort, than by a Blackheart, especially one that was supposed to have been the Ultimate Power.

"So answer her questions," Harry prodded him.

"When you stripped this house of all the valuables you could find," Phoebe began again, "there was a locket amongst them. What did you do with it?"

"Why?" asked Mundungus. "Is it valuable?"

"You've still got it!" cried Hermione.

"No, he hasn't," said Ron. "He's wondering whether he should have asked more money for it."

"More?" said Mundungus. "That wouldn't have been effing difficult... bleedin' gave t way, di'n' I? No choice."

"What do you mean?"

"I was selling in Diagon Alley and she come up to me and asks if I've got a license for trading in magical artifacts. Bleedin' snoop. She was gonna fine me, but she took a fancy to the locket an' told me she'd take it and let me off that time, and to fink meself lucky."

"Who was this woman?" asked Harry, his hand still on Phoebe's shoulder.

"I dunno some Ministry hag."

"Describe her!" Phoebe demanded.

Mundungus considered for a moment, brow wrinkled. "Little woman. Bow on top of 'er head." He frowned and then added. "Looked like a toad."

Phoebe froze, as a memory flashed across her mind's eye, all breath left her body and she felt like she was suffocating. Harry's hand disappeared from her shoulder and grabbed her hand as he led her to a near-by chair, she was still cradling Winky in her arms, and Dobby, who had returned with the Golden Trio rushed to get a glass of water for the elemental.

Harry knew, instantly, why Phoebe had reacted this way, and he could see that from the looks on their faces that Ron and Hermione did too. The woman of whom Mundungus had just described had nearly killed Phoebe three years ago, she had used a suffocation spell on the elemental after she had been caught returning to the Gryffindor common room after hours.

That same person had caused him to carve '_I must not tell lies_' into the back of his hand.

That same person had terrorized Hogwarts from the moment she had stepped into the castle as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

That woman was Dolores Jane Umbridge.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next week.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 18 November, 2012 at 03:25am**


	165. Chapter 165

**Author's Note:** Another week again? And what a week it has been! Timed Assignment was posted on Wednesday which meant Fanfiction went on the back burner for Wednesday and Thursday so it was completed for Friday, and then I spent all afternoon Friday catching up on the sleep that I lost while pulling two all-nighters to get the stupid assignment finished. Hopefully my next one isn't due until January or maybe February, anyway, here is the next chapter for Phoebe.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, Pixiescale1185, Regin** and** Alaina08**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **DJ ThunderCrash** and** Regin** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>More and more Death Eaters swarmed the square outside of Grimmauld Place as August wore on. Barely a day passed without one or two people arrived in Grimmauld Place with no other purpose, or so it seemed, than to lean against the railings facing numbers eleven and thirteen, watching the join between the two houses.<p>

The lurkers were never same two days running, although they all seemed to share a dislike for normal clothing. Most of the Londoners who passed them were used to eccentric dressers and took little notice, though occasionally one of them might glance back, wondering why anyone would wear such long cloaks in this heat.

The watchers seemed to be gleaming little satisfaction from their vigil. Occasionally one of them started forward excitedly, as if they had seen something interesting at last.

Phoebe, who usually watched them from the drawing room window, lowered her hand from the window and stepped backwards out of the curtains.

She had done all that she could for now, not to mention using both of her elemental and magical cores combined was draining. Each time it looked like one of the Death Eaters had seen something and started for the house, she would always use a deflectment charm which caused them to fall back looking relatively disappointed.

"Phoebe," Hermione shouted up the stairs. "Phoebe, Harry's back and Kreacher's made supper."

"I'm coming!" Phoebe answered as she hurried across the room and out onto the landing. She hurried down the stairs, not worrying about the portrait of Mrs. Black, which she had ignited in flame a few nights ago, she hadn't meant to do it, but the stupid portrait had unexpectedly burst open shrieking insults, and, after a burst of fiery energy, Phoebe had lit her up like a Christmas tree.

The kitchen was almost unrecognizable. Every surface now shone: Copper pots and pans had been burnished to a rosy glow; the wooden tabletop gleamed; the goblets and plates already lay for dinner glinted in the light from a merrily blazing fire, on which a cauldron was simmering. Yet nothing was more dramatically different than the house-elf who had come hurrying towards her.

"Shoes off, if you please, Mistress Phoebe, and wash your hands before dinner," croaked Kreacher.

Phoebe kicked off her slippers and approached the basin on the far side of the kitchen, she run the water to its right temperature and then washed her hands. They weren't _that_ dirty, but the grim from the drawing room windows could be felt on her palms and fingertips.

"Any news?" the elemental asked as she dried her hands on a towel and turned to face Harry.

"It's not good news," said Harry, holding out the _Daily Prophet._

"No news is good news these days," said Phoebe looking at the front page. Her eyes widened as a large picture of a familiar, hook-nosed, black-haired man stared up at her, beneath a headline that read:

**SEVERUS SNAPE CONFIRMED AS HOGWARTS HEADMASTER**

She knew this would happen. She had known, straight from the beginning that Snape would have become headmaster after Dumbledore had died. Harry, Ron and Hermione would have thought it was Voldemort and Snape's idea, how wrong they could have been; but she couldn't show that she had known this would happen. In order to protect Harry, like she was supposed to, she would have to play along and pretend that she didn't know.

_"'Severus Snape, long-standing Potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, was today appointed headmaster in the most important of several staffing changes at the ancient school. Following the resignation of the previous Muggle Studies teacher, Alectro Carrow will take over the position while her brother, Amycus, fills the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor -'_

"I should have killed him when I had the chance!" Phoebe added, before resuming reading.

'- _I welcome the opportunity to uphold our finest Wizarding traditions and values -'"_

"Like committing murder and cutting off people's ears, I suppose!" interrupted Hermione. "Snape, headmaster! Snape in Dumbledore's study - Merlin's pants!" she shrieked, making Harry, Ron and Phoebe jump. She leapt up from the table and hurtled from the room, shouting as she went, "I'll be back in a minute!"

"'Merlin's pants?'" repeated Ron, looking amused. "She must be upset. The other teachers won't stand for this, mind. McGonagall and Flitwick and Sprout all know the truth, they know how Dumbledore died. They won't accept Snape as headmaster. And who are these Carrows?"

"They're Death Eaters," said Phoebe. "I had Amycus during the battle last year; I should have killed him when I had the chance."

"Why didn't you?" Ron asked.

"Alectro caught me off guard with a spell," Phoebe answered. "Harry got her, mind, but her spell caused me to lose concentration and drop her brother. Here, there are picture of them at the bottom of the page," she handed him the paper. "And, I can't see that the other teachers will have much of a choice. They have to stay; they are the only ones now standing between Voldemort and the entire school!"

Harry nodded. "I agree, if the Ministry and Voldemort are behind Snape it'll be a choice between staying and teaching, or a nice few years in Azkaban - and that's if they're lucky. I reckon they'll stay to try and protect the students."

Kreacher came bustling to the table with a large tureen in his hands, and ladled out soup into pristine bowls, whistling between his teeth as he did so.

"Thanks, Kreacher," said Phoebe, as Harry flipped over the _Prophet_ so they wouldn't have to see Snape's face while they ate. "Well, at least we know exactly where Snape is now."

Harry and Ron nodded as they started to spoon soup into their mouths. Kreacher's cooking had improved dramatically ever since he had been given Regulus's locket. Today's French onion was as good as Phoebe had ever tasted.

"There are still loads of Death Eaters watching the house," Harry said as he ate, "more than usual. It's like they're hoping we'll march out carrying our school trunks and head off for the Hogwarts Express."

Ron glanced at his watch.

"I've been thinking about that all day. It left nearly six hours ago. Weird, not being on it, isn't it?"

Harry and Phoebe exchanged looks before nodding. It was weird not sitting on the Hogwarts Express. This would have been their final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

"They nearly saw me coming back in just now," Harry said.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "I had to strength the charms around the house again. How come they always keep seeing you? Hermione and I can get in and out without a problem!"

"I landed badly on the top step, and the Cloak slipped." Harry answered.

"I do that every time," said Ron. "Oh, here she is," he added, craning around in his seat to watch Hermione reentering the kitchen. "And what in the name of Merlin's most baggy Y Fronts was that about?"

Hermione was carrying a large, framed picture, which she now lowered to the floor before seizing her small, beaded bag from the kitchen sideboard. Opening it, she proceeded to force the painting to fit inside, within a few seconds it had vanished, like so much else, into the bag's capacious depths.

"Phineas Nigellus," Hermione explained as she threw the bag onto the kitchen table with the usual sonorous, clanking crash.

"Sorry?" said Ron.

"Phineas Nigellus," repeated Phoebe. "Snape could've used him to looking inside this house for him."

"Yeah, but someone already got there before I did," said Hermione. "There was a blindfold on his portrait when I went into the bedroom. I wonder who did it?"

"I did," said Phoebe. "The morning after we arrived. I noticed that the bedrooms had been ransacked, and then, when I was looking into your old room -" she pointed at Harry and Ron, "I saw the portrait. Given I didn't know Snape was going to be headmaster, and even if he wasn't whoever would have been given the position could have had the same idea as he, and then where would we be?"

Hermione nodded. "But let Snape try it now, all Phineas Nigellus will be able to see is the inside of my handbag."

"Good thinking!" said Ron, looking impressed.

"Thank you," smiled Hermione, pulling her soup towards her. "So, Harry, what else happened today?"

"Nothing," said Harry. "Watched the Ministry entrance for seven hours. No sign of her. Saw your dad, though, Ron, and Josephine, Phoebe. They look fine."

Phoebe and Ron nodded their appreciation of this news. They both understood that it would have been dangerous to try and talk to Mr. Weasley or Josephine Higgs while they were coming to and fro from the Ministry, because they were always surrounded by other workers, but it was, however, reassuring to catch glimpses of them, even if they did look strained and anxious.

"Dad always told us most Ministry people use the Floo Network to get to work," Ron said. "That's why we haven't see Umbridge, she'd never walk, she'd think she's too important."

"And what about that funny old witch and that little wizard in the navy robes?" Hermione asked.

"Oh yeah, the bloke from Magical Maintenance," said Ron.

"How do you know that?" asked Phoebe.

"Because everyone from Magical Maintenance wears navy blue robes!" answered Ron.

Phoebe, Hermione and Harry stared at him. "How -?"

"Dad told me,"

"And you never thought to tell us?" Hermione shrieked.

"I didn't think it was _that_ important!" said Ron, dismissively.

"Everything is important, Ronald," Phoebe said. "The Ministry is, at the moment, by far the most dangerous place in the whole world for us to go right now. Breaking in there is going to be trouble enough! Leaving out one little bit of details could be the difference between a success and a failure."

"Blimey, Phoebe, I forgot one little thing -"

"All it takes is just one _little_ mistake and everything we have done, everything we _plan_ to do could be for nothing!" said Phoebe.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, after everyone had gone to bed, Phoebe sat curled up in the drawing room playing with her dragon necklace. It was the same one that Serefina had given her for Christmas two years ago; the pearl that the dragon clutched in his claws was supposed to change colour depending on the type of element that she was using.

The door creaked open behind her and Harry crept inside. He had been sleeping in Sirius's bedroom for the last few nights, while Hermione, Ron and Phoebe shared one of the bedrooms on the third floor. Perking up at the sound of his light footsteps, Phoebe paused and glanced up at her friend.

"Why aren't you sleeping?" she asked.

"Why aren't you?" Harry challenged.

Phoebe smiled. "Touché!" she nodded. "But seriously, why are you awake?"

"I wanted to ask you something,"

"Oh?"

"This Ministry heist," said Harry. "I want to do it tomorrow!"

Phoebe tensed.

"Hear me out," Harry said quickly. "I don't think we're going to be much better prepared than we already are now even if we skulk around the Ministry entrance for another month. The longer we put it off, the further away that locket could be. There's already a good chance Umbridge has chucked it away; the thing doesn't open."

Phoebe bit her lower lip.

"We know, everything important," Harry went on. "We know they've stopped Apparition in and out of the Ministry. We know only the most senior Ministry members are allowed to connect their homes to the Floo Network now, because Ron heard those two Unspeakables complaining about it. And we know roughly where Umbridge's office is, because of what Hermione heard that bearded bloke saying to his mate -"

"I just don't know, Harry," said Phoebe.

"- and we know you get in using those funny coins, or tokens, or whatever they are, because I saw that witch borrowing one from her friend -"

"But I haven't got any!"

"If the plan works, we will have," Harry continued calmly.

"There are an awful lot of things that could go wrong; so much relies on chance..."

"That'll be true even if we spend another three months preparing," said Harry. "It's time to act. The longer we prepare, Phoebe, the longer you are away from Blake -"

"Don't!" Phoebe squeaked slapping her hands over her ears, and screwing her eyes up tight she shook her head. "Don't you dare bring him into this, Harry Potter, don't you dare!"

Harry sighed and tugged her hands away from the side of her head. "I'm sorry, Pheebs," he apologized. "I didn't want to upset you. That wasn't the idea... I just thought -"

"Let me sleep on it," said Phoebe. "I'll let you know the decision in the morning."

"OK," Harry nodded a little disappointed that he hadn't got a straight answer out of her, despite with all the evidence he had used. He knew that she, in a way, agreed with him, but he could also tell by the look on her face that she was scared, and he couldn't blame her, he wasn't feeling all that confident either.

Straightening up, Harry turned toe and walked back to the door, pausing briefly on the threshold and glancing back at the elemental behind him, she was, once again, playing with the dragon necklace around her neck. He sighed heavily, shook his head, and left the drawing room, closing the door in his wake.

Phoebe waited until Harry had left before bursting into tears.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They had spent the previous four weeks taking it in turns to don the Invisibility Cloak and spy on the official entrance to the Ministry, which Ron, thanks to Mr. Weasley, had known since childhood. They had tailed Ministry workers on their way in, eavesdropped on their conversations, and learned by careful observation which of them could be relied upon to appear, alone, at the same time every day.

Occasionally there had been a chance to sneak a _Daily Prophet_ out of somebody's briefcase. Slowly they had built up the sketchy maps and notes now stacked in the far corner of the drawing room.

"OK," Phoebe said as she sat at the breakfast table with Harry - Ron and Hermione had yet to wake - "I've thought about it, and yes, we can go to the Ministry today -"

"Phoebe, you're the -"

"On one condition," Phoebe interrupted.

"Oh?"

"I know Ron says you're the boss," Phoebe said, "mostly because Dumbledore left this job to _you_, and it is _your_ destiny to defeat Voldemort. But it is also _my_ job to protect you, Harry..."

"What's your point, Phoebe?" Harry asked as Kreacher served them hot rolls and coffee. He bit into the breakfast roll and savored the taste on his tongue.

"My point is, Harry Potter," said Phoebe, slightly annoyed. "That if I sense _anything _out of the ordinary, we turn around and come back. We may not have everything covered, and like I said last night, this entire place is running on chance, anything could go wrong and I don't want to run the risk of one of us getting caught - or worse!"

Harry hesitated. "OK," he nodded, finally. "You have a deal."

The kitchen door opened and Hermione and Ron stumbled inside.

"You two are up early," said Ron taking a breakfast roll and biting into it.

"Yeah," Hermione nodded. "Everything OK?"

Phoebe exchanged a look with Harry, before turning to her best friend. "We're doing it today," she said.

"Doing what?" Ron asked through a mouthful of food.

"Breaking into the Ministry!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Robes," Hermione muttered under her breath as she poked around in her beaded handbag. "Polyjuice Potion... Invisibility Cloak... Decoy Detonators... You should each take a couple of these... Puking Pastilles, Nosebleed Nougat, Extendable Ears..."

"Hermione," said Phoebe catching her best friend by the shoulders and staring into her eyes. "Look at me! I know there is a lot riding on this, and I know most of it is by chance, I have already run over every possibility of it going wrong, please don't make me think of them again, just leave everything to me, when have I ever let you down before?"

"How about the times that you nearly died?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "If you go by that then you will never trust me again!" she said. "And you should never have trusted me after first year!"

"But what if -?"

"No!"

"But seriously -?"

"Hermione!"

"Phoebe!" Hermione whined, fear reflecting in her face.

Phoebe pulled her into a hug. "We'll be fine!" she promised. "I will not let anything happen to you... the worst that can happen is that we don't come back to Grimmuald Place. Just breathe. OK?"

Hermione took a deep shuddering breath and nodded. "OK," she murmured looking up as Harry and Ron ascended the stairs from the kitchen. Kreacher in their wake.

"Masters and Mistress are going out?" Kreacher asked. "Kreacher will have steak and kidney pies ready for when they return."

"Thank you, Kreacher," Harry nodded, before looking back at his friends. "Let's go!"

They nodded and headed for the door.

Phoebe paused after the Golden trio had left, one-by-one, disapparating inside the protective charms but outside the front door, she then turned to Kreacher. "Kreacher, if, by the off chance, we do not return tonight, I want you to go back to Hogwarts, understand?"

"Mistress believes she will not be returning?" Kreacher asked.

"I don't know, Kreacher," said Phoebe. "I just have a feeling that something is going to go wrong, and my instincts have yet to be wrong. Just promise me, if anyone, other than me, Harry, Ron or Hermione comes here tonight, you will Disapparate straight to Hogwarts?"

Kreacher bowed. "Mistress wishes for Kreacher to leave," he said. "Kreacher will do as Mistress wishes!"

"Thank you, Kreacher," Phoebe smiled. "Hopefully, for this once, I am wrong, and we will see you for supper. If not, well, I thank you, Kreacher, you have been wonderful and I hope we will meet again at the end of all this. Goodbye Kreacher."

"Goodbye Mistress Phoebe," Kreacher croaked as Phoebe pulled her cloak up around her throat, stepped outside the door, and Disapparated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

After the usual brief spell of suffocating darkness, Phoebe found herself in the tiny alleyway where the first phase of their plan was scheduled to take place. It was as yet deserted, except for a couple of large bins; the first Ministry workers did not usually appear here until at least eight o'clock.

"What took you so long?" Harry asked.

Phoebe shook her head and simply smiled. The others, having a few minutes head start, had already opened up the fire door; exposing the dark corridor behind it, it lead into an empty theatre, and had already captured one of the Ministry officials that they would be changing into.

"Who is she?" Phoebe asked, nudging the witch with flyaway grey hair with her foot.

"Mafalda Hopkirk," said Ron, reading a small card that identified their victim as an assistant in the Improper Use of Magic Office. "You'd better take this, Hermione, and here are the tokens."

He passed her several small golden coins, all embossed with the letters M.O.M., which he had taken from the witch's purse.

Hermione, who had already plucked hair from Mafalda, added the hairs to her Polyjuice Potion before drinking it, which was now a pleasant heliotrope color, and within seconds stood before them, the double of Mafalda Hopkirk. As she removed Mafalda's spectacles and put them on, Harry checked his watch.

"We're running late, Mr. Magical Maintenance will be here any second."

They hurried to close the door on the real Mafalda; Harry, Ron and Phoebe ducked behind the corner, but Hermione remained in view, waiting. Seconds later there was another _pop_, and a small, ferrety-looking wizard appeared before them.

"Oh, hello, Mafalda."

"Hello, how are you today?" asked Hermione.

"Not so good, actually," replied the little wizard, who looked downcast.

As Hermione and the wizard headed for the main road, Phoebe snuck out from behind the corner, waved her wand, and hit him in the back with a Stunning spell.

"Quick," said the elemental as Harry and Ron joined her. "Get his hair. We don't have much time before the last one turns up."

"Are you sure you don't need one?" Harry asked.

"You know the plan," said Phoebe. "Just hurry up, Ron, we're running out of time!"

Ron nodded and drank the Polyjuice Potion. Instantly he changed into his impersonator, whilst Phoebe and Harry hid the real Ministry worker with Mafalda behind the fire door.

"Reg Cattermole," said Ron reading the name on the back of the robes.

_Pop_

Phoebe gasped and turned around. "He's early!" she gasped. "Quickly, Harry, in here!" she added, grabbing his arm and pulling him behind the fire door. "Stay there!" she warned Hermione and Ron, both of whom nodded, and turned to the new comer as he approached.

"What are you two doing here?" he sneered, stalking towards them. "Shouldn't you be somewhere?"

"Uh..." Ron stuttered, glancing at Hermione. "Should we?"

"How about work, Cattermole!"

"_Stupefy!"_

The new wizard choked and toppled forward onto the floor.

"What's his deal?" Ron wondered.

"No idea," said Harry, "let's just do this before we run out of time!"

Phoebe nodded and plucked several hairs from the unconscious wizard and handed them to Harry, who added them to the Polyjuice Potion. He drank it as soon as it changed color.

"Cloak," said Phoebe holding her hand out to Hermione. The bookworm handed over the Invisibility Cloak and Phoebe swung it around her shoulders. "Ready?"

Harry nodded taking a token from Hermione.

It was nearly nine o'clock when they reached the front of the Ministry. Fifty yards along the crowded pavement there were spiked black railings flanking two flights of steps, one labeled GENTLEMEN, and the other LADIES.

"See you in a moment, then," said Hermione nervously, and she tottered off down the steps to the LADIES. Phoebe, still invisible, hurried along after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The great Atrium seemed darker than Phoebe remembered it. Previously a golden fountain had filled the centre of the hall, casting shimmering spots of light over the polished wooden floor and walls. Now a gigantic statue of black stone dominated the scene. It was rather frightening, this vast sculpture of a witch and a wizard sitting on ornately carved thrones, engraved in foot-high letters at the base of the statue were the words MAGIC IS MIGHT.

"Out of the way, can't y - oh, sorry, Runcorn!"

Phoebe turned at the sound of a squeaky voice and was surprised to find a small, balding wizard hurrying away from Harry, who had just stepped out of a fireplace. Carefully making her way through the crowded atrium, the elemental took Harry's hand and led him back to where the fountain had once stood.

"You got in all right, then?" Hermione whispered.

"No, he's still stuck in the boy," said Ron.

"Oh, very funny... it's horrible, isn't it?" Phoebe whispered. "Have you seen what they're sitting on?"

"Are those -?"

"Muggles," Hermione nodded. "In their rightful place. Come on, let's get going."

They joined the stream of witches and wizards moving toward the golden gates at the end of the hall, Phoebe, who was still invisible, wound her arm around Harry's, pulling herself closer to him as not to get lost in the crowd, or worse.

"She's not here," Phoebe said, noticing that there was no sign of Dolores Umbridge amongst the rest of the crowd.

They passed through the gates and into a smaller hall, where queues were forming in front of twenty golden grilles housing as many lifts. They had barely joined the nearest one when a voice said, "Cattermole!"

They looked around.

"It's Yaxley!" Phoebe hissed at Ron.

"I requested somebody from Magical Maintenance to sort out my office, Cattermole. It's still raining in there."

Ron looked around as though hoping somebody else would intervene, but nobody spoke.

"Raining... in your office? That's - that's not good, is it?"

Ron gave a nervous laugh. Yaxley's eye widened. Phoebe trod on Ron's foot.

"Ouch!" he yelped, causing Phoebe to faceplam her forehead.

"Shut up!" she hissed.

"You do realize, Cattermole, that I am on my way downstairs to interrogate your wife. In fact, I'm quite surprised you're not down there holding her hand while she waits. Already given her up as a bad job, have you? Probably wise. Be sure and marry a pureblood next time."

Harry felt Phoebe's hand tighten around his arm.

"I - I -" stammered Ron.

"But if _my_ wife was accused of being a Mudblood," said Yaxley, "- not that any woman I married would ever be mistaken for such filth - and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement needed a job doing, I would make it my priority to do that job, Cattermole. Do you understand me?"

"Yes," whispered Ron.

"Then attend to it, Cattermole, and if my office is not completely dry within an hour, your wife's Blood Status will be in even graver doubt than it is now."

The golden grille before them clattered open. With a nod and unpleasant smile to Harry, who was evidently expected to appreciate this treatment of Cattermole.

"Oh no," Phoebe gasped silently, covering her mouth with her hand as she recognized the look in Yaxley's eyes. She glanced up at Harry and quickly started tugging him backwards towards one of the lifts, once Harry was inside, Hermione joined them, leaving Ron to stand staring after Yaxley. "Come on!" she urged him, making her way back towards him.

Once the Golden Trio was safe inside the lift, Phoebe turned to see if anyone would be joining them - nobody did. The grilles shut with a clang and the lift began to move upward.

Phoebe lowered the hood of the Invisibility Cloak and turned to her friends.

"I know why he -" she pointed at Harry, "was acting strange with you pair -" she pointed at Ron and Hermione, "back in the alley!"

"You do?" Harry asked. "Why?"

"Runcorn," Phoebe said. "He's a Death Eater. I should have recognized him! He's not from London, he's from Portugal, but he was born in South America! He speaks English because he attended an all-boys English Wizarding School."

Harry frowned. "How do you know so much about him?" he asked.

"I do research, Harry," Phoebe sighed, before turning to Ron, who was whining about his wife. "Ronald, you do not have a wife! Cattermole's wife is in danger! No wonder he was feeling downcast!"

"What am I going to do?" Ron asked.

"We'll come with you," said Harry at once. "We should stick together -"

"We'll do no such thing!" said Phoebe. "We don't have much time! Ron, you and I will go sort out Yaxley's office, Harry, you continue the search for Umbridge's office, Hermione -" she broke off as they reached Level Two. The lift stopped and the grilles opened.

"_Level Two, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services,"_ said the disembodied witch's voice.

Phoebe turned to Ron and nodded. "Come on," she urged, sliding away from Harry, who felt cold as her hand left his, and wound its way around Ron's. "This is us!" she pulled the hood of the Invisibility Cloak back off of her head and stepped out of the lift with Ron.

"Be careful!" Harry called after them.

"Don't worry about us," Phoebe answered. "Just find Umbridge and get that locket!"

The golden gates closed and the lifted disappeared, taking Harry and Hermione with it.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next week.

**A/N:** Also check out the oneshot labelled **Phoebe's Worst Nightmare** and don't forget to drop me a review telling me what you think of both this chapter and the oneshot. Thank you.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 25 November, 2012 at 05:15am**


	166. Chapter 166

**Author's Note:** You know? THIS is the ONLY story I have managed to update all week. Oh, by the way, **Phoebe's Worst Nightmare** has been posted. Thank you to those who have already read it... please, to the others who have yet to read it, go take a look.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **MiraclesHappen94**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **Sabrina Colt **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>Phoebe's eyes widened as she opened the door to Yaxley's office and looked around.<p>

Thunder crashed overheard and lightning flashed, igniting the room in a flash of white light. Rain was falling heavily from the heavy blackened clouds that soared high over the desks, paper was transparently stuck to the desk, the black felt cover shone through the underside, ink blotches littered the paper from where letters and words had run and smudged together.

"Blimey," Ron breathed as he gazed in through the door. "He should have tried an umbrella!"

Phoebe stepped backwards and trod on his toes again.

"Ouch! Would you stop doing that?!" Ron exclaimed hopping on one foot.

"Then shut up, Weasley!" Phoebe snapped. "Mrs. Cattermole is depending on us as it is; the last thing we need is to put her in anymore danger because your wise cracks have pissed of Yaxley."

"Why would that put her -?"

"Because you are, at least to those here at the Ministry, Reginald Cattermole!"

Ron's face flushed crimson. "Oh... yeah..." he nodded. "Right. So, what do we do?" he added looking around at the waterlogged office. "I don't know how to stop this!"

Phoebe looked thoughtful, and then, slowly and deliberately, she pulled her wand from the inside of her back, pointed it at the thunder clouds and said, "_Meteolojinx Recanto_!"

The thunder and lightning ceased as the rain cloud grew smaller and smaller, ringing out the last of its water onto the desk, before vanishing with a faint pop. With another flick of her wand, Phoebe waved her hand around the room, blowing hot hair from both her palm and the tip of her wand; papers fluttered as they were dried instantly on the desks although their pages were still blotted with ink and stains.

"_Volte à normalidade_!" Phoebe added tapping the parchments with her wand and watching as the ink spread quickly back to its proper position, linking back with other ink blotches that had run all over the page, and forming letters, words, sentences and numbers. Once everything was back in order, Phoebe looked up at Ron and nodded. "Done!" she confirmed.

Ron looked flabbergasted at the office; what normally would have taken him hours to figure out, had taken Phoebe no less than three minutes.

"How -?"

"Portuguese spells tend to be a little more powerful," Phoebe answered. "They also have a stronger kick when powered by a four core elemental. I just tapped into the four cores in my wand to deal with the storm, and then reverted to my magical core to deal with the papers;" she shrugged, "English spells wouldn't have been able to reverse the effect the water damage on the papers."

"Hermione could have -"

"If she was an elemental," Phoebe nodded, "then yes she would have been able too. But she's not, and therefore would have struggled with just _Finite Incantatem_. Your magical cores are not strong enough to do _that -_" she pointed at the now dry office, "kind of magic! Now, let's find Harry and Hermione, it's time to get out of here."

Ron nodded, turned toe and followed Phoebe back towards the lifts, the elemental disappeared back beneath the Invisibility Cloak as she went.

**~*Phoebe*~**

There was only one occupant in the lift when it arrived at level two, Ron, who had completely forgotten what Hermione and Harry had looked like when they changed, clambered inside looking nervous, while Phoebe followed him and waited for the grilles to close before throwing off the hood of the cloak and looking at Harry.

"Find anything?" she asked.

"No," said Harry with a shake of his head. "How did you pair get off?"

"Yaxley's office is dry," Ron nodded, finally realizing that it was Harry and not some Ministry official. He had guessed the second that Phoebe had dropped her hood, although he had wondered why she was being so brazen, it had been then that the whole thing had clicked back to life in his mind. "Where is Hermione?" he added.

"She's gone down to the courtrooms," Harry said, "with Umbridge."

"Why didn't you stop her?"

"She couldn't refuse," Harry said. "And -"

But before Harry could finish the lift had stopped again. The doors opened and Mr. Weasley and Josephine Higgs walked inside, talking. Phoebe's eyes widened as she ducked behind Harry and pulled the hood of the Invisibility Cloak back over her head, hoping that she hadn't been seen.

"I understand, Joey, but I'm afraid I cannot be party to -"

Mr. Weasley broke off; he had noticed Harry. It was very strange to have Mr. Weasley glare at him with that much dislike. The lift doors closed and the four of them trundled downward once more.

"Oh, hello, Reg," said Josephine as she spotted Ron. "Isn't your wife in for questioning today?"

Ron nodded. "Yes, I'm on my way down there now!" he said.

"Yes, Andrew is down there too," Josephine nodded. "He's scared out of his wits, and I can't say I blame him, going up again Umbridge and Yaxley, anyone in their right mind would be scared to face them! But Andrew has nothing to worry about, you see, Philip suggested that we pretend that he is my second cousin on my father's side, and that is where he gets his magic from."

"Sneaky," Mr. Weasley nodded.

Harry felt Phoebe clutch the back of his robes as they continued to move downwards towards the Atrium; it wasn't until they had reached level three did the lift doors open once again, and Percy Weasley strode into the lift, his nose buried in some papers he was reading.

Josephine stepped back to allow him to slide in, although he didn't even acknowledge them.

Stepping backwards, to allow Josephine some room, Harry bumped into Phoebe, who was taken by surprise and stumbled backwards. Unfortunately, Harry had stepped onto the hem of the Invisibility cloak, and when Phoebe had lost her footing it had slipped revealing her to the occupants within the lift.

Percy, who had looked up at the commotion, gasped and pointed at her. "Blackheart!" he hissed.

"Pleasure to see you too, Weasley!" Phoebe snapped her hands on her hips. "Sorry to have to do this to you, it's nothing personal. _Stupefy_!" she pointed her wand at him, there was a flash of red and Percy slumped backwards against the lift gates.

Josephine and Mr. Weasley turned to Phoebe.

"Phoebe?" Joey asked, stepping close to her daughter-in-law. She reached and run her hand through Phoebe's hair before pulling her in for a hug. "Oh, Phoebe!"

"Joey," Phoebe said inhaling Josephine's scent. It reminded her of Terence and her heart ached.

"Phoebe, what are you doing here?" Mr. Weasley asked, before pausing and looking down at Percy and then up at Reginald and Runcorn. "Why haven't you - Wait? Where are Ron, Harry and Hermione?"

Phoebe sighed. "You're standing right next to Ron, Mr. Weasley," she said nodding at Reginald. "And Runcorn here," she patted the Death Eater on the shoulder, "is in fact Harry. I Stunned Percy because I need to perform a memory charm on him, no one can know I am here, you see, it would compromise me and everything that we are doing here today."

Mr. Weasley stared at Reg. "Ron -?" he spluttered.

Ron nodded. "Hi, Dad," he said, sheepishly.

"Harry?"

Harry waved, sheepishly.

"Why _are_ you here today?" Joey asked. "I thought you were on the run?"

"We are," Phoebe answered. "But before we can leave there is something we must get, and, unfortunately, the person that has that trinket is Umbridge. Hermione is down in the courtrooms with her at this moment!"

"_What_?" Mr. Weasley and Joey exploded.

Phoebe groaned. "Not the _real_ Hermione," she quickly explained. "Hermione is disguised as Mafalda Hopkirk. Umbridge took her down to the courtrooms while Ron and I were sorting out Yaxley's office, it was raining in there!"

"He should have tried an umbrella!" said Ron, shrinking away from Phoebe's fierce glare.

"Why are you still in the country?" Phoebe asked turning back to Joey and Mr. Weasley.

"Molly and I can't leave," said Mr. Weasley, "I have work and Ginny has school... and Ron is allegedly home dying, it would look suspicious if we were to leave."

Phoebe nodded. "True. Just be careful, Mr. Weasley, you are being watched!" she pointed out.

"Yes, Serefina confirmed it before she left," Mr. Weasley nodded. "She has gone back to Portugal, she, Tonks, Remus and a few other Order Members are trying to reclaim Blackheart Manor, but there has been very little success yet, You-Know-Who is just too strong."

"Yes, Vol -" Harry started, but cut off as Josephine slapped her hand over his mouth.

Ron frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Don't say his name," Josephine warned. "It has been tabooed. Jinxed if you wish,"

Phoebe looked confused, before she gasped. "They put the Trace on it!" she exclaimed. "That's how they found us in London, and why they were turning up at Grimmauld Place! We've been saying his name and they've been following the Trace!"

"Yes, Remus said that there were Death Eaters outside of the old Headquarters," Mr. Weasley nodded. "We are just glad to see you are all safe!" he hugged his son, despite him being in Reginald Cattermole's body, and he patted Harry on the shoulder. "But you should get out of here! Get Hermione and leave! Nothing is more important than your safety."

"We have to get the trinket that Umbridge has," said Phoebe, "it is one of the seven keys to all this."

"One of the seven keys?" Josephine responded.

Phoebe shook her head as she saw the dial above the door reach level 1. "We don't have time to explain, excuse me," she squeezed past Harry, brushing her hand against him and causing his heart rate to excel slightly. She reached for her wand, pointed it at Percy and muttered, "_Oblivate_!" after a few seconds she pulled away. "That should do it!"

"Are you going to do that to us?" Mr. Weasley asked. "It would be best..."

"I don't -" Phoebe hesitated.

"It is OK, Phoebe," said Josephine. "We'll understand. We just want you to be safe, if we are ever interrogated and they search our memories, we'd be killed for not turning you in. Go on, and then get out of here, understand?"

Phoebe nodded and pointed her wand at Mr. Weasley and the Joey in turn, repeating the process that she had done on Percy, while Harry threw the Invisibility Cloak back over her again. Once Phoebe had disappeared and the spells had been complete, Phoebe revived Percy who charged out of the lift the second he saw his father, Mr. Weasley followed him, wishing Joey all the luck in the world.

Neither he, nor Josephine were none the wiser that they had just shared a conversation with Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley and Phoebe Blackheart.

**~*Phoebe*~**

When the doors opened for the last time, Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Josephine stepped out into a torch-lit stone passageway quite different from the wood-paneled and carpeted corridors above. As the lift rattled away again, Harry shivered slightly, looking toward the distant black door that marked the entrance to the Department of Mysteries.

He felt Phoebe take his hand and squeeze it, before leading him off to the left and down a flight of stairs to the courtrooms.

"Do you feel that?" Ron asked.

Joey, who thought he was speaking to her, nodded. "Yes," she answered. "They use Dementors for the interrogations now!"

"What?" Harry asked.

Joey shot him a cold look. "Like you don't know," she snapped. "You put away a friend of mind, Dirk Cresswell, you hunted him down after you found out he had lied about his Family tree. Don't think you won't get away with it, Runcorn, once he is free you'll have hell to pay."

Phoebe glanced up at Harry and squeezed his hand; how it must have been to be stuck in a Death Eater's body. "Don't worry," she whispered. "We'll have you back to normal in no time. I promise."

Harry smiled and nodded.

They reached the foot of the stairs and turned right. There they saw a dreadful scene. The dark passage outside the courtrooms was packed with tall, black-hooded figures, their faces completely hidden, their ragged breathing the only sound in the place. The petrified Muggleborns brought in for questioning sat huddled and shivering on hard wooden benches.

Most of them were hiding their faces in their hands, perhaps in an instinctive attempt to shield themselves from the Dementors' greedy mouths. Some were accompanied by families, others were alone. The Dementors were gliding up and down in front of them, and the cold, and the hopelessness, and the despair of the place laid themselves upon Phoebe like a curse.

_**Phoebe**_ shouted a voice inside her own head.

**Salazar?**

_**Yes, child!**_

**Salazar... I can't...**

_**You must fight it, Phoebe!**_

**I can't...**

_**You can, and you must! You are stronger, Phoebe, do not give in!**_

Phoebe nodded. _Do not give in;_ she told herself, _you must fight it!_

_**Fight it little one**_ said a second voice in her head, this one much sweeter.

_**You can do it, young one!**_ Said a third voice.

_**You are strong, young cub; you are stronger than these vile creatures... show them how strong you are!**_

Phoebe smiled at Godric Gryffindor's encouraging words, nodded once more and pushed onwards, her thoughts turning to Blake and Terence, and despite how much she missed them, she felt her heart elate at the happy memories she had of them. Blake's birth and Terence's face when he learned that he had a son; their smiles were all that she needed to push through gloom that had settled in her chest.

Moving through the towering black figures was terrifying. The eyeless faces hidden beneath their hoods turned as the group of four - or three from the outside words view - passed, and Phoebe was sure that they could sense them, sensed, perhaps, a human presence that still had some hope, some resilience...

And then, abruptly and shockingly amid the frozen silence, one of the dungeon doors on the left of the corridor was flung open and screams echoed out of it.

"No, no, I'm a pureblood, I'm a pureblood; I tell you! My father was a wizard, he was, look him up! Malcolm Higgs, he was married to Monica Jeffrey! He was the son of Abraham Higgs, he had a brother, Jeremiah, who has a granddaughter Josephine Higgs, she is now my wife!"

"This is your final warning," said Umbridge's soft voice, magically magnified so that it sounded clearly over the man's desperate screams. Josephine had gone rigid, and Phoebe could see why, the desperate screams were that of her husband, Andrew Walters. Phoebe knew he had only taken the last name of Higgs as to blend into the Magical world with his new Pureblood in-laws.

"But -"

"If you continue to struggle, you will be subjected to the Dementor's Kiss."

Andrew's screams subsided.

"Like hell!" Joey hissed storming into the courtroom. "I object to the charges on which you accuse my husband!" she yelled, glaring at Umbridge.

"Do you have proof that he is related to you?" Umbridge asked.

"Are birth certificates proof enough?" Joey demanded, handing over the evidence to Yaxley, who in turn gave them to Umbridge.

Phoebe knew they were fake, but by the look on Umbridge's face it was possible that they looked realistic. With a deep and heavy sigh, Umbridge brushed her hand at the two Higg's and pointed at the door. "You are free to go!" she snapped.

Joey turned to her husband, snatched his wand from Yaxley, and led him out of the courtroom.

"Next - Mary Cattermole," called Umbridge.

A small woman stood up; she was trembling from head to foot. Her dark hair was smoothed back into a bun and she wore long, plain robes. Her face was completely bloodless. As she passed the Dementors, Phoebe saw her shudder.

"How do we get in?" Ron whispered as the man's he was impersonating's wife glided past him.

"Harry, grab Ron's shoulder," Phoebe answered. Harry did as instructed, startling Ron.

"Now what?" Harry asked.

"Haul him into the room after Mary," Phoebe whispered. "Act like you have just been to fetch him... Mary will have asked for him without a doubt. We can use you bringing him down here for this as our chance to get inside the Courtrooms. I'll scout around for the locket while Umbridge interrogates her."

"Phoebe -"

"It's not a nice thing to say, Harry, I know," Phoebe answered. "But it's the only chance we've got."

Harry sighed and nodded. "OK. Just... stay close..." he whispered.

"Be careful," Phoebe corrected him with a light smile. "C'mon, you two go first!"

Heaving Ron forward, Harry pushed him into the courtrooms.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The courtroom was much smaller than expected, though the ceiling was quite as high; it still gave the claustrophobic sense of being stuck at the bottom of a deep well.

There were more Dementors in here, casting their freezing aura over the place; they stood like faceless sentinels in the corners farthest from the high, raised platform. Here, behind a balustrade, sat Umbridge, with Yaxley on one side of her, and Hermione, quite as white-faced as Mrs. Cattermole, on the other.

At the foot of the platform, a bright-silver, long-haired cat prowled up and down, up and down, and Phoebe realized that it was there to protect the prosecutors from the despair that emanated from the Dementors. That was for the accused to feel, not the accusers.

"Sit down," said Umbridge in her soft, silky voice.

Mrs. Cattermole stumbled to the single seat in the middle of the floor beneath the raised platform. The moment she had sat down, chains clinked out of the arms of the chair and bound her there.

Phoebe clenched her hands into fists at the sight.

"You are Mary Elizabeth Cattermole?" asked Umbridge.

Mrs. Cattermole gave a single, shaky nod.

"Married to Reginald Cattermole of the Magical Maintenance Department?"

Mrs. Cattermole burst into tears.

Umbridge ignored her.

"Mother to Maisie, Ellie, and Alfred Cattermole?"

Mrs. Cattermole sobbed harder than ever. "They're frightened; they think I might not come home -"

"Spare us," spat Yaxley. "The brats of Mudbloods do not stir our sympathies."

Mrs. Cattermole's sobs masked Phoebe's footsteps as she made her way carefully toward the steps that led up to the raised platform. She nudged Harry as she passed, silently instructing him to take Ron into the room. He did as told.

Mary saw her husband, and a faint feeling of relief washed over her.

Phoebe passed the cat Patronus and felt the temperature change. Down with Harry, Ron and Mary, it had been freezing cold, now up here, behind the barrier was nice and warm. The cat glowed brightly as Umbridge stood in her element, ushering out the twisted laws that she had, undoubtedly, created.

Slowly and very carefully she edged her way along the platform behind Umbridge, Yaxley, and Hermione, taking a seat behind the latter. She was worried about making Hermione jump, and so, carefully pointing her wand between the seams of the Invisibility Cloak, she muttered, "_Muffliato_!" on Umbridge and Yaxley, who were more focused on Mary Cattermole than they were anyone else.

_It is just a precaution_, she thought.

"I'm behind you," she said, leaning forward.

As expected, Hermione jumped. She jumped so violently that she nearly overturned the bottle of ink with which she was supposed to be recording the interview, but thanks to the _Muffliato_ spell this went unnoticed.

"A wand was taken from you upon your arrival at the Ministry today, Mrs. Cattermole," Umbridge was saying. "Eight-and-three-quarter inches, cherry, unicorn-hair core. Do you recognize that description?"

Mrs. Cattermole nodded, mopping her eyes on her sleeve.

"Could you please tell us from which witch or wizard you took that wand?"

"T-took?" sobbed Mrs. Cattermole. "I didn't t-take it from anybody. I b-bought it when I was eleven years old. It - it - it _chose_ me."

She cried harder than ever.

Umbridge laughed and leaned forward over the barrier, the better to observe her victim, and something gold swung forward too, and dangled over the void: the locket.

Hermione and Phoebe spotted it; the bookworm let out a little squeak, but Umbridge and Yaxley were still deaf to it.

"No," said Umbridge, "no, I don't think so, Mrs. Cattermole. Wands only choose witches or wizards. You are not a witch. I have your responses to the questionnaire that was sent to you here - Mafalda, pass them to me."

Umbridge held out a small hand.

Hermione's hands were trembling so bad that she fumbled with the documents. Once she was sure they were the correct ones, and in correct order, she handed them over, missing the slight wave of a wand as Phoebe muttered a spell under her breath.

"That's - that's pretty, Dolores," said Hermione, pointing at the locket.

"What?" snapped Umbridge, glancing down. "Oh yes - and old family heirloom," she said. "The _S_ stands for Selwyn... I am related to the Selwyn's... Indeed, there are a few pureblood families to whom I am not related... A pity," she continued in a louder voice, flickering through Mrs. Cattermole's questionnaire, "that the same cannot be said for - wait a minute, this cannot be right! Mafalda, are you sure this is the correct parchment?"

Hermione nodded. "It is the only one I have for Mary Cattermole," she answered, searching through her parchment, hoping that she hadn't made a mistake. "Yes, no more here, may I ask why?"

"These answers," Umbridge said, waving the parchment around. "They are wrong! She is a Mudblood... why does it state that her father was a famous broomstick designer?"

"I - I have no idea," Hermione stuttered. "Are you sure that you read them completely right when you received the Questionnaire back?"

"Of course I did!"

Leaning forward, Phoebe whispered, "Get ready," in Hermione's ear.

The bookworm nodded faintly.

Mary Cattermole, however, was looking up at her husband perplexed at the sudden turn of events.

"Wait for it..." Phoebe whispered, raising her wand. Umbridge had taken the locket from a petty criminal in Diagon Alley, she had bribed him with a lifetime in prison for it, and she was now using it to bolster her own pureblood credentials. The amount of research she could do into Umbridge... possibly even find out her true heritage. "NOW! _Stupefy!"_

Yaxley slid to the ground to lie curled on the floor.

"What the -?" Umbridge frowned looking around.

Phoebe ripped off the Invisibility Cloak and smirked at the toad-like witch. "Bane told me you had escaped, Dolores, such a shame!" she said.

"Blackheart!" Umbridge hissed. "Seized her!"

"Not this time!" Phoebe said, shaking her head. "_Stupefy!"_

Umbridge slumped in her seat. The cat disappeared and the Dementors swarmed forward.

"Harry, Ron, get her out of here!" Hermione shouted to the two boys, both of whom had used their wands to untie Mary, and lead her toward the doors. With them out of sight, the Dementors turned on Hermione and Phoebe, both of whom were trapped, with no way to escape.

Snatching the locket from Umbridge's neck, she tossed it at Hermione who hid it in her beaded bag.

"For old time's sake?"

Hermione nodded. "Think happy thoughts!" she recited.

"Hermione, you're not trying to fly," Phoebe giggled.

Hermione smiled. "Mum, Dad and Me," she said, raising her wand.

Phoebe smiled and nodded, raised her own wand and said, "Terence, Blake and Me..."

"Family!" the two friends said, simultaneously, before shouting: "_Expecto Patronum!"_

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Intruders!"

"Intruders in the Ministry!"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks as they broke the surface of the Department of Mysteries, and arm-in-arm, made their way carefully towards the fireplaces. They could see Harry, Ron and Mary Cattermole waiting for them near the fountain.

Catching Harry's eye, Phoebe nodded towards the fireplaces.

Harry nodded and, pulling Ron and Mary with him, hurried towards the two girls.

"I don't understand," Mary frowned as she looked around at the four Gryffindor's. "You -" she pointed at Ron. "You were Reg, and now you're -"

"In danger!" said Phoebe, quickly. "Look, it is Mary, right?"

Mary nodded. "And you... you're -"

"Phoebe," the elemental nodded. "Yes, but this isn't the place to get into this sort of conversation! There is a war brewing. If you come with us, we will take you to your husband, after that you and he must go straight home, you must get your kids, disguise yourselves and get the hell out of the country do you understand?"

"No, I -"

"It's not that difficult, Mary," said Phoebe, spotting security guards rushing all around her.

Hermione squeaked as a security guard spotted them, pointed, and yelled, "He's over there! Harry Potter! Over there! She's with him... Phoebe Blackheart is with him! Grab them, do not let them leave!"

"Phoebe..." panicked Hermione.

"New plan," said Phoebe. "Mary, run! Fifty yards north of here, in an alleyway, behind a fire door you will find your husband, Mafalda Hopkirk and Runcorn! Arouse Mafalda and your husband, and then get the hell out. There is no time for questions and answers, just do as I say. Go get your husband, go get your kids and then leave! I do not care where you go! Just GO!"

She pushed the Muggleborn into the green flame.

Just as a loud shout of: "Seal the exit! SEAL IT!" came from the lifts.

Yaxley had burst out of another lift and was running toward the group of four beside the fireplaces, in which Phoebe ushered Harry and Hermione.

"Go!" she urged them. "Go, now!"

"What about you?" Hermione asked.

"Ron and I are pure, remember?" Phoebe asked. "They are hunting down Muggleborns and they want Harry for You-Know-Who!"

"They want you for him too!" Harry said.

"JUST GO!" Phoebe shouted shoving them forward as green flamed flickered up around them.

Ron looked around, they were almost surrounded. "Now what?" he asked.

"Duck!" said Phoebe, pushing Ron down by the shoulders. Yaxley, who had drew his wand, cursed as his spell crashed against the fireplace above their heads. Grates shot down and closed the flames off to them. "Move!" the elemental added, pushing Ron towards the end fire and pulling him into the flames.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Mary Cattermole looked at Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione. The Golden Trio were all back to normal, and the Muggleborn couldn't believe her eyes, but before she could start asking anymore questions there was a noise in the men's toilet's behind them.

Harry looked around; Yaxley had just appeared.

"LET'S GO!" Harry yelled. He seized Phoebe by the hand, Ron by the arm, as Phoebe grasped Hermione's wrist and ordered Mary to leave, immediately. The Muggleborn heeded the warning, turned on the spot and disappeared with a loud _CRACK._

Soon darkness engulfed them, along with the sensation of compressing bands, but something was wrong...

Phoebe panicked as she felt Harry's hand slip from her own.

And then she saw the door at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, with its serpent door knocker. She heard Harry take a breath, but movement caught her attention and her eye widened as the gleaming maniacal face of Yaxley loomed over Ron's head.

"Gotcha!" he snarled.

"_Relashio!"_ Phoebe yelled. A wind swept throughout Harry and Ron, and next second Yaxley lost his grip, stumbled backwards out of the protective charms and crashed, landing with a sickening crunch at the bottom of steps on number twelve. "Hermione, GO!"

Hermione turned on the spot and pulled them all, once again, into the suffocating darkness.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I know... i'm a day early. But since this is the only story I am able to update on time, I thought I would get it out a day early so that I can work on another story that has been driving me crazy all week. If I get the other story updated tomorrow, and if you are lucky, you might have another update for this story, although I can make no promises.

**A/N:** Don't forget! Check out **Phoebe's Worst Nightmare** after reading and reviewing this chapter. Awesome. Until we meet again.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 01 December, 2012 at 02:49am**


	167. Chapter 167

**Author's Note:** Hi... only a short one. But as it is my last week in Uni you might be lucky enough to have another update in the next few days. We'll have to see what happens. There is also the fact that I am planning a Digimon Tamers story. Any Digimon fans out there?

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, Dream lighting, KingdomHeartsNerd, MiraclesHappen94, SoulVirus** and** Alaina08**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **Katara Melody Cullen **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belongs to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"What happened?"<p>

"Ron was Splinched,"

Harry blinked in confusion. "He what -?" he frowned.

"Splinched," Phoebe answered as she helped Hermione rip open Ron's sleeve. The blood was wet and dark here, a clear sign that it was his arm that had been ripped open.

Harry watched horrified. He had always thought of Splinching as something comical, but this... His insides crawled unpleasantly as Hermione laid bare Ron's upper arm, where a great chunk of flesh was missing, scooped cleanly away as though by a knife.

"Harry, quickly, in the bag, there's a small bottle labeled 'Essence of Dittany' -" said Phoebe.

"Can't you -?"

"Not without a source of water," said Phoebe.

"Right - bag - right -" Harry said as he looked around quickly, his eyes darted in every direction, and his head spun as he finally located the bag. He thrust his hand inside. At once, object after object began presenting itself to his touch.

"_QUICKLY!"_

"_Accio Dittany!"_

A small brown bottle zoomed out of the bag; he caught it and hastened back to Hermione, Phoebe and Ron, whose eyes were now half-closed, strips of white eyeball all that were visible between his lids.

"He's fainted," said Hermione, who was rather pale.

"Unstopper it for me, Harry," said Phoebe. "Hermione, you need to calm down!" she added as she saw her best friend's hands shaking badly.

Harry wrenched the stopper off the little bottle; Phoebe took it and poured three drops of the potion onto the bleeding wound. Greenish smoke billowed upward and when it had cleared, Harry saw that the bleeding had stopped. The wound now looked several days old; new skin stretched over what had just been open flesh.

"Wow," said Harry.

"There are spells that would put him completely right," said Phoebe. "Or if there was a body of water around here somewhere, I could use my elemental control over it to completely heal him, but until we find one this is all I can do for him."

"How did he get hurt? I mean -" Harry shook his head, trying to clear it, to make sense of whatever had taken place - "why are we here? I thought we were going back to Grimmuald Place?"

Phoebe took a deep breath as she patted Hermione's shoulder and then stood up. "We can never go back there," she said reaching for her wand.

"What d'you -?"

"As we Disapparated, Yaxley caught hold of you and Ron," Phoebe explained. "I could feel you slipping away from my hold, when we returned to Grimmuald Place I saw him, he was inside the protective enchantments with us, I had to use the Relashio spell on him, and force Hermione to Disapparate again."

"You mean he's at Grimmuald Place?" Harry asked. Phoebe nodded. "But he can't get in there!"

"I took him _inside_ the protective enchantments, Harry," said Phoebe. "Since Dumbledore died we, along with everyone else within the Order, became Secret Keepers, so taking him inside the protective enchantments made him a Secret Keeper too. I gave him the secret too."

Harry sighed. There was no pretending; there was no denying that she was right. If Yaxley could get into the house, there was no point returning.

"What about Kreacher?" Hermione asked.

"He's safe," said Phoebe. "I made him promise me that if anyone, other than you three and myself, came back to Grimmuald Place this evening, he would Disapparate back to Hogwarts."

"You knew this was going to happen?" asked Harry.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, but you cannot deny that we can't execute a flawless plan without getting into some sort of trouble!"

Harry sighed. Again, that was true.

"So he is safe?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe nodded.

Hermione sighed in relief.

At his lack of an answer, Phoebe became worried. Did Harry blame her in some way? Had it been her fault? She was only trying to protect him, and leaving him at Grimmuald Place, where Voldemort and the Death Eaters could get in, was by far the stupidest idea she would ever have had as she chosen to execute it.

"Harry, i'm sorry?"

"What for?"

"Because I brought you here,"

Harry stared at her stupidly. "Phoebe, it's not your fault," he said. "You did the right thing. Besides, it is me who should be sorry."

"Why should you be sorry?" Phoebe frowned.

"Because it was my fault that they knew there were intruders," said Harry, and from inside his pocket he withdrew Mad-Eye's magical revolving eye. Hermione recoiled looking horrified. "Umbridge had stuck it to her office door, to spy on people. I couldn't leave it there..."

Before either Phoebe or Hermione could answer, Ron groaned and opened his eyes. He was still gray and his face glistened with sweat.

"How d'you feel?" Hermione whispered.

"Lousy," croaked Ron, wincing as he felt his injured arm. 2Where are we?"

"In the woods where they held the Quidditch World Cup," said Hermione. "I wanted somewhere enclosed, undercover, and this was -"

"Perfect!" finished Phoebe. "It is perfect!"

"Do you think we should move on?" Rona asked Harry, noting the apprehension on his friends face.

"I dunno," said Harry.

"Then what's the matter?" Hermione asked, also noticing the look of apprehension.

Harry shook his head. "I'm just wondering how the Death Eaters found us last time," he said. "Did they use Legilimency? Is that how they found us within minutes of leaving the Burrow? Did Vol -"

Phoebe slapped her hand over his mouth, cutting him off.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked.

"It's been Tabooed," said Phoebe.

"What has?" asked Ron.

"The name!"

The Trio looked perplexed.

Phoebe sighed. "I can understand Hermione not knowing what I am talking about, I mean, she wasn't even there, but you two -" she looked pointedly at Ron and Harry, "you two are unbelievable! Remember what Josephine and Mr. Weasley said?"

"You saw Joey and Mr. Weasley?" Hermione asked. "When?"

"In the lift," Phoebe said. "I had to memory modified Percy and they saw me. I'll tell you more later, anyway, they told us that You-Know-Who's name had been traced, and anyone who uses it is picked up within an instant."

Ron looked at Phoebe. "So we can't say the name?" he asked.

The elemental nodded. "We cannot say the name," she confirmed.

"So what _do_ we say?" Harry asked, removing Phoebe's hand from his lips.

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," said Phoebe. "Or, You-Know-Who!"

Harry sighed. "Fine," he caved. It was obvious he really hated saying anything other than Voldemort's name, but if it meant his safety and the safety of his friends, then he could, at the very least, accommodate to the new rules that had been laid out.

"Good," said Phoebe. "And don't worry; I have a plan that will keep as safe for the night. You need to rest up, Ron, Hermione why don't you get started on the Tent? I'll go do the protective enchantments."

The Muggleborn nodded and seized her beaded bag from beside Harry, while Phoebe, wand in hand, strode off to a venue point a fair distance away.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Later that evening, after a few rounds of tea, Harry turned to Phoebe.

"So, did you get it?" he asked.

"Of course," said Phoebe, holding up the locket. It was as large as a chicken's egg. An ornate letter _S_, inlaid with many small green stones, glinted dully in the diffused light shining through the tent's canvas roof.

"There isn't any chance someone's destroyed it since Kreacher had it?" asked Ron hopefully. "I mean, are we sure it's still a Horcrux?"

"I think so," said Hermione, taking the locket from Phoebe and looking at it closely. "There'd be some sign of damage if it had been magically destroyed."

She passed it to Harry, who turned it over in his fingers. The thing looked perfect, pristine. He remembered the mangled remains of the diary, and how the stone in the Horcrux ring had been cracked open when Dumbledore destroyed it.

"I reckon Kreacher's right," said Harry. "We're going to have to work out how to open this thing before we can destroy it."

He handed it back to Phoebe.

"What's wrong?" asked Ron, noticing the look on the elemental's face.

"Can you feel that?" Phoebe asked, as she held the locket tight in her clenched fist.

"What d'you mean?" asked Harry.

Phoebe passed the Horcrux over, and after a moment or two Harry could tell what she meant.

"Is that -?" he started.

"A heartbeat," Phoebe nodded.

"What are we going to do with it?" Hermione asked.

"Keep it safe till we work out how to destroy it," Harry replied, and, little though he wanted to, he hung the chain around his own neck, dropping the locket out of sight beneath his robes, where it rested against his chest beside the pouch Hagrid had given him.

"I think we should take it in turns to keep watch outside the tent," Phoebe said to Harry, standing up and stretching. "And we'll need to think about some food as well. You stay here," she added sharply, as Ron attempted to sit up and turned a nasty shade of green.

With the Sneakoscope Hermione had given Harry for his birthday set carefully upon the table in the tent, Harry, Phoebe and Hermione spent the rest of the day sharing the role of lookout. However, the Sneakoscope remained silent and still upon its point all day, but was that a good thing or a bad thing?

**~*Phoebe*~**

Evening brought no change; Phoebe lit her wand as she swapped places with Harry at ten o'clock, and looked out upon a deserted scene, noting the bats fluttering high above her across the single patch of starry sky visible from their protected clearing.

She felt hungry now, and a little light-headed. Neither she nor Hermione had packed food, as she had assumed they would be returning to Grimmuald Place, she should have thought when she had warned Kreacher that there was a chance they would not be returning to pack _something_. She cursed her own stupidity, but there was a first for everything, right?

Phoebe sighed and her thoughts turned to Blake. Where was he? Was he happy? Safe? Well-fed and looked after? Her heart raced as images of her baby boy flashed across her mind, his gentle laugh and happy smile, his voice as he spoke his first word. Her heart clenched as 'Mama' rested upon her thoughts and tears blurred her vision as his happy face lingered in the night sky.

"I miss you, Blakey," she whispered, before shaking her head. She couldn't think like that! Blake was safe, as was Terence and the rest of her friends. She would see them again, she was sure of it! Once this war was over she was going to Italy and France to find her friends, she was going to recruit them and they were going to go home!

Her nightmare, of losing her husband, friends and her son, was not going to come true. They were going to win this war, Harry was going to defeat Voldemort, Sarah, Aiden, Adrian, Ron and Hermione were going to survive, they were going to reclaim Blackheart Manor and live to see the future.

She was determined.

She was fueled by love and courage for her family and their survival.

She was -

Phoebe's thoughts, along with the surrounding silence, were broken by odd rustlings and what sounded like cracklings of twigs. Instantly Phoebe's thoughts changed from Blake to the sounds, they had to be animals, right? There was no possible way that there were more people in this neck of the woods, right? Yet, despite what she thought, Phoebe kept her wand held high, her stomach twisting uneasy.

A scream ripped through the silence. It was coming from inside the tent.

Abandoning her post, Phoebe flew back inside. Ron had been moved from the sofa and into the boy's bedroom, was sitting up in his bed as Hermione crowded around Harry, he was looking as pale as a ghost, his brow was sweating furiously, and he was muttering over and over to himself.

"What happened?" Phoebe asked as she came to a halt at the bottom of Harry's bed.

"Dream," Harry said, attempting to meet Hermione's glower with a look of innocence.

"I know it was your scar, Harry," said Hermione. "I can tell by the look on your face. You were looking into Vol -"

"Don't say his name!" shouted Phoebe and Ron.

"_Fine_," retorted Hermione. "_You-Know-Who_'s mind, then!"

"I didn't mean it to happen!" Harry said. "It was a dream! Can _you_ control what you dream about, Hermione?"

"If you just learned to apply Occlumency -"

Harry cut her off and turned to Phoebe, he knew that she would understand, but there was also the fact that she had promised to teach him Occlumency in order to block out these visions or dreams, whatever they were.

"He's found Gregorovitch," he said, breathlessly, "and I think he's killed him, but before he killed him he read Gregorovitch's mind..."

"So you were reading someone else's mind, within reading someone else's mind?" Phoebe asked. "Freaky!"

"I'm confused," said Ron.

Phoebe sighed. "It's like a dream within a dream," she answered. "Dreaming that you are dreaming. But in this case, Harry was reading Gregorovitch's mind whilst reading You-Know-Who's mind."

Ron blinked, still confused.

"Never mind," Phoebe groaned turning back to Harry. "What did You-Know-Who see?"

"Phoebe!" Hermione cried.

"What?" Phoebe asked. "I want him to stop these visions as much as you do, Hermione, but it doesn't hurt to know what the enemy is doing. Without Aiden around to spy on You-Know-Who this is the best chance we have got to see what he is planning."

Harry looked shocked. "So you don't mind that I am not closing my mind off to him?"

"As long as you don't let him see into your mind," said Phoebe. "I think we are safe. There is a form of Occlumency that can be learned, it is where you, the seer, can cut off your own thoughts and memories to intruders, but still access other people's mind."

"Can you teach me that?"

Phoebe nodded. "We can start in the morning," she agreed. "But first tell me what you saw while inside You-Know-Who's head."

Hermione huffed and shot to her feet. "I'll finish the watch then!" she said, stalking outside as Phoebe sat on the bottom of Harry's bed.

"He found Gregorovitch. He had him tied up, he was torturing him."

"How's Gregorovitch supposed to make a new wand if he's tied up?" asked Ron.

"I dunno... it's weird, isn't it?" Harry frowned. "He wanted something from Gregorovitch," he continued. "He asked him to hand I over, but Gregorovitch said it had been stolen from him... and then... then..."

Phoebe and Ron exchanged looks. "Then what?" they asked.

"He read Gregorovitch's mind, and I saw this young bloke perched on a windowsill, and he fired a curse at Gregorovitch and jumped out of sight. He stole it, he stole whatever You-Know-Who's after. And I... I think I've seen him somewhere..."

"Couldn't you see what the thief was holding?" asked Ron.

"No... It must've been something small."

"Harry?"

The wooden slats of Ron's bunk creaked as he repositioned himself in bed.

"Harry, you don't think You-Know-Who's after something else to turn into a Horcrux?

"I don't know," said Harry slowly. "Maybe."

"No," said Phoebe, shaking her head. "It would be dangerous of him to even attempt it. He's already pushed his soul to the limit by making seven."

"Yeah, but maybe he doesn't know that." Ron said.

Harry shrugged. "Yeah... maybe."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I might see you in the week... if not see you next Saturday.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 08 December, 2012 at 02:00pm**


	168. Chapter 168

**Author's Note:** Slightly late update. It was my nephew's birthday party yesterday even though his actual birthday is today. Happy Birthday Ellis-Ray, Auntie Kara loves you millions xxx. But I have been extremely busy these past couple of days. Will try and get the next chapter up faster.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Chinaluv, KingdomHeartsNerd** and** SoulVirus**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **Dreamsb223** and** ddye **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And now profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>The first thing Phoebe noticed when she woke the next morning was that Harry was missing. Pushing back the blankets on her bottom bunk, the elemental pushed herself up and smoothed out the wrinkles on her clothes, she had gone to bed in what she was wearing the previous day, wrapped up in a cloak that Hermione had packed.<p>

As she made her way into the kitchen, Phoebe flicked her ebony hair over her shoulder. She grimaced wryly, it was greasy. She needed a shower.

No sooner had she made it to the kitchen, and put the kettle on, Harry was walking back in from outside. He stopped when he saw that he wasn't the only one wake. "Did I wake you?" he asked.

"No," said Phoebe. "I've only just woken. Tea?"

"Thanks," Harry nodded.

Phoebe smiled and poured out two cups of tea. "I've been thinking," she said, setting the two cups down on the table, and taking a seat opposite Harry. "I don't think we should stay in the same place for every long."

"Have you talked to Hermione about this?"

"Last night," Phoebe nodded. "She agrees, and I think if we can blackmail Ron with food he'll agree too."

Harry laughed lightly.

"Is Ron fit to Apparate?"

"I'll check his arm when he wakes up," Phoebe promised, sipping at her tea.

**~*Phoebe*~**

An hour later, after checking Ron's arm and getting the affirmative that he was fit to Apparate, Harry packed up the tent while Hermione removed the enchantments from around the campsite; Phoebe obliterated all the marks and impressions on the ground that might show they had camped there. Then they Disapparated to the outskirts of a small market town.

Once they had pitched the tent in the shelter of a small corpse of trees and surrounded it with freshly cast defensive enchantments, Harry ventured out under the Invisibility Cloak to find food, while Hermione made tea and Phoebe changed Ron's bandages again, she had just finished disposing of the old bandages when Harry returned.

"Harry, what happened?" Hermione asked, rushing in from the kitchen.

"Dementors..."

"But you can make a brilliant Patronus!" protested Ron.

"I couldn't... make one," Harry panted, clutching the stitch in his side. "Wouldn't... come."

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks.

"So we still haven't got any food."

"Shut up, Ron," snapped Phoebe. "Harry, what happened? Why do you think you couldn't make your Patronus? You managed perfectly yesterday!"

"I don't know."

He sat low in one of the old armchairs.

Ron kicked a chair leg.

"What?" he snarled at Hermione. "I'm starving! All I've had since I bled half to death is a couple of toadstools!"

"You go and fight your way through the Dementors, then."

"I would, but my arms in a sling, in case you hadn't noticed!"

"That's convenient."

"And what's that supposed to -?"

"Of course!" cried Phoebe, clapping a hand to her forehead and startling both of them into silence. "Harry, give me the locket! Come on," she said impatiently, clicking her fingers at him when he did not react, "the Horcrux, Harry, you're still wearing it!"

She held out her hands, and Harry lifted the golden chain over his head. The moment it parted contact with his skin he felt free and oddly light.

"Better?" asked Phoebe.

"Yeah, loads better!"

Hermione stopped and turned to her best friend. "Phoebe, you don't think he's been possessed do you?" she asked.

"No," said Phoebe. "When Ginny was possessed she had that vacant look upon her face and she couldn't remember anything that she had done that day. You remember everything don't you, Harry?"

"Yeah,"

"Then what do you think happened?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe looked down at the heavy gold locket. "Well, maybe we ought not to wear it. We can just keep it in the tent."

"We are not leaving that Horcrux lying around," Harry stated firmly. "If we lose it, if it gets stolen -"

"All right, all right," said Phoebe, and she placed it around her own neck and tucked it out of sight down the front of her shirt. "But we'll take turns wearing it, so nobody keeps it on too long."

"Great," said Ron irritably, "and now we've sorted that out; can we please get some food?"

"Fine, but we'll go somewhere else to find it," said Hermione with half a glance at Harry. "There's no point staying where we know Dementors are swooping around."

Phoebe nodded in agreement. "She makes a valid point," she agreed, "best get out of here before something worse than Dementors turn up."

**~*Phoebe*~**

In the end they settled down for the night in a far-flung field belonging to a lonely farm, from which they had managed to obtain eggs and bread.

"It's not stealing, is it?" asked Hermione in a troubled voice, as they devoured scrambled eggs on toast. "Not if I left some money under the chicken coop?"

Ron rolled his eyes and said, with his cheeks bulging. "Er-my-nee 'oo worry 'oo much.'Elax!"

"Maybe it'll be easier to relax once we've had our fill," said Phoebe as she finished her meal. Once the others had also finished, she stood, gathered the plates and disappeared into the kitchen to wash up, from behind her she could hear her friends laughter. She smiled, feeling cheerful, even hopeful, as she put the kettle on.

This was their first encounter with the fact that a full stomach meant good spirits; an empty one, bickering and gloom. Harry was least surprised by this, because he had suffered periods of near starvation at the Dursleys'. Hermione bore up reasonably well on those nights when they managed to scavenge nothing but berries or stale biscuits.

Ron, who was always used to three delicious meals a day, courtesy of his mother or of the Hogwarts house-elves, hunger always made him both unreasonable and irascible, while Phoebe, who was also used to three square meals a day seemed to fair better than the three of the put together, although her temper was a bit shorter than usual and her silences rather dour.

"So where next?" Ron asked for what felt like the one hundredth time that evening. He did not seem to have any ideas himself, but expected Harry, Hermione and Phoebe to come up with plans while he sat and brooded over the low food supplies. Accordingly, Hermione, Harry and Phoebe spent fruitless hours trying to decide where they might find the other Horcruxes, and how to destroy the one they already had.

"Dumbledore believes that You-Know-Who would have hidden the Horcruxes in places that are important to him," Phoebe said.

"The Orphanage..."

"Hogwarts..."

"Borgin and Burkes..."

"Albania..."

"Yeah, let's go to Albania," said Ron sarcastically. "Shouldn't take more than an afternoon to search an entire country."

"There can't be anything there. He'd already made five of his Horcruxes before he went into exile, and Dumbledore was certain the snake is the sixth," said Phoebe. "We know the snake's not in Albania, it's usually with You-Know-Who!"

"I can't see him hiding anything at Borgin and Burkes," said Harry, who had made this point many times before, but said it again simply to break the nasty silence. "Borgin and Burke were experts at Dark objects; they would've recognized a Horcrux straightaway."

Ron yawned pointedly. Repressing a strong urge to throw something at him, Harry plowed on, "I still reckon he might have hidden something at Hogwarts."

Hermione sighed.

"But Dumbledore would have found it, Harry!"

Harry repeated the argument he kept bringing out in favour of this theory.

"Dumbledore said in front of me that he never assumed he knew all of Hogwarts's secrets. I'm telling you, if there was one place Vol -"

"_Don't say his name!"_

"Fine! _You-Know-Who_ - happy?"

"Not particularly."

"If there was one place that was really important to You-Know-Who, it was Hogwarts!"

"Oh, come on," scoffed Ron. "His _school_?"

"Yeah, his school!"

"Well, it was his first real home," said Phoebe. "The place that meant he was special; it meant everything to him, and even after he left -"

"This is You-Know-Who we're talking about, right? Not Harry?" inquired Ron. He was tugging at the chain of the Horcrux around his neck; Harry was visited by a desire to seize it and throttle him.

"You told us that You-Know-Who asked Dumbledore to give him a job after he left," said Hermione.

"That's right," said Harry.

"And Dumbledore thought he only wanted to come back to try and find something, probably another founder's object, to make into another Horcrux?"

"Yeah," said Harry.

"But he didn't get the job, did he?" said Hermione. "So he never got the chance to find a founder's object there and hide it in the school!"

"Okay, then," said Harry, defeated. "Forget Hogwarts."

Without any other leads, they travelled into London and, hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak, searched for the orphanage in which Voldemort had been raised. Hermione stole into a library and discovered from their records that the place had been demolished many years before. They visited its site and found a tower block of offices.

"We could try digging in the foundations?" Hermione suggested halfheartedly.

"He wouldn't have hidden a Horcrux there," said Phoebe. "The Orphanage was a place You-Know-Who had been determined to escape; he would have never have hidden a part of his soul there."

Harry nodded in agreement. Dumbledore had always told him that Voldemort sought grandeur or mystique in his hiding places; this dismal gray corner of London was as far removed as you could imagine from Hogwarts or the Ministry or a building like Gringotts, the Wizarding bank, with its golden doors and marble floors.

Even without any new ideas, they continued to move through the countryside, pitching the tent in a different place each night for security. Every morning Phoebe made sure that they had removed all clues to their presence, and then set off to find another lonely and secluded spot, traveling by Apparition to more woods, to the shadowy crevices of cliffs, to purple moors, gorse-covered mountainsides, and once a sheltered and pebbly cove.

Every twelve hours or so they passed the Horcrux between them as though they were playing some perverse, slow-motion game of pass-the-parcel, where they dreaded the music stopping because the reward was twelve hours of increased fear and anxiety.

As the days stretched into weeks, Phoebe began to suspect that Ron and Hermione were having private conversations without her and Harry's knowledge, and she was vaguely suspicious that they were about Harry to begin with. Several times she had witnessed them stop talking abruptly when Harry entered the tent or when he came close to them being huddled in a corner, heads together and talking fast; both times they fell silent when they realized he was approaching them and hastened to appear collecting wood or water.

"If you two have anything to say," said Phoebe, re-entering the tent one evening. She had been out checking the boundaries and strengthing the protective enchantments, "then come out and say it! Harry has enough to deal with without you two talking about him behind his back!"

"Like you aren't upset with him," Ron snapped.

"At least i'm doing whatever it takes to _help_ him, Weasley!"

Hermione sighed. "I'm not upset with him," she said. "Neither one of us has any idea what we are doing out here, anyway, I just -"

"Just what?" Phoebe asked. "Just what, Hermione? Just wish he had a plan? Just wish he knew what he was doing? You're right when you say none of us have a clue what we are doing out here, but Harry is doing everything Dumbledore told him to do!"

"We though Dumbledore would have told him _something!"_ interrupted Ron.

"Dumbledore told him everything he has told you," Phoebe snapped. "Just sit down, Weasley, and keep your nose out of things that are too complicated for you to understand!"

She turned and toe and swept from the tent leaving Ron to glare after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Autumn rolled over the countryside as they moved through it. They were now pitching the tent on mulches of fallen leaves. Natural mists joined those cast by the Dementors; wind and rain added to their troubles. The fact that Hermione was getting better at identifying edible fungi could not altogether compensate for their continuing isolation, the lack of people's company, or their total ignorance of what was going on in the war against Voldemort.

"My mother," said Ron one night, as they sat in the tent on a riverbank in Wales, "can make good food appear out of thin air."

He prodded moodily at the lumps of charred gray fish on his plate.

"Your mother can't produce food out of thin air," said Phoebe. "No one can. Food is the first of the five Principal Exceptions to Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfigur -"

"Oh, speak English, can't you?" Ron said, prising a fish bone out from between his teeth.

"It's impossible to make good food out of nothing! You can Summon it if you know where it is, you can transform it, you can increase the quantity if you've already got some -"

"Well, don't bother increasing this, it's disgusting," said Ron.

"Harry caught the fish and I did my best with it!"

"You're supposed to be a powerful elemental!" Ron yelled. "But you can't even cook a decent fish!"

"Then _you_ can do the cooking tomorrow, Ron, _you_ can find the ingredients and try and charm them into something worth eating, and I'll sit and pull faces and moan and you can see how you -"

"Shut up!" said Harry, leaping to his feet and holding up both hands. "Shut up _now_!"

Hermione looked outraged.

"How can you side with him?" she asked. "Phoebe's right, he hardly does the cook -"

"Hermione, be quiet, I can hear someone!"

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks as they fell silent. Then, over the rush and gush of the dark river beside them, they heard voices. Harry looked towards the Sneakoscope. It was not moving.

"You cast the Muffliato charm over us, right?" Harry whispered.

"I did everything," Phoebe whispered back. "Muffliato, Muggle-Repelling, Disillusionment Charms, Seer-Repelling, all of it. They shouldn't be able to hear or see us, whoever they are."

Heavy scuffling and scraping noises, plus the sound of dislodged stones and twigs, told them that several people were clambering down the steep, wooded slope that descended to the narrow bank where they had pitched the tent.

They drew their wands, waiting.

The enchantments they had cast around themselves ought to be sufficient, in the near total darkness, to shield them from the notice of Muggles and normal witches and wizards, but with Phoebe's added Elemental spells the protective enchantments should have protected them from elemental witches and wizards too.

If these were Death Eaters, then perhaps their defenses were about to be tested by Dark Magic for the first time.

The voices became louder but no more intelligible as the group of men reached the bank. Harry estimated that their owners were fewer than twenty feet away, but the cascading river made it impossible to tell for sure. Hermione snatched up her beaded bag and started to rummage inside it.

"Don't bother, Hermione," Phoebe said as she made her way to the tent exit. "You can hear everything from here... and they can't see us, anyway!"

Hermione dropped her beaded bag back onto the floor, as Harry followed Phoebe outside.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Phineas!"

It had been at least 20 minutes since Dean, Ted, Dirk and the goblins had left the campsite, they had said some very interesting things about what was happening in the real world, something's that Phoebe would have fun thinking over later while she was on watch duty, but now, now she was more focused on what was happening at Hogwarts.

The second the voices had disappeared, the elemental had lunged for Hermione's beaded bag and pulled Phineas' canvas out, propping it up against the side of the tent.

"If somebody swapped the real sword for a fake while it was in Dumbledore's office," said Phoebe. "Phineas Nigellus would have seen it happen, he hangs right beside the case!"

"Unless he was asleep," said Harry.

"Phineas! Phineas, please, we need to talk to you!"

"Please always helps," said a cold, snide voice, and Phineas slid into his portrait. It had been the first time he had visited since Phoebe had put the blindfold on weeks ago and was therefore, disgusted by the act. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Sorry, Professor," said Phoebe. "But this is just a necessary precaution!"

"Remove this foul addition at once! Remove it, I say! You are ruining a great work of art! Where am I? What's going on?"

"Never mind where we are," said Harry, and Phineas froze.

"Can that possibly be the voice of the elusive Mr. Potter?"

"Maybe," said Harry. "We've got a couple of questions to ask you - about the sword of Gryffindor."

"Ah," said Phineas, "yes. That silly girl acted most unwisely there -"

"Shut up about my sister," said Ron roughly.

"Who else is here?" asked Phineas. "Your tone displeases me! The girl and her friends were foolhardy in the extreme. Thieving from the headmaster!"

"They weren't thieving," said HARRY. "That sword isn't Snape's!"

"It belongs to Professor Snape's school," said Phineas. "Exactly what claim did the Weasley girl have upon it? She deserved her punishment, as did the idiot Longbottom and the Lovegood oddity!"

"Neville is not an idiot," said Hermione.

"And Luna is not an oddity!" snapped Phoebe.

"Where am I?" repeated Phineas. "Where have you brought me? Why have you removed me from the house of my forebears?"

"Never mind that! How did Snape punish Ginny, Neville and Luna?" asked Harry.

"_Professor_ Snape sent them into Forbidden Forest, to do some work for the oaf, Hagrid."

"Hagrid's not an oaf!" said Hermione.

"And Snape might've thought that was a punishment," said Harry, "but Ginny, Neville and Luna probably had a good laugh with Hagrid. The Forbidden Forest... they've faced plenty worse than the Forbidden Forest, big deal!"

"What we really wanted to know, Professor Black, is whether anyone else has, um, taken out the sword at all? Maybe it's been taken away for cleaning or - or something?" said Hermione.

Phineas paused again in his struggles to free his eyes and sniggered.

"_Muggleborns,"_ he said. "Goblin-made armor does not require cleaning, simple girl. Goblins' silver repels mundane dirt, imbibing only that which makes it stronger."

Harry looked to Phoebe who nodded in confirmation. "Which is why it absorbed the Basilisk venom when you used it in the Chamber six years ago, Harry," she said.

"Clever girl," Phineas said.

"And Hermione is not _simple_, Phineas," Phoebe added.

"I grow weary of contradiction," said Phineas. "Perhaps it is time for me to return to the headmasters office?"

Still blindfolded, he began groping the side of his frame, trying to feel his way out of his picture and back into the one at Hogwarts.

"Dumbledore! Can't you bring us Dumbledore?"

Phineas stopped. "Beg your pardon?" he asked.

"Professor Dumbledore's portrait - couldn't you bring him along, here, into yours?"

Phoebe sighed and touched Harry's shoulder. "He can't, Harry," she said.

"Others do it!"

"No, they don't," said Phoebe. "Portraits can travel to and from picture frames, yes, but it is _their_ picture frames at another location. They cannot travel to other people's frames in another location."

Harry frowned. "But Violet, the friend of the Fat Lady, she travelled up to Gryffindor Tower many times."

"Yes, but she could never follow the Fat Lady to a portrait that is _outside_ of Hogwarts," Phoebe said. Harry continued to look confused. Phoebe sighed heavily. "The portraits of Hogwarts may commune with each other, but they cannot travel outside the castle except to visit a painting of themselves hanging elsewhere. Dumbledore cannot come here with Professor Black."

"You should listen to her, Potter," Phineas nodded. "Smart girl, Blackheart, very smart girl. But after the treatment I have received at your hands, I can assure you that I shall not be making a return visit!"

Slightly crestfallen, Harry watched Phineas redouble his attempts to leave his frame.

"Phineas," said Phoebe, stopping his progress. "Could you _please_ tell us when the last time that the sword of Gryffindor was taken out? Before Ginny tried to steal -"

"SHE DIDN'T STEAL IT!" Harry and Ron shouted.

Phoebe shot them down with a dark look.

"I believe that the last time I saw the sword of Gryffindor leave its case was when Professor Dumbledore used it to break open a ring," answered Phineas ignoring the two boys and concentrating, purely on Phoebe's voice.

Hermione whipped around to look at Harry.

Finally, Phineas managed to find the exit.

"Well, good night to you," he said a little waspishly, as he began to leave. Only the edge of his hat remained when Harry suddenly shouted.

"Wait! Have you told Snape you saw this?"

Phineas stuck his blindfolded head back into the picture. "Professor Snape has more important things on his mind than the many eccentricities of Albus Dumbledore. _Goodbye_, Potter."

"Goodbye, Professor Black," said Phoebe. "And good night!"

Slightly taken aback, Phineas nodded his head and disappeared from view.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Next chapter may be a short one... probably just a carry on from this one.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 16 December, 2012 at 02:55am**


	169. Chapter 169

**Author's Note:** I started writing this after last night's post. My heart goes out to the families of Newtown, Connecticut during this fateful time.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, MiraclesHappen94, Chinaluv **and** SoulVirus**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **flint1991 **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"The Sword can destroy Horcruxes why didn't Dumbledore give it to me when he had the chance?"<p>

"Because he couldn't,"

"But why?"

"Because he still needed it!"

"There is that," Phoebe nodded. "But there is also the fact that he needed it for the locket. He couldn't put it in his Will because the Ministry would have seized it, seeing as it is Goblin-made it _should_ have been returned to them after Godric Gryffindor died."

It was later in the evening. Phineas had returned to Hogwarts leaving Harry, Hermione and Phoebe to talk about what they had learned from him. He had been generous enough to fill in some blanks that had surfaced concerning the Sword of Gryffindor; why hadn't Dumbledore given the sword to Harry? Why hadn't it been there in his Will? The fact that he had made a copy held several answers.

"But if he made a copy," said Hermione, "where is the real one?"

They gazed at each other. It felt like the answer was dangling right in front of them, but yet it was so far out of reach. Why hadn't Dumbledore told them he had cloned the Sword? Why hadn't he told them where the real one was hiding?

"Why didn't he -?"

"Maybe he did," said Phoebe. "Maybe you just can't remember!"

Ron snorted from the other room.

"Shut it, Weasley!" Phoebe growled. Her patience with Ron was wearing thin, at this particular moment she didn't care whether they trusted one another or not, he was slowly grinding her last good nerve.

"Think!" said Hermione, mostly to keep the conversation on track and to avoid an argument. "Think! Where would he have left it?"

"Not at Hogwarts," said Harry.

"Somewhere in Hogsmeade?" suggested Hermione.

"The Shrieking Shack?" said Harry. "Nobody ever goes there."

"But Snape knows how to get in; wouldn't that be a bit risky?"

"Dumbledore trusted Snape," persisted Phoebe.

"Not enough to tell him that he had swapped the swords," said Hermione.

Harry nodded. "She's right, Phoebe," he agreed.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. She should have guessed he'd agree to go against Snape. _If only they knew the truth_! She thought. "That doesn't answer the question, though," she added. "Despite whether or not Dumbledore trusted Snape with the knowledge of knowing the Sword was a clone, would Dumbledore hide the real Sword of Gryffindor in Hogsmeade?"

"What do you reckon, Ron?" Harry asked.

Ron, who was lying in the shadow of a lower bunk, looked up stony. "Oh, remembered me, have you?" he asked.

"What?"

Ron snorted again. "You three carry on. Don't let me spoil your fun."

Perplexed, Harry looked to Hermione and Phoebe for help.

"What's the problem?" asked Harry.

"Problem? There's no problem," said Ron, still refusing to look at them. "Not according to you, anyway."

There were several _plunks_ on the canvas over their heads. It had started raining.

"Well, you've obviously got a problem," said Harry. "Spit it out, will you?"

Ron swung his legs off the bed and sat up. He looked exactly like he did the night of the Yule Ball. The same night he had taken a swing at Phoebe when she had shoved him away from Hermione. He looked mean. "All right, I'll spit it out. Don't expect me to skip around the tent because there's some other damn thing we've got to find. Just add it to the list of stuff you don't know."

"I don't know?" repeated Harry. "_I_ don't know?"

_Plunk. Plunk. Plunk_. The rain was falling harder and heavier.

"It's not like I'm not having the time of my life here," said Ron, "you know, with my arm mangled and nothing to eat and freezing my backside off every night."

"Your arm healed days ago, Weasley," interrupted Phoebe. "I healed it the second we Apparated here."

"Great job you did!" snarled Ron. "I haven't been able to use my wand -"

"What could you possibly need to use your wand for?" snapped Phoebe. "To draw pathetic circles in the air to entertain yourself while Harry, Hermione and I do all the work? To conjure up more entertaining purposes for yourself because you're too stupid to realize that we _might_ actually need your help?"

Ron glowered at her. "I don't remember asking -" he started, but cut off as a blast of wind knocked him back onto the bed.

"I thought you knew what you signed up for?" Phoebe asked, lowering her arm and glaring at the red head.

"Yeah, I thought I did too."

"So what part of it isn't living up to your expectations?" asked Harry. "Did you think we'd be staying in five-star hotels? Finding a Horcrux every other day? Did you think you'd be back to Mummy by Christmas?"

"We thought you knew what you were doing!" shouted Ron, standing up. "We thought Dumbledore had told you what to do, we thought you had a real plan!"

"Ron!" said Hermione. He ignored her.

"Well, sorry to let you down," said Harry, his voice quite calm, almost too calm.

Phoebe stood and faced Ron. "I told you, Weasley, Harry has told you _everything_ Dumbledore told him!" she said.

"Yes, but you haven't!"

"What does my knowledge have to do with anything?"

"You're good at keeping secrets, Blackheart," Ron yelled. "Who's to say you're not keeping them now?"

Phoebe glared. "Maybe I am keeping secrets from you, Weasley," she snapped. "But like I have said in the past; in order for me to want to tell you anything, I would have to like you... which I don't! But in case you haven't noticed, we've found one Horcrux -"

"Yeah, and we're about as near getting rid of it as we are to finding the rest of them - nowhere effing near, in other words!"

"Take off the locket, Ron," Hermione said her voice unusually high. "Please take it off. You wouldn't be talking like this if you hadn't been wearing it all day."

"Yeah, he would," said Harry. "D'you think I haven't noticed the two of you whispering behind my back? D'you think I didn't guess you were thinking this stuff?"

"Harry, we weren't -"

"Don't lie!" Ron hurled at her. "You said it too; you said you were disappointed, you said you'd thought he had a bit more to go on than -"

"She didn't say it like that!" Phoebe yelled.

The train was pounding the tent, tears were pouring down Hermione's face, and the excitement of a few minutes before had vanished as if it had never been, a short-lived firework that had flared and died, leaving everything dark, wet, and cold. The sword of Gryffindor was hidden they knew not where, and they were four teenagers in a tent whose only achievement was not, yet, to be dead.

"So why are you still here?" Harry asked.

"Search me," said Ron.

"Go home then," said Harry.

"Yeah, maybe I will!" shouted Ron, and he took several steps toward Harry, who did not back away. "Didn't you hear what they said about my sister? But you don't give a rat's fart, do you, it' only the Forbidden Forest, Harry _I've-Faced-Worse_ Potter doesn't care what happens to her in there - well, I do, all right, giant spiders and mental stuff -"

"I was only saying - she was with the others, they were with Hagrid -"

"He knows what you meant!" snapped Phoebe. "He just doesn't care -"

"Care?" repeated Ron. "_I'm_ the one who doesn't care? _He's_ the one who doesn't care! And what about the rest of my family, 'the Weasley's don't need another kid injured,' did you hear that?"

"Yeah, I -"

"Not bothered by what it meant, though?"

"Ron!" said Hermione, forcing her way between them. "I don't think it means anything new has happened, anything we don't know about, Ron, Bill's already scarred, maybe not physically, but emotionally and mentally, besides, plenty of people must have seen that George has lost an ear by now, and you're supposed to be on your deathbed with Spattergroit, I'm sure that's all he meant -"

"Oh, you're sure, are you? Right then, well, I won't bother myself about them. It's all right for you three, isn't it; with your parents safely out of the way -"

"My parents are _dead_!" Harry bellowed.

"And mine could be going the same way!" yelled Ron.

"Then GO!" roared Harry. "Go back to them, pretend you've got over Spattergroit and Mummy will be able to feed you up and -"

Ron made a sudden movement; Harry reacted, but before either wand was clear of its owner's pocket, Hermione had raised her own.

"_Protego_!" she cried, and an invisible shield expanded between Phoebe and Harry on one side and her and Ron on the other; all of them were forced backward a few steps by the strength of the spell, and Harry and Ron glared from either side of the transparent barrier as though they were seeing each other clearly for the first time.

"Leave the Horcrux," Harry said.

Ron wrenched the chain from over his head and cast the locket into a nearby chair. He turned to Hermione.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you staying, or what?"

"I..." She looked anguished. "Yes - yes. I'm staying. Ron, we said we'd go with Harry, we said we'd help -"

"I get it. You choose him."

"Ron, no - please - come back, come back!"

Harry stood quite still and silent, listening to Hermione sobbing and calling Ron's name as she chased him out of the tent and into the rain. After a few minutes, Hermione returned, her sopping hair plastered to her face.

"He's g-g-gone! Disapparated!"

Phoebe felt dazed. "I think -" she started.

"No one cares what you think, Malfoy!" Harry snapped.

"Wha -?"

"You're not helping! You're not even supposed to be out here; Ron is! You're supposed to be at home in Italy with your husband and son! You were the one who insisted on coming with us and you haven't been much help -"

"Much help?" Phoebe shrieked. "I've done nothing _but_ help!"

Harry growled. He had no idea why he was angry at her; he just needed something to dispel the rest of his anger on. "Ron was right about one thing!" he spat.

"Oh, and what's that?" Phoebe challenged.

"You're hiding something!" Harry snarled. "You've always hidden something! Ever since we first met you've been hiding something - what is it?"

Phoebe glared. "Why should I tell you?" she asked. "My secrets are my secrets! I don't have to tell you _anything_, Harry James Potter!"

"Stop acting like a spoilt little pureblooded princess, Malfoy!"

"Quit calling me 'Malfoy'," Phoebe yelled. "If you want to insult me, at least do it right. Call me, Blackheart!"

"It's not your name,"

"It'll hurt me more than 'Malfoy',"

Harry glared. He wasn't stupid. He knew that she wouldn't be hurt by just a change of a surname. Phoebe was stronger than that, he was lucky that she hadn't blasted him to kingdom come yet, he was being pretty vicious, but knowing what he was doing didn't help him stop it.

Phoebe stared at Harry for a moment before turning on her heel and marching into the kitchen. She'd had enough fighting for one night, she was feeling drained. Her head was splintering in two, and her cores were going haywire; she could almost feel her powers attacking one another.

_What's happening_? She thought desperately, reaching for a glass mug on the shelf above her. Her fingertips had barely brushed the smooth surface when a cough seized her by the chest, almost ripping her lungs from inside her rib cage. Phoebe wheezed, blinded by panic at the fact that she couldn't breathe.

Dark spots appeared before her eyes, along with brightly coloured stars.

Phoebe gasped.

"Phoebe, are you OK?"

It was Harry.

_Probably come to apologize_ Phoebe thought.

"Phoebe?" Harry frowned when she didn't answer him. He understood if she was mad at him, but he was trying to apologize. But then, almost as if in slow motion, Phoebe swayed on her toes, grabbed onto the shelf of mugs, pulling it away from the side as she fell towards the ground.

The mugs smashed the second they hit the floor.

"Phoebe, can you hear me?" Harry asked darting forward and slipping his hand under her head, lifting her up some. "Come on, Phoebe, wake up... you have to wake up!"

"What happened?"

"She just passed out," Harry answered looking over his shoulder at Hermione. She was wiping tears from her cheeks. She must have heard the smashing of china mugs and come to investigate... or maybe she had heard him calling Phoebe's name and begging for her to wake up. He wasn't exactly being quiet about it.

But how could he? Phoebe had just passed out in front of him.

Harry looked to Hermione who looked back in terror. Phoebe wasn't moving, and her breathing was extremely shallow.

"She hasn't once complained about being sick or anything has she?" Hermione asked.

Harry shook his head. "No. Except for that rattling cough," he said. "But she said it was nothing."

"You don't pass out from nothing, Harry,"

"Don't you think I know that?" Harry asked, trying hard to keep his cool. Shouting at Hermione was not going to help Phoebe.

"Well, something is seriously wrong," Hermione said, stating the obvious.

"I know," Harry nodded. "And i'm starting to think it is fatal!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next time.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 16 December, 2012 at 08:00pm**


	170. Chapter 170

**Author's Note:** Oh! Only a few hours left until Christmas Eve! So excited! Santa's coming! I'm also excited that I get to post the Year 7 Christmas chapters ON Christmas! Hahaha! Love it. Shall try and get another chapter up before Christmas Eve and Day =D.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Chinaluv, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, MiraclesHappen94** and** ElenaLouise13**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to: **ElenaLouise13 **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"We should take her to St. Mungo's,"<p>

"We can't," said Hermione with a shake of her head. "The Death Eaters have got control of the Ministry."

"Yeah?" Harry asked, blinking in confusion. What did the hospital have to do with the Ministry?

"Harry," Hermione sighed. "If they have the Ministry then there is a good chance that they have the hospital too. The Malfoy's will get her and take her back to You-Know-Who, besides what are we going to tell them? We can't risk going back to London."

Harry sighed in frustration. "Then what do we do?" he asked, desperate. "She's not well! We have to do something!"

"I'm fine,"

Harry and Hermione sighed in relief at the sound of Phoebe's voice. They looked down and saw her eyes open and stare back at them blankly. There was a moment's pause where Phoebe blinked several times and her stormy grey eyes became more and more clear.

"Phoebe, you had us worried," Harry said, softly.

Phoebe sat up and rubbed her eyes. Her head was throbbing and the sun shone through the cracks in the tent making her eyes hurt and the urge to cough more prominent; she pushed it back down. "Well, you don't have too," she said. "As you can see i'm fine!"

Harry winced at her tone.

"What happened?" Hermione asked.

"Nothing," said Phoebe,

"Phoebe, you don't just pass out for any reason," said Harry.

"I was tired and hungry," said Phoebe. "I'm not used to camping, am I? I mean, why would I be? I'm just a spoilt pureblood princess after all!"

Harry shifted nervously and looked away.

"I'll put some tea on, shall I?" Hermione asked. She stood and walked to the kitchen before either Phoebe or Harry could answer.

They needed to talk about what had happened last night, and she had no desire to be a part of it, not only because the argument between Harry and Phoebe had nothing to do with her, but also because their conversation involved Ron and he was the last person she wanted to think about right now.

"Phoebe, look I'm -"

"We should think about leaving after tea," interrupted Phoebe. "I know we should probably wait and see if Ron comes back, which is highly doubtful, but the river is getting higher and higher with each rain fall, it won't be long before it spills over into the campsite; I don't think I will have the energy to keep it at bay for a long period of time. So unless you want to be swept away..."

"Phoebe!" said Harry grabbing her hand, silencing her. "Phoebe, please..." he said desperately. "I'm sorry1 I shouldn't have shouted at you last night, I was wrong; I didn't mean what I said. I was mad at Ron and did the wrong thing by taking it out on you!"

Phoebe shook her hand free from his. "I'm not a verbal punching bag, Harry Potter! I'm not someone you can take your frustrations out on, no matter how mad you are. I've been nothing but supportive of you since the first day we met back in first year. What you said last night... that hurt, Harry, it really, _really_ hurt! But if you really feel that me being here is nothing but a burden than I'll leave right now, just say the word and I'll be gone; the only problem is I have no where I _can_ go! My family is in hiding because I am a danger to them, so I can't really go running off to Italy to hide with them!"

Tears stung Phoebe's eyes as she began to choke, coughs rattled her body painfully and she sank to her knees clutching her chest. Harry was instantly at her side, his arm wrapping around her shoulders, he held her as she sobbed, calling for her Hermione over his shoulder.

Suddenly a glass of water was pushed into Phoebe's hands and held up to her lips. Phoebe drank gratefully, before pushing the glass away. "Thank you," she mumbled.

"We've got to stop getting you so worked up," said Harry.

"Phoebe, please tell us what is doing this to you," said Hermione.

Phoebe shook her head. "It's nothing, Hermione, I promise," she smiled through the pain in her chest. "Honestly, you've got nothing to worry about. It's probably just a cold or something."

Harry and Hermione exchanged looks as Phoebe coughed some more. This was more than a cold, they knew it, but if Phoebe didn't want to tell them, then they couldn't force her to do so. "I really am sorry, Phoebe," Harry said, guilty.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "I'm sorry too."

"What for?"

"For things to come," Phoebe muttered, steadily getting back to her feet.

Harry kept his hold on her as he stood up too. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked. "Maybe you should rest for a while?"

"No," said Phoebe. "We've got to keep moving. The river is about to burst."

**~*Phoebe*~**

The muddy river had burst seconds before they Disapparated. It rose and fell quickly, spilling into the campsite with the speed of a cheetah. It lapped as high as their thighs, drenching them from the waist down. It had been their own fault; they hadn't Disapparated as soon as they had finished packing up, but rather lingered around for a good hour. Finally having entirely repacked the beaded bag three times, Hermione seemed unable to find any more reasons to delay. She, Harry and Phoebe had grasped hands and Disapparated.

They reappeared on a windswept heather-covered hillside.

The instant they arrived, Hermione dropped Harry's hand and walked away from him, finally sitting down on a large rock, her face in her knees, shaking with what Phoebe knew were sobs.

The elemental watched her, supposing that someone go and comfort her; she nudged Harry and nodded at the bookworm before turning away and walking off through the heather, she walked in a large circle with the distraught Hermione in the centre, casting the spells she usually performed to ensure their protection.

When she was finished Phoebe returned to Hermione and took the beaded bag from her. She summoned the tent from inside and suspended it high above their heads, she flicked her wand three times and instantly the tent erected itself and pegged itself into the hillside.

"C'mon, Hermione," Phoebe said softly. "Time to sleep!"

Hermione didn't protests as Phoebe moved her into the tent and tucked her up in the bottom bunk of their room. Within seconds the bookworm was asleep, leaving Phoebe to watch over her for a few minutes before she turned and went in search of Harry.

"I don't think we should mention Ron around Hermione," Phoebe said as she returned to the heather-covered hilltop. She found Harry sitting on the same large rock that Hermione had been on seconds before. "He is going to have a hard time finding us if he decides to come back, but if he does manage to catch us when we are moving then fine, but until that day arrives Hermione's sanity is priority. Alright?"

Harry nodded. But didn't look up at her.

Phoebe frowned and glanced over his shoulder. He was reading the Marauder's Map, well, more like staring at one thing in particular. "Ginny's in class," she said, pointing at the dot labeled 'Ginny Weasley' it was sitting in the Transfiguration's room with the rest of Gryffindor's.

"I'm not looking for Ginny," Harry said.

"Then who?" Phoebe asked. Before realization dawned. "Oh, Harry, I don't think Ron's going to go back to school..."

"Why not?" Harry asked. "He said he wanted to go home, why wouldn't he go back to Hogwarts after?"

"Because he's not going to go home," said Phoebe. "Mr. and Mrs. Weasley will kill him if they find out that he has abandoned us. Mrs. Weasley didn't want us to come in the first place, if she finds out that Ron has left us out here alone she'll have a fit. He's a lot of things, Harry, but he's not stupid, at least not when it comes to his mother."

Harry sighed and tapped his wand. The walls and dots vanished leaving an empty piece of parchment behind. "Well what do we do now, then?" he asked, stuffing it back into his pocket.

Phoebe straightened up and looked around. "Well, we still have a job to do," she said. "We have to figure out where the other Horcruxes are, and now we also need to find the sword of Gryffindor. But I don't remember Dumbledore ever mentioning a place where he would hide it, do you?"

"No," said Harry, feeling helpless. Maybe Ron had been right? Dumbledore had virtually left him with nothing to go on. There was no plan, except to find and destroy the Horcruxes, but that was only worth executing if they actually knew where the Horcruxes were in the first place. Plus, without the sword, they had no idea on how to destroy them.

"Don't give up hope, Harry," Phoebe said, squeezing Harry's shoulder. "We'll figure something out!"

Harry nodded lightly before returning to the tent. Phoebe followed him but stopped on the entrance and looked up at the darkening skies. There had to be a way... there had to be something! Dumbledore wouldn't have thrown them into this mess without so much has an idea of what he expected them to do.

"What do you want from us?" she asked. "What do we do? What do _I_ do?"

**~*Phoebe*~**

The weather grew colder and colder over the next couple of weeks. They did not dare remain in any one area too long, so rather than staying in the south of England, where the hard ground frost was the worst of their worries, they continued to meander up and down the country, braving a mountainside, where sleet pounded the tent; a wide, flat marsh, where the tent was flooded with chill water; and a tiny island in the middle of a Scottish loch, where snow half buried the tent in the night.

Phoebe sighed as she dropped her arm. The snow in front of her had melted into a river of water that tricked down the banking and back into the loch. "There," she said once she had finished. "At least we can get in and out. But we should think about leaving soon."

Hermione nodded as she quietly read _Tales of Beedle the Bard_ whilst being curled up in one of the sagging armchairs.

"Any good?" the elemental asked sitting opposite her friend.

Hermione shrugged. "Can you help me with something," she suddenly asked.

"Sure," Phoebe nodded. "What is it?"

"Look at that symbol," she said, pointing to the top of a page. Above the title, which was still in runes, was a picture of what looked like a triangular eye, its pupil crossed with a vertical line.

"That's not a rune," said Phoebe. "Is it in the syllabary?"

Hermione shook her head. "All this time I thought it was just a picture of an eye, but I don't think it is! It's been inked in, look, somebody's drawn it there, and it isn't really part of the book. Think you have seen it before?"

Phoebe looked closer. "Yeah, I have," she nodded. "Luna's dad was wearing it around his neck at Bill and Fleur's wedding. I remember Krum getting very angry about it and when I asked, Jackson told me that it was the symbol of the dark wizard Grindelwald."

"_What_?"

"It's Grindelwald's mark," Phoebe repeated. She recounted the story that Krum and Jackson had told her at the wedding. Hermione looked astonished.

"I've never heard that Grindelwald had a mark. There's no mention of it in anything I've ever read about him."

"Well, like I say, Krum reckoned that symbol was carved on a wall at Durmstrang, and Grindelwald put it there."

"And you believe him?" Harry asked coming into the tent. He had been listening from the kitchen and decided now was the best time to intervene.

"Yeah, why shouldn't I?" Phoebe asked.

Harry shrugged. "How reliable is he?" he asked.

"Well if you don't believe Krum then believe Jackson," said Phoebe. "He wouldn't lie to me."

Hermione nodded and fell back into the old armchair, frowning. "That's very odd. If it's a symbol of Dark Magic, what's it doing in a book of Children's stories?"

"Yeah, it is weird," said Harry. "And you'd think Scrimgeour would have recognized it. He was Minster; he ought to have been expert on Dark stuff."

"Maybe he thought it was an eye, just like Hermione did," said Phoebe.

"Maybe," Hermione nodded. "I mean, all the stories have pictures over the titles,"

She did not speak, but continued to pore over the strange mark. Harry shifted from foot to foot, earning a quizzical look from Phoebe.

"What?" she asked.

"I've been thinking. I - I want to go to Godric's Hollow."

Hermione looked up from the book, but her eyes were unfocused, and Phoebe and Harry were sure that she was still thinking about the mysterious mark on the book. "Yes," she said. "Yes, I've been wondering that too. I really think we'll have to."

"Did you hear me right?" Harry asked again.

"Of course I did. You want to go to Godric's Hollow. I agree, I think we should. I mean, I can't think of anywhere else it could be either. It'll be dangerous, but the more I think about it, the more likely it seems it's there."

"Er - _what's _there?" asked Harry.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You two are oblivious," she said. "Harry wants to go back home, Hermione, and Hermione thinks the sword might be at Godric's Hollow, Harry."

Hermione and Harry paused and stared at each other like they were seeing each other for the first time in days.

"_What_?" they both asked at the same time.

Phoebe laughed and shook her head. "Right, let me start with Hermione's side," she said turning to Harry. "Hermione thinks that Dumbledore must have known you'd want to go back to Godric's Hollow, Harry, plus why not hide the sword at Gryffindor at its founder's birthplace -"

"Really? Gryffindor came from Godric's Hollow?"

"Harry, it is named after him," said Phoebe. "_Godric_ Gryffindor. _Godric's_ Hollow. Did you ever read _A History of Magic_?"

"I skimmed it... just the once... when I bought it for the first time..."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "There's a bit about the village in _A History of Magic_, wait a minute, Hermione where is your beaded bag?"

"Under the bed,"

Phoebe jumped up and disappeared into the bedroom. She returned 30 seconds later carrying an old school book, which she was thumbing through until finding the page she wanted. "_'Upon the signature of the International Statue of Secrecy in 1689, wizards went into hiding for good. It was natural, perhaps, that they formed their own small communities within a community. Many small villages and hamlets attracted several magical families, who banded together for mutual support and protection. The villages of Tinworth in Cornwall, Upper Flagley in Yorkshire, and Ottery St. Catchpole on the south coast of England were notable homes to knots of Wizarding families who lived alongside tolerant and sometimes Confunded Muggles. Most celebrated of these half-magical dwelling places is, perhaps, Godric's Hollow, the West Country village where the great wizard Godric Gryffindor was born, and where Bowman Wright, Wizarding smith, forged the first Golden Snitch. The graveyard is full of the names of ancient magical families, and this accounts, no doubt, for the stories hauntings that have dogged the little church beside it for many centuries.'_"

Harry looked mildly surprised.

"You and your parents are mentioned," Hermione said, "because Professor Bagshot doesn't cover anything later than the end of the nineteenth century. But you see? Godric's Hollow, Godric Gryffindor, Gryffindor's sword; don't you think Dumbledore would have expected you to make the connection?"

"Oh yeah..."

Phoebe shook her head. "Now to explain Harry's side of the story," she said. "In all honesty, Hermione, Harry had no clue about the connection. He only wanted to go back to Godric's Hollow in order to say a proper goodbye to his parents. I understand that the lure is too strong, do you have any idea how bad I want to go back to Portugal? But I know it would be suicide because there is a good chance that Death Eaters are standing guard over the manor; I think You-Know-Who knows that I will eventually come home."

Hermione nodded.

"Remember what Muriel said?" Harry asked.

"Who?"

"The woman who said that Charlie and I made a great couple," said Phoebe, shooting Harry a warning look.

"Oh," said Hermione.

Phoebe shot Harry another look.

"She said Bathilda Bagshot still lives in Godric's Hollow." Harry rushed on.

"Bathilda Bagshot," murmured Hermione. "Well, I suppose -"

She gasped so dramatically that Phoebe's insides froze. "What?" she asked, looking towards the entrance of the tent. She half expected to see a hand forcing its way inside, but there was nothing there. "Hermione, what did you do that for? I thought you'd seen someone trying to get in, at least -"

"Phoebe, _what if Bathilda's got the sword_? What if Dumbledore entrusted it to her?"

Phoebe considered the bookworm for a second before nodding slowly. "Yeah, he could have," she said slowly.

"So does this mean we are going to Godric's Hollow?" Harry asked hopefully.

"I vote yes," said Hermione, nodding.

Harry and Hermione turned to Phoebe. The Elemental sighed and threw her hands into the air. "Do I have much of a choice?" she asked. "You're going to go whether I say no or not, aren't you?"

"Pretty much," Harry nodded.

"Fine," Phoebe agreed. "We can go. _But -_" she added quickly, before Harry could interrupt. "_But_ we'll need to practice Disapparating together under the Invisibility Cloak for a start, and perhaps Disillusionment Charms would be sensible too, unless we go the whole hog and use Polyjuice Potion, unless of course you want to return as yourself rather than somebody else, in which case I strongly insist that we go with the Disillusionment Charms."

"Actually I think we should go with Polyjuice Potion," said Hermione. "The thicker our disguises the better..."

Harry let them talk, nodding and agreeing whenever there was a pause, or one of them asked for his input, but his mind had completely left the conversation. For the first time since he had discovered that the sword in Gringotts was a fake, he felt excited.

He was going home.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry was more than ready to set out for Godric's Hollow the following day, but it seemed after they had gone to bed the previous evening Phoebe and Hermione had discussed conventional ways of getting to and from the village without a repeat of the catastrophe that happened at the Ministry of Magic.

Convinced as they were that Voldemort would expect Harry to return to the scene of his parents' deaths, they were determined that they would set off after they had ensured that they had the best disguises possible. It was therefore a full week later - once they had surreptitiously obtained hairs from innocent Muggles who were Christmas shopping, and had practiced Apparating and Disapparating while underneath the Invisibility Cloak together - that Phoebe agreed to make the journey.

They Apparated to the village under the cover of darkness, so it was late afternoon when they finally swallowed Polyjuice Potion. Harry transforming into a balding, middle-aged Muggle man, Hermione into his small and rather mousy wife, and Phoebe into their small daughter.

"I thought you said Polyjuice Potion doesn't work on Elementals?" Hermione asked.

"It does if we allow it too," said Phoebe. "It's the Love Potions that we tend to be more restricted too. Polyjuice Potion is actually helpful at times, so if we feel the _need_ to use it then our powers allow the transformation."

Hermione nodded and picked up the beaded bag which contained all of their possessions (apart from the Horcrux, which Harry was wearing around his neck) tucking it into an inside pocket of Hermione's buttoned-up coat. Harry lowered the Invisibility Cloak over them, and then they turned into the suffocating darkness once again.

Heart beating in her throat, Phoebe opened her eyes. They were standing in a snowy lane under a dark blue sky, in which the night's first stars were already glimmering feebly. Cottages stood on either side of the narrow road, Christmas decorations twinkling in their windows. A short way ahead of them, a glow of golden streetlights indicated the center of the village.

"All this snow!" Hermione whispered beneath the cloak. "Why didn't we think of snow? After all our precautions, we'll leave footprints? We'll just have to get rid of them - you go in front, I'll do it -"

"Let's take off the Cloak," said Harry.

"But -"

"Come on, we don't look like us and there's no one around."

Harry whipped off the cloak and stowed it under his jacket as they made their way forward unhampered the icy air stinging their faces as they passed more cottages. Any one of them might have been the one in which James and Lily had once lived or where Bathilda lived now.

Phoebe gazed at the front doors, their snow-burdened roofs, and their front porches. Her heart ached at the sight of the families on the other side of the glass. The parents and their children. Her mind flashed back to Serefina and her grandparents, and then switched to Terence and Blake. What were they doing right now?

The little lane along which they were walking curved to the left and the heart of the village, a small square, was revealed to them.

Strung all around with coloured lights, there was what looked like a war memorial in the middle, partly obscured by a windblown Christmas tree. There were several more shops, a post office, a pub and a little church whose stained-glass windows were glowing jewel-bright across the square.

The snow here had become impacted. It was hard and slippery where people had trodden on it all day. Villagers were crisscrossing in front of them, their figures briefly illuminated by streetlamps. They heard a snatch of laughter and pop music as the pub door opened and closed; then they heard a carol start up inside the little church.

"I think it's Christmas Eve!" said Hermione.

"Is it?" Harry asked.

It was easy to lose track of the date while being on the run; they had not seen a newspaper for weeks.

"I'm sure it is," said Hermione, her eyes upon the church. "They... they'll be in there, won't they? Your mum and dad? I can see the graveyard behind it."

Harry felt a thrill of something that was beyond excitement, more like fear. Now that he was so near, more like fear. Now that he was so near, he wondered whether he wanted to see after all.

"C'mon," said Phoebe taking his hand and leading him forward. Halfway across the square, however, she stopped dead. "Harry, look!"

She was pointing at the war memorial. As they had passed it, it had transformed. Instead of an obelisk covered in names, there was a statue of three people: a man with untidy hair and glasses, a woman with long hair and a kind, pretty face, and a baby boy sitting in his mother's arm. Snow lay upon all their heads, like fluffy white caps.

Harry drew closer, gazing up into the faces of his parents has Hermione and Phoebe pulled back and looked around the square. Hermione noticed the saddened look on her best friends face and wrapped her arms around her shoulders, although to the Muggles it would have looked like a mother comforting her daughter.

"C'mon," said Harry, when he had looked his fill, and they turned again toward the church. As they crossed the road, he glanced over his shoulder; the statue had turned back into the war memorial.

The signing grew louder as they approached the church. The kissing gates came into view at the entrance to the graveyard. Hermione pushed it open as quietly as possible and they edged through it. On the either side of the slippery path to the church doors, the snow lay deep and untouched.

They moved off through the snow, carving deep trenches behind them as they walked around the building, keeping o the shadows beneath the brilliant windows. Behind the church, row upon row of snowy tombstones protruded from a blanket of pale blue that was flecked with dazzling red, gold, and green wherever the reflection from the stained glass hit the snow.

Keeping her hand closed tightly around her wand in her jacket pocket, Phoebe moved toward the nearest grave. "Look at this, it's an Abbot, could be some long-lost relation of Hannah's," she said glancing up at Harry and Hermione.

"Keep your voice down," Hermione begged.

They waded deeper and deeper into the graveyard, gouging dark tracks into the snow behind them, stooping to peer at the words on old headstones, every now and then squinting into the surrounding darkness to make absolutely sure that they were unaccompanied.

"Harry, Phoebe, over here!"

Hermione was two rows of tombstones away; he had to wade back to her, his heart positively hanging in his chest.

"Is it -?"

"No, but look!"

She pointed to the dark stone. Phoebe and held her hand out over the marble headstone, it was frozen solid, but the ice melted away soon as Phoebe touched it.

"What does it say?" Harry asked.

"Kendra Dumbledore," said Phoebe, "and her daughter Arianna."

"What's that underneath?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe pulled her hand over the snow that covered the bottom of the tombstone, revealing a quotation for her friends to see. "'Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.' Looks like Rita and Muriel had got some of their facts straight."

"Yeah," Hermione nodded. "The Dumbledore family did live here,"

"And part of it died here," Harry said.

"Are you sure he never mentioned -?" Hermione began.

"No," said Harry curtly, then, "let's keep looking," and he turned away. Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks, shrugged and walked in different directions, each searching the headstones for any signs of the Potter name.

"Here!" cried Hermione again a few moments later from out of the darkness. "Oh no, sorry! I though it said Potter!"

"Harry, Hermione, come back a moment," Phoebe called from near the back of the graveyard. She was rubbing at a crumbling, mossy stone, gazing down at it, a little frown on her face.

"What?" Harry asked as he and Hermione made their way through the snow towards her.

"Look at this!"

The grave was extremely old, weathered so that neither Harry nor Hermione could make out the name. Phoebe showed them the symbol beneath it. "It's the same one from the book!" she said.

Hermione peered at the place her friend had indicated. The stone was so worn that it was hard to make out what was engraved there, though there did seem to be a triangular mark beneath the nearly illegible name.

"Yeah... it could be..." said Harry.

"It is," said Phoebe. She held her hand out, palm upwards. There was a flash of scarlet and a ball of fire hovered inches over her skin. She removed her free hand from her pocket and held it out, palm down and over the snow that covered the grave; she started to curl her fingers inwards and the snow started to melt. The second the snow disappeared, Phoebe tossed the fireball onto the grave and watched as it trickled around the names and the symbol, she instantly uncurled her fingers and the flames froze, illuminating the stone for all to see.

Hermione and Harry gasped as the flames flickered beneath it frozen barrier.

"Ignotus Pe -"

"Ignotus Peverell," Phoebe read. "I know that name... where do I know that name?"

"I'm going to keep looking for my parents, all right?" Harry told them, a slight edge to his voice, and he set off again, leaving them crouched beside the old grave.

Hermione glanced up and sighed. "Phoebe," she said.

"Let him go," said Phoebe. "He's not going to go anywhere... look, why don't you go help him? Oh, give me the bag before you go, I want to check something in one of the books I packed."

"What book?"

"It was one that I checked out of the Hogwarts library last year," said Phoebe, "but then I found it in my Grandfather's study before I went to the Burrow. It's a book on the ancient families in the Wizarding world. I know I have seen this name somewhere before... I think it might be in that book."

Hermione handed over the beaded bag and then set off to help Harry find his parents graves.

Phoebe opened the bag, tapped it with her wand and said "_Accio - Old and Ancient Wizarding Families..."_ the book zoomed up out of the bag and into the elementals hands. She scanned the 'P' section but frowned when she came up empty. "Well, that's strange," she muttered. "I could have sworn I read it in this book..." she sighed, closed the book and traced the words with her forefinger as she looked at the grave in front of her, lost in thought. Where had she read the name?

"Harry, they're here... right here..."

Phoebe looked up as she heard Hermione yell Harry's name. It was obvious by the tone of the bookworm's voice that this time it was no mistake. Packing away the book back in the beaded bag, Phoebe threw it over her shoulder and moved toward the row in which Hermione and Harry were standing over a grave.

The headstone was only two rows behind Kendra and Ariana's. It was made of white marble, just like Dumbledore's tomb, and this made it easy to read, as it seemed to shine in the dark. Harry did not need to kneel or even approach very close to it to make out the words engraved upon it.

_James Potter_

_Born 27 March_

_1960_

_Died 31 October_

_1981_

Underneath James' name and dates of birth and death came Lily's.

_Lily Potter_

_Born 30 January_

_1960_

_Died 31 October_

_1981_

There was a quotation here too, just like there had been on Kendra and Ariana's headstone:

_The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death._

"Isn't that a Death Eater idea?" Harry asked. "Why is that there?"

"It doesn't mean defeating death in the way the Death Eaters mean it, Harry," said Phoebe, her voice gentle. "It means... you know... living beyond death. Living after death."

"But they're not living," said Harry. "They're dead. They're gone!"

Phoebe sighed and exchanged a look with Hermione. Empty words could not disguise the fact that James and Lily were gone, their moldering remains lay beneath snow and stone, indifferent, unknowing. "Gone, yes," she said, as she squeezed his shoulder. "But not forgotten!"

Tears fell hard and fast down Harry's cheeks, boiling hot and then instantly freezing on his face. What was the point in wiping them away? What was the point in pretending? He let them fall, his lips pressed hard together, looking down at the thick snow hiding from his eyes the place where the last of Lily and James lay.

Phoebe raised her wand, moved it in a circle through the air, and a wreath of Christmas roses blossomed before them. Harry caught it and laid it on his parents' grave.

"We should leave," he said as soon as he stood up. He put his arm around Hermione's shoulder, as Phoebe took his hand and gripped it tightly. He smiled and returned the pressure. They walked away in silence, through the snow, past Dumbledore's mother and sister, back toward the church and the out-of-sight kissing gate.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** If I don't see you all before Christmas then I hope you all have a fab time and a very Happy New Year. Byeeeeeee.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 23 December, 2012 at 04:16am**


	171. Chapter 171

**Author's Note:** Merry Christmas Eve! I won't see you now until after Christmas. So have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and I'll see you all in 2013.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, ****Dream lighting, MiraclesHappen94, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, Alaina08** and** KingdomHeartsNerd.**

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"Wait,"<p>

"What's wrong?"

They had only just reached the grave of the unknown Abbott when Phoebe had stopped dead in her tracks, her wand aloft in front of her, and her eyes zeroed in on something in the trees beside them.

"There's someone there. Someone watching us. I can tell. There, over the bushes."

They stood stone still, holding on to each other, gazing at the dense black boundary of the graveyard. Neither Harry nor Hermione could see a thing.

"Are you sure?"

"I saw something move," persisted Phoebe. "I could have sworn I did..."

"We look like Muggles," Harry pointed out.

"Muggle who've just been laying flowers on your parents' grave, Harry, I'm sure there's someone over there!"

"Did you say that this place was supposed to be haunted?" Harry asked. "What if -?" he broke off as he heard a rustling in the bushes and a little eddy of dislodged snow in the bush to which Phoebe had pointed.

"Ghosts can't move snow," squeaked Hermione.

"It's a cat," said Harry, after a second or two, "or a bird. If it was a Death Eater we'd be dead by now. But let's get out of here, and we can put the Cloak back on."

They glanced back repeatedly as they made their way out of the graveyard. The feeling of being watched did not leave Phoebe as she passed through the gates and ventured further out into the streets.

"Let's go this way," said Hermione the second they were covered with the Cloak, and she pulled them down a dark street leading out of the village in the opposite direction from which they had entered. Phoebe could just make out the point where the cottages ended and the lane turned into open country again.

They walked as quickly as they dared, past more windows sparkling with multicolored lights, the outlines of Christmas trees dark through the curtains.

"How are we going to find Bathilda's house?" asked Hermione, who was shivering a little and kept glancing back over her shoulder. "Harry, what do you think?"

But Harry was no longer paying attention.

"Uh, Hermione?" said Phoebe pointing at the Boy-Who-Lived. He had stopped a few feet back, the Cloak slipping off of him as she and Hermione carried on walking. "He's not with us."

Hermione spun around and sighed, stomping back towards her best friend, ripping the Cloak off of her in the process. "Harry -"

"Look... Look at it, Hermione..."

"I don't... oh!"

"The Fidelius Charm must have died when your parents died, Harry," said Phoebe. They could see it. Harry's first home. The hedge had gown wild in the sixteen years since Hagrid had taken Harry from the rubble that lay scattered amongst the waist-high grass. Most of the cottage was still standing, though entirely covered in dark ivy and snow, but the right side of the top floor had been blown apart; that, Harry was sure, was where the curse had backfired.

The three of them stood at the gate, gazing up at the wreck of what must once have been a cottage just like those that flanked it.

"I wonder why nobody's ever rebuilt it?" whispered Hermione.

"It's a monument of great tragedy and bravery," said Phoebe. "Rebuilding it would take that away."

Harry grasped the snowy and thickly rusted gate, not wishing to open it, but simply hold some part of the house.

"You're not going to go inside? It looks unsafe, it might - oh, Harry, look!" squealed Hermione.

His touch on the gate seemed to have done it. A sign had risen out of the ground in front of them, up through the tangles of nettles and weeds, like some bizarre, fast-growing flower, and in golden letters upon the wood it said:

_On this spot, on the night of 31 October 1981, Lily and James Potter lost their lives. Their son, Harry, remains the only wizard ever to have survived the Killing Curse. This house, invisible to Muggles, has been left in its ruined state as a monument to the Potters and as a reminder of the violence that tore apart their family._

All around these neatly lettered words; scribbles had been added by other witches and wizards who had come to see the place where the Boy Who Lived had escaped. Some had merely signed their names in Everlasting Ink; others had carved their initials into the wood, still others had left messages. The most recent of these, shining brightly over sixteen years' worth of magical graffiti, all said similar things.

_Good luck, Harry, wherever you are._

_If you read this, Harry, we're all behind you._

_Long Live Harry Potter._

"They shouldn't have written on the sign!" said Hermione.

But Harry beamed.

"It's brilliant. I'm glad they did. I..."

"_Stupefy!"_ said Phoebe, wielding her wand at a heavily muffled figure who was hobbling up the lane toward them. The spell missed and hit a house behind the figure that had stopped dead in her tracks and stared at the three of them.

Hermione cupped her mouth with her hands. "_Phoebe_!" she squealed. "Are you out of your mind? That could be a Muggle!"

"It's not," said Phoebe. "If it was they'd be shouting "Witch" or something at us by now. They expected that... look at them, they haven't moved or said anything, they're assessing us, wondering if I am going to attack again - Who are you?" she added, shouting at the figure a few feet away.

The woman didn't speak; instead she raised a gloved hand and beckoned them closer.

"How does she know?" Hermione asked.

Harry shook his head vigorously. The woman beckoned again, more vigorously. Harry could not think of many reasons not to obey the summons, but Phoebe's hand on his arm kept him in his place. Finally, after a split second pause, he spoke, causing Hermione to gasp and jump.

"Are you Bathilda?"

The muffled figure nodded and beckoned again.

They stepped toward the woman and, at once, she turned and hobbled back off the way they had come. Leading them past several houses, she turned in at a gate. They followed her up the front path through a garden nearly as overgrown as the one they had just left. She fumbled for a moment with a key at the front door, then opened it and stepped back to let them pass.

Phoebe shivered as she past and wrinkled her nose as she stepped into the hallway of the cottage. It smelled bad.

Bathilda closed the door behind them, her knuckles blue and mottled against the peeling paint, then turned and peered into Harry's face. Her eyes were thick with cataracts and sunken into folds of transparent skin, and her whole face was dotted with broken veins and liver spots.

The odor of old age, of dust, of unwashed clothes and stale food intensified as she unwound a moth-eaten black shawl, revealing a head of scant white hair through which the scalp showed clearly.

"Bathilda?" Harry repeated.

She nodded again.

Bathilda shuffled past them, pushing Hermione aside as though she had not seen her, and vanished into what seemed to be the sitting room.

"Harry, I'm not sure about this," breathed Phoebe.

"Look at the size of her; I think we could overpower her if we had to," said Harry. "Listen, I should have told you, I knew she wasn't all there. Muriel called her 'gaga.'"

"Come!" called Bathilda from the next room.

Hermione jumped and clutched Harry's arm.

"It's OK!" he said reassuringly, and he led the way into the sitting room.

Bathilda was tottering around the place lighting candles, but it was still very dark, not to mention extremely dirty. Thick dust crunched beneath their feet, and Phoebe's nose detected, underneath the dark and mildewed smell, something worse, like meat gone bad.

"Let us do that," offered Harry, and he took the matches from her. Had she forgotten she could do magic? "Phoebe, could you?"

Phoebe nodded and waved her hand in the direction of the candles. They flickered to life as a ball of scarlet flames caught the wick and ignited. Bathilda stood and watched Harry, and then looked to Phoebe, who lowered her hand nervously.

"Mrs. - Miss - Professor Bagshot?" asked Hermione, raising her voice. "Was there something you wanted to tell us?"

Giving no sign that she had heard Hermione, Bathilda now shuffled a few steps closer to Harry. With a little jerk of her head she looked back into the hall.

"You want us to leave?" Harry asked.

She repeated the gesture, this time pointing firstly at him, then at herself, then at the ceiling.

"Oh, right... Hermione, I think she wants me to go upstairs with her."

"All right," said Hermione, "let's go."

But when Hermione moved, Bathilda shook her head, once more pointing first at Harry, then to herself.

"She wants him to go with her, alone," said Phoebe.

"Why?" asked Hermione, and her voice rang out sharp and clear in the candlelit room; the old lady shook her head a little at the loud noise.

"Maybe Dumbledore told her to give the sword to me, and only to me?"

"Do you really think she knows who you are?"

"Yes," said Harry. "I think she does."

"Well, OK then, but be quick, Harry."

"Lead the way," Harry told Bathilda.

She seemed to understand, because she shuffled around him toward the door. Harry glanced back at Hermione and Phoebe with a reassuring smile, but he was not sure they had seen it. Hermione may have, but Phoebe was inspecting something on a table surface and had her back to him.

"Hermione, come here," said Phoebe waving her friend over. She had picked up a picture frame of a golden-haired, merry-faced boy. "Can you remember the description of the boy that Harry saw in his vision a few months back? The one where he said a thief had stolen something from Gregorovitch?"

"No, why?" asked Hermione.

Phoebe showed her the picture. "Because I think this is him," she said.

Hermione took the picture. "Are you sure?" she asked, uncertainly.

"Not completely," she said. "But Harry will know. Give me your bag."

"What? Why?"

"She's not going to notice that it is missing, Hermione," said Phoebe. "She can hardly see us..."

"But she recognized Harry,"

"I think she just senses us," said Phoebe. "We have five senses, yes?" Hermione nodded. "But when one or more of those five fail a sixth sense seemingly comes to life. I don't think she can actually _see_ us but it is more like she senses our presence."

Hermione still looked confused.

"Just take it!" said Phoebe, shoving the picture into her hands and moving off towards the bookcase. She looked up and pulled a book from the shelf above the fireplace. "The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore, this is Skeeter's -"

_THUMP_.

Phoebe froze and looked up towards the ceiling.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Hermione turned and looked towards the elemental. "Is that -?"

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

"Phoebe, Hermione!" Harry's voice yelled from upstairs.

"Harry!" Phoebe shouted shooting out into the hallway and up the stairs. Hermione hot on her heels. The two girls reached the top of the stairs and, wand in hands raised them high above their heads muttering _'Lumos'_ as they did so.

Harry was scrambling backwards across the landing on his hands; a dirty great snake bearing down on him from the end bedroom.

"Harry, get down!" Phoebe shouted. "_Expluso! Reducto!"_

The snake reeled backwards as the two spells hit it one after another. Hermione reached forward and pulled Harry back to his feet, as Phoebe moved to stand in front of him, her wand trained on the snake that reared up and struck.

_"Flipendo!"_

"He's coming! _He's coming!"_ Harry winced; his head felt like it was being ripped in two.

As he yelled the snake fell, hissing wildly. Everything was chaos. It smashed shelves from the wall, and splintered china flew everywhere a Phoebe pushed Hermione and Harry into another room. She waved her wand at the snake and ducked backwards, slamming the door in her wake. It was pointless.

The second Harry and Hermione had dived over the bed, the snake barged its way inside. Phoebe backed up until she was leaning against the wardrobe. The snake reared and lunged, Phoebe dropped and rolled aside pushing herself quickly back to her feet and taking a running jump towards her friends.

"_Confringo!"_ Hermione yelled. Her spell flew around the room, exploding the wardrobe mirror and ricocheting back at them, bouncing from floor to ceiling; Harry felt the heat of it sea the back of his hand.

Glass cut Phoebe's cheek as, pushing Hermione and Harry ahead of her, she blasted open the window and jumped straight out into nothingness. Hermione's screams reverberating through the night as they twisted in midair.

**~*Phoebe*~**

His head split open and he was Voldemort and he was running across a fetid bedroom, his long white hands clutching at the windowsill as he glimpsed the bald man, little woman and young child twist and vanish, and he screamed in rage, a scream that mingled with the woman's, that echoed across the dark gardens over the church bells ringing on Christmas Day.

The pain was so terrible... it ripped through his body... but if he had no body, why did his heart hurt so badly; if he was dead, how could he feel so unbearably, didn't pain cease within death, didn't it go...

_The night wet and windy, two children dressed as pumpkins waddling across the square, and the shop windows covered in paper spiders, all the tawdry Muggle trappings of a world in which they did not believe. And he was gliding along, that sense of purpose and power and rightness in him that he always knew on these occasions... Not anger... that was for weaker souls than he... but triumph, yes... He had waited for this, he had hoped for it._

_"Nice costume, mister!"_

_He saw the small boy's smile falter as he ran near enough to see beneath the hood of the cloak, saw the fear cloud his painted face. Then the child turned and ran away... beneath the robe he fingered the handle of his wand. One simple movement and the child would never reach his moth... but unnecessary, quite unnecessary._

_And along a new and darker street he moved, and now his destination was in sight at last, the Fidelius Charm broken, though they did not know it yet. And he made less noise than the dead leaves slithering along the pavement as he drew level with the dark hedge and stared over it._

_They had not drawn the curtains; he saw them quite clearly in their little sitting room, the tall black-haired man in his glasses, making puffs of coloured smoke erupt from his wand for the amusement of the small black-haired boy in his blue pajamas. The child was laughing and trying to catch the smoke, to grab it in his small fist._

_A door opened and the mother entered, saying words he could not hear, her long dark-red hair falling over her face. Now the father scooped up the son and handed him to the mother. He threw his wand down upon the sofa and stretched, yawning._

_The gate creaked a little as he pushed it open, but James Potter did not hear. His white hand pulled out the wand beneath his cloak and pointed it at the door, which burst open._

_He was over the threshold as James came sprinting into the hall. It was easy, too easy; he had not even picked up his wand._

_"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"_

_Hold him off, without a wand in his hand! He laughed before casting the curse._

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

_The green light filled the cramped hallway, it lit the pram pushed against the wall, it made the banisters glare like lightning rods, and James Potter fell like a marionette whose strings were cut..._

_He could hear her screaming from the upper floor, trapped, but as long as she was sensible, she, at least, had nothing to fear._

_He climbed the steps, listening with faint amusement to her attempts to barricade herself in. She had no wand upon her either. How stupid were they, and how trusting, thinking that their safety lay in friends, that weapons could be discarded even for moments._

_He forced the door open, cast aside the chair and boxes hastily piled against it with one lazy wave of his wand... and there she stood, the child in her arms. At the sight of him, she dropped her son into the crib behind her and threw her arms wide, as if this would help, as if shielding him from sight she hoped to be chosen instead._

_"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!"_

_"Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside, now."_

_"Not Harry, please no, take me, and kill me instead -"_

_"This is my last warning -"_

_"Not Harry! Please... have mercy... have mercy... Not Harry! Not Harry! Please - I'll do anything -"_

_"Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!"_

_He could have forced her away from the crib, but it seemed more prudent to finish them all._

_The green light flashed around the room and she dropped like her husband. The child had not cried all this time: He could stand, clutching the bars of his crib, and he looked up into the intruders face with a kind of bright interest, perhaps thinking that it was his father who hid beneath the cloak, making more pretty lights, and his mother would pop up any moment, laughing -_

_He pointed the wand very carefully into the boy's face: He wanted to see it happen, the destruction of this one, inexplicable danger._

_The child began to cry: It had seen that he was not James. He did not like it crying, he had never been able to stomach the small ones whining in the orphanage -_

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

_And then he broke: He was nothing, nothing but pain and terror, and he must hide himself, not here in the rubble of the ruined house, where the child was trapped and screaming, but far away... far away..._

"No," he moaned.

_The snake rustled on the filthy, cluttered floor, and he had killed the boy, and yet he _was_ the boy..._

"No..."

"Wake up him!"

"I'm trying!"

_And now he stood at the broken window of the destroyed house in Godric's Hollow, immersed in memory of his greatest loss, and at his feet the great snake slithered over broken china and glass... He looked down and saw something... something incredible._

"No..."

"It's all right, you're all right!"

_He stooped down and picked up the smashed photograph. There he was the unknown thief, the thief he was seeking..._

"Aiden, wake up!"

He was Aiden... Aiden, not Voldemort... and the thing that was rustling was not a snake. He opened his eyes.

"Aiden, are you all right?" Sarah whispered.

"Yes," he lied.

He was lying in his bed at the safe house in Italy. Kneeling beside him was Sarah, as all around his bed stood the rest of his friends. He could tell it was almost dawn by the stillness and the quality of the cold, flat light beyond the curtains. He was drenched in sweat; he could feel it on the sheets and blankets.

"They got away."

"Who got away?"

"Them - Harry, Hermione and Phoebe,"

Ashlyn perked up at the sound of Phoebe's name. "They got away? Away from where? And what about Weasley?"

"I don't - Weasley wasn't with them," said Aiden. "But Harry, Hermione and Phoebe were at Godric's Hollow. Then He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named turned up... by the state of the bedroom there was a battle..."

"But they're OK?"

Aiden nodded. "Yes, they're fine!" he confirmed.

The others sighed in relief.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight!

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 24 December, 2012 at 10:57pm**


	172. Chapter 172

**Author's Note:** Did you all have a fabulous Christmas? I did. I had two great presents that have been my all-time favourite, mostly because I had no clue that they were coming, they really were special, I actually cried opening one of them =). The second favourite present was a Green and Grey Slytherin (yes, you read that right) Scarf complete with the Slytherin crest, it's amazing! I love it.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Alaina08, Fan of Fics, MiraclesHappen94** and** SoulVirus.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to** RockaRosalie** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"Is he going to be OK?"<p>

"He's going to be fine," Phoebe nodded as she pulled the covers up to Harry's chin, grabbed the water bowl from beside the bed and led Hermione back out into the kitchen. "He just needs to rest."

There were purple shadows under Hermione's brown eyes, a clear sign that she had not slept. Phoebe felt a pang of guilt. She could look after Harry, but she couldn't stop his screams as he slept, and she knew, all too well, that while he slept his defenses were low and at risk of Voldemort seeing into his mind, or vice versa.

Phoebe tipped the remaining water down the drain. "You should sleep," she said to her best friend. "You look like you need it."

"I'm fine," said Hermione.

"You don't have to lie to me, Hermione," Phoebe smiled. "I'll be fine. Go on, you mustn't have got much sleep last night, an hour at the least. Please, rest? I'll wake you if I need help."

Hermione sighed. "You know? Since you've become a mother, you've become fussy!" she teased.

Phoebe smiled. "Well, at least I'm doing something right. Besides, looking out for you and Harry is my main priority!" she said.

"What about looking after yourself?"

"That too,"

"But you haven't been,"

It was Phoebe's turn to sigh. "Go to sleep, Hermione," she said as she waved her wand. The dishes started to wash, dry and put themselves away, leaving Phoebe to lean over the basin and stare down into the gloomy water as it swirled down the drain.

Hermione lowered her gaze and bit her lower lip. "We need you, Phoebe," she said as she walked towards the living area. "Despite what Harry says; we need you. _I_ need you. So if there is something wrong, just know that you don't need to deal with it alone; we're in this together. Friends forever, right?"

Phoebe didn't respond. She simply closed her eyes as Hermione's words sunk in. _**Friends forever**_ she repeated mentally. Yes, they were friends forever, but she wasn't a part of the Golden Trio, she was a part of Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix; it was her job to make sure that Harry survived everything this journey threw at him, and prepared him for what was to come.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Sometime after Hermione had gone to bed, Harry woke up.

He tumbled out of bed and wandered into the living room to find Phoebe curled up on one of the chairs, reading. He hovered for a moment in the doorway to his bedroom and watched her, he didn't want to disturb her, but she must have sensed him watching her because after a few seconds she closed her book, and smiled back at him.

"How are you feeling?"

"Lousy,"

Phoebe smiled. "Considering the symptoms you've been showing, I can't say I blame you," she nodded.

"What happened?"

"You've been seriously ill," Phoebe answered. "Venom is a dangerous poison, Harry. It attacks the muscles and blood cells as soon as it enters the body. I managed to get us away from Godric's Hollow and to a water source in time to stop it before it reached your main organs. But it took me a few days to get the muscles and skin around the puncture wounds to heal."

Harry blinked. "A few days?" he repeated.

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "We went to Godric's Hollow on Christmas Eve. It is New Year's Eve tomorrow."

"B-But -" Harry stuttered.

Phoebe smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry," she said. "And please keep your voice down, Hermione is sleeping."

"Sorry," Harry said sitting on the couch opposite her.

There was silence between them as Phoebe stared at the book she had been reading. What was she thinking? Was she thinking of their next plan? She always did think ahead, hadn't she told Remus that she was two steps ahead of Voldemort? And the Order of the Phoenix, what was left of them, would always been two steps behind her?

"Phoebe -?"

"What happened?" Phoebe interrupted. "After you went upstairs with her?

"I don't know," Harry said, shaking his head. "Phoebe, is it possible for a snake to possess a human?"

Phoebe blinked and shook her head. "An animal can't possess a human, but there is certain magic that allows a snake to _become_ a human for a short period of time. Why, what happened?"

"Well, I think the snake was _inside_ Bathilda all along. Because it didn't come out from anywhere in the bedroom, one minute Bathilda was in front of me, and the next second the snake was," Harry explained. He closed his eyes. He could still smell Bathilda's house on him: it made the whole thing horribly vivid.

"In order for that to happen, Bathilda must've been dead for a while," said Phoebe.

"Which means You-Know-Who put it there in Godric's Hollow, to wait," Harry sighed. "You were right. He knew I'd go back."

Phoebe smiled sadly. "It's not your fault, you know," she said softly.

"What?"

"Wanting to go back,"

"Yes, it was,"

Phoebe shook her head. "It was your first home, Harry, and this was the first time in sixteen years that you've ever had the chance to say a proper goodbye to your parents, I don't blame you for wanting to go. Besides, You-Know-Who was going to get close to us eventually."

"I guess," Harry shrugged.

"Don't worry about such things, Harry," said Phoebe. "Hermione thought that Dumbledore would have given the sword to Bathilda. It was a good plan, we carefully executed all plans so that we'd be safe, we were expecting Death Eaters or You-Know-Who himself, we never anticipated that he would send the snake."

Harry felt his heart stop as she spoke. She sounded mournful, heartfelt, and not angry. "I'm still sorry," he apologized again.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "At least we now know why she never spoke,"

"Who never spoke?"

"Bathilda."

"What do you mean?"

Phoebe smiled. "From the moment we met her, outside the cemetery," she said, "Bathilda never said a word, why would she? Only you would have been able to understand her, and if you started talking to her while Hermione and I were present we would have caught on straight away, we would have Disapparated, and she couldn't risk that."

Harry continued to look confused.

"Nagini can't speak human-English, Harry," said Phoebe. "She's a snake. If Bathilda had spoken then it would have been in Parseltongue. Hermione and I do not speak Parseltongue, you do. Once Hermione and I were out of the way, she had no problems. She had you right where she wanted."

"She sent a message to You-Know-Who, I heard it happen inside my head, I felt him get excited, he said to keep me there... and then..."

"Then?"

"The snake came out of her neck," Harry answered. Phoebe cringed and she felt nauseated, "and attacked."

He looked down at the puncture marks.

"It wasn't supposed to kill me, just keep me there till You-Know-Who came." Harry explained.

"That's the thumping Hermione and I heard," Phoebe nodded. "The first thump was Bathilda's vessel hitting the floor as the snake returned to normal, the second was her attacking and you falling, and the rest was you trying to get away."

Harry nodded. "Yeah..." he said.

Phoebe sighed and got to her feet. She put the book on the coffee table and sat beside him, her hand on his shoulder. "It's not your fault, Harry," she said. "You couldn't have done anything. Your main priority was the sword, you didn't know that the snake was going to be there, besides, if you had been bitten then there wasn't much you could have done, and killing a Horcrux is not as easy, as you already know."

"But she was right there,"

"I know,"

"If I could have just -"

"No," Phoebe cut him off. "No, don't think like that, I won't allow you to blame yourself. We'll get another shot. I promise."

"How can you promise that?"

Phoebe smiled. "Because this is the beginning of the end, Harry. At the end of this hunt is the final battle, we'll get the snake, you'll get You-Know-Who and everyone will be safe. I have faith that you will get your second chance at killing the snake."

Harry nodded. He felt elated now that she was near him. His heart was thumping hard and felt lightheaded.

"You should rest some more," said Phoebe, looking away.

"You're the one who needs sleep. No offense, but you look terrible."

Phoebe giggled. "Funny, that's what I said to Hermione," she said.

"I'm serious, Phoebe," said Harry. "I'm fine. I'll keep watch for a while. Where's my wand?"

Phoebe felt her heart stop. She didn't answer, she merely looked at him.

"Where's my wand, Phoebe?"

"Harry..."

"_Where's my wand?_"

Deciding that the last thing they needed was another fight, Phoebe reached into her cloak pocket and pulled out his wand.

The holly and phoenix wand was nearly severed in two. One fragile strand of phoenix feather kept both pieces hanging together. The wood had splintered apart completely. Harry took it in his hands as though it was a living thing that had suffered a terrible injury. There was silence for a while, before Harry held it out to Phoebe again.

"Mend it. Please."

"I can't..."

"You have too..."

"I've tried," Phoebe said, shaking her head. "Nothing works."

"You told Ron that Portuguese magic was stronger," said Harry, "and aren't you supposed to be a strong elemental witch?"

Phoebe bit her lip. "It's not that simple, Harry," she said. "When a wand is broken like this -"

"Try again!"

"_R-Reparo_."

The dangling half of the wand resealed itself. Harry held it up.

"_Lumos_!"

The wand sparked feebly, and then went out.

Harry pointed it at Phoebe.

"_Expelliarmus_!"

Phoebe's wand gave a little jerk, but did not leave her hand. The feeble attempt at magic was too much of Harry's wand, which split into two again. He stared at it, aghast, unable to take in what he was seeing... the wand that had survived so much...

"Harry," Phoebe whispered. "I'm so, so sorry. Hermione and I talked about it, and she seems to think it was her. As we were leaving, the snake was coming at us, and so she cast a Blasting Curse, and it rebounded everywhere, and it must have hit - It was an accident -"

"We'll get it fixed," said Harry mechanically. "We'll - we'll find a way to repair it."

"Harry, I don't think we're going to be able too," said Phoebe. "Remember... remember Ron? When he broke his wand, crashing the car? It was never the same again; he had to get a new one."

Harry shook his head. "We can't get a new one! Ollivander is being held captive, Gregorovitch is dead. How are we supposed to get a new wand?"

"There is a wand maker in Portugal," said Phoebe. "But I think it would be risky to go back, especially after what has just happened in Godric's Hollow."

"But, Phoebe, we have too -"

"No," said Phoebe, shaking her head. "No. We're not going to Portugal. Forget I ever said anything,"

"But you wouldn't have said -"

Phoebe stood up quickly. She was a foot smaller than Harry, but her glare was fierce. "No!" she said firmly. "I take back what I said. We are _not_ going to Portugal! You and Hermione can team up on me all you want, I will not take you! I'm sorry!"

Harry huffed.

"Fine," he said, in a falsely matter-of-fact voice, "well, I'll just have to borrow yours for now, then. While I keep watch."

"I'm sorry, Harry," said Phoebe, clutching her wand close to her chest. "You'll never be able to control it."

"Then I'll borrow Hermione's," he said, turning away and disappearing into the girls' bedroom, desiring nothing more than to get away from her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Harry keeping watch and Hermione still sleeping, Phoebe dug out the photograph that she had taken from Bathilda's home, and set it up on the coffee table in the living room, before going back to the book she had been reading when Harry had interrupted her.

"The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore," she said, flipping through to the page that she had left off on. Eventually she found herself at the start of a chapter entitled "The Greater Good."

_Now approaching his eighteenth birthday, Dumbledore left Hogwarts in a blaze of glory - Head Boy, Prefect, Winner of the Barnabus Finkly Prize for Exceptional Spell-Casting, British Youth Representative to the Wizengamot, and Gold Medal-Winner for Ground-Breaking Contribution to the International Alchemical Conference in Cairo. Dumbledore intended, next, to take a Grand Tour with Elphias 'Dogbreath' Doge, the dim-witted but devoted sidekick he had pick up at school._

_The two young men were staying at the Leaky Cauldron in London, preparing to depart for Greece the following morning, when an owl arrived bearing news of Dumbledore's mother's death. 'Dogbreath' Doge, who refused to be interviewed for this book, has given the public his own sentimental version of what happened next. He represents Kendra's death as a tragic blow, and Dumbledore's decision to give up his expedition as an act of noble self-sacrifice._

_Certainly Dumbledore returned to Godric's Hollow at once, supposedly to 'care' for his younger brother and sister. But how much care did he actually give them?_

_"He were a head, case that Aberforth," says Enid Smeek, whose family lived on the outskirts of Godric's Hollow at that time. "Ran wild. 'Course; with his mum and dad gone you'd have felt sorry for him, only he kept chucking goat dung at my head. I don't think Albus was fussed about him, I never saw them together, anyway."_

_So what was Albus doing, if not comforting his wild young brother? The answer, it seems, is ensuring the continued imprisonment of his sister. For, through her first jailer had died, there was no change in the pitiful condition of Ariana Dumbledore. Her very existence continued to be known only to those few outsiders who, like 'Dogbreath' Doge, could be counted upon to believe in the story of her 'ill health.'_

_Another such easily satisfied friend of the family was Bathilda Bagshot, the celebrated magical historian who has lived in Godric's Hollow for many years. Kendra, of course, had rebuffed Bathilda when she first attempted to welcome the family to the village. Several years later, however, the author sent an owl to Albus at Hogwarts, having been favorably impressed by his paper on trans-species transformation in _Transfiguration Today_. This initial contact led to acquaintance with the entire Dumbledore family. At the time of Kendra's death, Bathilda was the only person on Godric's Hollow who was on speaking terms with Dumbledore's mother._

_Unfortunately, the brilliance that Bathilda exhibited earlier in her life was now dimmed. "The fires lit, but the cauldron's empty," as Ivor Dillonsby put it to me, or, in Enid Smeek's slightly earthier phrase, "She's nutty as squirrel poo." Nevertheless, a combination of tried-and-tested reporting techniques enabled me to extract enough nuggets of hard fact to string together the whole scandalous story._

Phoebe snorted as she read. "Scandalous story?" she repeated. "More and more lies is more like it!" yet she carried on reading.

_Like the rest of the Wizarding world, Bathilda puts Kendra's premature death down to a backfiring charm, a story repeated by Albus and Aberforth in later years. Bathilda also parrots the family line on Ariana, calling her 'frail' and 'delicate.' On one subject, however, Bathilda is well worth the effort I put procuring Veritaserum, for she, and she alone, knows the full story of the best-kept secret of Albus Dumbledore's life. Now revealed for the first time, it calls into question everything that his admirers believed of Dumbledore: his supposed hatred of the Dark Arts, his opposition to the oppression of Muggles, even his devotion of his own family._

_The very same summer that Dumbledore went home to Godric's Hollow, now an orphan and head of the family, Bathilda Bagshot agreed to accept into her home her great-nephew, Gellert Grindelwald._

_The name of Grindelwald is justly famous: in a list of Most Dangerous Dark Wizards of All Time, he would miss out on the top spot only because You-Know-Who arrived, a generation later, to steal the crown. As Grindelwald never extended his campaign of terror to Britain, however, the details of his rise to power are not widely known here, unlike He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has already extended his triad of evil to all of Britain, Europe, Russia and Portugal._

_Grindelwald was educated at Durmstrang, a school famous even then for its unfortunate tolerance of the Dark Arts, Grindelwald showed himself quite as precociously brilliant as Dumbledore. Rather than channel his abilities into the attainment of awards and prizes, however, Gellert Grindelwald devoted himself to other pursuits. At sixteen years old, even Durmstrang felt it could no longer turn a blind eye to the twisted experiments of Gellert Grindelwald, and he was expelled._

_Hitherto, all that has been known of Grindelwald's net movements is that he 'traveled abroad for some months.' It can now be revealed that Grindelwald chose to visit his great-aunt in Godric's Hollow, and that there, intensely shocking though it will be for many to hear, he struck a close friendship with none other than Albus Dumbledore._

_"He's seems a charming boy to me," babbles Bathilda, "whatever he became later. Naturally I introduced him to poor Albus, who was missing the company of lads his own age. The boys took to each other at once."_

_They certainly did. Bathilda shows me a letter, kept by her that Albus Dumbledore sent Gellert Grindelwald in the dead of night._

_"Yes, even after they'd spent all day in discussion - both such brilliant young boy, they got on like a cauldron on fire - I'd sometimes hear an owl tapping at Gellert's bedroom window, delivering a letter from Albus! An idea would have struck him, and he had to let Gellert know immediately!"_

_And what ideas where they? Profoundly shocking though Albus Dumbledore's fans will find it, here are the thoughts of their seventeen-year-old hero, as relayed to his new best friend. (A copy of the original letter may be seen on page 463.)_

_**Gellert -**_

_**Your point about Wizard dominance being FOR THE MUGGLES' OWN GOOD - this, I think, is the crucial point. Yes, we have been given power and yes, that power gives us the right to rule, but it also gives us responsibilities over the ruled. We must stress this point; it will be the foundation stone upon which we build. Where we are opposed, as we surely will be, this must be the basis of all our counterarguments. We seize control FOR THE GREATER GOOD. And from this it follows that where we meet resistance, we must use only the force that is necessary and no more. (This was your mistake of Durmstrang! But I do not complain, because if you had not been expelled, we would never have met)**_

_**Albus.**_

_Astonished and appalled though his many admirers will be, this letter constitutes proof that Albus Dumbledore once dreamed of overthrowing the Statue of Secrecy and establishing Wizard rule over Muggles. What a blow for those who have always portrayed Dumbledore as the Muggleborns' greatest champion! How hollow those speeches promoting Muggle rights seem in the light of this damning new evidence! How despicable does Albus Dumbledore appear busy plotting his rise to power when he should have been mourning his mother and caring for his sister!_

_No doubt these determined to keep Dumbledore on his crumbling pedestal will bleat that he did not, after all, put his plans into action, that he must have suffered a change of heart, that he came to his senses. However, the truth seems altogether more shocking._

_Barely two months into their great new friendship, Dumbledore and Grindelwald parted, never to see each other again until they met for their legendary duel (for more, see chapter 22). What caused this abrupt rupture? Had Dumbledore come to his senses? Had he told Grindelwald he wanted no more part in his plans? Alas, no._

_"It was poor little Ariana dying, I think, that did it," says Bathilda. "It came as an awful shock. Gellert was there in the house when it happened, and he came back to my house all of a dither, told me he wanted to go home the next day. Terribly distressed, you know. So I arranged a Portkey and that was the last I saw of him. Albus was beside himself at Ariana's death. It was so dreadful for those two brothers. They had lost everybody except each other. No wonder tempers ran a little high. Aberforth blamed Albus, you know, as people will under these dreadful circumstances. But Aberforth always talked a little madly, poor boy. All the same, breaking Albus's nose at the funeral was not decent. It would have destroyed Kendra to see her sons fighting like that, across her daughter's body. A shame Gellert could not have stayed for the funeral... He would have been a comfort to Albus, at least..."_

_This dreadful coffin-side brawl, known only to those few who attended Ariana Dumbledore's funeral, raises several questions. Why exactly did Aberforth Dumbledore blame Albus for his sister's death? Was it, as 'Batty' pretends, a mere effusion of grief? Or could there have been some more concrete reason for his fury? Grindelwald, expelled from Durmstrang for near-fatal attacks upon fellow students, fled the country hours after the girl's death, and Albus (out of shame or fear?) never saw him again, not until forced to do so by the pleas of the Wizarding world._

_Neither Dumbledore nor Grindelwald ever seems to have referred to this brief boyhood friendship in later life. However, there can be no doubt that Dumbledore delayed, for some five years of turmoil, fatalities, and disappearances, his attack upon Gellert Grindelwald. Was it lingering affection for the man or fear of exposure as his once best friend that caused Dumbledore to hesitate? Was it only reluctantly that Dumbledore set out to capture the man he was once so delighted to had met?_

Phoebe's hands balled into fists around the book's sides.

_And how did the mysterious Ariana die? Was she the inadvertent victim of some Dark rite? Did she stumble across something she ought not to have done, as the two young men sat practicing for their attempt at glory and domination? Is it possible that Ariana Dumbledore was the first person to die 'for the greater good?'_

The chapter ended here and Phoebe was left to ponder over what she had just read.

She couldn't believe it, yes she would give props to Rita for being brave enough to say such things about Dumbledore in public, and while she had no idea if any of them were true or not, she was not about to take Rita's words for it. Rita Skeeter was nothing but a compulsive liar, how could anyone in their right mind believe the lies she wrote?

"You're reading about him, aren't you?"

Phoebe jumped and looked up to see Hermione standing over her. "Merlin, don't do that!" she said, hand over her heart.

"Sorry," Hermione apologized.

"And to answer your question, yes," Phoebe nodded. "I was reading about Dumbledore."

"Do you believe any of it?"

Phoebe shook her head. "No," she answered immediately. "I'll give Rita a round of applause for being brave to write this stuff about Dumbledore, especially since there is a lot of Dumbledore supports still out there, but I do not agree with the stuff she was rambling on about."

"What about the part where it implies that Dumbledore's ideas helped Grindelwald rise to power?"

"It's an awful thought," Phoebe agreed. "But even Rita Skeeter can't pretend that they knew each other for more than a few months one summer when they were both really young."

"Did you read the letter Dumbledore wrote to Grindelwald?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes, I thought it was the worst part," she said. "But do remember that Rita could easily have changed several aspects of that letter to make it seem like Dumbledore was in league with the Dark Arts when he was a boy."

Hermione looked thoughtful. "But Dumbledore's idea 'For the Greater Good' became Grindelwald's slogan, his justification for all the atrocities he committed later. And that letter proves that it was Dumbledore's idea, Grindelwald just adopted it."

"Grindelwald twisted Dumbledore's ideas," Phoebe defended. "Dumbledore was going throughout his plans thinking of both the Muggle and Wizarding world and how he could benefit them both, Grindelwald just twisted everything after he left, he thought that by saying he did things 'For the Greater Good' would make him look like a sort of savior rather than a murderer."

"But 'For the Greater Good' was even carved over the entrance to Nurmengard,"

"And it was 'For the Greater Good' that Nurmengard was created," Phoebe pointed out. "I don't agree that it was 'For the Greater Good' that Grindelwald's victims ended up in there, but that is currently where Grindelwald is now; if Nurmengard hadn't been created then we'd have nowhere to keep him."

Hermione sighed. "Are you going to tell Harry?" she asked.

"No," said Phoebe. "He'll only accuse me of defending Dumbledore."

"Aren't you?"

"No, i'm not," said Phoebe. "All that 'right to rule' rubbish, it's 'Magic is Might' all over again. But Hermione, his mother had just died, he was stuck alone in the house -"

"He had Aberforth and Ariana for company, his Squib sister he was keeping locked up -"

Phoebe stood up and threw the book down onto her empty seat. "Don't turn into Harry, Hermione," said Phoebe. "Ariana wasn't a Squib."

"There is no proof -"

"Her father was imprisoned because he attacked three Muggle boys for attacking Ariana when they caught her doing magic," said Phoebe. "A Squib can't do magic!"

"Harry thinks -"

"I should have figured that Harry already knew about this," interrupted Phoebe. "When did you tell him?"

"A few months ago, he was looking for information on the thief from his vision. He told me what the guy looked like -"

"Wait, what?" asked Phoebe.

Hermione blinked. "He told me what the thief looked like so that I could try and find information for him," she said.

"I asked you if you remembered what the thief looked like when I found that picture," said Phoebe, pointing at the picture on the coffee table, "you told me you couldn't remember. Y-you lied to me?"

"I'm sorry, Phoebe," Hermione nodded, tears flowing down her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry! Harry told me not to say anything! He knew you'd tell me to drop it, and then tell him that he's losing viewpoint of our mission. But he's obsessed with finding out. I had already bought a copy of Skeeter's book and packed it away in the depths of my bag so that you wouldn't find it, I didn't want - I just wanted -"

"What did Harry _think_?" Phoebe asked.

Hermione shook her head and lowered her head. "I c-can't tell you," she sobbed. "H-He made me p-promise..."

"Fine, I'll find out from him," said Phoebe. She grabbed the picture and book and then stormed off to find Harry.

Hermione succumbed to her tears and sobbed, whole-heartedly into her hands, as she waited for the rise of voices beyond the entrance of the tent.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe found Harry sitting right outside the entrance, tracing shapes in the air with Hermione's wand. He stopped and looked up at her; she placed the picture and book down beside him and then walked off.

Harry sighed. He knew this was coming.

"So you figured it out then?" he said, stuffing the wand away and getting to his feet.

"No thanks to you and Hermione," Phoebe nodded. "Why didn't you tell me that you had figured out who the thief was?"

"Because you had already told me that I should be concentrating on the Horcruxes and not the thief,"

"And I was right," Phoebe said. "The thief is not your problem, Harry, what You-Know-Who does is not your problem!"

"You were all for it at the beginning,"

"Because I thought it might've been useful here," said Phoebe. "But it's not. We're nowhere near finding out how to destroy the locket, or how to find the next Horcrux, and you are worrying about some thief that you saw in You-Know-Who's mind."

Harry ignored her and picked up the book. "What do you think about Dumbledore now?" he asked. "Do you still think of him as a savior?"

"Yes, I do," Phoebe nodded. "Like I told Hermione, he was young and alone - his mother was dead, his father was locked up in Azkaban, Aberforth was at school most of the year, and Ariana was traumatized from when she was a child!"

"But she was still there," said Harry, "so he wasn't alone!"

"She had been beaten up," snapped Phoebe. "Beaten up and made to fear Magic, I highly doubt Dumbledore could have used Magic around her without her flinching. He needed a friend, another wizard or witch, someone that he could just act himself around.

Harry snorted. "Himself?" he repeated. "Grindelwald was a dark wizard!"

"Not at the time," said Phoebe. "I'll admit he was his way to becoming one, which was why he was expelled from school, but he wasn't a Dark Wizard when he met Dumbledore."

"No, Dumbledore just gave him the idea," snapped Harry.

"The Dumbledore we knew would never, ever have allowed -"

"The Dumbledore we thought we knew didn't want to conquer Muggles by force!"

"He changed, Harry, he changed! It's as simple as that! Maybe he did believe these things when he was seventeen, but the whole of the rest of his life was devoted to fighting the Dark Arts! Dumbledore was the one who stopped Grindelwald, the one who always voted for Muggles protection and Muggleborn rights, who fought You-Know-Who from the start, and who died trying to bring him down!"

Harry shook his head; his temper would not remain in check much longer. He stood up and walked around, trying to work some of it off. Rita's book was back on the ground, so that the face of Albus Dumbledore smiled dolefully at both.

"In all honesty, Harry, I think the real reason you're so angry is that Dumbledore never told you any of this himself."

"Maybe I am!" Harry bellowed, and he flung his arms over his head, hardly knowing whether he was trying to hold his anger or protect himself from the weight of his own disillusionment. "Look what he asked from me, Phoebe! Risk your life, Harry! And again! And again! And don't expect me to explain everything, just trust me blindly, trust that I know what I'm doing, trust me even though I don't trust you! Never the whole truth! Never!"

His voice cracked with the strain, and they stared at each other in the whiteness and the emptiness.

"He loved you," Phoebe whispered. "I know he loved you."

Harry dropped his arms. "I don't know who he loved, Phoebe, but it was never me. This isn't love, the mess he's left me in. He shared a damn sight more of what he was really thinking with Gellert Grindelwald than he ever shared with me."

"If it had been you," said Phoebe, her voice relatively low. "If you had been in his position. Would you have said anything? Told anyone about the things you used to get up to as a boy? Would you want people knowing that you were best friends with a man that went on to become a Dark Wizard? Or would you have kept them a secret?"

Harry was silent as he stared at her.

Phoebe nodded at his lack of answer.

"I thought so!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Thursday, 27 December, 2012 at 04:57pm**


	173. Chapter 173

**Author's Note:** This was a NIGHTMARE! But completely different to the book and film. Enjoy.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Alaina08, Chinaluv, KingdomHeartsNerd** and **SoulVirus.**

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>It was snowing by the time Phoebe took over the watch at Midnight.<p>

Inside the tent Hermione sat huddled on the three seater sofa reading _A History of Magic_ by the dim light hanging above her. Harry was sleeping in his bunk, but kept randomly waking as his dreams were purged by images of Nagini.

On the fourth time of waking, Harry decided that sleep was out of the question and ventured out of his bedroom. He shared a half-smile with Hermione and then headed for the exit. He found Phoebe huddled in the entrance of the tent. The snow was falling thickly.

"Phoebe, I've been thinking -"

"That maybe we should pack up and move on?" Phoebe asked.

Harry nodded. How did she know that?

"The snow is getting out of control," said Phoebe, looking out over the thick white mess of frozen water. "We'll go somewhere more sheltered. I keep think I can hear people moving beyond the barrier."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked as she joined them.

Harry stole a glance at the Sneakoscope on the table. It hadn't moved.

"I probably just imagined it," said Phoebe. "The snow in the dark, it plays tricks on your eyes..."

"But perhaps we ought to Disapparate under the Invisibility Cloak, just in case?" suggested Hermione.

Phoebe nodded. "Best start packing."

The three straightened up, Phoebe shaking the snow from her shoulders and shivering as she re-entered the tent.

Half an hour later, with the tent packed, Harry wearing the Horcrux, and Hermione clutching her beaded bag, they Disapparated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Where are we?" Harry asked, peering around at the fresh mass of trees as Hermione opened her beaded bag and begun tugging out tent poles.

"The Forest of Dean," she said. "I came camping here once with my mum and dad."

Here too snow lay on the trees all around and it was bitterly cold, but they were at least protected from the window. They spent most of the day inside the tent, huddled for warmth around the useful flames that Phoebe was so adept at conjuring.

The following afternoon fresh flakes drifted down upon them, so that even their sheltered clearing had a fresh dusting of powdery snow.

"Harry, you haven't slept in two nights," said Hermione. "Why don't you let me take over and -?"

"No, it's OK," said Harry with a simple shake of his head. "Just go to bed!"

"But, Harry -"

"I'm fine, Hermione!"

Phoebe appeared behind the bookworm and touched her shoulder. "C'mon," she murmured. "Don't fight with him..."

Hermione sighed and followed Phoebe back into the tent.

"He needs to sleep," said the bookworm as she climbed into bed.

"I know," said Phoebe. "But you know what he is like... arguing with him is not going to change anything, it'll only cause more problems!"

Hermione lowered her gaze and played with the hem of her covers. "Phoebe, I'm sorry for lying to you!"

"Forget about it," said Phoebe.

"No, I should have told you -"

"Harry didn't want you to tell me, Hermione," said Phoebe. "He's your best friend!"

"But so are you!"

"You're a part of the Golden Trio, Hermione," said Phoebe. "You have more loyalty to Harry than you do me. Besides, two can play the secrets game."

Hermione frowned and glanced at her friend. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"Remember the night Ron left?" Phoebe asked. Hermione nodded. "He accused me of keeping secrets from you guys..."

"Yeah, but he was just saying that because of the Horcrux," said Hermione, "he didn't mean anything he said."

Phoebe smiled painfully. "I wish that were true," she whispered. "The truth is I _am_ keeping secrets, but not because I want too!"

Hermione looked surprised. "What do you mean?" she wondered.

"Dumbledore told me a lot more than he ever told Harry," Phoebe explained. "This is why it is hard for me to watch Harry bad-mouth everything Dumbledore has ever asked of him, which is why I lost my temper when I read Life and Lies, it is also the reason I blew up at Harry a few nights ago."

Hermione was silent.

"Dumbledore never meant for any of this to happen, Hermione," Phoebe continued. "But he was dying! He had to make quick decisions, some, I agree, were reckless and stupid, but others were for the good of Hogwarts, its students and, of course, for Harry. Dumbledore never wanted anything bad to happen to anyone especially Harry."

"Phoebe, I don't -"

"I'm not here for the Horcruxes," said Phoebe. "I'm here to make sure that Harry survives long enough to face You-Know-Who in the final battle. This is what I have been raised to do my whole life. It wasn't by chance that I was accepted to Hogwarts, it wasn't by chance that I met Harry and became friends with him; it has been my destiny since the moment I was born to protect Harry."

Hermione blinked.

"My whole reason for being at Hogwarts wasn't to make friends or find love," Phoebe carried on. "It was simply to get close to Harry and protect him. I didn't just become a part of the Order of the Phoenix in our fifth year; I was a member of it long before Dumbledore reinstated it. I was warned, beforehand that Umbridge was going to become DADA teacher, I was warned about Slughorn and the events that were to take place in sixth year, I just couldn't say anything because it would interfere with what Dumbledore intended to teach Harry."

"So your whole life has been written out from start to finish?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "For the most part," she nodded. "But me meeting Terence and falling in love and having Blake? That was a personal destiny that I carved for myself. You, Ashlyn, James, Sarah, Amelia... all of you... you weren't written in my destiny."

"What about Malfoy?"

"He too is a part of my personal destiny," said Phoebe. "I had always promised myself that if I went to Hogwarts I would find my brother. I had no interest in finding my birth parents or being reunited with them all I wanted was to find Draco," she smiled, "and I am glad I did! To you when it looked like things were falling apart, but to me they were slowly knitting together."

"But we lost so many people,"

Phoebe hung her head. "I know," she agreed, "but nothing is ever perfect. People need to die in order for others to survive and many more will die, we can't stop that from happening! Destiny works in different ways, Hermione, if Fate and Free Will think that your time is at an end then you have no choice but to follow their path."

"How can someone decide when it is time for someone else to die?"

"We all have an expiry date," said Phoebe. "We all have to die in the end."

"But Harry -"

"There are things about Harry that not even _he_ understands..."

The two friends were silent for a while. Both just listening the calm winds outside the tent.

Then Phoebe spoke again. Her voice was low and barely above a whisper, but Hermione heard her loud and clear in the silence of the night.

"Life is like a puzzle," the elemental said. "It all comes together in the end!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Hermione _finally_ sleeping, Phoebe crept out of the tent to find Harry asleep in an awkward angle. She sighed and disappeared back inside, grabbed the blanket from the sofa and returned outside. She unfolded the blanket and draped it over her friend.

"Sweet dreams, Harry," she whispered.

The night reached such a depth of velvety blackness that she might have been suspended in limbo between Disapparation and Apparition. She waved her wand and muttered, "_Lumos_!" when a bright light appeared right ahead of her, moving through the trees. Whatever the source, it was moving soundlessly. The light seemed to drift towards her.

Raising her wand high above her head, Phoebe stepped closer. She screwed up her eyes as the light became blinding, the trees in front of it pitch-black in silhouette, and still the thing came closer... and then the source of light stepped out from behind an oak. It was a silver-white doe.

"Snape..." Phoebe whispered.

The doe shook her flank and stepped closer to the elemental. She passed through the protective enchanted barrier with plain ease.

Phoebe held her breath as the magnificent creature stopped in front of her. She left no hoof prints in the freshly fallen snow. "Where is he?" she asked, reaching up to pet the magnificent creature. Her fingers met nothing but air, but the doe bowed her beautiful head and her ears twitched, as if she could actually feel Phoebe's touch.

They gazed at each other for several long moments and then she turned and walked away.

Phoebe hesitated and glanced back at Harry, he was still asleep in the entrance to the tent. _**If you are meeting with Snape**_, she thought. _**Then the last person you want to wake his Harry.**_ Shaking her head, the elemental turned back to the doe, she had already passed the protective barriers and was re-entering the trees.

The doe stopped and turned to look back at Phoebe. She seemed to shake her head in the direction the trees, and Phoebe knew that she wanted her to follow.

"I'll be back," Phoebe whispered, before hurrying off after the doe.

Snow crunched beneath her feet, but the doe made no noise at she passed through the trees, for she was nothing but light. Deeper and deeper into the forest she went and Phoebe walked quickly, sure that when the creature stopped, she would be where Snape was hiding.

At last, the doe came to a halt. She turned her beautiful head toward the elemental once more, and instantly Phoebe broke into a run.

"Professor!" Phoebe called as she became level with the white doe. "Professor, are you here?"

"One must never walk in the dark alone," sneered a familiar voice.

Phoebe froze and stared out across the frozen water of the lake. "One does not walk alone," she responded, "especially when one is amongst friends!"

"Wise words, Mrs. Blackheart,"

"I've had wise teachers," Phoebe nodded turning on the spot. Severus Snape loomed into view behind her. He was wearing a large travelling cloak, and looked seemingly happy to see her. "You have something for us," she guessed.

Snape's lip curled upwards into a sneer. "You are still very curious," he said. "Your curiosity is going to put you in danger!"

"It's not curiosity when I am right," said Phoebe. "You have had it all along! Dumbledore never took it from his office, he simply made a copy!"

"A copy?" Snape repeated. "What are you babbling -?"

"The Sword of Gryffindor."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Something gleamed in the light of the wand, and Phoebe's gaze lowered to Snape's travelling cloak. He opened it and removed a great silver cross from behind velvet sheets. A great silver cross that glinted deep red in the dim light of her wand... it was the Sword of Gryffindor.

"I asked for help," said Phoebe. "A few months ago... I asked for help... I was lost and I didn't know what to do... is this the answer to my prayer?"

"I was instructed to give this to you when I believed you were ready for it," said Snape. "Dumbledore was adamant that I not give it any sooner. After you escaped Godric's Hollow, I knew that the time for this to be returned to Potter was drawing nearer, I had Phineas keep a close watch over you, and ordered him to report back to me when any news."

"You needed to be sure that we were in a more secure place before making yourself known," Phoebe nodded. "The Forest of Dean is very secure!"

"It is very sheltered," Snape agreed. "I commend you on your choice."

"Hermione chose this place," said Phoebe. "I just brought us here!"

Snape nodded. "Where is it?" he asked.

"Where is what?"

"The Locket?"

"Safe,"

"I wish to see it,"

Phoebe shook her head. "You can't," she answered.

"Why not?"

"One reason?"

"I wish to help,"

Phoebe snorted. "And you will be helping after you give me the sword," she said, holding her hand out. "You have seen the Horcrux before, I am sure!"

Snape narrowed his eyes at her. "Dumbledore has taught you well," he commented.

"Dumbledore taught me nothing," said Phoebe. "Caution and self-preservation came from my grandparents. Speaking of which, how are they?"

"The Dark Lord is growing tiresome of your grandfather," said Snape. "He refuses to let your grandmother use her seeing eye. Apparently torture has no effect on you elementals!"

Phoebe smirked. "It depends on how strong we are," she nodded. "My grandfather is strong. But the Dark Lord will pay if there is one hair harmed on either of my grandparents. He will pay dearly."

"Isn't that our goal?"

"That is _my_ goal," Phoebe nodded. "I do not know about yours." She extended her fingers forward and gestured to the sword. "Now... the reason you are here!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Harry woke with a start. He could have sworn he heard a voice.

Peering into the darkness surrounding the enchanted barrier, Harry froze as movement appeared between the leaves. Who was out there? Where they friend or foe? Raising Hermione's wand, he muttered "_Lumos_!" as a bright light flooded the clearing.

For a split second he considered calling out to Hermione and Phoebe, but decided against it in the end when the trees parted and another person stepped into view. His heart gave a shudder as he noticed the familiar flicker of red hair, the freckled face and blue eyes of Ron Weasley.

"Ron?" Harry asked.

"Harry!" Ron sighed as the protective barrier gave way and he was able to get back through. He looked rough. His eyes were sullen and black, his face almost pale, and he looked like he had been sleeping rough for months. "Oh, thank goodness I've found you!"

"How did you find me?"

"I followed the Patronus,"

"What Patronus?"

"The silver creature that just appeared to me in the forest," said Ron. "It just sort of appeared, stared at me and then turned to walk away. I figured that I'd have to follow it. I thought it would lead me to you, that you had cast it."

"I haven't cast a Patronus," said Harry, shaking his head.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, it didn't look like a Stag!" he admitted. "And Hermione's is an Otter. What about Phoebe?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know what her's is," he said. "But Hermione and Phoebe are asleep inside..."

"Are you sure?"

"Very sure," Harry nodded. "Come check for yourself if you like..."

Despite holding intense hatred for his friend, Harry found it very easy to talk to him, especially since the fight with Phoebe a few days ago. It was nice to know that he had at least someone who would agree with him when Phoebe fired up.

He'd find out _why_ Ron came back later.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Only a true Gryffindor deserves this sword," said Snape.

Phoebe glared at him. Who was he calling a true Gryffindor? Hadn't she proved herself over and over again? Granted her favourite founder may have been Salazar Slytherin, and she may have named her son after him, but hadn't she proved that she was worthy enough Gryffindor?

"I am a true Gryffindor!"

"What have you done for Gryffindor that proves you are worthy enough to claim the sword?" asked Snape.

"Protecting the Chosen One not good enough?" Phoebe snapped.

Snape scoffed. "Protecting the Chosen One?" he repeated. "Correct me if I am wrong but wasn't it the _Chosen One_ that saved and protected you on numerous occasions?"

"So I admit that I have not been perfect," said Phoebe. "But I have still protected Harry when he has needed me!"

"You have toyed with his emotions and played around with his heart -"

"Since when do _you_ care?" Phoebe snapped. "Last I checked you didn't even like Harry. Or have you, after all this time, grown to care about The-Boy-Who-Lived just like you did his mum?"

Snape growled at the elemental. "Don't be so ridiculous!" he sneered.

"Then stop being so idiotic," Phoebe snapped. "A true Gryffindor is daring, they have nerve, and it is their chivalry that sets Gryffindor apart from the other houses."

"Where does chivalry come into this?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I have no clue," she answered. "Unless you count the fact that I have not called upon Harry or Hermione and have put my full trust in the fact that you really are alone, and are here to help!"

An owl hooted somewhere across the lake.

"Are you?" Phoebe asked.

"Am I what?" Snape hissed.

"Here to help," Phoebe repeated.

Snape looked down at the sword and then up at the elemental. "There will be many questions asked," he said, as he held it out to her. "You will need a good story."

"I'll worry about that," said Phoebe as she took the sword.

"Consider this as a helpful suggestion!" Snape sneered. There was a flash of light and next thing Phoebe knew she was thrown through the air. She landed, with a crunch on the shallow part of the ice. It cracked with a sound like a bullet in the silence: the surface of the pool broke and chunks of dark ice rocked on the ruffled water.

Phoebe gasped as she looked up at Snape. "I trusted you!" she screamed, before her body dropped like a stone into the icy depths.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The air in her lungs seemed to freeze solid as she was submerged. She could hardly breathe. Her clothes were like a dead weight, the sword fell from her numb hands, despite her fingers grappling aimlessly in the water to try and hold onto the hilt.

The cold was agony. It attacked her like fire. Her brain seemed to have frozen as she pushed through the dark water to the top. Phoebe kicked wildly, trying to push herself back to the surface, but merely propelled herself into the rocky side of the pool. Thrashing, suffocating, she scrabbled at the underside of the icy glass, her frozen fingers unable to break the ice.

Little lights were popping inside her head, and she was going to drown, there was nothing left, nothing she could do, and the arms closed around her chest were surely Death's...

Choking and retching, soaking and colder than she had ever been in her life, Phoebe came to face down in the snow. Somewhere close by, another person was panting and coughing and staggering around. Harry had come again; he had come when she needed him against Quirrell, and again when she needed him against Riddle. He had always been there when she needed him.

"H-Harry..."

Arms wrapped themselves around Phoebe's shoulders, draping a rather large, warm towel around her.

"Phoebe, you're freezing!" said Hermione.

"H-Hermione...?" Phoebe shivered.

They had both come. Phoebe smiled. Had Hermione woken and found her gone from her bed? Had she woken Harry and they both had come to find her? Had they seen her fall in the lake or had they seen that she had been pushed?

A panting voice spoke from over her head.

"Are- you - _mental_?"

Nothing but shock of hearing that voice could have given Phoebe the strength to get up. Shivering violently, she staggered to her feet. There before her stood Ron, fully dressed but drenched to the skin, his hair plastered to his face, the sword of Gryffindor in his hand.

Phoebe couldn't answer. The silver doe was nothing, Harry and Hermione being there was nothing, nothing compared with Ron's reappearance; she could not believe it, not only that, but by the state of him, it would have seemed that _Ron_ had been the one who had saved her life.

Shuddering with cold, Phoebe clutched the blanket close to her, and continued to stare at Ron, and then to Harry, and finally Hermione. "W-What's h-he d-d-doing h-here?" she asked, her teeth chattering.

"He's come back," said Harry. "What do you think you were doing, Phoebe? You could have died!"

"I f-f-fell!" Phoebe answered. "I s-saw the g-glint of t-the s-s-sword... t-the i-ice w-w-wasn't s-s-strong e-enough and it c-cracked."

"We saw," Hermione nodded hugging her best friend and rubbing her arms with the towel. "We saw you go under. We thought you'd pop straight back up, but when you didn't, Ron dived straight in to save you!"

Phoebe smiled weakly. "T-Thank Y-You..." she said in Ron's direction.

"No problem," Ron responded. He then held up the sword. "At least you had a reason for being under the pool."

Phoebe nodded. "We s-should d-d-destroy the H-Ho-Horcrux!"

"Ron and I will destroy it," said Harry, "Hermione, take Phoebe back to the tent for some warmer clothes. We'll follow behind after we've got rid of the Locket."

Hermione nodded and, gathering Phoebe up in her arms, led her back to the tent.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Here," said Ron handing Harry the sword.

"No, you should do it."

"Me?" said Ron, looking shocked. "Why?"

"Because you saved Phoebe and got the sword out of the pool. I think it's supposed to be you."

He was not being kind or generous. He knew that Ron had to be the one to wield the sword. Dumbledore had at least taught Harry something about certain kinds of magic, of the incalculable power of certain acts.

"I'm going to open it," said Harry, "and you stab it. Straightaway, okay? Because whatever's in there will put up a fight. The bit of Riddle in the diary tried to kill me and Phoebe."

"How are you going to open it?" asked Ron. He looked terrified.

"I'm going to ask it to open, using Parseltongue," said Harry. The answer came so readily to his lips that he thought that he had always known it deep down. Perhaps it had taken his recent encounter with Nagini to make him realize it. He looked at the serpentine _S,_ inlaid with glittering green stones. It was easy to visualize it as a minuscule snake, curled upon the cold rock.

"No!" said Ron. "No, don't open it! I'm serious!"

"Why not?" asked Harry. "Let's get rid of the damn thing. It's been months -"

"I can't, Harry, I'm serious - you do it -"

"But why?"

"Because that thing's bad for me!" said Ron, backing away from the locket and the rock. "I can't handle it! I'm not making excuses, harry, for what I was like, but it affects me worse than it affected you, Hermione and Phoebe, it made me think stuff - stuff I was thinking anyway, but it made everything worse, I can't explain it, and then I'd take it off and I'd get my head on straight again, and then I'd have to put the effing thing back on - I can't do it, Harry!"

He had back away, the sword dragging at his side, shaking his head.

"You can do it," said Harry, "you can! You've just got the sword; I know it's supposed to be you who use it. Please, just get rid of it, Ron."

The sound of his name seemed to act like a stimulant. Ron swallowed, then, still breathing hard through his long nose, moved back toward the rock. "Just tell me when," he croaked.

"On three," said Harry, looking down at the locket and narrowing his eyes, concentrating on the letter _S_, imagining a serpent, while the contents of the locket rattled like a trapped cockroach. "One... two... three... _open_."

The last word came as a hiss and a snarl and the golden doors opened with a click.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** This chapter will conclude next time. Had to keep the part between Ron and Harry when they discussed the Horcrux, it was important, and impossible to change.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 29 December, 2012 at 06:12am**


	174. Chapter 174

**Author's Note:** Happy New Year to all my readers out there! This is just a short conclusion of the previous chapter. There will be a much longer one next time. Promise.

**Dedications:** Chapters goes out to the following: **MiraclesHappen94, KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, SoulVirus** and** Fan of Fics.** Can we get some new blood here? 1,350 reviews by the final battle?

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **LovelyEndingsAndLateStarts** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"I wanted to come back the minute I'd Disapparated,"<p>

Phoebe shivered under the thick blanket that Hermione had conjured up, a heating charm had also been placed on it, but yet the elemental still shivered in the coldness. She had stripped out of her wet clothes and into something more comfortable and dry, her hair had been dried using a heating charm and was now tied back in a high ponytail.

"But I walked straight into a gang of Snatchers and I couldn't go anywhere!"

"A gang of what?" asked Harry.

They were back in the tent. He and Ron had just destroyed the Horcrux and returned to make sure that Phoebe was OK. They had waited for her to dry and re-dress, all the while Hermione made tea for them, although the boys knew it was mostly for Phoebe's sake. Now they were sitting around the living room listening to Ron recount his tale of the night he had left.

"Snatchers," said Ron. "They're everywhere - gangs trying to earn gold by rounding up Muggleborns and blood traitors, there's a reward from the Ministry for everyone captured. I was on my own and I look like I might be school age; they got really excited, thought I was a Muggleborn in hiding. I had to talk fast to get out of being dragged to the Ministry."

"What did you say to them?"

"Told them I was Stan Shunpike. First person I could think of."

"And they believed that?"

"They weren't the brightest. One of them was definitely part troll, the smell of him..." said Ron. "Anyway, they had a row about whether was Stan or not. It was a bit pathetic to be honest, but there was still five of them and only one of me and they'd taken my wand. The two of them got into a fight and while the others were distracted I managed to hit the one holding me in the stomach, grabbed his wand, Disarmed the bloke holding mine, and Disapparated. I didn't do it so well, Splinched myself again -" he held up his hand to show two missing fingernails; "- and I came out miles from the bit of riverbank where we'd ben... you'd gone."

Phoebe nodded. "The river was rising faster than expected," she said. "I couldn't hold it. But we hung around for a few hours... we were there until the river finally broke."

"Meanwhile, you've been fighting off Snatchers, we've been to Godric's Hollow," said Hermione. "And, let's think, what happened there? Oh yes, You-Know-Who's snake turned up, it nearly killed the three of us, and then You-Know-Who himself arrived and missed us by about a second."

"What?" said Ron, gaping at the three of them.

Phoebe offered him a small sheepish smile and nodded.

"Imagine losing fingernails! That really puts our sufferings into perspective, doesn't it?"

"Hermione," said Harry quietly. "Ron just saved Phoebe's life."

"How did you manage to find us tonight?" Phoebe asked, quickly diverting the conversation.

Ron pulled a small silver object from his jeans pocket. "This." He said.

"The Deluminator?"

"It doesn't just turn lights on and off," said Ron. "I don't know how it works or why it happened then and not any other time, because I've been wanting to come back ever since I left. But I was listening to the radio really early this morning and I heard... I heard you!"

He was looking at Hermione.

"You heard me on the radio?" Hermione asked incredulously.

"No, I heard you coming out of my pocket. Your voice," he held up the Deluminator again, "came out of this."

"And what exactly did I say?" asked Hermione.

"My name. 'Ron.'"

Hermione turned a fiery shade of scarlet. Phoebe remembered: It earlier that night, after she and Hermione had gone to bed. Hermione had fallen straight to sleep after Phoebe had explained about her destiny to protect Harry, but even in her sleep she kept muttering to herself; one thing that stood out distinctively to Phoebe was Ron's name.

"So I took it out," Ron went on, looking at the Deluminator, "and it didn't seem different or anything, but I was sure I'd heard you. So I clicked it. And the light went out in my room, but another light appeared right outside the window."

Ron raised his empty hand and pointed in front of him, his eyes focused on something that neither Harry, Hermione nor Phoebe could see.

"It was a ball of light, kind of pulsing, and bluish, like that light you get around a Portkey, you know?"

"Yeah," said Harry, Hermione and Phoebe together automatically.

"I knew this was it," said Ron. "I grabbed my stuff and packed it, and then I put on my rucksack and went out into the garden. The little ball of light was hovering there, waiting for me, and when I came out it bobbled along a bit and I followed it behind the shed and then it... well, it went inside me."

"Sorry?" said Harry; sure he had not heard correctly.

"It sort of floated toward me," said Ron, illustrating the movement with his free index finger, "right to my chest, and then - it just went straight through. It was here," he touched a point close to his heart, "I could feel it, it was hot. And once it was inside me I knew what I was supposed to do, I knew it would take me where I needed to go. So I Disapparated and came out on the side of a hill. There was snow everywhere..."

"We were there," said Phoebe. "We spent two nights there, and the second night I kept thinking I could hear someone moving around in the dark and calling out!"

"Yeah, well that would've been me," said Ron. "Your protective spells work, anyway, because I couldn' see you and I couldn't hear you. I was sure you were around, though, so in the end I got my sleeping bag and waited for one of you to appear. I thought you'd have to show yourselves when you packed up the tent."

"We've been Disapparating under the Invisibility Cloak," said Hermione. "It's an extra precaution. And we left really early, because, as Phoebe says, we'd heard somebody blundering around."

"Well, I stayed on that hill all day," said Ron. "I kept hoping you'd appear. But when it started to get dark I knew I must have missed you, so I clicked the Deluminator again, the blue light came out and went inside me, and I Disapparated and arrived here in these woods. I still couldn't see you, so I just had to hope one of you would show yourselves in the end."

"But we didn't," said Phoebe.

Ron shook his head. "No, but I saw the doe." He said.

"You saw the what?" said Hermione sharply.

"It was a silver Doe," said Ron, and he explained what had happened, and as the story of the silver doe unfolded, Hermione frowned even further.

"It must have been a Patronus!" she said. "Couldn't you see who was casting it? Didn't you see anyone?"

Ron shook his head. "No. I thought the Patronus might have come from one of you," he said. "But Harry's is a Stag, and yours is an Otter, right?" he asked Hermione. She nodded. "What about you, Phoebe?"

"Mine's a snow leopard," said Phoebe.

"So who cast the Doe?"

Phoebe, Ron and Harry exchanged looks. "We don't know," they answered.

"We'll figure it out later," said Phoebe. "Ron, continue!"

The red head nodded. "Anyway, I followed the path of the Doe had come from and arrived on the outsides of your protective enchantments. It was like someone wanted me to see you, or maybe I was just wishing really hard that it would be one of you, anyway, it seemed like your enchantments had melted away. I could see Harry and he could see me."

"That's when you find Phoebe gone and woke me up," said Hermione.

Harry nodded.

"How did you end up on the lake?" Ron asked the elemental.

"I saw the same Doe," said Phoebe. "I didn't want to wake Harry or Hermione because neither of them had been sleeping properly, and I couldn't sleep. Harry was supposed to be keeping watch, but I couldn't bring myself to blame him for falling asleep on the job, I knew we were safe with the enchantments, that's when I saw it. The doe. It appeared out of nowhere and walked straight towards me, it looked like it wanted me to follow it, so I did."

"That was a stupid mistake, Phoebe!" scolded Hermione.

Phoebe nodded. "I know and I'm sorry," she said. "Anyway, the doe led me out onto the lake, and I could see something glinting beneath the water. I stepped closer to get a better look and that's when the ice beneath me began to break. I didn't realize it wasn't that solid. It broke and I fell under."

"We saw you," Harry nodded.

"And when I didn't resurface, I guess you panicked," said Phoebe.

Ron nodded.

"Thank you for saving me," Phoebe smiled.

Ron returned it.

"What about the locket?" Hermione asked. "How did you destroy it?"

"Ron stabbed it." Harry said.

"And... and it went? Just like that?" Hermione whispered.

"Well, it - it screamed," said Harry with half a glance at Ron. "Here."

He threw the locket into her lap; gingerly she picked it up and examined its punctured windows.

Phoebe turned to Ron. "Did you say you had a spare wand?"

"What?" said Ron, who had been watching Hermione examine the locket. "Oh - oh yeah."

He tugged open a buckle on his rucksack and pulled out a short, dark wand. "Here. I figured it's always hand to have a backup."

Phoebe nodded and held her hand out to Harry; the boy handed over Hermione's wand and took the Snatchers wand from Phoebe. Ron watched in confusion as Phoebe passed Hermione's wand back to her. "Harry's wand is broken," said the elemental.

"You're kidding?" Ron said, but at that moment Hermione got to her feet, and he looked apprehensive again. While Harry seemed ready to accept him back, and Phoebe looked on the verge of welcoming him back, although Ron had a funny feeling that she was more thankful that he had saved her life rather than him returning, Hermione had only been thankful for him saving Phoebe, she did not look ready to accept him back into the fold just yet.

Hermione put the vanquished Horcrux into her beaded bag, then turned toe and disappeared back into her bedroom.

"About the best you could hope for, I think," murmured Harry.

"Yeah," said Ron. "Could've been worse."

"She could have set a flock of birds on you," said Phoebe. "The same flock she conjured up for Transfiguration last year, remember?"

Ron nodded as the memory flashed across his mind's eye.

"I still haven't ruled it out," came Hermione's voice from the other room. It was muffled and the three friends could only assume that she was buried beneath her blankets.

Phoebe shivered again.

"Phoebe, go to bed," said Harry. "I'll finish the watch!"

For once, Phoebe didn't argue. Instead she nodded, got to her feet and shuffled towards the girl's bedroom. Behind her she could hear Harry and Ron talking in low voices, and knew that the two of them would be keeping watch as a means of catching up on things that had happened both inside and outside of the their little hunting group.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Will try and get another chapter out before I got back to University on Monday.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 02 January, 2013 at 06:37pm**


	175. Chapter 175

**Author's Note:** Trying to get as many updates as possible in before Monday 7th January. That is when I go back to University and chapters go back to being updated every Saturday. Although they may stop for a while because I have assignments to be working on. I'll let you know the details soon.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, MiraclesHappen94** and** Fan of Fics**. (I need new blood. I'm starting to write these names with my eyes closed!)

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Blood-of-Silver** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warning Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"Did you have any contact with the outside world?" Phoebe asked. "I mean, like Order members and that?"<p>

"A few," Ron nodded. "I stayed with Bill and Fleur for a while. They weren't exactly happy that I had left you guys, but they didn't kick me out because of it. They told me a few things, you know? They told me about the Taboo but I said we already knew about it, I didn't tell them how we knew about it mind, I don't think they'd have been pleased."

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, Joey and your father didn't seem pleased," she said. "But you've got to give the Death Eater's credit, they're not as thick as we assumed."

"How do you mean?" asked Harry.

"Using _his_ name," said Phoebe. "Tabooing _his_ name to catch and round people up. It was only people who were serious about standing up to him, like Dumbledore, who ever dared use it. Now they've put the Taboo on it, anyone who says it is traceable - quick-and-easy way to find Order members."

"It is how they got nearly got Kingsley," said Ron.

"You're kidding?"

"Yeah - I mean no, to the kidding part - I mean -"

Phoebe smiled and shook her head. "We know what you mean," she said, patting his shoulder. "Just carry on. How did they nearly get Kingsley?"

"A bunch of Death Eaters cornered him, Bill said, but he fought his way out. He's on the run now, just like us." Ron scratched his chin thoughtfully with the end of his wand, "You don't reckon Kingsley could have sent the doe?"

"His Patronus is a lynx," said Phoebe. "We saw it at the wedding, remember?"

"Oh yeah... Wait, you don't reckon it could've been Dumbledore, do you?"

"Dumbledore what?" asked Harry.

"Dumbledore... the doe? I mean," Ron was watching Harry out of the corner of his eyes, "he had the real sword last, didn't he?"

Phoebe felt her stomach drop. That wasn't true. The sword had resided in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts, so theoretically the last person to have had the sword was Snape. But they couldn't know that, they would have skinned her alive if they found out the reason she had found the Sword of Gryffindor was because Snape had given it to her; they wouldn't have believed her if she said Snape was on their side, plus after he had thrown her onto the lake they would have clearly tried to change her mind about him being on their side.

Harry shook his head. "Dumbledore's dead," he said. "I saw it happen, I saw the body. He's definitely gone. Anyway, his Patronus was a Phoenix, not a doe."

"Patronuses can change, though, can't they?" said Ron. "Tonks's changed, didn't it?"

"Yeah, but if Dumbledore was alive, why wouldn't he show himself? Why wouldn't he just hand us the sword?"

"Search me," said Ron. "Same reason he didn't give it to you when he was alive? Same reason he left you an old Snitch and Hermione a book of kids' stories?"

"Which was what?" asked Harry.

"I dunno," said Ron. "Sometimes I've thought, when I've been a bit hacked off, he was having a laugh or - or he just wanted to make it more difficult. But I don't think so, not anymore. He knew what he was doing when he gave me the Deluminator, didn't he? He - well," Ron's ears turned bright red, "he must've known I'd run out on you."

Phoebe smiled lightly and touched Ron's shoulder. "No," she said, shaking her head. "That was never the case. Dumbledore always knew that you'd come back."

**~*Phoebe*~**

When night fell the four Gryffindor's returned to the tent. Hermione headed straight of the girls' bedroom, while Phoebe entered the kitchen to make tea, leaving Harry and Ron in the living area where Ron took a small wireless radio from his rucksack and started playing with the dials.

"There's this one program," he said, "that tells the news like it really is. All the others are on You-Know-Who's side and are following the Ministry line, but this one... you wait till you hear it, it's great. Only they can't do it every night they have to keep changing locations in case they're raided, and you need a password to tune in... Trouble is, I missed the last one."

He drummed lightly on the top of the radio with his wand, muttering random words under his breath. He threw Hermione an angry many covert glances, plainly fearing an angry outburst, but for all the notice she took of him he might not have been there.

For ten minutes or so Ron tapped and muttered, Hermione turned the pages of her book, Phoebe set a tray of tea and cups on the coffee table, and Harry continued to practice with the blackthorn wand. Finally, Hermione climbed down from her bunk, Ron ceased his tapping at once.

"If it's annoying you, I'll stop!" he told Hermione nervously.

Hermione did not respond, but approached Phoebe.

"We need to talk," she said.

"About?" Phoebe asked. She looked up to see the bookworm had been reading _The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore_.

"I want to go and see Xenophilius Lovegood."

"It's the mark, isn't it?" Phoebe asked.

Hermione nodded. "Look at this," she handed _The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore_ at the elemental and pointed to an old photograph of the original letter, with Dumbledore's familiar thin, slanting handwriting. She hated seeing absolute proof that Dumbledore really had written those words that they had not been Rita's invention.

_**After everything I've done for you, Professor!**_ She thought sadly. "What am I looking for?" she asked.

"The signature," said Hermione.

Phoebe took the book from her friend, lit her wand and pointed it at the book. The signature had been changed slightly. The 'A' in Albus had been altered to a miniature version of the same triangular mark inscribed upon _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_.

"Er - what are you - ?" said Ron tentatively, but Hermione quelled him with a look.

"It keeps cropping up, doesn't it?" she said, turning back to Phoebe. "I know Viktor and Jackson said that it was Grindelwald's mark, but it was definitely on that old grave in Godric's Hollow, and the dates on the headstone were long before Grindelwald came along! And now this! Well, we can't ask Dumbledore or Grindelwald what it means - I don't even know whether Grindelwald's still alive - but we can ask Mr. Lovegood. He was wearing the symbol at the wedding. I'm sure this is important, Phoebe!"

Phoebe shook her head. "Hermione, we don't need another Godric's Hollow. You and Harry talked yourselves and me into going there, and -"

"But it keeps appearing, Phoebe! Dumbledore left me _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_, how do you know we're not supposed to find out about the sign?"

"Here we go again!" Harry sighed. "Hermione, we've tried convincing ourselves that Dumbledore left us secret signs and clues -"

"The Deluminator turned out to be pretty useful," piped up Ron. "I think Hermione's right, I think we ought to go and see Lovegood."

Phoebe threw Ron a dark look. She was sure that Ron's reason of supporting Hermione had nothing to do with the symbol.

"It won't be a like Godric's Hollow," Ron added. "Lovegood's on your side, Harry. _The Quibbler's_ been for you all along, it keeps telling people that they've got to help you."

"Bathilda was supposed to be on our side too," said Phoebe. "And look what happened to her!"

"I'm sure this is important!" said Hermione earnestly.

"But don't you think if it was, Dumbledore would have told me about it before he died?" asked Harry.

"Maybe... maybe it's something you need to find out for yourself," said Hermione with a faint air of clutching at straws.

"Yeah," said Ron, "that makes sense."

Phoebe shot Ron another frosty look. One that clearly told him that he was _not_ helping.

"I still think we should go talk to Mr. Lovegood. A symbol that links Dumbledore, Grindelwald and Godric's Hollow? Phoebe, I'm sure we ought to know about this!"

"I think we should vote on it," said Ron.

"What's the point?" Phoebe asked. "You and Hermione will say yes, Harry and I will say no. You'll need someone to break the tie!"

Ron sighed.

"Phoebe..." whined Hermione.

"No," said Phoebe, shaking her head. "No! We're not going! We've got our job, and that's to find the Horcruxes; that is turning out to be more difficult than expected, we don't have time to go jumping bridges and searching for things that may very well be pointless to our given task!"

Hermione sighed and turned to Harry.

"Does anyone know where the Lovegood's live, anyway?" Harry asked. "I mean, even if Phoebe or I decided to outvote the other, there is no point agreeing to do something if we don't even know where we are going, is it?"

"I know," said Ron. "They're not far from my place. I dunno where exactly, but Mum and Dad always point toward the hills whenever they mention them. Shouldn't be too hard to find."

Phoebe shook her head. "What does it matter?" she asked. "We're not going!"

"When did Harry die and make you boss?" Ron asked. "It should be his decision."

"If you want to go gallivanting and get the only chance we have of surviving killed," snapped Phoebe, "then be my guests! Just don't come running to me when your plans have fallen through and you need your necks saving!"

"Is that a yes?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe ignored her and looked towards the entrance of the tent. How was she supposed to protect Harry when they wouldn't listen to her in the first place? Telling them the truth was out of the question, if they knew the truth then there was no way in hell they would trust her again.

"I'd take the stubborn silence as a yes," said Ron.

Hermione smiled, faintly, she hadn't meant to cause tension with Phoebe, she just wanted to work out the symbol and find out if there was some reason behind it. She was sure that Dumbledore had drawn it for a reason; she just wanted to know what that reason was.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They had an excellent view of the village of Ottery St. Catchpole from the breezy hillside to which they Disapparated next morning. From their high vantage point the village looked like a collection of toy houses in the great slanting shafts of sunlight stretching to earth in the breaks between clouds. They stood for a minute or two looking toward the Burrow; the only thing visible was high hedges and trees of the orchard, which offered the crooked little house protection from Muggle eyes.

"It's weird, being this near, but not going to visit," said Ron.

"It's too dangerous," said Phoebe.

"I know," Ron nodded, "but it is still weird."

"Now you know how I feel," said Phoebe, with a slight pang in her heart. She missed her family. She missed her husband. And most of all, she missed Blake.

Ron turned his back on the Burrow.

"Let's try up here," he said, leading the way over the top of the hill.

They walked for a few hours, Harry, at Hermione's insistence, hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak. The cluster of low hills appeared to be uninhabited apart from one small cottage, which seemed deserted.

"Do you think it's theirs, and they've gone away for Christmas?" said Hermione, peering through the window at a neat little kitchen with geraniums on the windowsill.

Ron snorted. "I've got a feeling you'd be able to tell who lived there if you looked through the Lovegood's' window. Let's try the next lot of hills."

"Hold up," said Phoebe. She had disappeared around the side of the cottage and was peeking in through the back window.

"What is it?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe returned to the front of the cottage and tried the door. The handle rattled, and the door opened a smidge, but refused to budge anymore. "It's stuck!" she said.

"Why do you want to get inside anyway?" asked Ron.

"I saw someone inside," said Phoebe.

"_And you want to go inside?_" Hermione screeched. "We should get out of here now! What if it's a Death Eater?"

Phoebe shook her head. "It was too small," she answered stepping backwards. "Harry, where are?"

"Right here?" answered Harry, somewhere to her left.

"Stay back," Phoebe ordered her friends. She waved her hands in a circle, and then brought them together at her chest. She closed her eyes as she felt her elemental control over wind spike, hard and fast. It flooded her system; the dragon necklace around her neck shone a brilliant white colour as a powerful burst of wind burst from Phoebe's hands as she thrust them out.

The burst of air hit the door and it was blasted off of its hinges.

"Oops," Phoebe said sheepishly.

"_Phoebe,"_ Hermione scolded.

Phoebe smiled sheepishly before hurrying inside. She removed her wand from her cloak and held it up in front of her. "_Lumos_," she said. The tip of her wand ignited and shone a light across her path. She followed the light out of the kitchen, into the living room, and through into the bedroom across the hall. "Hello?"

No one answered, but the door to the wardrobe door moved slightly.

Hermione and Ron entered the tiny bedroom behind Phoebe. The first thing they noticed was how untidy the bed was, and it looked like it had been slept in recently. Maybe whoever had lived here had left in in a hurry? That would explain the reason why the bed hadn't been made.

Wand still held high, Phoebe crept closer to the wardrobe, she reached out and grasped the half-closed door and, with a glance over her shoulder she pulled it wide open, shining the tip of her wand into the darkness.

Sitting huddled in the corner was a little girl. She screamed when saw someone had come into her home. She clutched her teddy close to her chest and screamed at the top of her lungs.

"It's OK," Phoebe whispered, lowering her wand and kneeling down so that she was eye-level with the little girl. "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm Phoebe."

"Phe -" Hermione hissed, appalled that Phoebe would give her name.

Phoebe shot her a look before turning back to the little girl. "What's your name?" she asked. The girl hugged her teddy bear closer, trying to hide behind it. Phoebe could tell she was terrified; she gave the girl a small smile. "Are you hungry?"

The little girl nodded her head. Phoebe got to her feet and walked back into the kitchen. Ron and Hermione exchanged looks and followed her, Harry, still under the Cloak followed. "What are you doing?" Ron asked, "We should get out of here before her family comes back and turns us in!"

"I don't think her family _is_ coming back!" said Phoebe. "I think she's alone!"

There was a squeaking from the hallway. The little girl had followed them; she made sure to keep her distance from the strangers, peering around the doorframe at them. Phoebe smiled and turned back to Hermione and Ron. "You can go on if you want," she said. "But I can't leave her!"

"This is about Blake, isn't it?" asked Hermione.

"Yes," said Phoebe, before shaking her head. "No..." she sighed and looked thoughtful. "I don't know! I just..." she glanced at the little girl from the corner of her eye. "So many people are going missing... I just don't want to be the reason behind her being next!"

She turned her back on her friends and opened the fridge. It was full. Quickly she grabbed the butter, a few slices of ham and the bread from one of the cupboards. She made one sandwich and held it out to the little girl, who dove for it, finishing it off in three mouthfuls.

"Reminds me of you, Ron," Hermione teased.

"Hey!" Ron whined.

Phoebe smiled and turned back to the little girl. "You still hungry?" she asked, but without waiting for an answer she made another plate of sandwiches and put it on the table. The little girl climbed up onto the chair and started to eat. "How old are you?" she asked. The little girl held up five fingers. "Five? You're such a big girl."

"How old are you?" the little girl asked.

"Seventeen,"

The little girl's eyes widened.

"Old, isn't it?"

The little girl nodded and finished up her second sandwich. "Are mummy and daddy coming home?" she asked.

"I don't know," Phoebe answered, sitting down opposite her. "Do you know where they went?"

"Mummy goed Doctors with Connor," the girl said. "Daddy stayed with me."

"Where is he?"

The little girl looked heartbroken and terrified again. She slid from her chair, ran around the table, grabbed Phoebe's hand and walked her to the front door. She pointed outside, not once stopping to ask what had happened as the door lay on her kitchen floor.

Phoebe looked around at Hermione and Ron, they shrugged. She asked the girl where her father was again.

"The cloaked masks taked him," the little girl answered. "They came. They taked my daddy away. One looked for me... but I hid under my bed. He came in but couldn't see me. I hid in wardrobe after."

"How long have you been here?" Phoebe asked.

The little girl held up four fingers.

"Four days," Phoebe sighed. She took the little girl in her arms and carried her back to the table. "What's your name, sweetie?"

"Faith," the little girl answered. "Connor calls me Faye."

"Connor your brother?"

Faith nodded.

"How old is he?"

"Three,"

"Wow, he's a big boy too," Phoebe smiled.

Faith looked sad again. "Mummy and Daddy are gone, aren't they?" she asked.

Phoebe sighed. "I don't know," she answered, motioning for Hermione to pass her a pen and piece of paper. The bookworm did as asked, and Phoebe quickly jotted down a note for Faith's parents. She didn't want the mother to come back to an empty house and wonder what had happened. "Faye, why don't you show Hermione which clothes you want to take with you?" she suggested.

"Wiv me?" Faye asked. "Taked wiv me where?"

"You can't stay here," said Phoebe.

"Where I go?"

"I'll find somewhere for you," said Phoebe. "You can't stay here by yourself. I'll leave a note for your mummy and brother. I'll promise them you'll be safe, but you can't stay here alone, those masked cloaks that took your daddy might come back."

Faye whimpered in fear.

"I won't let them take you," Phoebe promised. "But we have to leave quickly. Hermione, go pack some clothes with her."

Knowing better than to argue, Hermione left the kitchen with Faye. The little girl looked scared to be with the bookworm alone, but one reassuring smile from Phoebe told her that she was safe. Faye then ran ahead to collect her teddy while Hermione followed, throwing Phoebe a look over her shoulder.

"Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" Harry asked, removing the cloak.

"You want to leave her here?" Phoebe asked, finishing the note. She had tried her best to write it in a reassuring manner to assure Faye's mother that her daughter was safe. She didn't have a number to leave and therefore found it almost impossible to say where they could pick up Faye when they came home. "Maybe I can find Faye when it's over and bring her home," she decided, putting the note on the fridge.

When Hermione and Faye returned, Phoebe lifted the five-year-old into her arms. Faye wrapped her arms around Phoebe's neck and buried her face in her shoulder. Phoebe felt her heart break. She couldn't leave Faye. She had spent the majority of four days wondering if her mother and brother were going to come back, after watching Death Eaters take her father.

"We're going to a new home," said Phoebe. "I'll make sure you are safe."

"I stay with you?" Faye asked.

Phoebe looked hesitant. "For now," she conceded, knowing that Harry, Ron and Hermione could hear her. But she couldn't abandon Faye, not now.

"I stay with you?" Faye repeated. "Until Mummy comed home?"

"Yeah," Phoebe nodded, not having the heart to tell Faye that her parents and brother may never come home again.

**~*Phoebe*~**

They walked a few more miles. Phoebe carrying Faye, who looked on the verge of sleep after a few hours, she had questioned Phoebe on who Hermione, Ron and Harry were - the latter because he hadn't been there when Phoebe had found her - and then proceeded to ask Phoebe about her mother and father.

"You has baby?" Faye asked.

"His name's Blake," Phoebe nodded. "He's younger than you."

"Like Connor?"

Phoebe nodded. "But he is younger that Connor still," she said.

Faye looked fascinated. "How?" she asked.

"He'll be one in a few months," said Phoebe.

"Aha!" Ron shouted from the front. He was pointing outward, toward a strange-looking house rose vertically against the sky, a great black cylinder with a ghostly moon hanging behind it in the afternoon sky. "That's got to be Luna's house, who else would live in a place like that? It looks like a giant rook!"

"It looks nothing like a bird," said Hermione.

"I was talking about a chess rook," said Ron. "A castle to you."

"My daddy plays chess," said Faye.

Phoebe smiled down at the toddler. "Faye, do you know the Lovegood's?" she asked.

Faye shook her head, looking confused.

Phoebe sighed and followed Ron, whose legs were the longest to the top of the hill. When Phoebe, Hermione and Harry finally caught up with him, panting and clutching stitches in their sides, they found him grinning broadly.

"It's theirs," said Ron. "Look."

Three hand-painted signs had been tacked to a broken-down gate. The first read:

**THE QUIBBLER EDITOR: X. LOVEGOOD.**

The second:

**PICK YOUR OWN MISTLETOE**

The third:

**KEEP OFF THE DIRIGIBLE PLANTS**

The gate creaked as they opened it. The zigzagging path leading to the front door was overgrown with a variety of odd plants, including a bush covered in the orange radish-like fruit Luna sometimes wore as earrings. Phoebe recognized a Snargaluff plant and, still carrying Faye, gave it a wide berth.

Climbing the steps to the front door, Phoebe glanced around her friends and then shifted Faye to her hip, she rapped three times on the thick black door, which was studded with iron nails and bore a knocker shaped like an eagle.

"Ravenclaw," Hermione muttered. Phoebe smiled.

Barely ten seconds passed, then the door was flung open and there stood Xenophilius Lovegood, barefoot and wearing what appeared to be a strained nightshirt. His long white candy floss hair was dirty and unkempt. Xenophilius had been positively dapper at Bill and Fleur's wedding by comparison.

"What? What is it? Who are you? What do you want?" he cried in a high-pitched voice, looking first at Phoebe and Faye, then at Hermione and Ron, and finally at Harry, upon which his mouth fell open in a perfect, comical O.

Faye giggled.

"Hello, Mr. Lovegood," said Harry, holding out his hand. "I'm Harry, Harry Potter."

Xenophilius did not take Harry's hand, although the eye that was not pointing inward at his nose slid straight to the scar on Harry's forehead.

"Would it be OK if we came in?" asked Harry. "There's something we'd like to ask you."

"I... I'm not sure that's advisable," whispered Xenophilius. He swallowed and cast a quick look around the garden. "Rather a shock... My word... I... I'm afraid I don't really think I ought to -"

"It won't take long," said Harry, slightly disappointed.

"I - oh, all right then. Come in, quickly. _Quickly_!"

They were barely over the threshold when Xenophilius slammed the front door behind them. They were standing in the most peculiar kitchen. The room was perfectly circular, so that it felt like being inside a giant pepper pot. Everything was curved to fit the walls - the stove, the sink, and the cupboards - and all of it had been painted with flowers, insects, and birds in bright primary colours.

In the middle of the floor, a wrought-iron spiral staircase led to the upper levels. There was a great deal of clattering and banging coming from overhead.

"You'd better come up," said Xenophilius, still looking rather uncomfortable, and he led the way.

"- and that there is red," said Faye, pointing at a bright red bird on the kitchen wall. "Blue -" she pointed at a blue flower. "Green -" a green insect. "My favourite is Yellow, like that -" she pointed at a picture of a sun on the wall, "What's yours?" she asked Phoebe.

"I like purple," Phoebe nodded.

"Me too," Faye smiled brightly.

The room above seemed to be a combination of living room and workplace, and as such, was even more cluttered than the kitchen. Though much smaller and entirely round. There were piles upon piles of book and papers on every surface. Delicately made models of creatures Faye did not recognize - Phoebe was starting to think that she was a Muggle - all flapping wings or snapping jaws, hung from the ceiling.

Faye clutched to Phoebe as one of the birds snapped at her.

"I wouldn't get to close," said Xenophilius. "They're not completely trained yet."

Phoebe cradled Faye close and darted across the room towards the window.

"Excuse me," said Xenophilius, and he strode over to the machine, seized a grubby tablecloth and threw it over the press, somewhat muffling the loud bangs and clatters. He then faced Harry. "Why have you come here?"

Before Harry could speak, however, Hermione let out a small cry of shock.

"Mr. Lovegood - what's that?"

She was pointing at an enormous, gray spiral horn, not unlike that of a unicorn, which had been mounted on the wall, protruding several feet into the room.

"It is the horn of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack," said Xenophilius.

"No it isn't!" said Hermione.

"Hermione," said Harry. "Now is not the time!"

"But Phoebe, it's an Erumpent horn! It's a Class B Tradable Material and it's an extraordinarily dangerous thing to have in a house!"

"How d'you know it's an Erumpent horn?" asked Ron, edging away from the horn as fast as he could, given the extreme clutter of the room.

"There's a description in _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_! Mr. Lovegood, you need to get rid of it straightaway, don't you know it can explode at the slightest touch?"

"The Crumple-Horned Snorkack," said Xenophilius very clearly, a mulish look upon his face, "is a shy and highly magical creature, and its horn -"

"Mr. Lovegood, I recognized the grooved markings around the base, that's -"

"Enough!" interrupted Phoebe.

"But Phoebe, it's -"

"Not why we're here," said Phoebe. "Tell Mr. Lovegood why we are here, Harry."

"We need some help," said Harry, before Hermione could start again.

"Ah," said Lovegood. "Help. Hmm. Yes. The thing is... helping Harry Potter... rather dangerous..."

Faye looked confused. "Why is helping Harry Potter dangerous?" she asked Phoebe.

"It's not," said Phoebe. "Don't worry. You're safe."

Xenophilius glanced at her. "If it is not dangerous," he said. "Then why is it that everyone who has helped Mr. Potter in the last has wound up dead or in hiding?"

Faye whimpered.

Phoebe glared at the older gentleman as she hugged Faye close. "Don't you support Harry, Mr. Lovegood?" she asked. "That is, after all, what you write in that magazine of yours isn't it?"

"Er - yes, I have expressed that view. However -"

"That's for everyone else to do, not you personally?" said Phoebe.

Xenophilius did not answer. He kept swallowing, his eyes darting between the four them. Phoebe had the impression that he was going through some painful internal struggle.

"Where's Luna?" asked Hermione. "Let's see what she thinks."

Xenophilius gulped. He seemed to be steeling himself.

Phoebe rolled her eyes and stood. "Oh, c'mon guys," she said. "He doesn't know anything. Let's just get out of here."

"No!" said Xenophilius blocking off the staircase. "I'll help you!" he said. "Whatever you need... just, please, don't leave!"

Phoebe eyed him warily, clutched Faye and sat back down. "Where is Luna?" she asked.

"Down at the stream, fishing for Freshwater Plimpies. She... she will like to see you. I'll go and call her and then - yes, very well." He nodded over and over again as he descended the staircase. As soon as he disappeared from view they heard the front door open and close. Looking out of the window, Phoebe saw Xenophilius running towards a small stream in the distance.

Harry crossed to where Phoebe was standing and peered at a beautiful bust of an austere-looking witch wearing a most bizarre-looking headdress. Two objects that resembled golden ear trumpets curved out from the sides. A tiny pair of glittering blue wings was stuck to a leather strap that ran over the top of her head, while one of the orange radishes had been stuck to a second strap around her forehead.

"Look at this," said Harry.

"Fetching," said Ron. "Surprised he didn't wear that to the wedding."

They heard the front door close, and a moment later Xenophilius had climbed back up the spiral staircase into the room, his thin legs now encased in Wellington boots, bearing a tray of ill-assorted teacups and a steaming teapot.

"Ah, you've spotted my pet invention," he said, shoving the train onto the table.

"It's Rowena," said Phoebe. "Rowena Ravenclaw. '_Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure_!' I'm guessing this is a weird remake of her headdress."

Xenophilius nodded and indicated to the objects like ear trumpets.

"These are the Wrackspurt siphons - to remove all sources of distraction from the thinker's immediate area. Here," he pointed out the tiny wings, "a billywig propeller, to induce an elevated frame of mind. Finally," he pointed to the orange radish, "the Dirigible Plum, so as to enhance the ability to accept the extraordinary."

Xenophilius strode back to the tea tray.

"May I offer you all an infusion of Gurdyroots?" said Xenophilius. "We make it ourselves." As he started to pour out the drink, which was as deeply purple as beetroot juice, he added, "Luna is down beyond Bottom Bridge, she is most excited that you are here. She ought not to be too long; she has caught nearly enough Plimpies to make soup for all of us. Do sit down and help yourselves to sugar."

He removed a tottering pile of papers from an armchair and sat down, his Wellingtoned legs crossed. "Now, how may I help you, Mr. Potter?" he asked.

"Well," said Harry, "it's about a symbol. We thought maybe you'd be able to help us identify it."

"A symbol?" asked Xenophilius.

Harry glanced at Phoebe.

"The symbol you were wearing around your neck at Bill and Fleur's wedding," said Phoebe. "We - they -" she motioned to Harry, Ron and Hermione, she, of course, already knew what the symbol meant; which was part of the reason that she had not wanted to come here, but she was glad, for Faye's sake, that she had, "were wondering what it meant."

Xenophilius raised his eyebrows.

"Are you referring to the sign of the Deathly Hallows?"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Will try and get another chapter out before I got back to University on Monday.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 04 January, 2013 at 04:36am**


	176. Chapter 176

**Author's Note: **This will be the last update before Saturday. I go back to Uni as of Monday 7th and I have a critical essay that is due. Updates will get slower as the weeks go on and I start coming up to my final weeks and deadlines.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Evanescencefan97, Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, SoulVirus** and an anonymous reviewer**.**

**Shout Outs: **Big thank you too: **Pelawen Night** and **Vengeful Timetravels** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warning Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

For those of you who were wondering; Faye is nothing more than a minor character. There is no major reason for her involvement to the story, I was just getting bored of following the script and decided that I needed to spice up my writing by branching out and adding in scenes that weren't created in the canon verse. After all this is Fanfiction, is it not?

* * *

><p>Phoebe schooled her face to that of a look of confusion as Harry looked to her, Ron and Hermione at the mention of the Deathly Hallows; she couldn't risk being caught on a subject that she was well educated it, especially after Hermione had spent weeks trying to figure out what the symbol meant.<p>

"The Deathly Hallows?" Harry repeated, turning back to Xenophilius. His friends looked just as clueless as he felt. What where the Deathly Hallows and how did they fit the symbol?

"That's right," said Xenophilius. "You haven't heard of them? I'm not surprised. Very, very few wizards believe. Witness that knuckle-headed young man at your brother's wedding," he nodded at Ron, "who attacked me for sporting a symbol of a well-known Dark wizard! Such ignorance. There is nothing Dark about the Hallows - at least, not in that crude sense. One simply uses the symbol to reveal oneself to other believers, in the hope that they might help one with the Quest."

He stirred several lumps of sugar into his Gurdryroot infusion and drank some.

"I'm sorry," said Harry. "I still don't really understand."

To be polite, he took a sip from his cup too, and shuddered in revulsion.

"Well, you see, believers seek the Deathly Hallows," said Xenophilius, smacking his lips in apparent appreciation of the Gurdryroot infusion.

"But what _are_ the Deathly Hallows?" asked Hermione.

Xenophilius set aside his empty teacup. "I assure you are all familiar with 'The Tale of the Three Brothers'?"

Harry said, "No," but Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and Faye - much to Phoebe's surprise - said, "Yes."

_**So she **_**is**_** a witch**_**,** thought Phoebe as she hugged Faye closer to her, wrapping her cloak around the smaller girl as Xenophilius went on about the Three Brothers' story.

"I have a copy somewhere..." Xenophilius glanced vaguely around the room, at the piles of parchment and books.

"We have a copy, Mr. Lovegood," said Hermione. "I've got it right here!"

And she pulled out _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_ from the small, beaded bag.

"The original?" inquired Xenophilius sharply, and when she nodded, he said, "Well then, why don't you read it aloud? Much the best way to make sure we all understand."

"Er... all right," said Hermione nervously.

"Story time?" Faye asked, looking up at Phoebe. The elemental nodded and the toddler snuggled closer to her under the cloak. Phoebe smiled and gingerly kissed the top of her head, as Hermione opened the book and turned to designated page. The symbol of the Deathly Hallows headed the top of the front chapter.

Hermione cleared her throat and began to read.

"_'There were once three brothers who were traveling along a lonely, winding road at twilight -_'"

"Midnight," interrupted Ron. "Mum always said Midnight."

Hermione shot him a look of annoyance.

"Sorry, I just think it's a bit spookier if it's midnight!" said Ron.

Faye whimpered and clung to Phoebe tightly. "I no like spooky! Phoebe, no spooky!" she pleaded.

Phoebe shot Ron a cold look. "We don't need any more fear in our lives, Weasley," she said, cuddling Faye closer. "It's OK, Faye, it's just a story. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise."

Xenophilius did not seem to be paying much attention, but was staring out of the window at the sky.

"Go on, Hermione."

"_' In time, the brothers reached a river too deep to wade through and too dangerous to swim across. However, these brothers were learned in the magical arts, and so they simply waved their wands and made a bridge appear across the treacherous water_. _They were halfway across it when they found their path blocked by a hooded figure. And Death spoke to them -'"_

"Sorry," interjected Harry, "but _Death_ spoke to them?"

"It's a fairytale, Harry!"

"Right, sorry. Go on."

"'_And Death spoke to them. He was angry that he had been cheated out of three new victims, for travelers usually drowned in the river. But Death was cunning. He pretended to congratulate the three brothers upon their magic, and said that each had earned a prize for having been clever enough to evade him. So the oldest brother, who was a combative man, asked for a wand more powerful than any in existence: a wand that must always win duels for its owner, a wand worthy of a wizard who had conquered Death! So Death crossed to an elder tree on the banks of the river, fashioned a wand from a branch that hung there, and gave it to the oldest brother."_

Faye pulled herself to Phoebe. She knew that this was just a fairytale, she had remembered her mother telling her and Connor the brother once before, it was one of the few bedtime stories that she had ever had the privilege of being read to her, usually her mother preferred Faye to do the reading insisting that it would improve her speech and English.

"_'Then the second brother, who was an arrogant man, decided that he wanted to humiliate Death still further, and asked for the power to recall others from the dead. So Death picked up a stone from the riverbank and gave it to the second brother, and told him that the stone would have the power to bring back the dead. And then Death asked the third and youngest brother what he would want. The youngest brother was the humblest and also the wisest of the brothers, and he did not trust Death. So he asked for somethin that would enable him to go forth from that place without being followed by Death. And Death, most unwillingly, handed over his own Cloak of Invisibility."_

"Death's got an Invisibility Cloak?" Harry interrupted again.

"So he can sneak up on people," said Ron. "Sometimes he gets bored of running at them, flapping his arm and shrieking like a banish -"

"I'm warning you, Weasley!" hissed Phoebe, as Faye whimpered at the description.

"Sorry, sorry," Ron apologized. "Go on, Hermione."

"'_Then Death stood aside and allowed the three brothers to continue on their way, and they did so, talking with wonder of the adventure they had had, and admiring Death's gifts. In due course the brothers separated, each for his own destination. The first brother traveled on for a week or more, and reaching a distant village, sought out a fellow wizard with whom he had a quarrel. Naturally, with the Elder Wand as his weapon, he could not fail to win the duel that followed. Leaving his enemy dead upon the floor, the oldest brother proceeded to an inn, where he boasted loudly of the powerful wand he had snatched from Death himself, ND of how it made him invincible."_

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "He was born with gift of gab," she muttered.

Hermione smirked and continued. "_'That very night, another wizard crept upon the oldest brother as he lay, wine-sodden, upon his bed. The thief took the wand and, for good measure, slit the oldest brother's throat. And so Death took the first brother for his own. Meanwhile, the second brother journeyed to his own home, where he lived alone. Here he took the stone that had the power to recall the dead, and turned it thrice in hand_ -_'"_

"Thrice?" Faye frowned. Her mother had never used that weird word before.

"Three times," Phoebe answered.

Faye nodded and turned expectantly back to Hermione.

"'_To his amazement and his delight, the figure of the girl he had once hoped to marry, before her untimely death, appeared at once before him. Yet she was sad and cold, separated from him by the veil. Though she had returned to the mortal world, she did not truly belong there and suffered. Finally the second brother, driven mad with hopeless longing, killed himself so as truly to join her. And so Death took the second brother for his own. But though Death searched for the third brother for many years, he was never able to find him. It was only when he had attained a great age that the youngest brother finally took off the Cloak of Invisibility and gave it to his son. And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, departing this life as equals.'"_

Hermione closed the book. It was a moment or two before Xenophilius seemed to realize that she had stopped reading, and then he withdrew his gaze from the window and said, "Well, there you are."

"Sorry?" said Hermione, sounding confused.

"Those are the Deathly Hallows," said Xenophilius.

He picked up a quill from a packed table at his elbow, and pulled a torn piece of parchment from between more books.

"The Elder Wand," he said, and he drew a straight vertical line upon the parchment. "The Resurrection Stone," he said, and he added a circle at the top of the line, "The Cloak of Invisibility," he finished, enclosing both the line and circle in a triangle, to make the symbol that so intrigued Hermione. "Together," he said, "the Deathly Hallows."

"But there's no mention of the words 'Deathly Hallows' in the story," said Hermione.

"Well, of course not," said Xenophilius, maddeningly smug. "That is a children's tale, told to amuse rather than to instruct."

"Amuse?" Phoebe asked. "You find death amusing do you, Mr. Lovegood?"

"Well... of course not," spluttered Xenophilius, "but to those of us who understand these matters recognize that the ancient story refers to three objects, or Hallows, which, if united, will make the possessor master of Death."

"Cool," Faye breathed.

Xenophilius nodded at her. "Very." He agreed, glancing out of the window again. The sun was already low in the sky. "Luna ought to have enough Plimpies soon," he said quietly.

"When you say 'master of Death' -" said Ron.

"Master," said Xenophilius, waving an airy hand. "Conqueror. Vanquisher. Whichever term you prefer."

"But then... do you mean..." said Hermione slowly, "that you believe these objects - these Hallows - actually exist?"

Xenophilius raised his eyebrows again.

"Well, of course."

"But," said Hermione, "Mr. Lovegood, how can you _possibly_ believe -?"

"Luna has told me all about you, young lady," said Xenophilius. "You are, I gather, not unintelligent, but painfully limited. Narrow. Close-minded."

Phoebe bit her lip as she glanced at Harry. Across the room, next to Hermione, Ron looked like he was ready to burst with laughter. His face was red from all the restraining he was doing. He was, after all, trying to get back into Hermione's good books, and laughing at her was probably not the best way to do so.

"Mr. Lovegood," Hermione began again. "We all know that there are such things as Invisibility Cloaks. They are rare, but they exist. But -"

"Ah, but the Third Hallow is a _true_ Cloak of Invisibility, Miss. Granger! I mean to say, it is not a travelling cloak imbued with a Disillusionment Charm, or carrying a Bedazzling Hex, or else woven from Demiguise hair, or else will hide on initially but fade with the years until it turns opaque. We are talking about a cloak that really and truly renders the wearer completely invisible, and endures eternally, giving constant and impenetrable concealment, no matter what spells are cast at it. How many cloaks have you ever seen like _that_, Miss. Granger?"

Hermione opened her mouth, but before she could say anything she caught Phoebe's look from across the room. The elemental gave a stern, but subtle shake of her head, one that went amiss by Xenophilius. Phoebe knew that Hermione was about to tell Xenophilius that there happened to be a cloak just like the one he had described in the room at the very moment.

"Exactly," said Xenophilius, as if he had defeated them. "None of you have ever seen such a thing. The possessor would be immeasurably rich, would he not?"

He glanced out of the window again. The sky was now tinged with the faintest trace of pink.

"All right," said Hermione, disconcerted. "Say the Cloak existed... what about the stone, Mr. Lovegood? The thing you call the Resurrection Stone."

"What of it?"

"Well, how can that be real?"

"Prove that it is not," said Xenophilius.

Hermione looked outraged.

"But that's - I'm sorry, but that's completely ridiculous how can I _possibly_ prove it doesn't exist? Do you expect me to get hold of - of all the pebbles in the world and test them? I mean, you could claim that _anything's_ real if the only basis for believing in it is that nobody's _proved_ it doesn't exist!"

"Yes, you could," said Xenophilius. "I am glad to see that you are opening your mind a little."

"But -"

"Hermione," Phoebe cut across her.

"But, Phoebe," Hermione protested. "It is absolutely ridiculous!"

"A lot of things are," Phoebe agreed. "But just because you have never had the privilege of seeing something, doesn't mean it does not exist!"

"Like Santa Clause!" Faye piped up. "We don't see him but he's real!"

"Exactly like that, Faye," Phoebe agreed. "You see, Hermione, a child doesn't need to see Father Christmas in order to believe that he exists. He just does. What of the Elder Wand, Mr. Lovegood?" she added, before Hermione could further question the liability of Faith's creditability.

"In the case of the Elder Wand," said Mr. Lovegood, "the evidence is endless. The Elder Wand is the Hallow that is most easily traced, because of the way in which it passes from hand to hand."

"Which is what?" asked Harry.

"Which is that the possessor of the wand must capture it from its previous owner, if he is to be truly master of it," said Xenophilius. "Surely you have heard of the way of the wand came to Egbert of Egregious, after his slaughter of Emeric the Evil? Or how Godelot died in his own cellar after his son, Hereward, took the wand from him? Or the dreadful Loxias, who took the wand from Barnabas Deverill, whom he had killed? The bloody trail of the Elder Wand is splattered across the pages of Wizarding history."

Phoebe glanced at Hermione. She was frowning at Xenophilius, but she did not contradict him.

"So where do you think the Elder Wand is now?" asked Ron.

"Alas, who knows?" said Xenophilius, as he gazed out of the window.

Phoebe frowned at this, what was he looking at? Was he looking for Luna? Speaking of which, where was she? Surely she should have been back by now, especially since she knew they were there waiting for her.

"Who knows where the Elder Wand lies hidden?" continued Xenophilius. "The trail goes cold with Arcus and Livius. Who can say which of them really defeated Loxias, and which took the wand? And who can say who may have defeated them? History, alas, does not tell us."

There was a pause. Finally Hermione asked stiffly, "Mr. Lovegood, does the Peverell family have anything to do with the Deathly Hallows?"

Xenophilius looked taken aback. "You have been misleading me, young woman!" he said, now sitting up much straighter in his chair and goggling at Hermione. "I thought you were new to the Hallows Quest! Many of us Questers believe that the Peverell's have everything - e_verything_ - to do with the Hallows!"

"Who are the Peverell's?" asked Ron.

"There was the name on a grave in Godric's Hollow," Phoebe answered. "It had that mark."

"What was the name?"

"Ignotus Peverell."

"Exactly!" said Xenophilius, his forefinger raised pedantically. "The sign of the Deathly Hallows on Ignotus's grave is conclusive proof!"

"Of what?" asked Ron.

"Why, that the three brothers in the story were actually the three Peverell brothers: Antioch, Cadmus and Ignotus! That they were the original owners of the Hallows!"

Xenophilius glanced out of the window again.

"Are we keeping you from something?" Phoebe asked, her irritation getting the better of her. "This is the eighth time that you have looked out of the window. What - or who - are you looking for?"

Xenophilius shook his head. "I'm just keeping a look out for Luna," he said. "She should be on her way back now. You will stay for dinner," he nodded getting to his feet, picked up the tray and headed for the spiral staircase. "Everybody always requests our recipe for Freshwater Plimpy soup."

Faye made a disgusted look. "I don't wanna stay for dinner," she whispered to Phoebe.

"We're not," said Phoebe, looking up at the Golden Trio. "We're leaving!"

"Why?" Harry asked. "What's the matter?"

"Something is just not right," said Phoebe. "The story is - liable, I guess -"

"Liable?" Hermione repeated. "It's utter rubbish, Phoebe. This can't be what the sign really means. This must just be his weird take on it. What a waste of time."

"I s'pose this _is_ the man who brought us Crumple-Horned Snorkacks," said Ron.

"You don't believe it either?" Harry asked him.

"Nah, that story's just one of those things you tell kids to teach them lessons, isn't it? 'Don't go looking for trouble, don't pick fights, and don't go messing around with stuff that's best left alone! Just keep your head down, mind your own business, and you'll be okay' Come to think of it," Ron added, "Maybe that story's why elder wands are supposed to be unlucky."

"What are you talking about?" asked Hermione.

"One of those superstitions, isn't it? 'May-born witches will marry Muggles.' 'Jinx by twilight, undone by midnight.' 'Wand of elder, never prosper.' You must've heard of them. My mum's full of them."

"Harry and I were raised by Muggles," Hermione reminded him. "We were taught different superstitions. What about you, Phoebe? You heard any of them?"

Phoebe nodded. "'Course, but I was also taught different ones." She added.

"Like?" Harry asked.

"'If you dreamed of a wedding, it meant a death.' 'If a woman was pregnant she never went to a funeral or she would mark her baby.' It was also unlucky to kill a ladybug," Phoebe added.

"Why?" Harry frowned. He had never heard of killing a ladybug as being unlucky. Dudley must have killed hundreds in his life.

"_Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home,"_ Phoebe recited. "_Your house is on fire and your children will burn._ It was just something Serefina told me growing up." She shrugged. "The Tale of the Three Brothers' is just a morality tale," she added. "I mean, we all know which gift is the best, which one would you all choose?"

The three of them spoke at the same time; Hermione said, "The Cloak," Ron said, "the Wand," and Harry said, "The Stone."

Faye giggled.

"You're _supposed_ to say the Cloak," Ron said to Hermione, "but you wouldn't need to be invisible if you had the wand. An _unbeatable wand_, Hermione, come on!"

"We've already got an Invisibility Cloak," said Harry.

"And it's helped us rather a lot, in case you hadn't noticed!" said Hermione. "Whereas the wand would be bound to attract trouble -"

"Only if you shouted about it," argued Ron. "Only if you were prat enough to go dancing around, waving it over your head, and singing, 'I've got an unbeatable wand, come and have a go if you think you're hard enough.' As long as you kept your trap shut -"

"Yes, but _could_ you keep your trap shut?" said Hermione, looking skeptical. "You know, the only true thing he said to us was that there have been stories about extra-powerful wands for hundreds of years."

"There have?" asked Harry.

"The Death stick," said Hermione. "The wand of Destiny..."

"They crop up everywhere," said Phoebe. "Just under different names, usually in the possession of some Dark Wizard who's boasting about them. Professor Binns mentioned some of them, but - it's just nonsense. Wands are only as powerful as the witch or wizard that controls them -"

"Says the one with a wand connected to all four elements," Harry reminded her.

Phoebe offered him a pointed look. "Four elements, yes," she nodded. "But controls only two! One of which isn't even my element!"

"Oh?"

"Another time," said Phoebe. "Right now, we need to leave -"

"So why would you take the stone?" Ron asked Harry, interrupting Phoebe to do so.

The elemental growled in disapproval.

"Well, if you could bring people back, we could have Sirius... Mad-Eye... Dumbledore... Esmee Higgs... Blake... my parents..."

Neither Ron, Hermione nor Phoebe smiled.

"But according to Beedle the Bard, they wouldn't come back, would they?" said Harry. "I don't suppose there have been loads of other stories about a stone that can raise the dead, have there?" he asked Phoebe and Hermione.

They shook their heads sadly.

"In all honesty," said Hermione, "I don't think anyone except Mr. Lovegood could kid themselves that's possible. Beedle probably took the idea from the Philosopher's Stone; you know, instead of a stone to make you immortal, a stone to reverse death."

A horrendous smell wafted up the spiral staircase from the kitchen. Faye plugged her nose with her hand, while Phoebe covered her nose and mouth in disgust. "I am not eating anything he put in front of me," she gagged. "I don't care how disrespectful it seems. On that note - oh for Merlin's sakes, Harry, what are you doing now?"

But Harry had already disappeared up onto the next level. Faye strained against Phoebe and raced after him, intrigued to see what was so interesting. She climbed the spiral staircase and popped up beside Harry in the middle of a much disorganized bedroom.

It had been decorated in funny looking creatures of bright blue. The walls were painted purple. On the ceiling Faye could see pictures of faces, they were not moving like the many pictures that littered her grandmother's house, they all moved. She recognized Phoebe in one of the ceiling pictures; she pointed them out to Harry. "Phoebe..." she said.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. This had to be Luna's bedroom. She had decorated her bedroom ceiling with six beautifully painted faces: Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe, Ginny, and Neville. And although they did not move, Harry could tell that there was a certain amount of magic about them all the same. They seemed to breathe.

There appeared to be fine golden chains woven together, linking the pictures together, but upon closer inspection Harry saw that the chains were actually one word, repeated a thousand times in golden ink: _friends... friends... friends..._

Faye looked away from Harry as he stared up at the pictures and looked around the room. It looked like a tornado had flown through. The pale blue carpet was thick with dust. There were no clothes in the wardrobe, whose doors stood ajar. The bed had a cold, unfriendly look, as though it had not been slept in for weeks. A single cobweb stretched over the nearest window, across a blood red sky.

"Harry," Phoebe called up the stairs. "Faye, c'mon... we're leaving!"

"Phoebe, Phoebe..." Faye cried as she run down the stairs. "Somethin's' wrong!"

"Wrong?" Hermione asked. "What's wrong?"

"What is it, mate?" Ron asked as Harry descended the staircase, but before he could respond, Xenophilius reached the top of the stairs from the kitchen, now holding a tray laden with bowls.

"Mr. Lovegood," said Harry. "Where's Luna?"

"Excuse me?"

"Where's Luna?"

Xenophilius halted on the top step.

"I - I've already told you. She is down at Bottom Bridge, fishing for Plimpies."

"So why have you only laid that tray for six?"

Xenophilius tried to speak, but no sound came out. The only noise was the continued chugging of the printing press, and a slight rattle from the tray as Xenophilius hands shook.

"I don't think Luna's been here for weeks," said Harry. "Her clothes are gone; her bed hasn't been slept in. Where is she? And why do you keep looking out of the window?"

Xenophilius dropped the tray. The bowls bounced and smashed. Faye screamed and dived behind Phoebe, who, along with Harry, Ron, Hermione, drew their wands. Xenophilius froze his hand about to enter his pocket. At that moment the printing press gave a huge bang and numerous _Quibblers_ came streaming across the floor from underneath the tablecloth, the press fell silent at last.

Faye picked up a copy of the magazine and tugged at Phoebe's cloak. "Lookie..." she said, holding the magazine up. The front picture of _The Quibbler_ carried a picture of Harry, emblazoned with the words UNDESIRABLE NUMBER ONE and captioned with the reward money.

"_The Quibbler's_ going for a new angle, then?" Phoebe asked coldly, showing the magazine to her friends and Mr. Lovegood. "Is that what you were doing when you went into the garden, Mr. Lovegood? Sending an owl to the Ministry?"

Xenophilius licked his lips.

"They took my Luna," he whispered. "Because of what I've been writing. They took my Luna and I don't know where she is, what they've done to her. But they might give her back to me if I - if I -"

"Hand over Harry?" Hermione finished for him.

"No deal," said Ron flatly. "Get out of the way, we're leaving."

"_Finally_!" Phoebe whispered.

Xenophilius looked ghastly, a century old, his lips drawn back into a dreadful leer.

"They'll be here any minute," he said. "I must save Luna. I cannot lose Luna. You must not leave."

"That's why you were looking out of the window," said Phoebe. "Waiting for them to appear. That's why we were talking up here and not in the kitchen... you can see further up here than from downstairs. I'm sorry, Mr. Lovegood, but I cannot allow you to hand Harry over to the Ministry! That is just not accountable! Please, move aside, or I will be forced to hurt you!"

Xenophilius shook his head and spread his arms wide in front of the staircase.

Suddenly, Faye screamed.

Phoebe snapped her head towards the toddler and then towards the window in which she was pointing.

"It's the cloaked masks!" Faye wailed. "They've come back!"

Figures on broomsticks were flying past the windows. As the four students looked away from him, Xenophilius drew his wand. Realizing their mistake at the last second, Harry and Phoebe dove sideways. Harry shoved Hermione and Ron aside, as Phoebe grabbed Faye and ducked. Xenophilius Stunning Spell soared across the room and hit the Erumpent Horn.

There was a colossal explosion. The sound of it seemed to blow the room apart. Fragments of wood and paper and rubber flew in all directions, along with an impenetrable cloud of thick white dust. Harry flew through the air, and then crashed to the floor, unable to see as debris rained upon him, his arms over his head. He heard Hermione's scream, Ron's yell, Faye's cry and Phoebe's curse, along with a series of sickening metallic thuds, which told him that Xenophilius had been blasted off his feet and fallen backwards down the spiral staircase.

Half buried under rubble, Phoebe tried to raise herself. She had thrown herself over Faye in the midst of the explosion, and the little Witch was lying sprawled out on the floor. She had pulled herself into the fetal position, and there were tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Shh," Phoebe cooed. "Shh, it's OK, Faye... it's going to be OK."

"H-How?" Faye sniffled. "The masked cloaks are here. They'll taked us away... like they tooked my daddy."

Phoebe shook her head. "No one is going anywhere," she promised.

The door downstairs crashed open.

"Didn't I tell you there was no need to hurry, Wood?" said a rough voice.

Phoebe froze; she recognized that voice and the name.

"Oliver," she whispered, craning her head to look at Harry. It was Oliver Wood and Marcus Flint who were downstairs.

"Didn't I tell you this nutter was just raving as usual?"

There was a bang and a scream of pain from Xenophilius.

"No... No... Upstairs... Potter!"

"I told you last week, Lovegood, we weren't coming back for anything less than some solid information! Remember last week? When you wanted to swap your daughter for that stupid bleeding headdress? And the week before -" another bang, another squeal "- when you thought we'd give her back if you offered us proof there are Crumple -" _bang_ "- Horned -" _bang_ "- Snorkacks?"

Faye flinched with each bang and squeal. Her tears were coming hard and fast now.

"No - no - I beg you!" sobbed Xenophilius. "It really is Potter! Really!"

"The place looks like it's about to fall in, Flint," said a cool second voice, echoing up the mangled staircase. "The stairs are completely blocked. Could try clearing it? Might bring the place down."

"You lying piece of filth," shouted Flint. "You've never seen Potter in your life, have you? Thought you'd lure us here to kill us, did you? And you think you'll get your girl back like this?"

"I swear... I swear... Potter's upstairs..." Xenophilius wailed. "He's with _her_... he's with the girl... the elemental... she's there too..."

"Phoebe?" Oliver asked. For the first time, in a long time, Phoebe felt her heart swell as he said her name. She shook her head and glanced at Hermione and Ron, both of whom were closer to her and Faye than Harry.

Flint sneered horribly. "Blackheart, here?" he asked. "No chance. This place would be in ruins if she was!"

"_Homenum Revelio_!"

Phoebe muffled her gasp in her cloak as she felt the odd sensation that something was swooping low over her, immersing her body in its shadow.

"There's someone up there all right, Flint," said Oliver.

"It's Potter, I tell you, it's Potter!" sobbed Xenophilius. "Please... please... give me Luna; just let me have Luna..."

"You can have your little girl, Lovegood," said Flint, "if you get up those stairs and bring me down Harry Potter. But if this is a plot, if it is a trick, if you've got an accomplice waiting up there to ambush us, we'll see if we can spare a bit of your daughter for you to bury."

Phoebe's eyes burned cobalt blue as the foundation of the house began to shake.

Faye squealed in surprise, and more debris fell from the ceiling. Downstairs, the students could hear yells of surprise.

"It's her!" Oliver shouted. "It's her! It's Phoebe... she's here!"

"Harry, come here!" Phoebe whispered, "We've got to get out of here!"

Harry nodded and started to dig himself out under cover of all the noise Phoebe was causing with her powers. The shaking stopped and the sound of banging and scraping echoed from beneath them, Xenophilius was obviously trying to get through the wreckage, despite Phoebe's elemental attack.

"We need a plan," Ron whispered.

"I have one," said Phoebe.

"Then let's hear it," said Hermione.

"Harry, do you trust me?" Phoebe asked.

Harry hesitated, and then nodded.

"OK," said Phoebe. "Hermione, give Ron the Invisibility Cloak."

"Me? But Harry -?"

"_Just do as I say, Weasley_!" Phoebe hissed. "Harry, hold on tight to my hand. Hermione, grab my shoulder. Ron, grab Hermione's arm, and Faye -"

"Yeah?" Faye asked, fearfully.

"Hold on tight!"

Faye nodded and wrapped her tiny arms around Phoebe's neck, burying her face into Phoebe's shoulder.

Harry held out his left hand. Ron vanished beneath the Cloak, and grabbed onto Hermione, while the Bookworm squeezed Phoebe's shoulder. Neither of the Trio knew what Phoebe was planning on doing. The printing press, which was blocking the stairs, began to vibrate; Xenophilius was trying to shift it using a Hover Charm.

"Hold tight," whispered Phoebe. "Hold tight... any second..."

Xenophilius paper-white face appeared over the top of the sideboard. His eyes widened as he saw Phoebe's wand pointed straight at him.

"_Oblivate!_"

"NO!" Xenophilius screamed, and tried to duck. But he was too late. The spell hit him, knocking him backwards down the stairs once again.

"What the -?" Flint growled.

"_Deprimo!"_

Phoebe blasted a hole in the sitting room floor. The fell like boulders, Faye screamed and held onto Phoebe for dear life; there was a scream from below, and the sound of breaking stone. Harry raised his head to see thick vines shattering the stone flooring of the kitchen and wrapping themselves around the two Death Eaters, both of whom were squirming to be released.

"_Blackheart!_" Marcus Flint growled when he saw them.

"Snooze you lose, Flint," Phoebe said, her gaze locking with Oliver's. She shook her head in disappointment, then twisted and the thundering of the collapsing house rang in her ears as she dragged Harry, Ron, Faye and Hermione once more into darkness.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Next up: **The Deathly Hallows** - will try and update earlier than Saturday, but I make no promises.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 06 January, 2013 at 06:52am**


	177. Chapter 177

**Author's Note: **Couldn't change much in this chapter... but there will be changes in the next one. There are literally hundreds of you who have favourite and liked this story; please could you drop me a review and tell me why? Thanks.

**Dedications: **Chapter goes out to the following: **Evanescencefan97, Chinaluv, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd **and **Fan of Fics**.

**Shout Outs: **N/A.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warning Brothers. I am merely borrowing her characters for my own personal enjoyment. However, I do own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OC's and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>"Why did you let them glimpse Harry?" Hermione asked as Phoebe sat down beside her after putting Faith to bed that evening.<p>

It had been several hours since they had left the Lovegood's'. Flint and Wood would have gotten themselves free by now and returned to Voldemort with the news; Xenophilius would have woken up and looked bewildered at his destroyed home, while they were safe with their protective enchantments somewhere in Northern England.

"I didn't want Luna to fatherless," said Phoebe. "She's already lost her mother. I knew if Flint and Ollie saw Harry they'd know Xenophilius was telling the truth."

"Why hide me though?" Ron asked.

"You're supposed to be in bed with Spattergroit, Weasley! They've kidnapped Luna because her father supported Harry! They've taken my grandparents' because of me! What would happen to your family if they knew you're with him?"

"But what about _Hermione's_ parents?"

"They're in Australia," said Phoebe. "They should be all right. They don't know anything."

"You're a genius," said Hermione.

"Yeah, you are, Phoebe," agreed Harry. "I don't know what we'd do without you."

Phoebe smiled. "I'm just doing my job," she said, glancing half-heartedly at Hermione. The bookworm smiled and nodded subtly.

"What about Luna?" Ron asked.

"Well, if they're telling the truth and she's still alive -" began Ron.

"Don't say that, don't say it!" squealed Hermione. "She must be alive, she must!"

"Then she'll be in Azkaban, I expect," said Ron. "Whether she survives the place, thought... Loads don't..."

"She will," said Harry. "She's tough, Luna, much tougher than you'd think. She's probably teaching the other inmates about Wrackspurts and Nargles.

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed, handing Hermione a handkerchief.

"I hope you're right," said Hermione, dabbing her eyes. "I'd feel so sorry for Xenophilius if -"

"- if he hadn't just tried to sell us to the Death Eaters, yeah," said Ron.

"They'd kidnapped his daughter, Ron," said Phoebe. "If it had been Blake..." she shook her head, "I'd have probably done the same thing."

Ron shook his head. "No, you wouldn't have," he said. "You'd have stormed the Ministry and demanded information on where they were holding him, overturning as many obstacles in your way."

Harry, Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks and burst into laughter. That did sound like something Phoebe would do after all.

"Do you think he was telling the truth?" Hermione asked through her laughter. "About the Hallows? Or do you think he was just making it up? Something to keep us there while he waited for the Death Eaters to turn up?"

"I don't think so," said Ron. "It's a damn sight harder making stuff up when you're under stress than you'd think. I found that out when the Snatchers caught me. It was much easier pretending to be Stan, because I knew a bit about him, than inventing a whole new person. Old Lovegood was under loads of pressure, trying to make sure we stayed put. I reckon he told us the truth, or what he thinks is the truth, just to keep us talking."

"Well, I don't suppose it matters," sighed Hermione. "Even if he was being honest, I never heard such a load of nonsense in all my life."

"Hang on, though," said Ron. "The Chamber of Secrets was supposed to be a myth, wasn't it?"

"But the Deathly Hallows _can't_ exist, Ron!"

"You keep saying that, but one of them can," said Ron. "Harry's Invisibility Cloak -"

"_The Tale of the Three Brothers'_ is a story," said Hermione firmly. "A story about how humans are afraid of death. If surviving was as simple as hiding under the Invisibility Cloak, we'd have everything we need already!"

"I don't know. We could do with an unbeatable wand," said Harry, turning the blackthorn wand he so disliked over in his fingers.

"There's no such thing, Harry!" said Phoebe. "Hermione's right -"

"You said there have been loads of wands - the Death stick and whatever they were called - your own wand could very well be one, it is powerful enough!"

"All right, even if you want to kid yourself the Elder Wand's real, what about the 'Resurrection Stone'?" Her fingers sketched quotation marks around the name, and her tone dripped with sarcasm. "No magic can raise the dead, and that's that!"

"When my wand connected with You-Know-Who's, it made my mum and dad appear... and Blake..."

"But they weren't really back from the dead, where they?" said Phoebe. "Those kinds of pale imitations aren't the same as truly bringing someone back to life."

"But she, the girl in the tale, didn't really come back, did she? The story says that once people are dead, they belong with the dead. Bit the second brother still got to see her and talk to her, didn't he? He even lived with her for a while..."

"She wasn't real, Harry," said Phoebe. "A living person requires a body! What the second brother saw was nothing but a ghost! An imprint of the woman he was supposed to marry! Once you die, you cease to exist in the land of the living, your body shuts down and casts you out, and that's when you're supposed to pass through the veil."

"But he still saw her spirit..." said Harry. "She was still there with him!"

Phoebe smiled faintly. "You're mixing them up, Harry," she said, shaking her head. "Spirits and ghosts are two different things!"

"How so?"

"A ghost is a soul that finds it difficult to pass the realm between living and non-living," explained Phoebe, "whereas a spirit is always around us, we feel them such as a cold blast of air or a sound in the corner. Spirits are here to give us a guiding hand and are associated with a guardian angel. What the second brother saw was nothing but the ghost of his dead love."

Harry sighed. "So what about that Peverell bloke?" he asked, deciding to change the subject. "Do you know anything about him?"

"No," Phoebe replied. "I looked him up in _Old and Ancient Wizarding Families_ after I saw the mark on his grave; but there was nothing in there, and if he'd been anyone famous or done anything important, I'm sure he'd be in one of our books. The only place I've managed to find the name 'Peverell' is _Nature's Nobility: A Wizarding Genealogy_. I borrowed it from Kreacher," she added as Ron raised his eyebrows. "It lists the pureblood families that are now extinct in the male line. Apparently the Peverell's were one of the earliest families to vanish."

"Extinct in the male line?" Ron repeated.

"It means the name has died out," said Phoebe, "centuries ago, in the case of Peverell's. They could still have descendants, though; they'd just be called something different."

"Marvolo Gaunt!" Harry suddenly gasped.

"What?" Hermione, Phoebe and Ron asked, turning to him.

"_Marvolo Gaunt_! You-Know-Who's grandfather! In the Pensieve! With Dumbledore! Marvolo Gaunt said he was descended from the Peverell's!"

Ron, Hermione and Phoebe looked bewildered.

"The ring, the ring that became the Horcrux, Marvolo Gaunt said it had the Peverell coat of arms on it! I saw him wearing it."

"The Peverell coat of arms?" asked Hermione. "Could you see what it looked like?"

"Not really," said Harry. "There was nothing fancy on there, as far as I could see; maybe a few scratches. I only ever saw it really close up after it had been destroyed."

Hermione and Phoebe exchanged wide-eyed looks, while Ron looked from Hermione, to Phoebe, to Harry, astonished.

"Blimey... You reckon it was this sign again? The sign of the Hallows?"

"Why not?" said Harry excitedly. "Marvolo Gaunt was an ignorant old git who lived like a pig; all he cared about was his ancestry. If that ring had been passed down through the centuries, he might not have known what it really was. There were no books in that house, and trust me, he wasn't the type read fairy tales to his kids. He'd have loved to think the scratches on the stone were a coat of arms, because as far as he was concerned, having pureblood made you practically royal."

"Yes... and that's all very interesting," said Hermione cautiously, "but Harry, if you're thinking what I think you're think -"

"Well, why not? _Why not_?" said Harry, abandoning caution. "It was a stone, wasn't it?" He looked at Ron for support. "What if it was the Resurrection Stone?"

Ron's mouth fell open.

"Blimey - but would it still work if Dumbledore broke -?"

"Work? _Work_? Ron, it never worked! _There's no such thing as a Resurrection Stone_!"

Phoebe had leapt to her feet, looking exasperated and angry. "Harry, you're trying to fit everything into the Hallows story -"

"_Fit everything in?"_ Harry repeated. "Phoebe, it fits of its own accord! I know the sign of the Deathly Hallows was on that stone! Gaunt said he was descended from the Peverell's!"

"You _just said_ that you never saw the ring up close!" Phoebe argued. "You don't know what was on it! It might not even be the sign! If the ring had been passed down from generation to generation it was probably just wear and tear!"

"Where d'you reckon the ring is now?" Ron asked Harry. "What did Dumbledore do with it after he broke it open?"

But Harry was no longer with Hermione, Ron or Phoebe, the distant look in his eyes was a clear enough sign that told his friends that his imagination had taken over. Phoebe, Hermione and Ron exchanged looks, before jumping again as Harry gasped, he had taken the Invisibility Cloak out of the bag and was threading it through his fingers.

"Dumbledore had my Cloak the night my parents died!" he said, his voice shaking. "My mum told Sirius that Dumbledore borrowed the Cloak! This is why! He wanted to examine it, because he thought it was the third Hallow! Ignotus Peverell is buried in Godric's Hollow..." Harry reached for the pouch around his neck, opened it up and pulled out a piece of parchment. "He's my ancestor! I'm descended from the third brother! It all makes sense!"

"Harry..." said Phoebe, shaking her head.

Harry held the parchment out to her. "Read it," he said. "Read it! Dumbledore had the Cloak, Phoebe! Why else would he want it? He didn't need a Cloak; he could perform a Disillusionment Charm so powerful that he made himself completely invisible without one!"

Something fell to the floor and rolled, glittering, under a chair. He had dislodged the Snitch when he pulled out the letter. He stooped to pick it up, and suddenly shouted: "IT'S IN HERE!"

"Shh!" Phoebe hissed, as there came a cry from the other room. "Faye's sleeping!"

"Sorry!" Harry apologized. "Dumbledore left me the ring..." he said to Hermione and Ron as Phoebe hurried off to deal with Faye. "The ring... the stone... whatever... it's in here... it's in the Snitch!"

"You - you reckon?"

He could not understand why Ron looked taken aback. It was so obvious, so clear to Harry. Everything fit... His Cloak was the third Hallow, and when he discovered how to open the Snitch he'd have the second, and then all he needed to down as find the first Hallow, the Elder Wand, and then -

"That's what he's after."

The change in his voice made Ron and Hermione look scared.

"You-Know-Who's after the Elder Wand."

Hermione and Ron exchanged nervous glances.

"This is it," Harry said, trying to bring his friends into the glow of his astonishment. "This explains everything. The Deathly Hallows are real, and I've got one - maybe two -" He held up the Snitch. "- And You-Know-Who's chasing the third, but he doesn't realize... he just thinks it's a powerful wand -"

"Enough!" said Phoebe sharply, as she returned from putting Faye back to sleep. She held out Lily's letter. "That's enough! You've got it wrong, Harry."

"But don't you see? It all fits -"

"No, it doesn't," said Phoebe. "It _doesn't_, Harry, you're just getting carried away."

"But -?"

"If the Deathly Hallows existed, and Dumbledore knew about them, knew that the person who possessed all three of them would be master of Death - Harry, why wouldn't he have told you? Why?"

"Because Hermione said it before," said Harry. "There are something's that I have to work out alone! It's a Quest!"

Phoebe shook her head. "No, your _Quest_ is to find and destroy Horcruxes," she said. "Not chase a story!

Harry took no notice.

"Dumbledore usually let me find out stuff for myself. He let me try my strength, take risks. This feels like the kind of thing he'd do."

"Harry, this isn't a game!" said Phoebe. "This isn't practice! This is the real thing, and Dumbledore left you very clear instructions: Find and destroy the Horcruxes! That symbol doesn't mean anything, forget the Deathly Hallows, we can't afford to get sidetracked."

"Sidetracked?" repeated Harry. "Who decided to adopt a little girl in the middle of our journey?"

"You want to be the reason that she turns up dead?" Phoebe asked. "Do you? We're in the middle of war, Harry, people are dying left, right and centre! You want to add Faye to that ever-growing list of names and hold your hand up and admit that you _could_ have done something to save her but chose to ignore her instead? Because if that's the case then I'll take her back to where we found her right now!"

Harry glowered, but shook his head. He knew that she knew how much it hurt him to realize that people were dying _for_ him! Dying to _protect_ him!

"If you go off chasing Hallows when you should be focusing on Horcruxes," Phoebe continued, "that list is going to get longer and longer, Harry, and it'll be on your head! I don't think your conscious can deal with something like that. Hundreds upon thousands of people dead, and you off hunting something that, quite frankly, _doesn't exist_!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

They packed up the tent the next morning and moved on through a dreary shower of rain.

The downpour pushed them to the coast, where they pitched the tent that night, and persisted through the whole week, through sodden landscapes that Faye found boring and slightly depressing. Harry couldn't only think of one thing and that was the Deathly Hallows, while Ron, Hermione and Phoebe tried to keep him on the track of the Horcruxes.

Harry had never felt so isolated from the other three. He blamed them for not being as excited about the Hallows as he, and criticized them for their obsession with the Horcruxes.

"Obsession?" said Hermione in a low fierce voice, when Harry was careless enough to use the word one evening, after Phoebe had told him off for his lack of interest in locating more Horcruxes. "We're not the ones with an obsession, Harry! We're the ones trying to do what Dumbledore wanted us to do!"

But he was impervious to the veiled criticism.

"Dumbledore had left that sign of the Hallows for Hermione to decipher, and he also left the Resurrection Stone hidden inside the Snitch!" said Harry, determinedly. He hadn't given up hope that the stone was in there.

"Maybe so," said Phoebe. "But if he had wanted you to chase Hallows he would have told you, but he didn't! His instructions were clear: Find the Horcruxes. Nothing more and nothing less."

"'_The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death_'" Harry quoted calmly.

"I thought it was You-Know-Who we were supposed to be fighting?" Hermione retorted.

"Besides, you can't fight Death," Phoebe pointed out. "Death always wins!"

Harry sighed and gave up on them.

Even the mystery of the silver doe, which Ron and Hermione insisted on discussing, seemed less important to Harry now, a vaguely interesting sideshow. It seemed that even Phoebe seemed less interested in the silver doe and spent most of her nights in the girls' bedroom with Faye, but she was becoming more and more concerned when Harry pulled away from the group during the evenings. She knew that he wanted to find the Hallows more than the Horcruxes but that was not his quest, and it was her job to make sure he stayed on target.

As the weeks crept on, Phoebe noticed that Ron seemed to be taking charge. Perhaps he was determined to make up for having walked out on them, perhaps because Harry's descent into listlessness galvanized his dormant leadership qualities, Ron was the one now encouraging and exhorting the other three into action.

"Three Horcruxes left," he kept saying. "We need a plan of action, come on! Where haven't we looked? Let's go through it again. The orphanage..."

"Diagon Alley..."

"Hogwarts..."

"The Riddle House..."

"Borgin and Burkes..."

"Albania..."

"We've been over these with a fine tooth comb," said Phoebe. "I'm still inclined to say there is something at Hogwarts..."

"But?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "But going back there would be suicide," she said, looking over the Marauders Map. "The place is crawling with Death Eaters, and with Snape in charge... we'll never get in!"

"What if he branched out?" Ron asked. "We've been looking in places that are important to You-Know-Who; but what if he just hid them randomly?"

"For random people to pick up?" Hermione asked, shaking her head.

"Not Muggles," said Ron. "I know of a few Wizarding communities. Upper Flagley is a Wizarding village; he might've wanted to live there. Let's go and have a poke around."

These frequent forays into Wizarding territory brought them within occasional sight of Snatchers.

"Some of them are supposed to be as bad as Death Eaters," said Ron. "The lot that got me were a bit pathetic, but Bill reckons some of them are really dangerous. They said on _Potterwatch -_"

"On what?" asked Harry.

"_Potterwatch_, didn't I tell you that's what it was called? The program I keep trying to get on the radio, the only one that tells the truth about what's going on! Nearly all the programs are following You-Know-Who's line, all except _Potterwatch_. I really want you to hear it, but it is tricky tuning in..."

Ron spent evening after evening using his wand to beat out various rhythms on top of the wireless while the dials whirled. Occasionally they would catch snatches of advice on how to treat dragon pox, and once a few bars of 'A Cauldron Full of Hot Strong Love.' While he tapped, Ron continued to try to hit on the correct password, muttering strings of random words under his breath.

"They're normally something to do with the Order," Ron told them. "Bill had a real knack for guessing them. I'm bound to get one in the end."

"Try 'Albus'," suggested Phoebe.

Ron looked thoughtful, shrugged and tapped the radio with his wand. "Albus," he muttered. There was a whirl of power and next second the sound of voices issued from the wireless radio. "Harry, get in here!"

Harry burst in from outside and settled down on the floor in front of Phoebe, who was rocking Faye to sleep. The toddler had been playing with a doll that Phoebe had conjured up for her hours ago, but now it was time for bed.

Hermione, who had been polishing the sword of Gryffindor just for something to do, was sitting open-mouthed, staring at the tiny speaker, from which a most familiar voice was issuing.

"... Apologize for our temporary absence from the airwaves, which was due to a number of house calls in our area by those charming Death Eaters."

"But that's Lee Jordan!" said Hermione.

"I know!" beamed Ron. "Cool, eh?"

"... now found ourselves another secure location," Lee was saying, "and I'm pleased to tell you that two of our regular contributors have joined me here this evening. Evening, boys!"

"Hi."

"Evening, River."

"'River,' that's Lee," Ron explained. "They've got code names, but you can usually tell -"

"Shh!" said Hermione.

"But before we hear from Royal and Romulus," Lee went on, "let's take a moment to report those deaths that the _Wizarding Wireless Network News_ and _Daily Prophet_ don't think important enough to mention. It is with great regret that we inform our listeners of the murders of Ted Tonks, Dirk Cresswell and Andrew Higgs."

Phoebe felt sick. "No..." she whispered as her eyes filled with tears. Faye blinked and looked up at her new guardian, reaching out to wipe away a few tears that fell from her eyes.

"Phoebe... you crying?" she asked.

"Yes," Phoebe nodded.

"Why?"

Phoebe shook her head. "It's nothing, princess." She said, cradling the toddler closer to her. She wiped her cheeks on the back of her sleeve.

"A goblin by the name of Gornuk was also killed. It is believed that Muggleborn Dean Thomas and a second goblin, both believed to have been travelling with Tonks, Cresswell, and Gornuk, may have escaped. If Dean is listening, or if anyone has any knowledge of his whereabouts, his parents and sisters are desperate for news. Meanwhile, in Gaddley, a Muggle family of five has been found dead in their home. Muggle authorities are attributing the deaths as a gas leak, but members of the Order of the Phoenix inform me that it was the Killing Curse -"

Hermione and Phoebe exchanged looks. Another Muggle family dead. "More evidence that the Muggle slaughter is becoming more recreational under this new regime," said Phoebe. "This is worse than last time!"

"Finally, we regret to inform our listeners that the remains of Bathilda Bagshot have been discovered in Godric's Hollow. The evidence is that she died several months ago. The Order of the Phoenix informs us that her body showed unmistakable signs of injuries inflicted by Dark Magic. Listeners, I'd like to invite you now to join us in a minute's silence in memory of Ted Tonks, Dirk Cresswell, Bathilda Bagshot, Andrew Higgs, Gornuk, and the unnamed, but no less regretted, Muggles murdered by the Death Eaters."

Silence fell, and Harry, Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and Faye did not speak. Half of Phoebe wanted to hear more, but half of her was terrified of hearing something that she did not want. Andrew was dead; did that mean Voldemort had gotten to Joey? Had he found Terence and Blake? What about James and Ashlyn? Aiden and Sarah? Amelia, Bambi and the others?

"Thank you," said Lee's voice. "And now we turn to our regular contributor Royal, for an update on how the new Wizarding order is affecting the Muggle world."

"Thanks, River," said an unmistakable voice, deep, measured, reassuring.

"Kingsley!" burst out Ron.

"We know!" said Hermione, hushing him.

"Muggles remain ignorant of the source of their suffering as they continue to sustain heavy casualties," said Kingsley. "However, we continue to hear truly inspirational stories of wizards and witches risking their own lives to protect Muggle neighbors', often without the Muggles' knowledge. I'd like to appeal to all our listeners to emulate their example, perhaps by casting a protective charm over any Muggle dwellings in your street. Many lives could be saved if such simple measures are taken."

"And what would you say, Royal, to those listeners who reply that in these dangerous times, it should be 'Wizards first'?" asked Lee.

"I'd say that it's one short step from 'Wizards first' to 'Purebloods first,' and then to 'Death Eaters,'" replied Kingsley. "We're all human, aren't we? Every human life is worth the same, and worth saving."

"Excellently put, Royal, and you've got my vote for Minister for Magic if ever we get out of this mess," said Lee. "And now, over to Romulus for our popular feature 'Pals of Potter.'"

"Thanks, River," said another very familiar voice. Ron started to speak, but Hermione forestalled him in a whisper.

"We_ know it is Lupin._"

"Romulus, do you maintain, as you have every time you've appeared on our program, that Harry Potter is still alive?"

"I do," said Lupin firmly. "There is no doubt at all in my mind that his death would be proclaimed as widely as possible by the Death Eaters if it had happened, because it would strike a deadly blow at the morale of those resisting the new regime. 'The Boy Who Lived' remains a symbol of everything for which we are fighting: the triumph of good, the power of innocence, the need to keep resisting."

"And what would you say to Harry if you knew he was listening, Romulus?"

"I'd tell him we're all with in him spirit," said Lupin, and then hesitated slightly. "And I'd tell him by his friends, Phoebe especially, she's got a good head on her shoulders that one and her instincts are nearly always right."

Phoebe smiled faintly. Did this mean that Lupin had forgiven her for everything she had said back at Grimmuald Place?

"Nearly always right?" Harry asked.

"I told him that his best place was with Tonks, remember?" Phoebe asked. "I told him he couldn't come with us because of Tonks... he must have gone back to her!"

"He did," Ron nodded. "And apparently she's getting pretty big."

"She must be due to drop," said Hermione.

Phoebe quickly calculated the months and nodded. "Any day now," she agreed.

"Baby?" Faye asked, trying to hide a yawn.

"Yes, Faye, a friend of ours is going to have a baby," Phoebe smiled.

Faye smiled brightly and hugged herself closer to Phoebe. The idea of a new baby made her think of her brother. She missed him.

"... and our usual update on those friends of Harry Potter's who are suffering for their allegiance?" Lee was saying.

"Well, as regular listeners will know, several of the more outspoken supporters of Harry Potter have now been imprisoned, including Xenophilius Lovegood, erstwhile editor of _The Quibbler_," said Lupin.

"At least he is still alive!" muttered Ron.

"Is that the man who's house blewed up?" Faye asked.

Phoebe nodded.

"I don't like him. He tried to let the masked cloaks taked us!"

"I know," Phoebe said, rocking her slowly.

"We have also heard within the last few hours that Rebeus Hagrid -" all four of them gasped, and so nearly missed the rest of the sentence "- well-known gamekeeper at Hogwarts School has narrowly escaped arrest within the grounds of Hogwarts, where he is rumored to have hosted a 'Support Harry Potter' party in his house. However, Hagrid was not taken into custody, and is, we believe, on the run."

"I suppose it helps, when escaping from Death Eaters, if you've got a sixteen-foot-high half-brother?" asked Lee.

"It would tend to give you an edge," agreed Lupin gravely. "May I add that while we here at _Potterwatch_ applaud Hagrid's spirit, we would urge even the most devoted of Harry's supporters against following Hagrid's lead. 'Support Harry Potter' parties are unwise in the present climate."

"Indeed they are, Romulus," said Lee, "so we suggest that you continue to show your devotion to the man with the lightning scar by listening to _Potterwatch_! And now let's move to news concerning the wizard who is proving just as elusive as Harry Potter. We like to refer to him as the Chief Death Eater and here to give his views on some of the more insane rumors circulating about him, I'd like to introduce a new correspondent: Rodent."

"_Rodent?_" said yet another familiar voice.

"Fred!"

"No - is it George?"

"It's Fred!" said Phoebe. "But it doesn't matter. Let's just hear what he has to say."

"I'm not being 'Rodent,' no way. I told you I wanted to be 'Rapier'!"

"Oh, all right then, Rapier, could you please give us your take on the various stories we've been hearing about the Chief Death Eater?"

"Yes, River, I can," said Fred. "As our listeners will know, unless they've taken refuge at the bottom of a garden pond or somewhere similar, You-Know-Who's strategy of remaining in the shadows is creating a nice little climate of panic. Mind you, if all the alleged sightings of him are genuine, we must have a good nineteen You-Know-Who's running around the place."

"Which suits him, of course," said Kingsley. "The air of mystery is creating more terror than actually showing himself."

"Agreed," said Fred. "So, people, let's try and calm down a bit. Things are bad enough without inventing stuff as well. For instance, this new idea that You-Know-Who can kill with a single glance from his eyes. That's a _basilisk_, listeners. One simple test: Check whether the thing glaring at you has legs, if it does, you're safe, although if it _is_ You-Know-Who, that's still likely to be the last thing you'll ever do."

Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione laughed at the joke. It felt like weeks since they had shared any forms of laughter between them. The tension lifted straight away.

"And the rumors that he keeps being sighed abroad?" asked Lee.

"I have confirmation that they are true," Fred said. "He has, after all, got connections in Portugal, where he has overrun Blackheart Manor. The Portuguese Ministry is putting up some resistance against him though, they are determined that he will not get passed their defenses and so far things are working in their favour."

"Maybe they should come over here and help us," said Lee.

"Indeed," agreed Fred. "The elemental academy in Portugal is also putting up a fight against the new regime. We have support Harry fans while the Portuguese Wizarding world has their own sorts of 'Support Phoebe' fan. Everyone, all over the world it would seem, is determined to see our heroes succeed. But the point is people, do not get lulled into a false sense of security just because You-Know-Who is out of the country; just don't count on him being gone for too long. If you're planning on taking any risks, I never thought I'd hear myself say this, but safety first!"

"Thank you very much for those wise words, Rapier," said Lee. "And that, Listeners, brings us to the end of another _Potterwatch_. We don't know when it'll be possible to broadcast again, but you can be sure we shall be back. Keep twiddling those dials. The next password will be 'Mad-Eye'. Keep each other safe: Keep faith. Goodnight."

The radio's dial twirled and the lights behind the tuning panel went out.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe were still beaming while Faye was sound asleep in Phoebe's arms.

"Good, eh?" said Ron happily.

"Brilliant," said Harry.

"It's so brave of them," sighed Hermione. "If they were found..."

"Well, they keep having to move, don't they?" said Ron. "Like us."

"But did you hear what Fred said?" asked Harry excitedly. "He's abroad! He's still looking for the Wand, I knew it!"

"Harry -"

"Come on, Phoebe, why are you so determined not to admit it? Vol -"

"HARRY, NO!"

Faye woke with a startled scream at the sudden raised voices.

"- demort's after the Elder Wand!"

"The Taboo!" Ron bellowed, leaping to his feet as a loud crack sounded outside the tent. "You knew, Harry, you knew! We can't use the name anymore - we've got to put the protection back around us - quickly - it's how the find -"

But Ron stopped talking as the Sneakoscope on the table lit up and begun to spin; they could hear voices coming nearer and nearer: rough, excited voices. Ron pulled out the Deluminator and clicked it. Their lamps went out.

"Come out of there with your hands up!" came a rasping voice through the darkness. "We know you're in there! You've got half a dozen wands pointing at you and we don't care who we curse!"

Faye whimpered, fearfully.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next Saturday when I return with: **Malfoy Manor**.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 07 January, 2013 at 04:52am**


	178. Chapter 178

**Author's Note:** One of our beloved characters doesn't make it to Malfoy Manor the same way as the others. Can you guess who? I know I said this was going to be the **Malfoy Manor** chapter, but I liked the cliff-hanger effect this chapter has and decided to create a miniature random chapter for you to enjoy.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following:** KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, SoulVirus** and** Fan of Fics**

**Shout Outs:** Just wanted to say thank you too: **Nightwatchers2** and **Hectorav** for adding this story and/or me to their favourite alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Special Shout Out:** This special shout out goes to a follower that has been there since the beginning. (He knows who he is). I just wanted to say that I **understand** that you do not like Phoebe, but then again how many of my characters, in any of my stories, **do** you actually like? Yes, all my characters are female and yes they are all independent, strong-willed and headstrong characters; they do not fall into the 'normal' category of woman. They are not characters who are seen and not heard, sorry, but that is a discrimination against women in my opinion, our opinion is as right as any. But that's not the point; the point is, **just** because Harry does something does **not** make it Phoebe's doing. Last chapter, for example, she didn't **make** him say Voldemort's name. He got worked up over the broadcast and it slipped; nothing to do with Phoebe. Yes, I admit, Phoebe is trying to get Harry off of the Hallows trail, but if you actually **read** the story fully, or **wait** until the end where everything will be confessed, then you will see **why**. Not everything Harry does wrong is related back to Phoebe - regardless of whether you think it is or not.

* * *

><p>Phoebe felt her breath coming in shallow gasps as she looked around at Harry, Ron and Hermione in the dark. In her arms, Faye quivered in fear. She felt Hermione draw her wand, and aim it straight at Harry's face.<p>

"What are you -?" Harry started but cut off abruptly as there was a loud _bang_ and a flash of white light.

Faye jumped.

"Shh," Phoebe whispered as she heard the Snatchers enter the tent. "Shh... Faye, listen to me, no matter what happens, you're going to be OK."

"They are going to taked us away!" Faye whimpered.

Phoebe shook her head and kissed Faye's hair. "They not taking us anywhere," she promised.

"They taked me away from you!"

"I won't let them!" Phoebe assured her. "I won't let them, Faye, I won't let - LET HER GO!"

Faye screamed and struggled as one of the Snatchers ripped her away from Phoebe the second they were free of the tent. "No! No! No!" she squealed, tears streaming her face as she wriggled and struggled in the hands of her captives. She flailed her legs and arms, hoping to hit some part of whoever was holding her.

"LET HER GO, DAMNIT!" Phoebe swore. "Let -" she struggled against the arms around her waist, wanting to break away and get to Faye who was being taken to the furthest end of the clearing. "Let me go! Let go - Faye - Faye!"

"We've got a feisty one here," chuckled a horribly familiar, rasping voice.

Phoebe felt her blood freeze. _**Greyback**_... She thought. Fenrir Greyback, the werewolf who was permitted to wear Death Eater robes in return for his hired savagery.

"Get - off - her!" Ron shouted. There was the unmistakable sound of knuckles hitting flesh: Ron grunted in pain and Hermione screamed.

"No! Leave him alone, leave him alone!"

"Your boyfriend's going to have worse than that done to him if he's on my list," said Greyback.

"Search the tent!" said another voice.

Phoebe watched as Harry and Ron were thrown facedown onto the ground, while she and Hermione were held firmly in their captive's arms. The elemental could see the fear shining in the bookworms eyes, while Faye, who had quit struggling, sobbed loudly.

"Shut up!" snarled the Snatcher holding her. He gave her a little shake, and Phoebe growled as her eyes narrowed. They flashed a cobalt blue, as the dragon necklace around her neck glimmered a bright yellow.

"Now, let's see who we've got," said Greyback's gloating voice from behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she watched as Greyback maneuvered around Hermione and rolled Harry over onto his back and shone his wand into his face. It was clear what spell Hermione had cast, because Harry's face was all swollen.

Greyback laughed. "I'll need a butterbeer to wash this one down. What happened to you, ugly?" he asked.

Harry didn't answer immediately.

"I _said_," repeated Greyback and Phoebe whimpered as Greyback punched Harry in the diaphragm, "what happened to you?"

"Stung," Harry muttered. "Been stung."

"Yeah, looks like it," said a second voice.

"What's your name?" snarled Greyback.

"Dudley," said Harry.

"And your first name?"

"I - Vernon. Vernon Dudley."

"Check the list, Scabior," said Greyback, and he moved onto Ron. "And what about you, ginger?"

"Stan Shunpike," said Ron.

Phoebe groaned internally.

"Like 'ell you are," said the man called Scabior. "We know Stan Shunpike; 'e's put a bit of work our way."

This time Hermione whimpered as Ron received another punch - this time to the face.

"I'b Bardy," said Ron, through a mouth full of blood. "Bardy Weasley."

"A Weasley?" rasped Greyback. "So you're related to blood traitors even if you're not a Mudblood. And lastly, your pretty little friends..." he turned to Hermione and Phoebe; the latter kept her head down as for Greyback not to notice her. She knew that if he got too close he would be able to smell her elemental essence; werewolves were incredibly good at different smells.

But the relish in Greyback's voice made Phoebe's skin crawl. She chanced a glance at Faye who was once again struggling in another Snatcher's arms.

"Easy, Greyback," said Scabior over the jeering of the others.

"Oh, I'm not going to bite just yet. We'll see if they are a bit quicker at remembering their names than Barney. Who are you, my sweets?"

"Penelope Clearwater," said Hermione. She sounded terrified, but very convincing.

"What's your blood status?"

"Halfblood," said Hermione.

"Easy enough to check," said Scabior. "What about you, brat?" he turned to Faye and tapped her cheek. She squeaked in fear.

"You leave her alone!" Phoebe snapped, struggling against the Snatcher that held her.

Scabior chuckled and turned in her direction. "She yours, Princess? She your sister or your daughter?" he taunted.

"C'mon off it, Scabior," jeered another Snatcher. "She looks to be 'Ogwarts age. No way she the kids' mother."

"You'd be surprised," said Scabior. "You heard the news. That Phoebe Blackheart is 'Ogwarts age and she has a kid. What's your name?" he added to Phoebe.

"Rose Brooks," answered Phoebe.

"Blood status?"

"Pureblood."

Scabior's eyebrows rose in interest. "Pureblood, eh?" he repeated. "Interesting. Let me guess, you and your little friends decided to go camping and just say the Dark Lord's name for a laugh, eh?"

"No, it was an accident," said Phoebe.

"Accident?" there was more jeering laughter.

"You know who used to like using the Dark Lord's name, Brooks?" growled Greyback. "The Order of the Phoenix. Mean anything to you?"

"Should it?"

"Feisty," Greyback growled lightly. "Not a bad little haul for one night," he added motioning for the Snatchers holding Phoebe and Hermione to tie them up. "Give Brooks back her girl, and tie them, along with the boys, to the other prisoners!"

Phoebe muffled a hiss as she was yanked across the clearing and forced into a sitting position. Her hands were tied behind her back-to-back with a few other people. Faye whimpered as she crawled into Phoebe's lap, curled up and sobbed into her chest. The elemental felt her heart break as she lowered her head and brushed her cheek against Faye's hair.

"We're going to be taked away," Faye cried.

"Hey, Faye," Phoebe whispered. "Do you trust me?"

Faye nodded.

"Remember what I did to Lovegood's place?"

Faye nodded again.

"I can do that here," Phoebe said. "But you have to trust me to get you out of here. We may be taken to some place... but I promise, no matter what happens I will not let them touch you. OK?"

Faye's lower lip quivered, but she nodded nonetheless.

Phoebe smiled and nodded once.

"Anyone still got a wand?" Harry asked from somewhere to the left.

"No," said Ron and Hermione.

"Phoebe?"

"No," she answered.

"Can't you do a little bit of elemental magic?" Ron asked.

"You want to keep your voice down?" Phoebe snapped. "Greyback will know it is me if you keep shouting things like that. He hasn't figured it out yet!"

"Sorry,"

"And i'm working on getting us out of here!" Phoebe added.

"Harry?"

It was a new, but familiar voice, and it came from directly behind Phoebe, from the person tied to Hermione's left.

"_Dean_?"

"It _is_ you! If they find out whom they've got -! They're Snatchers; they're only looking for truants to sell for gold -"

"You check their names on the list yet, Scabior?" Greyback roared.

"Yeah. There's no Vernon Dudley on 'ere, Greyback."

"Interesting," said Greyback. "That's interesting."

He crouched down beside Harry. From where was sitting, Phoebe could smell the dirt, sweat and blood coming off of him. She gagged in revulsion.

"So you aren't wanted, then, Vernon? Or are you on that list under a different name? What house were you in at Hogwarts?"

"Slytherin," said Harry, automatically.

"Funny 'ow they all think we want to 'ear that," jeered Scabior out of the shadows. "But none of 'em can tell us where the common room is."

"It's in the dungeons," said Harry. "You enter through the wall. It's full of skulls and stuff and it's under the lake, so the light's all green."

There was a short pause.

"Well, well, looks like we really 'ave caught a little Slytherin," said Scabior. "Good for you, Vernon, 'cause there ain't a lot of Mudblood Slytherin's. Who's your father?"

"He works at the Ministry," Harry lied. "Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes."

"You know what, Greyback," said Scabior. "I think there _is_ a Dudley in there."

Phoebe breathed out shallowly. What were the odds?

"Well, well," said Greyback, and Phoebe could hear the tiniest note of trepidation in that callous voice, and knew that Greyback was wondering whether he had indeed just attacked and bound the son of a Ministry official. "If you're telling the truth, ugly, you've got nothing to fear from a trip to the Ministry. I except your father will reward us just for picking you up."

"But," said Harry, "If you just let us -"

"Hey!" came a shout from inside the tent. "Look at this, Greyback!"

A dark figure came bustling toward him, and Phoebe saw a glint of silver in the light of their wands. They had found Gryffindor's sword.

"Ve-e-ry nice," said Greyback appreciatively, taking it from his companion. "Oh, very nice indeed. Looks goblin-made, that. Where did you get something like this?"

"It's my father's," Harry lied. "We borrowed it to cut firewood -"

"'ang on a minute, Greyback! Look at this, in the _Prophet_!"

Phoebe felt her heart pound a mile a minute as the wind started to pick up. It rustled through the trees, blowing her air into her face and her scent in the direction of the Snatchers, she knew that it was only a matter of time before Greyback could smell it, and she couldn't control the air around her without revealing herself; Greyback was sure to notice the chance in her eyes if she tried.

"'_ermione Granger,_" said Scabior "_the Mudblood who is known to be traveling with 'arry Potter._"

Hermione bit her lip, hard, muffling a small whimper of fear.

"And Flint and Wood said that they had seen Blackheart, Potter and the Mudblood at Lovegood's," added Scabior. "Flint said that they had a kid with them!"

Faye drew herself closer to Phoebe, her tiny fist was white at the knuckles as she clutched Phoebe's shirt tightly.

"You know what, girly? This picture looks a hell of a lot like you."

"It isn't! It isn't me!"

Hermione's terrified squeak was as good as a confession.

"_...known to be traveling with Harry Potter,_" repeated Greyback quietly.

A stillness had settled over the scene. Phoebe peered through her eyelashes at the Snatchers; they were watching her and the others with a keen interest. The wind continued to blow around her, whipping her hair and scent into the air. She noticed Greyback's hair bristle and stand on end, and he sniffed the air.

_**Crap.**_

He had smelt her.

"Guys," she whispered. "He knows."

"Knows?" Ron repeated.

"He can smell me," Phoebe answered. "He can smell my elemental essence. We have to get out of here!"

"How?"

"If I can get free then I can make a break for the trees," Phoebe explained. "Greyback will follow me. While i'm dealing with him, you guys get your wands and get out of here, take Faye with you! I'll meet up with you after nightfall."

Faye shook her head. "No, no, Phoebe, I wanna stayed with you!" she said.

"Hermione, Harry and Ron will look after you," said Phoebe. "I'll make it back to you, Faye, one way or another!"

"No, No," Faye whimpered. "Please, Phoebe, I stayed with you! I run fast! I can! I can run fast!"

Phoebe's heart broke as she looked down at the little girl. "I have no doubt that you can, Faye," she whispered. "But you can't outrun a werewolf and an elemental. We're fifty-times faster than you. Please promise me you -"

"NO!" Faye screamed as Greyback grabbed her by the scruff of her clothes and threw her to another Snatcher. He then turned back to Phoebe and grabbed her chin, a sly smirk curved its way onto her lips as he sniffed her hair. Phoebe shuddered in revulsion.

Greyback laughed as he felt her shiver. "Hello, love." He slurred.

Phoebe's eyes narrowed and flashed cobalt blue as the necklace around her neck glowed yellow. Greyback cut the ropes that bound Phoebe to the others, and held dragged her away from her friends.

Thick vines slithered on the forest floor. They slithered out from the roots of the trees surrounding them, raising up behind the Snatchers, one lashed out and went flying into Greyback's face. He snarled and dropped Phoebe.

_Crack._

_**Direct hit.**_ Phoebe thought to herself.

Free from Greyback's hold, Phoebe waved her hand in Faye's direction as a boulder hit the Snatcher holding her in the back of the head. He dropped Faye and landed on the floor with a grunt, crimson blood leaked from the open wound on the back of his skull.

Phoebe darted towards Faye, wrapped her arms around the toddlers' waist and took off into the trees.

Greyback snarled and launched himself after her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

_**Stupid wind... stupid Harry... stupid Voldemort... this whole freaking war is stupid! Merlin, I hope the others make it away alright!**_

Faye gasped and buried her face into Phoebe's clothes as the wind whipped around them. She had never run at these high-speeds before, of course her father had taken her on a broomstick once or twice, but they had never gone this fast, her mother always panicked whenever she was more than a few meters off the ground.

_**Why did we have to get found by Greyback?**_ Phoebe thought. _**Out of all the dimwitted Snatchers there are in England we get caught by the one who is equivalent to me! Bloody brilliant!**_

Being chased by Greyback did not make matters easier for neither Phoebe nor Faye. It was only a matter of time before he caught them, there was no way they could run forever, soon Phoebe would have to stop, not because she needed to rest, but because she would need food and water, if she didn't eat then she would certainly lose energy; and Faye needed to eat too.

Plus, being bitten by a werewolf had no effect on Phoebe, but it would definitely have one on Faye.

_**No!**_ Phoebe scolded herself. _**Do not think like that! He will not get her! I won't allow it!**_

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile, back in the clearing, Scabior had taken over after Greyback had followed Phoebe and the little brat. He squatted down in front of Harry and pressed a finger to his scar.

"Don't touch it!" Harry yelled; he could not stop himself; he thought he might be sick from the pain of it.

"I thought you wore glasses, Potter?" breathed Scabior.

"I found glasses!" yelped one of the Snatchers skulking in the background. "There was glasses in the tent, Scabior, wait -"

And seconds later Harry's glasses had been rammed back onto his face. The Snatchers were closing in now, peering at him.

"It is!" rasped Scabior. "We've caught Potter!"

"And Greyback is circling Blackheart!"

The Snatchers all stepped backwards and exchanged looks, stunned by what they had done.

"Should we take them to the Ministry?" a Snatcher asked.

"To hell with the Ministry," growled Scabior. "They'll take the credit, and we won't get a look in. I say we take them straight to You-Know-Who."

"Will you summon 'im? 'ere?" said another, sounding awed, terrified.

"No," snarled Scabior, "I haven't got - when Greyback catches the elemental he'll be taking her to Malfoy Manor, he'll want to see how much Mr. Malfoy will pay for his daughter back, won't he? I heard that You-Know-Who is using the Malfoy's' place as a base. We'll take the boy there."

"Are you completely sure it's him? 'Cause if it ain't, Scabior, we're dead."

"Who's in charge here?"

"Greyback," said another.

"Greyback's off chasing prey!" said Scabior. "Until he returns my word is law. Understand?"

The other Snatchers nodded.

"I say that's Potter, and him plus his wand, that's two hundred thousand Galleons right there! But if you're too gutless to come alone, any of it, it's all for me." Said Scabior. "Greyback will get paid for the girl and, if he's lucky, they might let him keep that brat she has with her!"

"I thought Blackheart had a son?"

"What does it matter?" snarled Scabior. "We've got the gold mine!"

"But what about the rest of 'em, Scabior, what'll we do with 'em?"

"Might as well take the lot. We've got two Mudbloods, that's another ten Galleons. Give me the sword as well. If they're rubies, that's another small fortune right there."

Hermione's breathing was coming hard, fast and terrified as she was hauled to her feet.

"Grab hold and make it tight. I'll do Potter!" said Scabior, seizing a fistful of Harry's hair. "On three! One - two - three -"

They Disapparated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Soon Phoebe began to notice that the boulders under feet were getting smaller and more frequent. She had to have been in the heart of the forest by now. Faye was still snug in her arms and she wasn't sure where Greyback had gone too; she had lost sight of him ages ago, and the sound of their footsteps had been lost in the moss and grass.

Phoebe knew that she was in the heart of the forest because it was almost impossible to find any light. The trees were so close together that the canopy blocked out the stars and the moon. The surrounding trees were extremely dark, and she couldn't afford to let her eyes travel.

Remaining light on her feet, Phoebe kept moving. She had no idea where she was going, but as long as it put distance between her and Greyback then she was more than happy to keep running for as long as she needed. She wouldn't have to leave the forest, even if she had to double back on herself, she wouldn't be stupid as to enter a village.

_Snap._

Phoebe's breath caught in her throat and then fell hard to the ground as something collided with her side. She clutched Faye to her as she fell, hitting her head on the boulders. The last thing she heard was a snarl of laughter... then darkness.

Greyback snarled a laugh as he leaned over her. He sniffed her frame, licking his lips. "You're fast, love," he said, "but sadly not fast enough!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Next up: **Malfoy Manor**.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Tuesday, January 08, 2013 at 12:32am**


	179. Chapter 179

**Author's Note:** Guys, I'm really sad. There are literally hundreds of people subscribed to this story and yet only three of you reviewed the last chapter. That's a new low record. Those of you who did review, however, I love you dearly, you know this. But seriously, it only takes a second to write a review and Fanfiction has made it ten times easy to review; all you have to do is write in the box right at the bottom of the page after the chapter; it'll take you two seconds to leave your thoughts. So if you care at all, please just take that second to let me know your thoughts. It's hard to write without any feedback and i'm sure you don't need me to tell you this - out of the goodness of your heart, please, just let me know what you think. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following:** KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv** and** Fan of Fics.**

**Shout Outs:** N/A

* * *

><p>Faye looked around the immaculate drawing room. It dazzled after the darkness outside. A crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, more portraits, just like the ones in the hall, hung from the dark purple walls.<p>

Three figures stood in front of the ornate marble fireplace as Harry, Ron, Hermione, the Snatchers and another boy and a goblin stood off to the side. Greyback was carrying Phoebe in his arms as he stepped closer to the three people.

"What is this?" asked the man. Faye shrank away as he glared at her.

"We have something of yours, Mr. Malfoy," said Greyback. He knelt and settled Phoebe's body on the floor. Her head rolled to the side, and her eyes remained closed. There was a small bruise on the back of her head, but no blood, so nothing very serious.

Lucius's eyes fell to Phoebe.

Narcissa screamed when she saw her daughter's unconscious body, and Draco's eyes widened as he looked down at his sister. What had they done to her?

"What is the meaning of this?" Lucius asked.

"We've also got Potter!" said Greyback. "Scabior, bring the boy!"

The Werewolf threw Faye in another Snatcher's direction and tugged at the rope and pulled Harry away from Scabior. He forced The-Boy-Who-Lived to his knees, just in front of Phoebe and, pulled his head back so that Harry was looking up at the Malfoy's rather than down at the elemental.

"Draco, come here." Narcissa said waving her son over.

Harry did not dare look directly at Draco, but saw him obliquely: a figure slightly taller than he was, rising from an armchair, his face a pale and pointed blur beneath white-blond hair.

"Well, boy?" rasped the werewolf.

Faye whimpered at the harshness in the werewolf's voice. Scabior, who had taken over as her capturer, shook her to try and silence her.

"Well, Draco?" said Lucius Malfoy. He sounded avid. "Is it? Is it Harry Potter?"

"I can't - I can't be sure," said Draco. He was keeping his distance from Greyback, and seemed as scared of looking at Harry as Harry was looking at him. Instead, Draco's eyes darted down to Phoebe, who was between them; he could see slight movement in her chest which gave the indication that she was alive.

"But look at him carefully, look! Come closer!"

"Draco, if we are the ones who hand Potter over to the Dark Lord, everything will be forgive -"

"Now, we won't be forgetting who actually caught him, I hope, Mr. Malfoy?" said Greyback menacingly.

"Of course not, of course not!" said Lucius impatiently. He approached Harry himself, glanced briefly at Phoebe, and then back into Harry's face. He was so close that Harry could feel his breath on his skin. "What did you do to him?" Lucius asked. "How did he get in this state?"

"That wasn't us."

"Looks more like a Stinging Jinx to me," said Lucius, casting a glance at his daughter and then over at Phoebe. "Either one of them is smart enough to do it..." his gaze landed on Faye, "who is she?"

"Found her with your daughter," said Greyback. "Awfully protective. Guess she's a daughter or something!"

Draco looked, subtly, up at his mother and father. He knew that Phoebe had given him a nephew... not a niece. So who was this little witch that she was protecting. "What's her name?" he asked, nervously.

"They wouldn't say," said Greyback, snarling at Faye. He gripped her wrist and yanked her forward.

Faye cried out as pain exploded in her wrist.

"What's your name?" Greyback demanded, ignoring her cry of pain.

Faye didn't answer.

Greyback shook her, inflicting more pain. "I _said -_"

He broke off as the drawing room windows crashed open, hitting the wall and bouncing back as a blast of air swept into the room. The torrent of air hit Greyback and knocked him backwards away from both Harry and Faye.

Phoebe's eyes snapped open and she squeaked as Harry fell forwards onto her. "Get off me!" she said.

Harry scrambled off of the elemental as she sat up. The back of her head hurt, but she was more scared for Faye. Her eyes scanned the room and she let out a sigh of relief as she saw the toddler standing a few feet away.

"Faye..." she whispered.

The toddler run into the elementals arms and hugged her tightly.

"Phoebe, they taked us!" she cried. "They taked us to you home..."

For the first time since she had woken up, Phoebe looked around. She froze as she saw her mother, father and brother standing over her. Her mother looked close to tears, her father looked indifferent, and Draco looked like he was torn between hugging her and demanding her answers to the questions that were burning inside. But now was not the time.

"Do you need any further proof that it is Harry Potter?" Scabior asked. "We know your daughter was travelling with him and the Mudblood. She is your daughter, -" he pointed at Phoebe, "you cannot deny that!"

"Draco?"

Phoebe stared at Draco, pleading with him to not say a word.

"Yes this is my sister," he nodded at Phoebe, "but I do not know who she is travelling with!"

"We had better be certain, Lucius," Narcissa said. "Completely sure that it is Potter, before we summon the Dark Lord... They say this is his -" she held up the blackthorn wand, "-but it does not match Ollivanders description. If we are mistaken. Remember what happened to Rowle and Rabastan?"

The drawing room door opened behind them and someone walked in.

"What is this? What's happened, Cissy?"

Bellatrix Lestrange walked slowly around the Snatchers, and stopped dead, her eyes fell on Phoebe and her face lit up. She looked like a child on Christmas morning. "Well, well, if it isn't little Miss. Phoebe home at last!" she laughed.

"You call this a home?" Phoebe asked. "I call it a prison! I guess that's why you feel accustom to living here!"

Phoebe yelped as something hot hit the side of her face. Bellatrix withdrew her wand and sneered down at the Gryffindor. "You'll do well to hold your tongue," she snapped. "I don't know what they've been teaching you in Portugal, but you will not address your superior family in such a tone."

"Family?" Phoebe repeated. "We are _not_ family, Bellatrix. We may have been once... but that link was broken the moment I was given away and renamed Blackheart. I am a _Blackheart_, not a Malfoy, and therefore no relation to you!"

"Enough!" Lucius hissed silencing any retort from his sister-in-law. "You are in my house, Bella, Phoebe and her friends have been brought to my house, and it is therefore upon my authority -"

"Your authority!" Bellatrix sneered. "You lost your authority when you lost your wand, Lucius!"

"This is nothing to with you; you did not capture the elemental and her friends -"

"The elemental?" Bellatrix sneered. "Funny, I was under the impression that you cared about her!"

Lucius sneered in retort while Phoebe blinked in confusion. Was that possible? Was it possible that her father actually cared about her?

"Begging your pardon, Mr. Malfoy," interjected Greyback, "but it's us that caught them, and it's us that'll be claiming the gold -"

"Gold!" laughed Bellatrix, spinning around. "Take your gold, filthy scavenger, what do I want with gold? I seek only the honor of his - of -" She stopped, her dark eyes fixed upon the sword of Gryffindor. "What is that?" she whispered.

"Sword," grunted the Snatcher that Phoebe had hit in the head with a boulder.

"Give it to me."

"It's not yorn, missus, it's mine, I reckon I found it."

There was a bang as Bellatrix drew her wand. She fired a Stunner at the Snatcher. There was a roar of anger from his fellows and Scabior drew his wand.

"What d'you think you're playing at, woman?"

"_Stupefy!"_ Bellatrix screamed. "_Stupefy_!"

They were no match for her, even though they outnumbered her: four to one. She was a witch with prodigious skill and no conscience. They fell where they stood, all except Greyback, who had been forced into a kneeling position, his arms outstretched. Bellatrix held the sword of Gryffindor tightly as she bore down upon him, menacingly.

"Where did you get this sword?" she whispered.

"How dare you?" he snarled. His mouth was the only thing he could move, as he was forced to look up at her. "Release me, woman!"

"Where did you find this sword?" she repeated, brandishing it in his face. "Snape sent it to my vault in Gringotts!"

"It was in their tent," rasped Greyback. "Release me, I say!"

She waved her wand, and the werewolf sprang to his feet, but appeared to wary to approach her. He prowled behind an armchair, his filthy curved nails clutching its back.

"Draco, move this scum outside," said Bellatrix indicating to the unconscious men. "If you haven't got the guts to finish them, then leave them in the courtyard for me."

"Don't you dare speak to Draco like -" said Narcissa furiously, but Bellatrix screamed.

"Be quiet! The situation is graver than you can possibly imagine, Cissy! We have a very serious problem!"

"Mind your tongue, Bellatrix," Phoebe warned. "Do not speak ill of the person who houses you. You may be the older sibling but that does not make your word law!"

Bellatrix swiped her wand through the air for a second time, and Phoebe felt another warm lash across her cheek. "Do not speak unless spoken too," she snarled. "If it is indeed Potter, he must not be harmed," she muttered, walking away from Phoebe and pacing the room. "The Dark Lord wishes to dispose of Potter himself... but if he finds out... I must... I must know..."

Phoebe eyed her aunt warily. What was she talking about?

"The prisoners must be placed in the cellar, while I think what to do!"

"This is my house, Bella, you don't give orders in my -"

"Do it! You have no idea of the danger we are in!" shrieked Bellatrix. She looked frightening, mad; a thin stream of fire issued from her wand and burned a hole in the carpet.

Narcissa hesitated for a moment, and then addressed the werewolf.

"Take these prisoners down to the cellar, Greyback, all except -"

"The Mudblood!" said Bellatrix. "Take them all except the Mudblood... and the little girl."

Phoebe clutched Faye closer to her. "Touch her and I'll -" she started.

"You'll what?" Bellatrix asked. "Blast me with a torrent of air? Drop a boulder on me? Drown -" she cut off as she choked, something bubbled out of her mouth and spilled down her chin, it was crimson red liquid. She felt weak, but she managed to deliver another sharp blow to Phoebe's face; the elemental lost her concentration, and Bellatrix slumped to her stomach.

"Take them downstairs, Greyback," Narcissa ordered. "Draco, take Phoebe upstairs!"

Draco nodded and grabbed Phoebe by the shoulders, he helped her to her feet and led her from the room; she still held Faye close to her. The last thing the elemental saw was Bellatrix cutting Hermione's ropes, while Ron, Harry, Dean and Griphook were led away by Greyback.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Draco opened the door to his bedroom and led Phoebe inside. She sat on the edge of his bed and looked up at him, a small smile of relief curved its way onto her lips and she threw one arm around him, hugging him.

"I'm glad you're OK," she said.

"And me," Draco nodded hugging her back. "I'm sorry, Phoebe, you have to believe me, I never wanted for any of this to happen. I just wanted -"

"Why didn't you take Dumbledore's protection?"

"I tried," Draco said. "Bellatrix and the others arrived before I had a chance. I really tried, Phoebe. Snape killed Dumbledore and then I was running... I could hear you calling my name, I wanted to stop, I wanted to tell you I was sorry, but Snape -"

Phoebe nodded and hugged him tighter. "I know," she said. "He told me. He told me that you were safe... but I have had to pretend he was the enemy for the last year and a half; you have no idea how tiring it is to hide the truth! Harry's... he's stubborn, and he makes it impossible to protect him."

"You were at Godric's Hollow?" Draco asked. "And Lovegood's..."

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "Nagini nearly killed us at Godric's Hollow, and Flint and Oliver nearly caught us at Luna's. Draco, tell me it's a dream, is Oliver Wood really a Death Eater?"

"I'm afraid so, Phoebe," Draco nodded. "He wants revenge."

"Revenge? On who?"

"Higgs,"

"Terence?"

Draco nodded.

"Why?"

"Can't you guess?"

Phoebe sighed and lowered her head. "Me."

"Wood is under the impression that Higgs brainwashed you or something," Draco explained, "he believes that you are being manipulated to love Higgs, he thinks that if he can kill Higgs then the spell will be broken and you will return to him!"

"That's ridiculous!"

"I agree," Draco nodded. "But the Dark Lord has promised him your hand if he captures you and brings you here. Wood will do anything to win... you know that!"

Phoebe sighed. That was true. Oliver was a natural competitor. He loved to win, the years at Hogwarts, training for Quidditch and trying to win the Quidditch Cup was proof enough of that. "What do we do?" she asked. "I have to get out of here! I have to get Faye, and Harry, and Ron, and Hermione, and - Draco! My grandparents, are they still here?"

"Yes, they are in the cellar," Draco confirmed.

"How are they?"

"Your father has been beaten and tortured," Draco answered. "Your grandmother is a value to the Dark Lord, her ability to see the future... it is -"

"Draco, you have three - four - four elementals in the house," said Phoebe. "We can overthrow Bellatrix and get out!"

"Four?"

"Father is an elemental," said Phoebe. "He gave me my water powers!"

Draco stared at her with wide eyes. Did she honestly just say that? He shook his head. "But what can we do?" he asked. "We can't overthrow her..."

"Why not?"

"She's two powerful!"

"She doesn't control elements, Draco," said Phoebe, excitedly. "I have to get to the cellar. Can you take me?"

Draco hesitated. "If we're caught -"

"We won't get caught," Phoebe said, shaking her head.

"- we're dead -"

"We're not going to get caught," Phoebe persisted.

"- then you won't be able to save Potter or this child - what's her name, by the way?" he asked, looking at Faye.

"Her name is Faye," said Phoebe. "Faye, meet my brother Draco."

Faye smiled warily. She knew that Phoebe trusted this man in front of her, and while she trusted Phoebe, she trusted no one else. She just hoped Phoebe knew what she was doing.

Draco sighed and nodded. "OK. I'll take you down to the cellar," he nodded, "but we must go now!"

"Let's go!"

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Will Phoebe overthrow Bellatrix? And who escapes Malfoy Manor? Keep reading to find out! I have decided to try and break this chapter up into as many pieces as I possibly can, mostly because it alternates slightly to the original chapter in the book.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated 10 January, 2013 at 12:47am**


	180. Chapter 180

**Author's Note:** As I am primarily concentrating on two stories of mine at a time, I will now be trying to update this chapter every Saturday and Sunday. So keep an eye out for another update tomorrow.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following:** Chinaluv, Fan of Fics, KingdomHeartsNerd, Evanescencefan97, Dream Lighting, SoulVirus,** **Malfoy's Ferret** (who's review I enjoyed very much, by the way.) and anonymous reviewer **Flint91.**

**Shout Outs:** Just wanted to say thank you too: **Mickieskids** and** Malfoy's Ferret** for adding this story and/or me to their favourite alerts. Appreciate it mates.

Appreciate those who reviewed... keep 'em coming guys. Not long now until the end of the story.

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><p>"What do you think is happening?" Luna asked. She was looking upwards towards the ceiling, but not looking <em>at<em> the ceiling, she was, more or less, trying to see _through_ the ceiling to where a series of bangs, loud crashes and yells could be heard. The crashes were followed by a series of yells and a full-bodied shake of the entire manor.

Elena gasped. "Serefina..." she whispered, hoping beyond hope that her daughter was not upstairs. "Jacob, did you feel that?" she asked her husband. He was supporting fresh bruises from his last attempt to fight off Voldemort who had come to use his wife's seeing abilities. Voldemort had vowed that he would soon break the fire elemental into submission, but Jacob was strong and defiant.

"I did, Elena," Jacob nodded. "But for it to be her..."

He shook his head.

"She is the only person I know that is strong enough, Jacob," said Elena. "Phoebe does not control Earth and Aiden... why would Aiden be here? Lucius has not seen him in seventeen years; he does not care about his children!"

Jacob took his wife's hand and traced his thumb over the back of it soothingly. "Relax my dear, Elena," he whispered. "Our children are fine. Whoever is upstairs will be brought down here eventually, we will figure a way out of here to save them, and you must have faith."

"My faith is slowly dying, Jacob," Elena admitted. "We have been here far too long for me to believe in a savior for much longer."

The heavy Iron Gate at the far end of the cellar crashed open and four people were shoved inside. The gate slammed with a heavy clang and seconds later a blood-curdling scream was heard from upstairs.

Luna, who was sitting alongside Ollivander, shrieked in fear and grabbed her head with her hands. The scream definitely belonged to a woman and it was uncomfortable to have to sit through it; most who had been in the cellar had grown accustom to the screams and had the advantage of being able to block them out, but Luna, who had been put through the torture curse countless times still reacted horribly to the new screams that came from upstairs.

"Shh, child," Elena cooed, taking Luna's hand and guiding her across the cellar. She sat the small blonde down on the stone seat beside her and easily wrapped her arms around Luna's shoulders. She was shaking terribly. "It'll be over soon. Shh..."

"I can't -" Luna sobbed. "I can't t-take it! I w-w-want to g-go h-home!"

"I know," Elena nodded, rocking the blonde. "You'll be home soon!"

Jacob sighed and kissed the side of his wife's head. He knew she was terrified, and thought of home frequently, but the idea of being scared in front of a child such as Luna was something that she refused to show. Fear in front of a child had always been viewed as a weakness for the Blackhearts; they were allowed to show fear, but never in front of a child. Luna may have been seventeen, but she was still a child.

Getting to his feet, Jacob moved away from his wife, and peered down to the main part of the cellar. He could see four people struggling against the binds that held them; one was shouting his head off. Jacob recognized the voice and the name he was calling.

"HERMIONE!" Ron bellowed. He was shaking and withering against the ropes that held his wrists together. "HERMIONE!"

"Be quiet!" Harry said. "Shut up, Ron, we need to work out a way -"

"HERMIONE! HERMIONE!"

"Shouting will not work, boy," said Jacob startling the new comers. "This place is protected by enchantments. We can hear everything upstairs," he added moving closer, "but they cannot hear us."

"Well that is stupid!" Ron snarled. "HERMIONE! HERMIONE!"

"Save your energy," instructed Jacob.

Ron stopped shouting.

"Potter," said Jacob with a small nod in Harry's direction.

"Mr. Blackheart, sir!" Harry said.

Jacob nodded. "Elena, bring the nail," he said over his shoulder. "We have some friends that need releasing."

There was a split second pause before a shadow started to move towards them. The closer the shadow got, the more clearly Harry could see that it was Phoebe's grandmother, Elena Blackheart. "Mrs. Blackheart, ma'am!" he said. He was not thoroughly surprised that they were down here, hadn't Phoebe already said that her grandparents had been taken hostage?

"Oh, Harry, dear," Elena sighed as she handed her husband the nail, which he used to free Ron, Dean and Griphook. "How did you manage to get caught? You are supposed to be on the run! How did you end up here? Where is Phoebe? Is she with you? Is she safe?"

The questions were endless and Harry could only assume it was from being trapped for over a year.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe could feel Faye shaking.

She was shaking because of the terrible screaming that was coming from the drawing room on the main floor. It was blood-curdling and the toddler knew that if Phoebe had not intervened then there was a chance that the screaming would have been hers, although she did feel worried for Hermione; the bookworm had been really nice since she had joined their little group.

"I'm going to ask you again! Where did you get this sword! _Where_?"

"We found it - we found it - PLEASE!"

Hermione screamed again; Faye whimpered again and it took all manner of self-control of Phoebe to not burst into the room. If she burst in now then the plan would be for nothing, Draco would be tortured for treason, Faye would more than likely have been killed and she would have been held captive while the Dark Lord was summoned.

"It's OK, Faye," Phoebe murmured as she crept down the last flight of stairs. "It's going to be alright!"

"Phoebe, you should know," said Draco. "The cellar is protected. There have been enchantments put in place in order to see that no one Apparates in or out. When we get to Potter and the others, what do you plan on doing?"

Phoebe smiled. "Way ahead of you, Dragon," she said. "I know three people who can Apparate in and out of here without a problem and no, I do not mean Elementals."

Draco frowned. "Then who?" he asked.

"You know one," said Phoebe. "He would have looked after you a lot growing up!"

"Dobby!" Draco gasped.

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. Kreacher and Winky would also be willing to help, Winky more than Kreacher but he tends to listen to me more than Harry and James, what do you expect?" she shrugged. "I don't treat him like trash!"

Draco smiled, wearily.

"The only problem I see with the plan, at the moment," Phoebe said quickly, "is that I need to get Mother and Father's attention. I cannot fill them in on what is happening while they are in the drawing room, plus I will need father's help. Grandmama and Grandpapa are going to be too weak to do any extensive damage, but Father will be stronger."

"What of Mother?"

"I will need her help in distracting Bellatrix," said Phoebe. "I just hope they are not hurt when we escape."

"What of me?" Draco asked, miss-understanding what she had said.

Phoebe frowned and caught his hand. "You'll be coming with me," she nodded. "Right? I include you in the 'we', Draco; I am not leaving you here! I lost you once; I will not lose you again!"

By now they were standing outside the drawing room. Hermione's screams were louder down here.

"Just say my name, Hermione," Phoebe whispered. "Tell Bellatrix that it was I who found the sword! Let her come for me!"

"You are lying, filthy Mudblood, and I know it! You have been inside my vault at Gringotts! Tell the truth, _tell the truth_!"

Hermione screamed another terrible scream -

"What else did you take? What else have you got? Tell me the truth or, I swear, I shall run you through with his knife!"

"I didn't take anything..." Hermione cried.

Phoebe felt her heart break. "Hermione," she whispered. "Say my name..."

It was like she had connected with the bookworm somehow, for seconds later Hermione was crying the elementals name.

"That wretched traitor cannot help you now!" Bellatrix snarled. "Tell me what you took from my vault!"

"Nothing -"

"_LIAR!"_

Faye whimpered and clung even tighter to Phoebe. "I wanna go home! I wanna go home!" she whined. "Phoebe, taked me home!"

"I will," Phoebe nodded, cuddling Faye closer. "I will! I will!"

"Now?"

Phoebe smiled and kissed Faye's forehead. "I will," she promised. "We'll go home soon!"

"Come on," said Draco. He took Phoebe by the hand and led her towards a set of steep stone steps, leading downwards.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ron was now trying to Disapparate without a wand.

"There's no way out, Ron," said Jacob, watching his fruitless efforts. "The cellar is completely escape-proof. I have tried everything."

Hermione was screaming again. The sound went through Harry like physical pain. Barely conscious of the fierce prickling of his scar, he too started to run around the cellar, feeling the walls for he hardly knew what, knowing in his heart that it was useless.

"What did you take, what else? ANSWER ME! _CRUCIO!"_

Hermione's screams echoed off the walls upstairs, Ron was half sobbing as pounded the walls with his fists, and Harry in utter desperation seized Hagrid's pouch from around his neck and groped around inside it. He pulled out the broken shard of glass that was the remains of Sirius's old two-way mirror, inside of which he saw a gleam of brightest blue -

Dumbledore's eye was gazing at him out of the mirror.

"Help us!" he yelled at it in mad desperation. "We're in the cellar at Malfoy Manor, help us!"

The eye blinked and was gone.

Upstairs Hermione screamed worse than ever, while Ron bellowed loudly from beside him. "HERMIONE! HERMIONE!"

"How did you get into my vault?" Bellatrix screamed. "Did that dirty little goblin in the cellar help you?"

"We only met him tonight!" Hermione sobbed. "We've never been inside your vault... It isn't even the real sword! It's a copy, just a copy!"

"A copy?" screeched Bellatrix. "Oh, a likely story!"

"But we can find out easily!" came Lucius's voice. "Dingle -" there was a _crack_ from upstairs, and Lucius's voice sounded once more. "Fetch me Draco from upstairs."

Another _crack_ followed by the sound of footsteps at the top of the stairs. The footsteps scuttled down the stone steps.

"Griphook," said Harry, dashing across the cellar to where Griphook was huddled on the floor, "you must tell them that the sword's a fake, they mustn't know it's the real one, Griphook, please -"

He could hear someone at the iron gates. Voices barely above whispers argued as they reached for the lock.

"_Alohomora_ won't work!"

"Do you have a better idea?"

"Phoebe, I am telling you it _won't_ work!"

"We don't_ have_ any other spells, Draco!"

"Phoebe?" Harry asked, coming back to the gate. "Phoebe, what are you doing?"

"Saving you, of course," Phoebe smiled. "All we have to do now is open the door!"

"_Phoebe,"_ whispered a voice.

Phoebe froze as a shadow grew closer to the Iron Gate, she smiled, however when saw it was her grandfather. "_Papa,"_ she whispered. "_Papa, you and Mama? You are alright?"_

Jacob nodded.

"_Papa, how do we get you out?"_

"_There is a spell,"_ said Jacob. "_It is similar to _Alohomora_. Say _'Abrir'_ it means unlock._"

Phoebe nodded and turned to Draco. "Can I borrow your wand?" she asked. "It may not work, but I need to at least try, unless you want to try your hand at speaking Portuguese?"

Draco quickly handed over his wand.

"Thanks," Phoebe said. She tapped the lock on the Iron Gate and muttered, "_Abrir_!"

There was a grinding sound and next second the Iron Gate swung open and at the same moment a loud _crack_ echoed inside the cellar.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Where is Draco?" screeched Bellatrix. "Dingle! Dingle, you useless excuse for a house elf!" she screamed but Dingle never returned. "Cissy, bring me your traitorous daughter and wretched son at once!"

"Do not speak to me -" Narcissa started.

"JUST DO AS YOU ARE TOLD, NARCISSA!" Bellatrix yelled. "I wish for answers... and I wish for answers NOW!"

Narcissa huffed and walked out of the room. She had a faint idea on what was keeping Dingle, and no it had nothing to do with the fact that Draco refused to leave Phoebe, he had been so terrified over the past year, awaiting word that would tell him if Phoebe was dead or alive, now that he had proof that she was, Narcissa knew that he was going to do whatever it was he could to keep it that way.

Wandering away from the drawing room, Narcissa climbed down the stone steps that led to the cellar, she approached the doors just in time to see two houses elves, one of which she recognized as Dobby, Disapparate from the stone room.

"It would seem the cellar is the place for the reunion, is it not?" Narcissa asked pushing open the Iron Gate and stepping inside. She held her hands up in defence when Jacob leveled her with a glare. "I'm not here to harm," she reassured, "simply questioning the motives behind this little search and rescue. Do you really think you can escape Bellatrix, Phoebe?"

"No," said Phoebe, honestly. "No, I don't, but I do know that I can overthrow her. She thinks that she is the ultimate force of power in this house, and that her word is law! What she doesn't realize is that there are several beings present that are so much more powerful than she! Together we have the power to overtake her! You saw what I did to her when she threatened Faye! I can do it again."

"What exactly _did_ you do to her?" Draco asked.

Phoebe looked from her mother to her brother. "Recently, I have learned that an elemental of water can, if they are strong enough, control blood in someone's body. I was reading about it in one of the books I had borrowed from Blackheart manor. An elemental has to be in sync with her emotions, her magical core _and_ her elemental core in order to control something that one cannot see."

"And you did that?"

"Yes," Phoebe nodded. "When Bellatrix threatened Faye my emotions went into overdrive, I had to protect her, my magical and elemental core sensed my protective streak and merged giving me the power to eliminate, or at the very least, attempt to eliminate, the threat that was causing my emotional overload."

"Are you sure you can do it again?" Narcissa asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "I can try," she said. "But first I have to get everyone out. Mother, I know you follow Bellatrix's ord -"

"She is no longer my sister, Phoebe," said Narcissa. "My sister has always had a thing for purity and power... but she has not always been this evil and bloodthirsty. I shall help you in every way I can."

Phoebe smiled. "Thank you," she nodded, "but what about Father?"

"He'll want to help too," Narcissa promised. "He wants to earn your forgiveness for giving you away when you were born; you have to understand that it was not something he wanted to do! You were in danger! You were a very special baby and we did not want harm to befall you! _Serefina -_" she seemed to spit the name as if it were poison, "was our only option for someone of your talents."

"I understand," Phoebe nodded. "But now we must execute this plan... we do not have much time!"

As if to prove her point, Bellatrix screeched from upstairs. "CISSY! CISSY, WHERE ARE YOU? BRING ME YOUR WRETCHED CHILDREN IMMEDIATELY!"

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** The actual escape will be next chapter.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday 12 January, 2013 at 09:58pm**


	181. Chapter 181

**Author's Note:** Final update for this week. If you don't like change from the original canon (which would be strange considering that is all this story represents) then you won't like this chapter. As for me? I am very fond of it!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv, Dream Lighting, Malfoy's Ferret, SoulVirus** and** Fan of Fics**.**  
><strong>

**Shout Outs: **N/A

This is a quick reply to **Fan of Fics** (and anyone else who wondered why Dingle the House Elf didn't return from upstairs). Dingle didn't return because his orders were simply to fetch Draco... I guess that could be interpreted in several different ways, but the way I meant for it to be was he would pass the message on to Draco and then return to the kitchen. Dingle is safe. Don't worry. =)

Appreciate those who reviewed... keep 'em coming guys. Not long now until the end of the story.

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><p>"Wormtail - Wormtail, go down to the cellar and bring us the goblin Griphook!" Lucius ordered. "I will find Narcissa!"<p>

Footsteps crossed the room overhead, and then there was silence.

Harry turned to Phoebe and Ron. "We're going to have to try and tackle him," he whispered.

"Are you sure we can?" Ron asked.

"We have too," said Phoebe. "The moment he walks in and sees that there are prisoners missing..." she trailed off and shook her head, everyone within the room knew what Wormtail would do next. He would scurry back up to the drawing room and tell Bellatrix of what he had found.

Narcissa quickly returned to the steps. "I shall go and find Lucius," she said. "I will tell him of your plan, Phoebe."

Phoebe nodded and watched her mother leave the cellar. She then turned to Draco. "You should go too," she told him.

"No," Draco said, shaking his head. "I'm with you all the way!"

Phoebe smiled and squeezed his hand. "Winky!" she called.

There was a _crack_ and Winky the house-elf reappeared. "Winky, can you take my grandparents to Shell Cottage, please?" she asked. "Grandmama, Grandpapa, please take Faye." She handed over the toddler to her grandmother. Faye wriggled slightly and reached out for Phoebe with her little arms. "I'll be right behind you, Faye, I promise!"

"Phe -"

"Go!" said Phoebe. "Go! Now!"

Winky took Jacob and Elena's hands and disappeared with a _crack_.

"Leave the lights on," Harry instructed Ron as they heard someone descending the steps outside the door. They each fell back against the wall, Harry and Ron on either side of the gate, as Phoebe and Draco fell against the back wall.

"Stand back," came Wormtail's voice. "Stand away from the door. I am coming in."

The door flew open. For a split second Wormtail gazed into the apparently empty cellar; ablaze with light from the three miniature suns floating in midair. Then Harry and Ron launched themselves upon him. Ron seized Wormtail's wand arm and forced it upward; Harry slapped a hand to his mouth, muffling the voice. Silently they struggled. Wormtail's wand emitted sparks, his silver hand closed around Harry's throat.

Phoebe threw out her hand. But nothing happened.

"Damnit!" she cursed.

"What happened?" Draco asked.

"The protective enchantments are cutting off her elemental powers," came a voice from the door.

Draco and Phoebe jumped and looked up to see Lucius Malfoy standing in the gateway, Narcissa was behind him.

"We had to include elemental enchantments on the cellar," said Narcissa. "We had to keep your grandparents from escaping."

"Then i'm powerless down here!" Phoebe said. "And Bellatrix has my wand!"

"Bellatrix _had_ your wand," said Lucius. He tossed a wand in Phoebe's direction. The second she caught it a gust of wind blew around the room.

Phoebe grinned and nodded at Lucius. "Thank you," she said, pointing at Wormtail. "_Congelar_!" she commanded. Draco frowned as Wormtail ceased moving and toppled over, face first onto the floor. "_Congelar_, it means freeze," Phoebe educated her brother.

"Oh," Draco nodded as Harry and Ron picked themselves up from the floor. "Now what do we do with him?"

"Can't we turn him over for the help in murdering my parents?" Harry asked.

"It won't work anymore, Harry," said Phoebe. "Ever since You-Know-Who returned, Wormtail's been invalid. I'm sorry."

Harry sighed. "Then what do we do?" he asked.

"Kill him?" Ron suggested. "He wouldn't think twice about doing it to us!"

"Are you going to cast the killing curse?" Phoebe asked.

Ron shook his head.

"I didn't think so!"

"Piece of filth!" Lucius sneered, pointing his own wand at the rat. "Never could do anything right! _Avada Kedvra_!"

There was a flash of green and Wormtail did not move. He did not breathe. He was dead.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Bellatrix seethed and rounded on Greyback. "Where the hell is everybody?" she snarled. She was holding her wand so tightly that red sparks ignited from the tip.

"You have Potter!" said Greyback. "Call him... end this now!"

"No," said Bellatrix. "If we are wrong -"

"We're not wrong!"

Bellatrix shot him a cold look. "You may wish to die, Greyback," she snapped. "But I wish to be sure..." she turned back to Hermione. "And I think we can dispose of the Mudblood. Greyback, take her if you want her."

The room instantly began to shake, knocking Greyback off balance and sending him tumbling into the fireplace. There was no fire inside, but that did not mean Greyback was not hurt.

Bellatrix looked around the room, shocked to see Phoebe standing in the doorway. Her eyes flashed cobalt blue and the necklace around her neck shone a vibrant yellow. The wand in her hand was pointed directly at her aunt and a bright red Stunner zoomed across the room.

"_Protego!"_ Bellatrix yelled.

A shield expanded from her wand, blocking out Phoebe's spell.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Ron roared, bursting into the room. He pointed Wormtail's wand at Bellatrix, and hers flew into the air and was caught by Harry, who had already sprinted after Ron.

"_Stupefy_!" Harry yelled and Greyback, who had made it out of the fireplace. He ducked and a statue on the mantelpiece exploded.

Greyback snarled and lunged for Harry.

"No!" Bellatrix yelled. "Leave the boy! The Dark Lord wishes to finish him off himself. Get the girl!" she pointed at Phoebe.

Phoebe swung her wand through the air. "_Aguamenti!_" she yelled and a jet of water collided with Greyback, knocking him backwards through the air. He collided with the bookcase and slumped, heavily, onto the floor.

"STOP OR SHE DIES!"

Wheeling about Phoebe looked towards Bellatrix. She was supporting Hermione, who seemed to be unconscious, and was holding her short silver knife to Hermione's throat.

"Drop your wands," Bellatrix whispered. "Drop them, or we'll see exactly how filthy her blood is!"

Ron stood rigid, clutching Wormtail's wand. Harry straightened up, still holding Bellatrix's wand and Phoebe lowered her own.

"I said, drop them!" Bellatrix screeched, pressing the blade into Hermione's throat. Phoebe saw beads of blood appear there.

"All right!" Phoebe said, and she dropped her wand onto the floor at her feet. Harry and Ron did the same. The three of them raised their hands to shoulder height.

"Good!" Bellatrix leered. "Lucius, restrain your daughter! She may not have her wand but she can still perform magic!"

Phoebe hissed as her father played the part and caught her hands. He pulled them behind her back and held them there firmly.

"Draco, pick up their wands," Bellatrix ordered. "And then we shall summon the Dark Lord. He shall be pleased that Potter has, at long last, been caught. Your death approaches, Potter!"

Phoebe saw Harry wince from across the room; and she knew he was doing his best to not give into Voldemort's mindful urges. She knew that he was on his way; it was only a matter of time. Time was all they needed... but it was the one thing that they did not have.

"Now," said Bellatrix softly, as Draco hurried back to his mother with their wands. He would keep them now. Bellatrix would not need hers, and neither would Wormtail, and Draco could give Phoebe's back to her as soon as they were safe from Malfoy Manor. "Cissy, I think we ought to tie these little heroes up again, while Greyback takes care of Miss. Mudblood. I am sure the Dark Lord will not begrudge him the girl after what he has done tonight."

She turned to Phoebe. "Wake him up!" she ordered.

"Go to hell," Phoebe spat.

Bellatrix pressed her silver knife against Hermione's throat. "_Wake him up_!" she growled.

"Or what?"

"She dies!"

Phoebe growled. "I'll need a wand," she said.

"You can use elemental magic," said Bellatrix.

"You really are clueless, aren't you, Bellatrix?" Phoebe snapped. "Or has no one told you that an elemental cannot _create_ the source they wish to control? We can only manipulate it!"

Bellatrix let out a yell of furious rage. She hated being outsmarted. "Fine! Draco, give the brat her wand back," she said. "But keep a close eye on her Lucius."

Phoebe took her wand from Draco and allowed her father to lead her across the room. She pointed her wand at Greyback and, aware that Bellatrix was watching her, started to say the spell.

There was a peculiar grinding noise from above. All of them looked upward in time to see the crystal chandelier tremble; then, with a creak and an ominous jingling, it began to fall. Bellatrix was directly beneath it, dropping Hermione; she threw herself aside with a scream.

The chandelier crashed to the floor, falling on top of Hermione and the sword of Gryffindor. Glittering shards of crystal flew in all directions; Draco doubled over, his hands covering his bloody face.

As Ron run to pull Hermione out of the wreckage, Harry took his chance. He leapt over an armchair and pretended to wrestle the two wands from Draco's grip, while Phoebe turned her own onto Bellatrix.

"_STUPEFY!_" she yelled.

Bellatrix ducked from the Stunner.

"Dobby?" Narcissa asked as her former House Elf appeared in front of her.

Dobby pointed a shaky finger at Bellatrix. "You must not harm Harry Potter," he squeaked.

"Kill him, Cissy!" shrieked Bellatrix, but there was another loud _crack_, and Winky appeared in front of Phoebe and Lucius. "Kill them! Kill them all! Filthy little monkey's! How dare you defy your masters!"

"Dobby and Winky have no master!" squealed Dobby. "Dobby and Winky are free elves, and Dobby and Winky have come to save their friends!"

"Ron, catch - and GO!" Harry yelled, throwing Wormtail's wand at the red head.

Ron caught the wand and, with Hermione's body pulled close to him, he held his hand out to Winky, who, by Phoebe, had been instructed take them to the place she had just come from.

Phoebe caught Draco's eye and nodded.

Draco hesitated but held his hand out to his mother nonetheless. He then turned on the spot and Disapparated.

Bellatrix roared with anger. "YOU'VE TURNED HER AGIANST ME!" she shouted, pointing her knife at Phoebe. "YOU'VE TURNED CISSY AGAINST ME!"

"You turned her against yourself!" Phoebe retorted. "Harry, go!" she added, as she saw Harry grab the sword of Gryffindor.

She turned to her father, grabbed his arm and the two Disapparated with a loud _crack_.

Harry seized Dobby's hand and spun on the spot to Disapparate.

"NO!" Bellatrix yelled throwing her silver knife in the direction Harry was vanishing. It glittered brightly in the dimly lit drawing room and disappeared through the wisp of black smoke that had carried Harry Potter from her home.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** See you next weekend.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday 13th January, 2013 at 08:33pm**


	182. Chapter 182

**Author's Note:** Essays update: One down. Two to go.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Dream Lightning, SoulVirus, Alaina08, KingdomHeartsNerd, Malfoy's Ferret, Chinaluv, Miracleshappen94** and** Fan of Fics**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to** ilovemuffins **for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p><em>Shell Cottage... Shell Cottage... Shell Cottage...<em>

She had disappeared into the unknown; all she could do was repeat the name of the destination and hope that it would suffice to take her there. She could feel the pressure of her father's hand on her wrist.

And then they hit solid earth and smelled salty air. Phoebe fell to her knees, relinquished her father's hand, and looked around through the darkness. There seemed to be a cottage a short way away under the wide starry sky, and she thought she saw movement outside it.

"DOBBY!"

Phoebe whipped around.

Harry was kneeling a short distance away from her. He was staring at Dobby; the tiny elf swayed slightly, stars reflected in his wide, shining eyes. Together, Harry, Phoebe and Dobby looked down at the silver hilt of the knife protruding from the elf's heaving chest.

"Dobby - no - HELP!" Harry bellowed toward the cottage, toward the people moving there. "HELP!"

Dobby tilted forward and fell into Harry's arms.

"Dobby, no, don't die, don't die -"

The elf's eyes found him, and his lips trembled with the effort to form words.

"Harry... Potter..."

Phoebe crawled across the wet sat to her friend. She dug a hole in the wet sand, watching as it pooled with water from the sea that was soaked through it; she knew it was salt water, and fresh water was better and easier control, but she had to work with what she had available or Dobby was going to die.

The little elf was taking his last breath just as Phoebe lowered his hand into the small pool. His fingertips broke the surface as her entire hand was submerged. Her eyes flashed cobalt blue, as the necklace around her neck flashed a blue.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe awoke, blinking and looked around. She was in unfamiliar settings. The room she had woken in was light-colored, pretty, with a small fire of driftwood burning brightly in the fireplace. She shot up in her seat, a move that startled those around her. She was in a sitting room and took in those around her.

"Phoebe, you're awake!"

"Draco?" Phoebe whispered.

Her brother came into view, he was smiling - not smirking - actually smiling. Phoebe couldn't help but smile back.

"Welcome back," said Draco.

"How long was I asleep?"

"Only a couple of hours," said Narcissa as she sat on the edge of the sofa beside her daughter. She brushed a strand of hair from her face and smiled. "At least your fever has broken," she nodded.

Phoebe frowned. "Fever?" she asked.

"You contracted a fever," said Lucius, "it happens after we control salt water. Our powers are not made for salt water... at least not without a full moon."

"Oh," said Phoebe. "But Dobby -?"

"Is fine," Narcissa assured her.

"Thank Merlin," Phoebe sighed. "Where are we?"

"Shell Cottage," Narcissa answered. "Just as instructed."

Phoebe nodded slowly. Her head was hurting and it felt too heavy to hold up. She lay back into her pillow and looked around at her brother and parents. She then remembered her grandparents and Faye; she opened her mouth to ask for them when Draco interrupted.

"Faye is sleeping," he assured her. "Your grandparents are resting."

"What of the others?"

"They're all fine, Phoebe," promised Draco.

"I want to see them," said Phoebe. "I want to see Faye!"

Draco nodded, stood up and walked to the door. "I'll bring you Faye," he said, looking back at her. "But you have to promise you'll rest."

"Yes, Dad," said Phoebe.

Draco scowled and left the room.

Phoebe giggled and looked back at her parents. They each wore a look of amusement. "It's nice to actually talk to him," she admitted, "without having to hide in empty classrooms or hallways - oh," she groaned in disgust, "that makes it sound really wrong! I suddenly feel violated!"

"We're sorry," Narcissa apologized.

"What for?" Phoebe asked.

"For making your relationship with Draco difficult," said Lucius. "If we hadn't given you -"

"You didn't have a choice!" interrupted Phoebe. "You-Know-Who was on the war path, gathering Dark Creatures and recruiting them to his side, if he had found out that you -" she looked at Lucius, "was an elemental he would have a lot more power; and if he had found out about me then..." she trailed off, shaking her head. "You did what was right... for everyone's sake."

Narcissa leaned forward and hugged her daughter. "I never stopped loving you," she said. "Every day I thought about you, about what I was missing."

"You didn't miss much," said Phoebe. "Unless you count the time when I turned Blackheart manor into an indoor swimming pool."

"I missed your first steps," said Narcissa, tearfully. "Your first word... I always wondered what it was..."

Phoebe lowered her gaze. Her first word had been 'Mama,' but it had been directed at Serefina. Narcissa, her mother, already hated Serefina, she didn't need to know that her only daughter's first word had been her title but directed at another woman. "I never asked Serefina," she said. "I never asked what my first word was; I was more enthralled with my abilities."

Narcissa nodded. She knew that Phoebe was holding back, but she didn't press the subject.

The door opened and Draco returned. He was carrying Faye. The toddler took one look at Phoebe, flung herself forward, and dived onto the bed. She scrambled up the covers and slid her arms around Phoebe's neck, burying her face into the crook of the elementals neck.

"You wake," said Faye. "You wake... me sacred you wouldn't."

"I'm OK, Faye," said Phoebe, kissing the toddler's hair. "I promised I would never leave you, right?"

Faye nodded. "Yes, but -"

Phoebe cut her off. "I always keep my promises," she said with a soft smile. "Now sleep!"

Faye blinked, tiredly. "OK," she yawned, snuggling down under the covers. She curled herself into a ball and rolled into Phoebe's side. "Sweet dreams, Phoebe..." she said quietly. Her breathing then evened out and she fell back to sleep.

"Now that's cute," said Draco.

"I didn't think you knew what cute was," Phoebe teased.

Draco threw a pillow at her. "You're annoying!" he said.

"Love you too, big brother."

**~*Phoebe*~**

"... lucky that Ginny's on holidays. If she'd been at Hogwarts, they could have taken her before we reached her. Now we know she's safe too."

"Where have you taken them?"

"To Muriel's," said Bill. "The Death Eaters know Ron's with you now, they're bound to target the family - don't apologize," he added at the sight of Harry's expression. "It was always a matter of time, Dad's been saying so for months. We're the biggest blood-traitor family there is."

"How are they protected?" asked Harry.

"Fidelius Charm, Dad's Secret-Keeper. And we've done it on this cottage too; I'm Secret-Keeper here. None of us can go to work, but that's hardly the most important thing now. Once Ollivander and Griphook are well enough, we'll move them to Muriel's too. There isn't much room here, but she's got plenty. Griphook's legs are on the mend, Fleur's given him Skele-Gro; we could probably move them in an hour or -"

"No," Harry said, and Bill looked startled. "I need both of them here. I need to talk to them It's important."

He heard the authority in his voice, the conviction, the sense of purpose.

"How's Phoebe?" Harry asked.

"She just needs rest," said Bill. "Her family - biological - is with her now. Why did you bring the Malfoy's here?" he added.

Ron shook his head. "We didn't," he said. "Phoebe did."

"Her father is an elemental," said Hermione, weakly. She had only just woken up and still felt incredibly weak from the torturing she had taken from Lestrange.

"And zat matters?" Fleur asked.

"Phoebe is an elemental," Hermione nodded. She knew that the Weasley knew this information and Dumbledore would have told Fleur before he died, right? "A powerful one. She got her powers from her father, at least, she got her water power from her father, her other powers come from her! If You-Know-Who has her father then he can use him to get to Phoebe."

Fleur nodded.

"I need to speak to Griphook and Ollivander." Harry said.

"No," said Fleur. "You will 'ave to wait, 'Arry. Zey are both ill, tired -"

"I'm sorry," he said without heat, "but it can't wait. I need to talk to them now. Privately - and separately, it's urgent."

"Harry, what the hell's going on?" asked Bill. "You turn up here with an injured house-elf and a half-conscious goblin, Hermione looks as though she's been tortured, and Ron's just refused to tell me anything -"

"We can't tell you what we're doing," said a voice.

Harry, Bill and Fleur looked to the top of the stairs to see Phoebe standing there. She was carrying Faye on her hip. "You're in the Order of the Phoenix, Bill; you know Dumbledore left us a mission. You also know we're not supposed to talk about it to anyone else."

Fleur made an impatient noise, but Bill did not look at her; he was staring at Phoebe. He always found it hard to read the elemental, the only person from his family who seemed to understand her, even just a little bit, had always been Charlie.

Finally Bill said, "All right. Who do you want to talk to first?"

Harry hesitated and glanced up at Phoebe. She shot him a look.

"Griphook," Harry said. "I'll speak to Griphook first."

Phoebe tilted her head up as Bill looked up at her. Harry caught the look and frowned between them.

"What was that?" he asked.

"What was what?" Phoebe asked. "Left or right, Bill?" she added.

"Left," said Bill. "Last door on the right."

"Your's and Fleur's room?"

Bill nodded.

"OK," said Phoebe. "Ron, Hermione, we'll need you too."

**~*Phoebe*~**

Phoebe set Faye down on the sofa under the window. The room had a beautiful view of the sea; it was now flecked with gold in the sunrise. Harry followed Phoebe towards the window, and waited, his arms folded as Phoebe curled up on the sofa with Faye. Hermione took the chair beside the dressing table; Ron sat on the arm.

Bill reappeared, carrying the little goblin, whom he set down carefully upon the bed. Griphook grunted thanks, and Bill left, closing the door upon them all.

"I'm sorry to take you out of bed," said Harry. "How are your legs?"

"Painful," replied the goblin. "But mending."

He was clutching the sword of Gryffindor, and wore a strange look: half truculent, half intrigued. Phoebe noted the goblin's sallow skin, his long fingers, and his black eyes. Fleur had removed his shoes. His long feet were dirty.

"You probably don't remember -" Harry began.

"- that I was the goblin who showed you to your vault, the first time you ever visited Gringotts?" said Griphook. "I remember, Harry Potter. Even amongst goblins, you are very famous."

Harry and the goblin looked at each other, sizing each other up.

"When you two have finished your staring contest," said Phoebe. "Can we get on with the second part of this conversation? We don't have a lot of time!"

"Right," said Harry, shaking his head. "Griphook, we need some help and you're the only one who can give it to us."

The goblin made no sign of encouragement, but continued to frown at Harry as though he had never seen anything like him.

"We need to break into a Gringotts vault."

"Harry -" said Hermione.

"Break into a Gringotts vault?" repeated Griphook. "It is impossible."

"Alone," Phoebe nodded. "But not with you."

"And it's been done before," added Ron.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "The same day I first met you, Griphook. My birthday, seven years ago."

"The vault in question was empty at the time," snapped the goblin. "Its protection was minimal."

"Well, the vault we need to get into isn't empty, and I'm guessing its protection will be pretty powerful," said Harry. "It belongs to Bellatrix Lestrange."

Hermione and Ron exchanged astonished looks.

"You have no chance," said Griphook flatly. "No chance at all. _If you seek beneath our floors, a treasure that was never yours -"_

_"Thief, you have been warned, beware_ - yeah, we know," said Phoebe. "But we're not trying to get ourselves any treasure. We're not trying to take anything for personal gain. Can you believe that?"

The goblin looked from Harry to Phoebe.

"If there was a witch or wizard of whom I would believe that they did not seek personal gain," said Griphook finally, "it would you and Harry Potter, Mrs. Blackheart. Goblins and elves are not used to the protection or the respect that you have shown this night. Not from wand-carriers."

"Wand-carriers," repeated Harry.

"The right to carry a wand," said Phoebe "has long been contested between wizards and goblins."

"Well, goblins can do magic without wands," said Ron.

"That is immaterial!" snapped Griphook. "Wizards refuse to share the secrets of wand-lore with other magical beings; they deny us the possibility of extending our powers!"

"Well, goblins won't share any of their magic either," said Ron. "You won't tell us how to make swords and armor -"

"What use is a sword when you have a wand?" snapped Phoebe.

Ron glared at her.

"Now if you're not going to ask a question that is relevant to the task at hand," Phoebe continued, her glare intensifying upon the red head. "Just sit there and shut up!"

Ron opened his mouth to retort. Harry cut him off.

"This isn't about wizards versus goblins or any other sort of magical creature -"

Griphook gave a nasty laugh.

"But it is it is about precisely that! As the Dark Lord grows ever more powerful, your race is set still more firmly above mine! Gringotts falls under Wizarding rule, house-elves are slaughtered, ad who amongst the wand-carriers protests"?

"We do!" said Hermione. "We protest! And I'm hunted quite as much as any goblin or elf, Griphook! I'm a Mudblood!"

"Don't call yourself -" Ron muttered.

"Why shouldn't I?" said Hermione. "Mudblood and proud."

"And i'm an elemental," said Phoebe. "I'm hunted for my power. My connections in foreign countries. I can turn the tables on this war in a single snap -" she snapped her fingers, "if the Dark Lord were to obtain me, not only would he have the power to overthrow the whole Wizarding world, but he could take over the _entire_ world with a simple snap of his fingers. Is that what you want?"

Griphook stared at her.

"Do you want to be even further down the food chain, Griphook?" Phoebe repeated.

"No!" Griphook growled.

Harry looked between the elemental and the goblin. They were locked in a staring contest, and Harry knew, from experience that Griphook was going to lose.

"Then help us!" Phoebe said. "The only way we can win this war is if you help us!"

The goblin gazed at Phoebe with the same curiosity he had shown Harry.

"What do you seek within the Lestrange's' vault?" he asked abruptly. "The sword that lies inside it is a fake. This -" he indicated to the sword on the wall beside Harry, "is the real one. I think you know this already."

"But the fake sword isn't the only thing in that vault, is it?" asked Harry. "Perhaps you've seen other things in there?"

The goblin twisted his beard around his finger again.

"It is against our code to speak of the secrets of Gringotts. We are the guardians of fabulous treasures. We have a duty to the objects placed in our care, which were, so often, wrought by our fingers."

The goblin stroked the sword, and his black eyes roved from Harry to Phoebe to Hermione to Ron and then back again.

"So young," he said finally, "to be fighting so many."

"Will you help us?" said Harry. "We haven't got a hope of breaking in within a goblin's help. You're our one chance."

"I shall... think about it," said Griphook maddeningly.

"But -" Ron started angrily; Hermione nudged him in the ribs.

"Thank you," said Harry.

The goblin bowed his great domed head in acknowledgement, and then flexed his short legs. "I think," he said, settling himself ostentatiously upon Bill and Fleur's bed, "that the Skele-Gro has finished its work. I may be able to sleep at last. Forgive me..."

"Yeah, of course," said Harry, but before leaving the room he leaned forward and took the sword of Gryffindor from beside the goblin. Griphook did not protest, but Phoebe thought she saw resentment in the goblin's eyes as she closed the door upon him.

"Little git," whispered Ron. "He's enjoying keeping us hanging."

"Harry," whispered Hermione, "are you saying what I think you're saying? Are you saying there's a Horcrux in the Lestrange's' vault?"

"Yes," said Harry. "Bellatrix was terrified when she thought we'd been in there, she was beside herself. Why? What did she think we'd seen, what else did she think we might have taken? Something she was petrified You-Know-Who would find out about."

"But I thought we were looking for places You-Know-Who's been, places he's done something important?" said Ron, looking baffled. "Was he ever inside the Lestrange's' vault?"

"I don't know whether he was ever inside Gringotts," said Harry. "He never had gold there when he was younger, because nobody left him anything. He would have seen the bank from the outside, though, the first time he ever went to Diagon Alley."

"He would have envied anyone who had a key to a Gringotts vault," said Phoebe. "He would have seen it as a real symbol of belonging to the Wizarding world. And don't forget, he trusts Bellatrix and her husband. They were and still are his most devoted Death Eaters, and they went looking for him after he fell and vanished."

Harry nodded. "He said it himself," he agreed, "the night he came back. I heard him."

Phoebe eyed Harry curiously as he rubbed his scar.

"I didn't think he'd have told Bellatrix it was a Horcrux, though. He never told Lucius Malfoy the truth about the diary. He probably told her it was a treasured possession and asked her to place it in her vault. The safest place in the world for anything you want to hide, Hagrid told me... except for Hogwarts!"

"You really understand him?" Ron asked.

"Bits of him," said Harry. "Bits... I just wish I'd understood Dumbledore as much. But we'll see. Come on - Ollivander now."

Ron, Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks and followed Harry across the landing. Harry knocked upon the door opposite Bill and Fleur's. A weak, "Come in!" answered them.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The wandmaker was lying on the twin bed farthest from the window. He had been held in the cellar for more than a year, and tortured. Phoebe could tell it had happened on more than one occasion.

On the bed nearest the door lay Elena Blackheart, and the bed on the opposite side of the room was Jacob Blackheart, he, just like Ollivander, had been subjected to torture, but he looked a lot better than the wandmaker did.

"_Phoebe,_" Elena smiled as she saw her granddaughter. She brushed a stray strand of hair from her face as she sat down. "_Why are you in here, little star?_"

"_We've come to talk to Ollivander, Grandmama,"_ said Phoebe.

"_Can it not wait?_" asked Jacob.

Phoebe smiled sadly and shook her head. "_No, Papa,"_ she said. "_I'm afraid it cannot."_

"_Would you like us to leave?_" Elena asked.

"_No! No, you need to rest,_" said Phoebe, shaking her head. "_Besides, you know what this meeting is about. You know what to expect. Please, stay._"

Elena nodded and glanced across at her husband. The look was a silent message to him; he was not to say a word while Harry talked to Ollivander. Not because he couldn't be trusted, even though he had a tendency to speak his mind regardless, but because he could easily had dropped Phoebe into more trouble if he were to speak up now.

Ollivander was emaciated; the bones of his face were sticking out against the yellowish skin. His great silver eyes seemed vast in their sunken sockets. The hands that lay upon the blanket could have belonged to a skeleton.

Jacob stood from his bed and moved across the room to where Elena's bed. He sat down beside his wife and wrapped an arm around her shoulders; Phoebe sat at the foot of their bed. Faye was still cuddled in her arms.

Harry, Ron and Hermione sat on Jacob's bed, facing Ollivander. The rising sun was not visible here. The room faced a cliff-top garden.

"Mr. Ollivander, I'm sorry to disturb you," Harry said.

"My dear boy." Ollivanders voice was feeble. "You rescued us. I thought we would die in that place. I can never thank you... _never_ thank you... enough."

"We were glad to do it," said Phoebe.

Harry groped around in the pouch in his neck and took out the two halves of his broken wand.

"Mr. Ollivander, I need some help."

"Anything. Anything," said the wandmaker weakly.

"Can you mend this? Is it possible?"

Ollivander held out a trembling hand, and Harry placed the two barely connected halves into his palm.

"Holly and phoenix feather," said Ollivander. "Eleven inches. Nice and supple."

"Yes," said Harry. "Can you -?"

"No," whispered Ollivander. "I am sorry, very sorry, but a wand cannot be repaired by any means that I know of."

Harry nodded. He had braced himself for this answer, but that didn't mean it didn't come with a serious blow.

Phoebe watched as he put the wand halves away and turned to her. She nodded and pulled out the two wands that Draco had picked up back at Malfoy Manor. "Can you identify these?" she asked.

The wandmaker took the first of the wands and held it close to his faded eyes, rolling it between his knobble-knuckled fingers, flexing it slightly.

"Walnut and dragon heartstring," he said. "Twelve-and-three-quarter inches. Unyielding. This wand belongs to Bellatrix Lestrange."

"And this one?"

Ollivander performed the same examination.

"Beech and Unicorn hair. Ten inches precisely. Reasonably springy. This was the wand of Fenrir Greyback."

"Was?" repeated Harry. "Isn't it still his?"

"Perhaps not. If you took it -"

"-I did -"

"- then it may be yours. Of course, the manner of taking matters. Much also depends upon the wand itself. In general, however, where a wand has been won, its allegiance will change."

There was silence in the room.

"You talk about wands like they've got feelings," said Harry, "like they can think for themselves."

"The wand chooses the wizard," said Ollivander. "That much has always been clear to those of us who have studied wandlore."

"A person can still use a wand that hasn't chosen them, though?" said Harry.

"Oh yes, if you are any wizard at all you will be able to channel your magic through almost any instrument. The best results, however, must always come where there is the strongest affinity between wizard and wand. These connections are complex. An initial attraction, and then a mutual quest for experience, the wand learning from the wizard, the wizard from the wand."

Phoebe blinked and shook her head.

"So, because Harry took this wand from Greyback," she said, "does that mean he can use it safely?"

"I think so. Subtle laws govern wand ownership, but the conquered wand will usually bend its will to its new master."

"So I should use this one?" said Ron, pulling Wormtail's wand out of his pocket and handing it to Ollivander.

"Chestnut and dragon heartstring. Nine-and-a-quarter inches. Brittle. I was forced to make this shortly after my kidnapping, for Peter Pettigrew. Yes, if you won it, it is more likely to do your bidding, and do it well, than another wand."

"And this holds true for all wands, does it?" asked Harry.

"I think so," replied Ollivander. "You ask deep questions, Mr. Potter. Wandlore is a complex and mysterious branch of magic."

"So, it isn't necessary to kill the previous owner to take true possession of a wand?" asked Harry.

Ollivander swallowed.

"Necessary? No, I should not say that it is necessary to kill."

"There are legends, though," said Harry. "Legends about a wand - or wands - that have passed from hand to hand by murders."

Ollivander turned pale. Against the snowy pillow he was light gray, and his eyes were enormous, bloodshot, and bulging with what looked like fear.

"Only one wand, I think," he whispered.

"And You-Know-Who is interested in it, isn't he?" asked Harry.

"I - how?" croaked Ollivander, and he looked appealingly at Ron, Hermione and Phoebe for help. "How do you know this?"

"He wanted you to tell him how to overcome the connection between our wands," said Harry.

Ollivander looked terrified.

"He tortured me, you must understand that! The Cruciatus Curse, I - I had no choice but to tell him what I knew, what I guessed!"

"I understand," said Harry. "You told him about the twin cores? You said that he just had to borrow another wizard's wand?"

Ollivander looked horrified. He nodded slowly.

"I had... never heard of such a thing. Your wand performed something unique that night. The connection of the twin cores is incredibly rare, yet why your wand should have snapped the borrowed wand, I do not know..."

"We were talking about the other wand; the wand that changes hands by murder. When You-Know-Who realized my wand had done something strange, he came back and asked about that other wand, didn't he?"

"How do you know this?"

Harry didn't answer.

"Yes, he asked," whispered Ollivander. "He wanted to know everything I could tell him about the wand variously known as the Deathstick, the Wand of Destiny, or the Elder Wand."

Harry glanced sideways at Hermione. She looked flabbergasted. He then looked at Phoebe, she was staring at Ollivander. She looked impassive.

"The Dark Lord," said Ollivander in hushed and frightened tones "had always been happy with the wand I made him - yew and phoenix feather, thirteen-and-a-half inches - until he discovered the connection of the twin cores. Now he seeks another, more powerful wand, as the only way to conquer yours."

"But he'll know soon, if he doesn't already, that mine's broken beyond repair," said Harry quietly.

"No!" said Hermione, sounding frightened. "He can't know that, Harry how could he -?"

"Priori Incantatem," whispered Phoebe.

"What?" asked Hermione. "But they would need my - " she broke off as she realized she did not have her wand. "Where is it? Where's my wand?" she frantically searched her cloak.

"It's back at Malfoy Manor," Phoebe answered. "We left it behind along with the blackthorn wand. Hermione, all they have to do is examine them properly, make then re-create the spells they've cast lately, they'll see that yours broke Harry's, and they'll realize that Harry's been using the blackthorn one ever since."

"The Dark Lord no longer seeks the Elder wand," Ollivander intervened, "only your destruction, Mr. Potter. He is determined to possess it because he believes it will make him truly invulnerable."

"And will it?"

"The owner of the Elder Wand must always fear attack," said Ollivander, "but the idea of the Dark Lord in possession of the Deathstick is, I must admit... formidable."

Phoebe shuddered. The idea of Voldemort in possession of the Elder Wand seemed to enthrall her as well as terrify her.

"You - you really think this wand exists, then, Mr. Ollivander?" asked Hermione.

"Oh, yes," said Ollivander. "Yes, it is perfectly possible to trace the wand's course through history. There are gaps, of course, and long ones, where it vanishes from view, temporarily lost or hidden; but always it resurfaces. It has certain identifying characteristics that those who are learned in wandlore recognize. There are written accounts, some of them obscure, that I and other wandmakers have made it our business to study. They have the ring of authenticity.

"So you - you don't think it can be a fairy tale or a myth?" Hermione asked hopefully.

Harry frowned at Phoebe. She, along with Hermione, was determined to deter him from the idea that the Elder Wand and the Deathly Hallows were nothing but an imaginative bedtime story, yet here she sat, listening with interest and a look of believability - it was almost like she had known all along that they were real.

"No," said Ollivander. "Whether it _needs_ to pass by murder, I do not know, its history is bloody, but that may be simply due to the fact that it is such a desirable object, and arouses such passions in wizards. Immensely powerful, dangerous in the wrong hands, and an object of incredible fascination to all of us who study the power of wands."

"Mr. Ollivander," said Harry, "you told You-Know-Who that Gregorovitch had the Elder Wand, didn't you?"

Ollivander turned, if possible, even paler. He gulped.

"But how - how do you -?"

"Never mind how I know," said Harry. Phoebe shot him a look, one that told him to simply watch his temper. "You told You-Know-Who that Gregorovitch had the wand?"

"It was a rumor," whispered Ollivander. "A rumor, years and years ago, long before you were born! I believe Gregorovitch himself started it. You can see how good it would be for business; that he was studying and duplicating the qualities of the Elder Wand!"

"Yes, I can see that," said Harry.

Phoebe cleared her throat and motioned to the door. Ollivander still needed to rest, and she believed that Harry had all the information that he needed, plus she needed to see Draco.

"One more thing," said Harry, as he stood up. "Mr. Ollivander, what do you know about the Deathly Hallows?"

"The - the what?" asked the wandmaker, looking utterly bewildered.

"The Deathly Hallows."

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. Is this still something to do with the wands?"

Harry looked into Ollivanders sunken face. From the corner of his eye he saw Phoebe exchange a look with her grandparents, a silent message passed between them. He would never know what they had said, but the look was enough to tell him that everything he had just been told, Phoebe had known for a _very_ long time.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 26 January, 2013 at 04:32am**


	183. Chapter 183

**Author's Note:** WARNING MAJOR FLUFFINESS COMING UP. Not long now and I'll be back to regular updates every Saturday and Sunday.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Malfoy's Ferret, SoulVirus** and **Chinaluv.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to** blackrain99** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs'a and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>After questioning Ollivander, Harry led Hermione and Ron out of Shell Cottage and into the garden, leaving Phoebe with her grandparents.<p>

"_Where is he, Grandma?_"

"_Hogwarts._"

"_What do you think, Phoebe?_"

"_He knows,_" said Phoebe. "_Gregorovitch had the Elder Wand. Grindelwald stole it from him. You-Know-Who knows this after he tracked Gregorovitch down. How Grindelwald found out that Gregorovitch had the wand is a mystery - but if Gregorovitch was stupid enough to spread the rumour. It can't have been that difficult."_

_"Which is why he is at Hogwarts,"_ said Jacob.

Phoebe nodded. "_Dumbledore has the Elder Wand. Grandma?"_

Elena's eyes clouded over as she sank into another vision. "_I'm sorry, Phoebe,"_ she apologized. "_But he has what he has been searching for..."_

"_What is he doing now?_"

"_He is returning to the castle,_"

Phoebe sighed and glanced up at her grandfather. "_Please don't look at me like that,_" she said, "_I have done what I have to keep my friends safe. Dumbledore wants Harry to hunt Horcruxes and not Hallows; it is my job to keep him on that task!_"

"_And does he know that?_"

"_He does now,_" said Phoebe.

There was silence for a few minutes. Ollivander was sleeping soundly in his bed and Faye was asleep under the covers of Jacob's deserted bed, Phoebe was still sat at the bottom of her grandmother's bed while they spoke.

"_Do you plan on telling them?_" Jacob asked.

"_Not yet,_" said Phoebe. "_Harry has enough issues with me as it is._"

"_If you do not tell him, Phoebe, then he will never trust you again._"

Phoebe lowered her gaze. "_I know that, Papa,_" she nodded. "_But he has enough of his plate as it is. Dumbledore asked me to keep Harry on the Horcrux path, he wanted him to work out the Hallow's but he never wanted Harry to hunt them down. If he did want Harry to have the Elder Wand then he would have told him about it before hand, we both know this._"

Jacob sighed and nodded. "_I understand, Phoebe,_" he said. "_I just hope that you are doing the right thing, you could very well lose your friendship with Harry over this._"

"_I just want this war to be over,_" said Phoebe. "_And it never will be if Harry goes off chasing Hallows instead of Horcruxes._"

**~*Phoebe*~**

Bill and Fleur's cottage stood alone on a cliff overlooking the sea, its walls embedded with shells and whitewashed. It was a lonely and beautiful place. Wherever Phoebe went inside or outside the cottage she could hear the ebb and flow of the sea, like the breathing of some sort of great, slumbering creature.

"Weasley seems to think that it was Dumbledore that sent Dobby to rescue them from the basement," said Draco. He and Phoebe were walking along the sea front watching Faye run in and out of the water. "Did he?"

"Dumbledore's dead," said Phoebe. "And he's not coming back."

"Then how do you explain Dobby and Winky?"

"I have my theories,"

"Care to share a few of those theories?"

Phoebe shook her head.

Draco sighed. "Phoebe, i'm your brother," he said. "If you think that you have hide things from me..." he shook his head, "just know that you don't."

"I know, Draco," Phoebe nodded. "But the fact remains is that I cannot tell you anything, at least not at the given time."

"If Aiden were here," said Draco, "would you tell him?"

"No," said Phoebe. "I made a promise -"

"A promise?" Draco repeated. "To who?"

Phoebe shook her head. "Forget it," she said, looking back up at Faye. She smiled as she watched the toddler scream with laughter as the water lapped at her legs. She had taken her shoes and socks off, rolled up her trousers and was digging her toes into the wet sand as the water washed over her feet.

"Could it have been Dumbledore's ghost that sent them?" Draco asked.

"Dumbledore wouldn't come back as a ghost," said Phoebe. "He would've gone on."

"What do you mean 'gone on'?" asked Draco. But before Phoebe could say any more, a voice behind them called Phoebe.

Fleur was running towards them.

_"Phoebe, Griphook is ready to speak_," said the Veela.

Phoebe looked to Draco and turned then to Faye. "Faye," she called. "Come on, Princess, we have to go back!"

"Do we have too?" Faye whined.

"Sorry, Princess,"

"You go," said Draco. "I'll keep an eye on her."

"You sure?"

"She's going to become my new niece, isn't she?"

Phoebe shrugged. She had considered adopting Faye when the war was over; but if her parents were still alive then -

"It's been months, Phoebe," said Draco. "As horrible as it is to accept they're as good as dead."

"I know. I just promised her that I'd find her parents."

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep," said Draco. "Go. I'll watch her."

Phoebe smiled and hugged her brother. "Thank you, Draco," she whispered as she pulled away. "I owe you one."

"Don't think I won't collect," Draco smiled.

"How about I just save your ass in the war," teased Phoebe, "and we'll call it even?"

Draco smirked and shook his head as Phoebe followed Fleur back to the house.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Griphook and the Golden Trio were waiting for her, as Fleur had said, in the tiniest of the cottage's three bedrooms, in which she, Hermione, Luna and Faye spent the night. He had drawn the red cotton curtains against the bright, cloudy sky, which gave the room a fiery glow at odds with the rest of the airy, light cottage.

"I have reached my decision, Harry Potter," said the goblin, who was sitting cross-legged in a low chair, drumming its arms with his spindly fingers. "Though the goblins of Gringotts will consider it base treachery, I have decided to help you -"

"That's great!" said Harry. "Griphook, thank you, we're really -"

"- in return," said the goblin firmly, "for payment."

"I knew this was too good to be true," said Phoebe. "What do you want, Griphook? We know you don't want gold."

Griphook's eyes glittered; there were no whites to his eyes.

"I want the sword of Godric Gryffindor."

"You can't have it," said Phoebe.

"Then we have a problem,"

"We can give you something else," said Ron. "I bet the Lestrange's have got loads of stuff, you can take your pick once we get into the vault."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Ronald!" she hissed.

"I am not a thief, boy! I am not trying to procure treasures to which I have no right!" said Griphook.

"The sword's ours -"

"It is not," said the goblin.

"We're Gryffindor's, and it was Godric Gryffindor's -"

"And before it was Gryffindor's, whose was it?" demanded the goblin, sitting up straight.

"No one's," said Ron. "It was made for him, wasn't it?"

"No!" cried the goblin, bristling with anger as he pointed a long finger at Ron. "Wizarding arrogance again! That sword was Ragnuk the First's, taken from him by Godric Gryffindor! It is a lost treasure, a masterpiece of goblin work! It belongs with the goblins! The sword is the price of my hire, take it or leave it!"

Griphook glared at them. Harry glanced at the other three, and then said, "We need to discuss this, Griphook, if that's all right. Could you give us a few minutes?"

The goblin nodded, looking sour.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Downstairs in the empty sitting room, Harry walked to the fireplace, while Ron laughed as he sat down. "He's having a laugh. We can't let him have that sword."

"Is it true?" Harry asked. "What he said about the sword being stolen by Gryffindor?"

"I don't know," said Hermione, hopelessly. "Wizarding history often skates over what the wizards have done to other magical races, but there's no account that I know of that says Gryffindor stole the sword."

"It'll be one of those goblin stories," said Ron, "about how the wizards -"

"It's not true," said Phoebe.

The trio looked at her.

"How do you know that?" asked Hermione. "The history books don't -"

"The sword was made to Gryffindor's specifications by Ragnuk," said Phoebe. "When it was finished, Ragnuk coveted it so much that he pretended Gryffindor had stolen it from him and sent minions to steal it back."

Ron pointed at her. "See, it's just one of those stupid goblin stories," he said, "about how wizards are always trying to get one over on them. I suppose we should think ourselves lucky he hasn't asked for one of our wands."

"Goblins have got good reasons to dislike wizards, Ron," said Phoebe. "They've been treated brutally in the past."

"Goblins aren't exactly fluffy little bunnies, though, are they?" said Ron. "They've killed plenty of us. They've fought dirty too."

"You forget the fact that Gryffindor bewitched the minions rather than killing them," said Phoebe.

"That makes him a civilized -"

"- and sent them back to deliver the message that if Ragnuk ever tried to steal from Gryffindor again, the latter would unsheathe the sword against all goblins," said Phoebe. "Now, does a civilized hero threaten to kill innocent goblins because one got greedy?"

"Arguing with Griphook about whose race is most underhanded and violent isn't going to make him more likely to help us, is it?"

There was a pause while they tried to think of a way around the problem.

"What about this?" said Ron. "We tell Griphook we need the sword until we get inside the vault, and then he can have it. There's a fake in there, isn't there? We switch them, and give him the fake."

"He's a goblin," said Phoebe. "He'll know the difference more than we do."

"Yeah, but we could scarper before he realizes -"

He shrunk back as Phoebe glowered darkly in his direction.

"That is _exactly_ the reason goblins distrust wizards as it is!" Phoebe snapped. "And you wonder why they don't trust us!"

Ron's ears turned red.

"All right, all right! It was the only thing I could think of! What's your solution, then?"

"We need to offer him something else, something just as valuable."

"Brilliant. I'll go and get one of our other ancient goblin-made swords and you can gift wrap it."

"He won't accept anything other than the sword!" Phoebe exclaimed. "We don't have a choice, Harry; we have to give him what he wants!"

Harry closed his eyes for a moment.

"But, Phoebe," said Hermione, "we _need_ the sword. We need to destroy the other Horcruxes, how... how can we do it without the sword?"

Phoebe shrugged. "I... I don't know..." she stammered. "All I know is if we don't give him the sword then we can't get into Gringotts."

"Maybe he's lying," said Harry. "Griphook. Maybe Gryffindor didn't take the sword."

"I just proved History," said Phoebe. "Gryffindor _didn't_ take the sword. But threatening to kill _all_ goblins doesn't make him any less of a threat to goblins than Slytherin was to Muggleborns."

"And how do we know that you're telling the truth?" Harry asked. "You've been lying to us this whole time. You knew about the Hallows... you just claimed that you didn't..."

Phoebe looked impassive. "I was doing my job," she said.

"What job was that?"

"To protect you," snapped Phoebe. "Yes, I knew about the Hallows. Why didn't I tell you? I didn't tell you because I was trying to keep you alive! I still am!"

"And lying to me is the only way you could think of?"

Phoebe sighed and shook her head. "I couldn't tell you my real plan," she said, "I just figured since You-Know-Who is after us both... we should've stuck together! It is like I told you the night Ron left, Harry, if you want me to leave then I'll leave... but I have nowhere else to go!"

"Did you know we'd get captured and taken to Malfoy Manor?"

"What? No!" said Phoebe. "I didn't know you'd be stupid enough to use You-Know-Who's name even after you knew it was tabooed. Our capture was all your doing!"

Harry bristled but didn't rise.

"Look," Phoebe said. "We can stand here and argue about this all day or we can figure out what to do about Griphook and the sword."

"How do we know that you don't have another agenda this time?" Ron asked.

Phoebe shot him a look. "You don't," she said, shaking her head, "but whether you trust me or not is another matter; but the fact is I don't trust you anymore than you trust me. But our goal is the same," she looked to Harry. "I want You-Know-Who destroyed just as much as you do. He is ruining lives... he is ruining my life."

"What are you talking about?"

"The longer You-Know-Who is around, Harry," said Phoebe, "the longer I am away from my family."

Harry frowned. "So all this?" he asked. "Everything you've done leading up to this moment was so you could go home to Blake?"

Phoebe paused before nodding. "Yes," she agreed. "Yes. I have done everything so that I can go home to Blake. Keeping you alive just so you can destroy You-Know-Who..."

"So you did have your own agenda!"

"Of course I have my own agenda," said Phoebe. "We all have our own agenda! You want revenge for your parents' death. I want him dead so I can go home. But in order to kill You-Know-Who - yes, Harry, _kill_ not stop - in order to _kill_ You-Know-Who we need to work together..."

"How can we work together if we don't trust you?" Ron asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "That's your downfall," she pointed out. "Like I said whether you trust me or not doesn't matter... but if you want to see You-Know-Who disappear forever; then you have no reason _not_ to trust me."

"How about you tell me everything I need to know," said Harry, "_when_ I need to know it... and we'll work on the trust thing?"

"I can't do that," said Phoebe. "I have my orders."

"What orders?"

"They come from a higher authority," said Phoebe. "And no," she added in Ron's direction, "it's not my grandparents. I swore an oath to keep you alive, Harry, and I wouldn't be doing my job if I told you the truth up front. The truth can get your killed."

"So can lying," Harry pointed out.

"Not if you know how to use the truth in a way that can save lives," said Phoebe.

"And you can do that?"

"It's worked so far, hasn't it?" Phoebe asked.

Harry sighed. He couldn't disagree with her there. After all, despite all the lies leading up to this moment, they _were_ still alive.

He took a deep breath.

"We'll tell him he can have the sword after he's helped us get into that vault - but we'll be careful to avoid telling him exactly _when_ he can have it."

A grin spread slowly across Ron's face, Hermione and Phoebe, however, looked alarmed.

"Harry, we can't -" started the Bookworm.

"He can have it," Harry went on, "after we've used it on all the Horcruxes. I'll make sure he gets it then. I'll keep my word."

"But that could be years!" said Hermione.

Phoebe shook her head. "No it won't," she said determinedly. "I'm desperate to see Blake and Terence. I want to hold my little baby in my arms, I want to wake up to Terence and know that I can enjoy the rest of my life with him without worrying about being hunted down and killed at any waking moment. We'll finish this war this year... I am not waiting years to see Blake again; I've already missed his first birthday."

"You did?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe nodded sadly. "9th March," she said. "It is now April."

Hermione smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Phoebe," she apologized.

"I'm sure he was spoilt rotten," said Phoebe. "But I missed his first; I don't want to miss anymore!"

"I don't like it," said Hermione.

"Nor do I, much," Harry admitted.

"Well, I think it's genius," said Ron.

"You would," said Phoebe, rolling her eyes.

Ron ignored her and stood up. "Let's go and tell him."

"You guys go," said Phoebe. "I have to check on Faye and make plans to get Draco and my parents to a safe house. Good luck." She nodded at Harry and quickly left the cottage.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Elena smiled as Phoebe waved her wand and conjured up a new floor-length blue gown complete with a black travelling cloak and shoes.

"_You are getting better at conjuring," _said the elder elemental.

"_Practice makes perfect_," said Phoebe. "_Besides, I do not want you travelling in something that you have worn for months._"

"_You inquiring that I do not look -_"

"_No, no, Grandma,_" Phoebe said quickly, shaking her head. "_Merlin forbid, no, you look beautiful. But you were forced into tight quarters with three other people; forced to wear ragged clothes for days - months - on end. I cannot bare the thought of you or grandpa being in the clothes that you wore while under his command any longer than need be._"

"_Phoebe,_" said Elena softly. "_What your grandfather and I did was to protect each other and our family. I did not give You-Know-Who any information on you or Harry Potter._"

"_I know you didn't,_" Phoebe nodded. "_But that doesn't calm how I feel. If only I had been there... maybe I could have -_"

"_You could not have done anything,_" Elena interrupted. "_I know your grandfather and my kidnapping is hard for you to accept, Little Star, but what's done is done, you cannot go back in time._"

Phoebe stopped and turned to her grandmother. "_I know I should be thankful that you are even alive,_" she said. "_But whether it was my fault or not... does not stop the blame I feel. Everyone I know, Terence, Blake, Ashlyn, James... everyone... they cannot come home until You-Know-Who has been defeated. How do I know that he even __**can**__ be defeated?_"

"_Have faith, Little Star,_" Elena whispered, hugging her granddaughter close. "_You will find the right path,_"

"_Is that your way of telling me 'don't give up'?_"

Elena smiled and kissed Phoebe's forehead. "_I have never known you not to give up,_" she said. "_You are exactly like Serefina..._"

Phoebe smiled. "_Stubborn to the very end._"

Elena nodded proudfully.

The door opened and Jacob entered. He smiled at his wife and granddaughter, before saying the three words that they both wanted to hear. "_Serefina is here._"

**~*Phoebe*~**

"... and if you ever come to our house I'll be able to show you the horn, Daddy wrote to me about it but I haven't seen it yet, because the Death Eaters took me from the Hogwarts Express and I never got home for Christmas," Luna as saying, as she and Dean re-laid the fire.

"Luna, we told you," Hermione called over to her. "That horn exploded. It came from an Erumpent, not a Crumple-Horned Snorkack -"

"No, it was definitely a Snorkack horn," said Luna serenely. "Daddy told me. It will probably have re-formed by now, they mend themselves, you know."

Hermione shook her head and continued laying down forks with Ron as Serefina and Bill conversed silently in the corner of the room. Ron winced as Hermione trod on his foot as she rounded the corner to straighten the knives he had put down.

"Oh, Ron," the bookworm snapped. "Move!"

"You walked into me!" said Ron.

"Well if you weren't being so nosey," said Hermione.

"I was just wondering what they were talking about," said Ron, glancing once again at his brother and Professor. "Don't you ever wonder if they are talking about Order business?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Of course they are talking about Order business," she said. Even though the Order of the Phoenix had disbanded a few of its members were still vigilant and waiting for the perfect time to reinstate it.

Faye giggled as she sat on the living room floor with Draco and a little baby. Overshadowed by a man who she had never met before. "Dwaco?" the toddler said, looking up at Phoebe's brother. "Who's that man?" she pointed at the man behind her.

"His name is Terence," said Draco, "he is Phoebe's husband."

"And this her baby?" Faye asked, pointing at the child in Draco's arms.

Draco nodded. He and Faye had hit it off quite well, he rather expected her to not take to him at all, given he was a stranger to her. But he figured that she trusted him purely on the terms that Phoebe trusted him. "Yes, this is her baby," he confirmed.

"Blake?" Faye asked.

Draco nodded again. "That's right," he said. "Baby Blake."

Faye giggled. Blake reminded her so much of Connor. Connor was a little older than Blake, not much, but enough to be able to sit up on his own. He was in the progress of taking his first steps on his own, but still wobbled whenever someone left him go. Faye frowned. She missed her brother.

"Serefina!" squealed a voice from the stairs. There was a blur and Serefina was almost bowled off of her feet as Phoebe crashed into her. The Care of Magical Creatures professor chuckled and hugged her goddaughter tightly, kissing her hair comfortingly as her parents descended the stairs a lot more slowly and elegantly than their granddaughter had done.

"Phoebe, I've missed you," Serefina said pulling away from her goddaughter and looking her in the face. She looked the same as she had done when she left over a year ago, although even Serefina would admit that Phoebe looked a little smaller in weight and her face was shallow and tiresome. "How have you been?"

"Safe," said Phoebe. "For the most part."

Serefina nodded. "Aiden has been able to keep tabs on you," she said. "Your enchantment spells work well they are up. But once they have been lowered he has been able to follow your every movement. Godric's Hollow, Phoebe, really?"

"We had to," said Phoebe. "We thought there may have been information there. Plus, Harry wanted to say goodbye to his parents... it was only fair."

"Yes," Serefina agreed, much to Phoebe's surprise. "It was only fair. I am just glad that you made it out alive, you do not realize how luck you were."

"Actually, I think we do," said Phoebe. "Oh, wait, Serefina, there is someone I would like you to meet. Faye -" she turned to the living room but stopped short at the sight that awaited her. Draco and Faye where on their hands and knees playing with a cooing familiar baby with a mop of sandy blonde hair and a man that Phoebe never thought she would see again. "Terence...?"

"Phoebe." Terence said, crossing the room.

Phoebe looked at him for a long moment; he then pulled her close, his lips crashing onto hers.

"Ew!" Faye cried, turning away in disgust.

"Duck and cover!" Draco teased, grabbing Blake and slipping behind the sofa with him and Faye.

The room started to shake as shelves rattled and glass fell from the table, smashing on the ground. Knives and forks fell from the table and landed with a muffled clatter on the carpeted floor. Hermione, Harry, Ron, Bill and Fleur slid under the kitchen table as Narcissa hid behind Lucius. The only ones who were brave enough to face the quaking cottage were the elementals.

"Oh, come now," Jacob laughed. "It is not that bad."

Elena nodded and smiled at Phoebe and Terence. "It is rather romantic," she said.

"Yeah," said Ron, "if you think destroying a home is romantic - Oof!" he winced again as Hermione elbowed him in the ribs.

"Bunch of babies," said Phoebe as she and Terence pulled away and the shaking stopped. Hermione sighed and climbed out from under the kitchen table, while Draco and Faye reappeared from behind the sofa.

Draco shot his sister a look. "Do you think you can resist killing the rest of us while you hold your son?" he asked, holding Blake out to his sister.

Phoebe smiled, tearfully, and took the gurgling baby in her arms. The house remained stationary but the sea outside churned violently, tidal waves crashed against the rocks, spraying their salty essence into the air.

Draco rolled his eyes and turned back to Phoebe.

"What?" the Gryffindor asked. "You asked to resist the urge to kill you. I had to concentrate on something else."

"How about concentrating on your son?" Draco asked.

"You're no fun," Phoebe pouted.

Mama!" Blake gurgled, clapping his hands happily at the sight of the most important woman in his life. As he reached out to pull her hair down into his mouth to suck on it.

Phoebe looked back down at her son and smiled. "My handsome boy," she cooed. "I've missed you so much!"

Faye blinked, tears welling in her eyes, and looked from Blake to Phoebe.

Draco noticed the tears and scooped Faye up. "Phoebe, forgetting someone?" he asked.

Phoebe looked back up and smiled as she held her arm out to Faye. The toddler wrapped her tiny arms around Phoebe's neck and buried her head into the elementals shoulder. "Faye, meet Blake," the Gryffindor said. "Blake, meet Faye..."

"Baby," said Faye.

"Yeah, Faye," Phoebe nodded. "My baby. Terence, meet Faye." She added to her husband. "She's going to be staying with us until I find her family."

Terence smiled at the four year old. "She'll be coming with us this evening?" he asked.

"Yes."

"What?" Faye asked. "We leave?"

"You're leaving," said Phoebe.

"I no leave you!"

Phoebe sighed. "You have to, Faye," she said. "You go with Terence, Blake and Draco for now, and I will come find you when the fighting is over, OK?"

"I no leave you! I no leave you!" Faye cried, clinging to Phoebe tightly. "I stay with you! You pwomised I stay with you!"

"And you will," Phoebe nodded. "But I cannot keep you safe here... Draco will look after you for me, and you can get to know Blake. Will you keep him safe for me?"

Faye hung her head as tears dribbled down her cheeks. "You no want me no more?" she asked.

"What?" Phoebe asked, stung. "Faye, what nonsense? Of course I want you! I love you!"

"You do?" Faye asked, looking up. "But you sending me away!"

"Not forever," Phoebe promised.

Faye hesitated before wrapping her arms around Phoebe's neck and hugging her again. "I love you, Phoebe," she murmured in her childish voice. "I no want to leave!"

**~*Phoebe*~**

While Serefina, Jacob, Elena and the Malfoy's prepared to leave; Phoebe spent as much time as she possibly could with Terence, Faye and Blake. She had missed his first birthday by a month and she was more than determined to make up for lost time.

"How was it?" she asked. "His birthday?"

"Quiet," said Terence. "We didn't want to do anything too big without you there..."

Phoebe wiped away the tears. "I'm sorry," she whispered, kissing Blake's forehead. "For everything. This is all my fault... if I wasn't such a high valued -"

"Stop it," said Terence. "This is not your fault. You can't help being who you are." He reached across and wiped the tears from her face. "The end is nigh," he said. "We'll celebrate his birthday when we are together again. Have faith, Phoebe."

"Have me?" Faye asked.

Phoebe smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind the toddler's ear. "Not you, princess," she said, wiping her tear stained cheeks.

"OK," Faye nodded going back to playing with Blake.

Terence looked confused.

"Her real name is Faith," said Phoebe. "Everyone just calls her Faye."

"Ah," the Slytherin nodded. "C'mere," he drew his wife to him and kissed her. "I love you, Phoebe, we will be together again!"

Phoebe nodded. "I love you too," she said. "I love all of you. Tell the others this will be over soon."

"They are ready when you are," said Terence. "Every day is just one step closer to us being a family again."

Phoebe smiled and looked up as Serefina entered the room. She was pulling on a travelling cloak and smiled down at her goddaughter. Phoebe knew that look too well: It was time for them to leave. The Gryffindor looked down and kissed Blake's forehead as she passed him back to Terence, she then scooped Faye up into her arms and spun her around.

"Be good," she told the toddler, "and I will come find you as soon as possible. Understand?"

"Pinky pwomise?" Faye asked, holding up her little finger.

Phoebe coiled her own little finger around Faye's and tugged at it gently. "Pinky promise." She smiled, kissing the toddler's forehead and passing her to Draco. He was the only person, other than Phoebe and the Golden Trio that Faye trusted.

"Remember," said Terence as he kissed Phoebe goodbye.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "Every day is one step closer to us being a family again."

"Goodbye, Phoebe," said Serefina hugging her goddaughter. "Aiden will be looking out for you. I don't want him witnessing your capture again, OK?"

Phoebe smiled. "Sadly I can't promise that," she said, following her family out into the hall. Bill was helping Ollivander down the stairs. The wandmaker still looked exceptionally frail, and he clung to Bill's arm as the latter supported him, carrying a large suitcase. "Goodbye, Mr. Ollivander," said Phoebe. "I wish you a speedy recovery."

"Thank you, my dear," said Ollivander. "And I wish you the best of luck in your quest."

Phoebe nodded and helped Bill into the sitting room. She then returned to her family, hugged her parents, grandparents and brother before they stepped out into the windy night and set off for the Disapparation point.

Phoebe blinked back the tears as she watched them leave. She wanted to go with them but she knew that she couldn't. With You-Know-Who still alive and kicking she was too much of a danger to be around them.

_**Every day is one step closer to us being a family again.**_ Terence's words echoed in her mind.

"One step closer," Phoebe whispered, looking up at the night's sky. Despite the blustery weather there was not a cloud in sight. The skies were clear and sparkling with bright shining stars. One flickered and shot off across the velvety blackness. Phoebe smiled. "Make a wish, Phoebe," she said, closing her eyes and wishing hard.

**~*Phoebe*~**

With Phoebe's family back in Italy and Bill having took Mr. Ollivander to his aunt Muriel's, the rest of them squeezed in around the table; elbow to elbow and with barely enough room to move, they started to eat. The fire crackled and popped in the grate beside them.

Fleur was merely playing with her food, and was glancing anxiously out of the window every few minutes, however, Bill returned long before they had finished their first course, his long hair tangled by the wind.

"Everything's fine," he told Fleur. "Ollivander settled in, Mum and Dad say hello. Ginny sends you all her love. Fred and George are driving Muriel up the wall; they're still operating an Owl-Order business out of her back room. It cheered her up to have her tiara back, though. She said she thought we'd stolen it."

"Ah, she eez _charmante_, your aunt," said Fleur crossly, waving her wand and causing the dirty plate to rise and for a stack in midair. She caught them and marched out of the room.

"Daddy's made a tiara," piped up Luna. "Well, more of a crown, really."

Hermione caught Phoebe's eye and shook her head; Phoebe smiled knowing that Luna was referring to the ludicrous headdress they had seen on their visit to Xenophilius.

"Yes, he's trying to re-create the lost diadem of Ravenclaw. He thinks he's identified most of the main elements now. Adding the billywig wings really made a difference -"

There was a bang on the front door. Everyone's head turned toward it. Fleur came running out of the kitchen, looking frightened; Bill jumped to his feet, his wand pointing at the door; Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe did the same. Silently Griphook slipped beneath the table, out of sight.

"Who is it?" Bill called.

"It is I, Remus John Lupin!" called a voice over the howling wind. Phoebe felt her stomach drop. What had happened? "I am a werewolf, married to Nymphadora Tonks, who would kill me if she knew I had just called her that -" Phoebe giggled and looked at Bill, "and you, the Secret-Keeper of Shell Cottage, told me the address and bade me to come in an emergency!"

Bill looked around at Phoebe who nodded; he then ran to the door and wrenched it open.

Lupin fell over the threshold. He was white-faced, wrapped in a travelling cloak, his graying hair windswept. He straightened up, looked around the room, making sure of who was there, then cried aloud, "It's a boy! We've named him Ted, after Dora's father!"

Hermione shrieked.

"Wha -? Tonks - Tonks has had the baby?"

"Yes, yes, she's had the baby!" shouted Lupin. All around the table came cries of delight, sighs of relief: Hermione and Fleur both squealed, "Congratulation!" Ron said, "Blimey, a baby!" as if he had never heard of such a thing before.

"Another boy," said Phoebe. "Congratulations, Remus."

"Yes - yes - a boy," said Lupin again, he seemed dazed at his own happiness. He strode around the table and hugged Phoebe; like the scene in the basement of Grimmuald Place might never have happened. "Thank you, Phoebe, if it had not been for you..." he trailed off, shaking his head.

Not wanting a reminder of what had happened back at Grimmuald Place, Phoebe threw her arms around the werewolf and hugged him. "No hard feelings," she said. "Just promise me you'll look after Teddy and Tonks?"

"Without a doubt," Remus promised.

Phoebe smiled, tears glistening in her stormy grey gaze.

Remus smiled brightly and turned to Harry. "You'll be godfather?" he said.

"M-me?" stammered Harry.

"You, yes, of course Dora quite agrees, no one better -"

"I - yeah - blimey -"

"That's Harry speak for: 'Yes, I would love to be godfather to Teddy,'" said Phoebe.

Bill hurried into the kitchen to fetch some wine, and Fleur was persuading Lupin to join them for a drink.

"I can't stay long, I must get back," said Lupin, beaming around at them all. He looked years younger. "Thank you, thank you, Bill."

Bill had soon filled all of their goblets; they stood and raised them high in toast.

"To Teddy Remus Lupin," said Lupin, "a great wizard in the making!"

"'Oo does 'e look like?" Fleur inquired.

"I think he looks like Dora, but she thinks he is like me. Not much hair. It looked black when he was born, but I swear it's turned ginger in the hour since. Probably be blond by the time I get back. Andromeda says Tonks's hair started changing colour the day that she was born." He drained his goblet. "Oh, go on then, just one more," he added, beaming as Bill made to fill it again.

The wind buffeted the little cottage and the fire leapt and crackled. No one dared ask Phoebe to use her powers to try and calm the storm; they didn't want to draw attention to them. If people saw that the storm was quieting down around Shell Cottage they were sure to investigate.

Soon, before anyone could realize, Bill was opening a second bottle of wine. Tidings of new life were exhilarating. Only Griphook seemed untouched by the suddenly festive atmosphere, and after a while he slunk back to the bedroom he now occupied alone. Phoebe glowered after him before catching Harry and Bill's eyes. She shook her head and turned back to Remus.

"No... No... I really must get back," said Lupin at last, declining yet another goblet of wine. He got to his feet and pulled his traveling cloak back around himself. "Goodbye, goodbye - I'll try and bring some pictures in a few days' time - they'll all be so glad to know that I've seen you -"

"Remus," said Phoebe, chasing after him. "If you need anything baby related, I have plenty of things that I did not put on Blake, you are welcome to them for Teddy."

Remus smiled. "Thank you, Phoebe," he nodded. "I shall tell Dora as soon as I return."

"Give her my love," said Phoebe. "And I am proud of you both..."

Remus nodded as he fastened his cloak and then made his way to the door. He paused, turned back and embraced the elemental. "Goodbye, Phoebe," he said, then, still beaming, returned into the wild night.

"Goodbye, Remus," Phoebe said as she watched him disappear. "Good luck."

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 30 January, 2013 at 02:40am**


	184. Chapter 184

**Author's Note:** It has taken me five hours to watch a one-hour show today so you can almost imagine how much trouble it was to write out this chapter. Reason behind this: babysitting my little mucky pup of a nephew. He's an absolute nightmare. However, he is almost walking. Now the **real** fun can begin.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Dream Lighting, Malfoy's Ferret, Fan of Fics, Chinaluv, PaulH024 **and** SoulVirus**.

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to **k9angel** and **AlexisKaitlyn** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs' and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>Their plans were made, their preparations complete; in the smallest bedroom a single long, coarse black hair (plucked from the sweater Hermione had been wearing at Malfoy Manor) lay curled in a small glass phial on the mantelpiece.<p>

"And you'll be using her actual wand," said Harry, nodding toward the walnut wand, "so I reckon you'll be pretty convincing."

Hermione looked frightened that the wand might sting or bite her as she picked it up. "I hate this thing," she said in a low voice. "I really hate it. It feels all wrong; it doesn't work properly for me... It's like a bit of _her_."

"Well, technically it _is_ a part of her," said Phoebe. "A wand becomes a part of us when it chooses us."

"That doesn't help." said Hermione.

Phoebe smiled sheepishly. "Sorry," she apologized.

"But it'll probably help you get into character," said Ron. "Think what that wand's done!"

"But that's my point!" said Hermione. "This is the wand that tortured Neville's mum and dad, and who knows how many other people? This is the wand that killed Sirius!"

Phoebe felt Harry stiffen beside her.

"I miss _my_ wand," Hermione said miserably. "I wish Mr. Ollivander could have made me another one too."

Mr. Ollivander had sent Luna a new wand that morning. She was out on the back lawn at that moment, testing its capabilities in the late afternoon sun. Dean, who had lost his wand to the Snatchers, was watching rather gloomily.

Harry looked down at the beech wand that had once belonged to Fenrir Greyback. He had been surprised, but pleased, to discover that it worked for him at least as well as Hermione's had done.

The door of the bedroom opened and Griphook entered, Harry reached instinctively for the hilt of the sword and drew it close, but regretted his action at once.

Having noticed the action, Phoebe said, "We've just been checking the last-minute stuff, Griphook. We've told Bill and Fleur we're leaving tomorrow, and we've told them not to get up to see us off."

She had been awfully firm on this point, because Hermione would need to transform into Bellatrix before they left, and the less that Bill and Fleur knew or suspected about what they were about to do, the better. Phoebe had also explained that they would not be returning. As they had lost Perkin's old tent on the night that the Snatchers caught them, Bill had lent them another one.

Though they would miss Bill, Fleur, Luna and Dean, not to mention the home comforts they had enjoyed over the last few weeks, Phoebe knew that she wasn't the only one who could not wait to get back to the mission, to get back to being alone. She could easily tell that Harry was frustrated with the lack of privacy they had mostly from Griphook; she would agree she couldn't wait to get rid of the Goblin any more than her friends did.

Unfortunately, they did not know exactly when they would part from the Goblin without handing over Gryffindor's sword. It had been impossible to decide how they were going to hand it over, especially when they still needed it, and the fact that the Goblin barely left them alone for no longer than two seconds made it even more difficult to come up with a full proof plan.

Phoebe spent many nights pouring through the History books that she and Hermione had packed and the ones that Bill had hidden away at Shell Cottage, there just had to be something within their pages about the Sword of Gryffindor, but the only things that she had found was information that she already knew.

On the eve of the break-in Phoebe did not sleep. She knew that Hermione was awake too, but they were sharing a room with Luna, so Phoebe did not speak. Neither of them could judge whether Luna was awake or not and did not want to risk her overhearing their plans.

It was a relief six o'clock arrived and they could slip out of their beds, dress in semidarkness, and then creep downstairs and into the garden, where they would meet Harry and Ron.

"You'll get the sword as soon as we get what we're looking for, Griphook," said Phoebe as she slipped the sword of Gryffindor out of sight. The beaded bag, which Hermione had managed to save from the Snatchers, gave a small thump as the hilt of the sword hit several books in its descent towards the bottom.

Griphook eyed the bag nastily.

Phoebe shot him a look and hooked the bag over her shoulder, hiding it beneath her cloak. She then turned to Hermione. "Ready?" she asked.

"No," said Hermione. "But it is too late to back out now, right?"

"You don't have to do this,"

"If I don't," said Hermione. "Who will?"

"I will,"

Hermione shook her head. "I feel like I haven't done anything since this mission started," she explained. "I want to be able to look back and say 'that was my idea,' you know?"

"What are you talking about?" Phoebe asked. "You've pulled your weight enough. Plus you were tortured by that psycho... are you sure you want to do this? It is not too late to back out."

"No," said Hermione, as she took a deep breath. "Let's finish what we started."

Phoebe hesitated before nodding. She added Bellatrix's hair to the potion; it turned a tar-like colour, and then held it out to Hermione. "Pinch your nose," she instructed, "if she tastes as bad as she smells..." she shuddered.

Hermione pinched her nose and gulped down the potion.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Bellatrix Lestrange strode across the garden toward Ron and Harry. Phoebe and Griphook flanking her.

"She tasted _disgusting_, worse than Gurdyroots!" said Hermione.

"She's 95% evil," said Phoebe, "what did you expect? OK, Ron, come here so I can do you..."

"Right, but remember, I don't like the beard too long -"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake -"

"It's not that, it gets in the way!" protested Ron. "But I liked my nose a bit shorter, try and do it the way you did last time."

Phoebe sighed and set to work, muttering under her breath as she transformed various aspects of Ron's appearance. He was to be given a completely fake identity, and they were trusting to the malevolent aura cast by Bellatrix to protect him. Meanwhile Harry, Phoebe and Griphook were to be concealed under the Invisibility Cloak.

"There," said Phoebe, "how does he look, Harry?"

It was just possible to discern Ron under his disguise, but only just, Ron's hair was now long and wavy; he had a thick brown beard and mustache, no freckles, a short, broad nose, and heavy eyebrows.

"Well, he's not my type, but he'll do," said Harry. "Shall we go, then?"

All four of them glanced back at Shell Cottage, lying dark and silent under the fading stars, then turned and began to walk toward the point, just beyond the boundary wall, where the Fidelius Charm stopped working and they would be able to Disapparate. Once past the gate, Griphook spoke.

"I should climb up now, Harry Potter, I think?"

Harry glanced at Phoebe and then knelt down and the goblin clambered up onto his hand, his hands linked in front of Harry's throat. Phoebe then reached into the beaded bag and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, she passed it to Hermione and stepped closer to Harry, her arm wound through his and she ducked her head as the bookworm threw the cloak over them.

"Perfect," said Hermione, bending down to check Harry and Phoebe's feet. "I can't see a thing. Let's go."

Harry felt Phoebe grip his hand tightly; his heart skipped a beat and then he was pulled into suffocating darkness as she turned on the spot.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The main street of London was bustling with Muggles wearing the hangdog expressions of early morning, quite unconscious of the Leaky Cauldron's existence. Phoebe and the Golden Trio however could see the pub with little to no ease. Hermione reached the door first and pushed it open, leading the way inside.

The bar of the Leaky Cauldron was nearly deserted. Tom, the stooped and toothless landlord, was polishing glasses behind the bar counter; a couple of warlocks having a muttered conversation in the far corner glanced at Hermione and drew back into the shadows.

"Madam Lestrange," murmured Tom, and as Hermione passed he inclined his head subserviently.

"Good morning," said Hermione. Tom looked surprised.

"Too polite," Harry whispered as he, Phoebe and Griphook. "You need to treat people like they're scum!"

"OK, OK!"

Hermione drew out Bellatrix's wand and tapped a brick in the nondescript wall in front of them. At once the bricks began to whirl and spin: A hole appeared in the middle of them, which grew wider and wider, finally forming an archway onto the narrow cobbled street that was Diagon Alley.

It was quiet, barely time for the shops to open, and there were hardly any shoppers abroad. The crooked, cobbled street was much altered now from the bustling place any of them had visited before his first term at Hogwarts so many years before. More shops than ever were boarded up, though several new establishments dedicated to the Dark Arts had been created since their last visit.

Harry's own face glared down at them from posters plastered over many windows, always captioned with the words UNDESIRABLE NUMBER ONE.

A number of ragged people sat huddled in doorways. They were moaning to the few passersby's, pleading for gold, insisting that they were really wizards. One man had a bloody bandage over his eyes.

As they set off along the street, the beggars glimpsed Hermione. They seemed to melt way before her, drawing hoods over their faces and fleeing as fast as they could. Hermione looked after them curiously, until the man with the bloodied bandage came staggering right across her path.

"My children!" he bellowed, pointing at her. "Where are my children? What has he done with them? You know, _you know_!"

"I - I really -" stammered Hermione.

The man lunged at her, reaching for her throat.

Phoebe threw out her hand. The wind picked up around Hermione, blasting the man backwards into the side Madam Malkin's shop, where he slumped to the ground, unconscious. Faces appeared at the windows on either side of the street, while a little knot of prosperous-looking passersby gathered their robes about them and broke into gentle trots, keen to vacate the scene.

Their entrance into Diagon Alley could hardly have been more conspicuous; for a moment Phoebe wondered whether it might not be better to leave now and try to think of a different plan. Before they could move or consult one another, however, they heard a cry from behind them.

"Why, Madam Lestrange!"

Phoebe gripped Harry's arm at the familiar voice.

A tall and powerfully built wizard, with a black beard was striding toward them.

"Runcorn!" Phoebe whispered.

Hermione drew herself up to her fullest height and said with as much contempt as she could muster: "And what do you want?"

Runcorn stopped in his tracks, clearly affronted.

"Easy, 'Mione," said Phoebe. "Don't give yourself away."

"I merely sought to greet you," said Runcorn, coolly, "but if my presence is not welcome..."

"No, no, not at all, Runcorn," said Hermione quickly, trying to cover her tracks. "How are you?"

"Well, I confess I am surprised to see you out and about, Bellatrix."

"Really? Why?" asked Hermione.

"Well," Runcorn coughed, "I _heard_ that the inhabitants of Malfoy Manor were confined to the house, after the... ah... _escape_."

Harry's eyes widened. He hoped that Hermione kept her head.

"Tell him that the Dark Lord forgives those who have served him most faithfully in the past," Phoebe whispered. Hermione repeated her words in a magnificent manner that Phoebe looked impressed.

"Perhaps your credit is not as good with him as mine is, Runcorn." Hermione added.

Though the Death Eater looked offended, he also seemed less suspicious. He glanced down at the man Phoebe had knocked out.

"How did it offend you?"

"It does not matter, it will not do so again," said Hermione coolly.

"Some of these wandless can be troublesome," said Runcorn. "While they do nothing but beg I have no objection, but one of them actually asked me to plead her case at the Ministry last week. '_I'm a witch, sir, I'm a witch, let me prove it to you!_'" he said in a squeak impersonation. "As if I was going to give her my wand but whose wand," said Runcorn curiously, "are you using at the moment, Bellatrix? I heard that your own was -"

"I have my wand here," said Hermione coldly, holding up Bellatrix's wand. "I don't know what rumors you have been listening too, Runcorn, but you seem sadly misinformed."

Runcorn seemed a little taken aback at that, and he turned instead to Ron.

"Who is your friend? I do not recognize him."

"This is Dragomir Despard," said Hermione; they had decided that a foreigner was the safest cover for Ron to assume. "He does not speak English, but he is in sympathy with the Dark Lord's aims. He has traveled here from Portugal to see our new regime."

"Indeed? How do you do, Dragomir?"

Ron nodded and held out his hand.

Runcorn extended two fingers and shook Ron's hand as though frightened of dirtying himself.

"So what brings you and your - ah - sympathetic friend to Diagon Alley this early?" asked Runcorn.

"I need to visit Gringotts," said Hermione.

"Alas, I also," said Runcorn. "Gold, filthy gold! We cannot live without it, yet I confess I deplore the necessity of consorting with our long-fingered friends."

Phoebe glanced at Harry. His lips were tinged blue and she could see Griphook's fingers tightening around her friend's throat. "Loosen your grip, Griphook," she hissed.

"Shall we?" said Runcorn, gesturing Hermione forward.

Hermione had no choice but to fall into step beside him and head along the crooked, cobbled street toward the place where the snowy-white Gringotts stood towering over the other little shops. Ron sloped along beside them, and Harry, Griphook and Phoebe followed.

Harry glanced at Phoebe as she muttered to herself over and over again in Portuguese. He nudged her, but she did not silence herself.

A watchful Death Eater was the last thing they needed, and the worst of it was, with Runcorn marching at what he believed to be Bellatrix's side, there was no means for either her or Harry to communicate with Hermione or Ron.

Without seconds to spare they arrived at the foot of the marble steps leading up to the great bronze doors. As Griphook had already warned the, the liveried goblins who usually flanked the entrance had been replaced by two wizards, both of whom were clutching long thin golden rods.

"Ah, Probity Probes," sighed Runcorn, "so crude - but effective!"

And he set off up the steps, nodding left and right to the wizards, with raised the golden rods and passed them up and down his body. The Probes, the four Gryffindor's knew, detected spells of concealment and hidden magical objects.

"_Confundo_!" Harry and Phoebe whispered.

Unnoticed by Runcorn, who was looking through the bronze doors at the inner hall, each of the guards gave a little start as the spells hit them.

Hermione's long black hair rippled behind her as she climbed the steps.

"One moment, madam," said the guard, raising his Probe.

"But you've just done that!" snapped Hermione.

Runcorn looked around, eyebrows raised. The guards looked confused. He stared down at the thin golden Probe and then at his companion, who said in a slightly dazed voice,

"Yeah, you've just checked them, Marius."

Hermione swept forward, Ron by her side, Harry, Griphook and Phoebe trotting invisibly behind them. Harry glanced back as they crossed the threshold. The wizards were both scratching their heads.

Two goblins stood before the inner doors, which were made of silver and which carried the poem warning of dire retribution to potential thieves. Phoebe glanced at Harry and smiled as she led in him inside, she hadn't exactly been inside Gringotts; she didn't have vault here, she had only made the plan to get _in_ to Gringotts which meant she had no clue of what was to come.

Phoebe breathed in amazement as she looked around the vast marble hall of the bank. The long counter was manned by goblins sitting on high stools, serving the first customers of the day. Hermione, Ron and Runcorn headed toward an old goblin who was examining a thick gold coin through an eyeglass. Hermione allowed Runcorn to step ahead of her on the pretext of explaining features of the hall to Ron.

The goblin tossed the coin he was holding aside, said to nobody in particular, "Leprechaun," and then greeted Runcorn, who passed over a tiny golden key, which was examined and given back to him.

Hermione stepped forward.

"Madam Lestrange!" said the goblin, evidently started. "Dear me! How - how may I help you today?"

"I wish to enter my vault," said Hermione.

The old goblin seemed to recoil a little. Phoebe looked around. Not only was Runcorn hanging back, watching, but several other goblins had looked up from their work to stare at Hermione.

"You have... identification?" asked the goblin.

"Identification? I - I have never been asked for identification before!" said Hermione.

"They know!" whispered Griphook. "They must have been warned there might be an imposter!"

"Your wand will do, madam," said the goblin. He held out a slightly trembling hand, and a dreadful blast of realization Phoebe knew that the goblins of Gringotts were aware that Bellatrix's wand had been stolen.

"We have to act now," Phoebe hissed.

"The Imperious Curse," Griphook whispered.

Phoebe glared at the Goblin. "Harry, you can't -" she started, but Harry had already raised Greyback's wand, pointed it at the old goblin, and whispered, for the first time in his life, "_Imperio_!"

"Ah, you have had a new wand made, Madam Lestrange!" said the old goblin as he examined Bellatrix's wand closely.

"What?" said Hermione. "No, no, that's mine -"

"A new wand?" said Runcorn, approaching the counter again; still the goblins all around were watching. "But how could you have done, which wandmaker did you use?"

Harry acted without thinking: Pointing his wand at Runcorn, he muttered, "_Imperio_!" once more.

"Oh yes, I see," said Runcorn, looking down at Bellatrix's wand, "yes, very handsome. And is it working well? I always think wands require a little breaking in, don't you?"

Hermione looked utterly bewildered, but to Phoebe's relief she accepted the bizarre turn of events without comment.

The old goblin behind the counter clapped his hands and a younger goblin approached.

"I shall need the Clankers," he told the goblin, who dashed away and returned a moment later with a leather bag that seemed to be full of jangling metal, which he handed to his senior. "Good, good! So, if you will follow me, Madam Lestrange," said the old goblin, hopping down off his stool and vanishing from sight, "I shall take you to your vault."

He appeared around the end of the counter, jogging happily toward them, the contents of the leather bag still jingling. Runcorn was now standing quite still with his mouth hanging wide open. Ron was drawing attention to this odd phenomenon by regarding Runcorn with confusion.

"Wait - Bogrod!"

Another goblin came scurrying around the counter.

"We have instructions," he said with a bow to Hermione. "Forgive me, Madam, but there have been special orders regarding the vault of Lestrange."

He whispered urgently in Bogrod's year, but the Imperiused goblin shook him off.

"I am aware of the instructions. Madam Lestrange wishes to visit her vault... Very old family... odd clients... This way, please..."

And, still clanking, he hurried toward one of the many doors leading off the hall. Harry looked back at Runcorn, who was still rooted to the spot looking abnormally vacant, and made his decision.

"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked.

Harry shook his head at her and, with a flick of his wand, he made Runcorn come with them, walking meekly in their wake as they reached the door and passed into the rough stone passageway beyond.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"We're in trouble," said Phoebe, pulling off the Invisibility cloak. "They suspect."

Griphook jumped from Harry's shoulders; neither Runcorn nor Bogrod showed the slightest surprise at the sudden appearance of Harry Potter and Phoebe Blackheart. "They're Imperiused," said Harry, in response to Hermione and Ron's confusion. "I didn't think I did it strongly enough, I don't know..."

"To pull off the Unforgiveables you have to _mean_ them," said Phoebe. "I mean, you pulled the imperious curse fine, but for it to be even more powerful you would've had to _mean_ to control them!"

"What do we do?" asked Ron. "Shall we get out now, while we can?"

"If we can," said Hermione, looking back toward the door, beyond which who knew what was happening.

"We've got this far, I say we go on," said Harry, "Phoebe?"

"My gut is telling me to get out now," said Phoebe, "but my desire to return to Blake, Faye and Terence is telling us to pursue our goals."

"Good!" said Griphook. "So, we need Bogrod to control the card; I no longer have the authority. But there will not be room for the wizard."

Harry pointed his wand at Runcorn.

"_Imperio_!"

The wizard turned and set off along the dark track at a smart pace.

"What are you making him do?"

"Hide," said Harry as he pointed his wand at Bogrod. He whistled and a cart came trundling along the tracks toward them out of the darkness.

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder as she climbed into the cart behind Harry. "We need to hurry," she said, "I can hear shouting."

With a jerk the cart moved off, gathering speed. They hurtled past Runcorn, who was wriggling into a crack in the wall, then the cart began twisting and turning through the labyrinthine passages, sloping downward all the time.

Phoebe felt her hair blow behind her as they swerved between stalactites, flying ever deeper into the earth, but she kept glancing back. They might as well have left enormous footprints behind them; the more she thought about it, the more foolish it seemed to have disguised Hermione as Bellatrix, to have brought along Bellatrix's wand, when the Death Eaters new who had stolen it -

"What's that?" Harry asked as a glisten of water appeared in front of them, pounding over the track.

"No!" Griphook shouted as they zoomed through the cascading waters. Water filled Phoebe's mouth and eyes: She couldn't see or breathe. Then, with an awful lurch, the cart flipped over and they were all thrown out of it.

Phoebe screamed in surprise.

Harry caught hold of the elemental and then they glided back toward the ground as though weightless, landing painlessly on the rocky passage floor.

"C-Cushioning Charm," Hermione spluttered, as Ron pulled her to her feet, but too much to everyone's horror she was no longer Bellatrix Lestrange, instead she stood there in overlarge robes, sopping wet and completely her; Ron was red-haired and beardless again.

"The Thief's Downfall," whispered Phoebe in realization.

"The what?" Harry asked.

"That's why my powers didn't work," said Phoebe, muttering to herself now.

"What is the Thief's Downfall?" Harry asked.

"It washes away enchantment, all magical concealment," explained Griphook. "No one can control it... not even an elemental. They know there are imposters in Gringotts, they have set off defenses against us!"

Phoebe quickly run her hands over her stomach and cloak. She sighed in relief as she felt the beaded bag beneath her cloak. "Do you still have your cloak?" she asked Harry.

He nodded after checking himself.

Phoebe then turned to Bogrod. The Thief's Downfall had countered the imperious spell as well as everything else. "We still need him," she said to Harry.

"_Imperio_!" said Harry, pointing his wand once again at the Goblin.

Bogrod submitted himself once again. His expression blank.

"Harry, I think I can hear people coming!" said Hermione, and she pointed Bellatrix's wand at the waterfall and cried, "_Protego_!"

The Shield Charm broke the flow of the enchanted water as it flew up the passageway.

"Good thinking," said Phoebe.

"Lead the way, Griphook," Harry nodded at the Goblin.

"How are we going to get out again?" Ron asked as they hurried on foot into the darkness after the goblin, Bogrod panting in their wake like an old dog.

"Let's worry about that when we have to," said Harry. "Griphook, how much farther?"

"Not far, Harry Potter, not far..."

And they turned a corner and saw the thing one thing that they had all been prepared for, but yet it still brought them to a halt.

A gigantic dragon was tethered to the ground in front of them, barring across to four or five of the deepest vaults in the place. The beast's scales had turned pale and flaky during its long incarceration under the ground; its eyes were milkily pink; both rear legs bore heavy cuffs from which chains led to enormous pegs driven deep into the rocky floor. It's great spiked wings, folded close to its body, would have filled the chamber if it spread them, and when it turned its ugly head toward them, it roared with a noise that made the rock tremble, opened its mouth, and spat a jet of fire that sent all but one of them running back up the passageway.

Phoebe threw out her hand, concentrating hard on the hot flames behind her palm. The scarlet jets of fire whipped around her as they hit her palm, dividing them directly down the middle; there was a flash of cobalt blue and a jet of water shot out of Phoebe's hand, extinguishing the flames.

Hermione peeked around the corner and sighed.

"I thought you said you couldn't create the elements?" said Harry.

"I can't," said Phoebe. "That was just wandless magic."

"Not wandless elemental magic?" Ron asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "No," she said. "The dragons injured," she added to Griphook.

"It's partially blind," said Griphook, "but even more savage for that. However, we have the means to control it. It has learned what to expect when the Clankers come. Give them to me."

Ron passed the bag to Griphook, and the goblin pulled out a number of small metal instruments that when shaken made a loud, ringing noise like miniature hammers on anvils. Griphook handed them out. Bogrod accepted his meekly.

"You know what to do," Griphook told them. "It will expect pain when it hears the noise. It will retreat, and Bogrod must place his palm upon the door of the vault."

"That's barbaric!" said Phoebe, her eyes darkening at the prospect of causing pain to a creature that she adored above all magical creatures.

"Do you want to get into the vault?" Griphook sneered.

"Not at the expense of hurting another creature!"

"It wouldn't hesitate to hurt us," snapped the Goblin, "if given the chance!"

Phoebe hissed. "Goblin or Wizard, you're as cruel as the rest!"

Griphook ignored her and advanced, shaking the Clankers at the dragon. The noise echoed off the rocky walls, grossly magnified, so that inside of Phoebe's skull seemed to vibrate with the din. The dragon let out another hoarse roar, then retreated.

Phoebe could see it trembling and her heart ached as she saw the scars made by vicious slashes across its face, and guessed that it had been taught to fear hot swords when it heard the sound of the Clankers.

"Make him press his hand to the door!" Griphook urged Harry, who turned his wand again upon Bogrod. The old goblin obeyed, pressing his palm to the wood, and the door of the vault melted away.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted <strong>

**A/N:** Chapter has been cut in half in order for me to update. They will get the Cup in the next chapter.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 04 February, 2013 at 04:31am**


	185. Chapter 185

**Author's Note:** I know! I know! I can't apologize enough for how late this update is, but I have a perfectly good explanation. I just won't get into it right now.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, Malfoy's Ferret, KingdomHeartsNerd, Chinaluv** and** SoulVirus.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too **Ashes2Dust18** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

OK, people, I know I have been away for a while but that doesn't mean I want you guys to disappear. I understand that it's coming up to the final run of school/college/university, whatever, and I get that some of you may have jobs, children etc. to look after, but if you are still reading this story, or you've never left _PLEASE_ could you leave me a review of your thoughts? Thank you.

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><p>As the door melted away, Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione could see inside the Lestrange vault. The entrance was almost cave-like, crammed from floor to ceiling with golden coins and goblets, silver armor, the skins of strange creatures - some with long spines, others with drooping wings - potions in jeweled flasks, and a skull still wearing a crown.<p>

"Search, fast!" said Harry as they all hurried inside.

Phoebe, who had found a picture of Hufflepuff's cup in an old History book, had made sure her friends had memorized its detail in every way possible. They should have been able to identify it out of thousands.

There was a muffled 'clunk' from behind them: the door had reappeared, sealing them inside the vault, and they were plunged into total darkness.

"No matter, Bogrod will be able to release us!" said Griphook as Ron gave a shout of surprise. "Light your wands, can't you? And hurry, we have very little time!"

"_Lumos_!"

Phoebe shone her lit wand around the vault; its beam fell upon glittering jewels. She saw the fake sword of Gryffindor lying on a high shelf amongst a jumble of chains. Ron, Hermione and Harry had lit their wands too, and was now examining the piles of objects surrounding them.

"Harry, could this be -? Aargh!"

Hermione screamed in pain, and Phoebe turned her wand onto her best friend in time to see a jeweled goblet tumbling from her grip. But as it fell, it split, became a shower of goblets, so that a second later, with a great clatter, the floor was covered in identical cups rolling in every direction, the original almost impossible to discern amongst them.

"It burned me!" moaned Hermione, sucking her blistered fingers.

"Gemino and Flagrante Curses," said Phoebe, looking towards Harry.

"You look like I should know what that means," said Harry with a small shrug.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Everything you touch will burn and multiply, but the copies are worthless."

"And if you continue to handle the treasure," said Griphook, "you will eventually be crushed to death by the weight of expanding gold!"

"OK, don't touch anything!" said Harry, but no sooner had the words left his lips, Ron accidentally nudged one of the fallen goblets with his foot, and twenty more exploded into bein while Ron hopped on the spot, part of his shoe burned away by contact with the hot metal.

"Stand still, don't move!" said Hermione, clutching at Ron.

"Just look around!" said Harry. "Remember, the cup's small and gold, it's got a badger engraved on it, two handles - otherwise see if you can spot Ravenclaw's symbol anywhere, the eagle -"

"THERE!" Phoebe squealed.

Harry whipped around. The elemental was pointing at an object that made Harry's heart skip a beat. The Golden Trio raised their wands, pointing them in the same direction that Phoebe's was pointing. High up on its perch the little cup sparkled in a four-way spotlight; the cup that had belonged to Helga Hufflepuff.

"And how the hell are we going to get up there?" asked Ron. "Especially without touching anything?"

"_Accio Cup_!" cried Hermione.

"No use, no use!" snarled Griphook.

"Then what do we do?" said Harry, glaring at the goblin. "If you want the sword, Griphook, then you'll have to help us more than -"

"Wait," interrupted Phoebe. She pulled the beaded bag from out under her cloak and ripped it open, thrusting her hand inside she groped around blindingly before grabbing the hilt of Gryffindor's sword, and she withdrew it and held it out to Harry. "You can't touch anything by hand," she said, "but the sword won't replicate any treasure."

"So I can touch the cup with the sword?"

Phoebe nodded. "If you can loop the sword through the handle," she theorized.

"But how am I going to get up there?" Harry asked.

The shelf on which the cup reposed was out of reach for any of them, even Ron, who was tallest. The heat from the enchanted treasure rose in waves, attacking the four Gryffindor's causing sweat to run down their face and backs of their neck.

There was a roar from outside the door. The dragon was being forced into submission again as the sound of clankers echoed again. They were truly trapped now.

"We have to get up there," said Harry, desperately.

"_Levicorpus_," said Hermione.

"Whoa!" Harry yelped as he was hoisted into the air by his ankles. Uncoordinated, he hit a suit of armour and replicas burst out of it like white-hot bodies, filing the cramped space. With screams of pain Ron, Hermione, Phoebe and the two goblins were knocked aside into other objects, which also began to replicate.

Half-buried in a rising tide of red-hot treasure, they struggled and yelled as Harry thrust the sword through the handle of Hufflepuff's cup, hooking it onto the blade.

"_Impervius_!" shrieked Phoebe in an attempt to protect herself, Ron, Hermione, and the goblins from the burning metal.

Then the worst scream yet made Harry look down: Ron, Hermione and Phoebe were waist-deep in treasure, struggling to keep Bogrod from slipping beneath the rising tide, but Griphook had sunk out of sight and nothing but the tips of a few long fingers were left in view.

Harry seized Griphook's fingers and pulled. The blistered goblin emerged by degrees, howling.

"_Liberacorpus_!" yelled Harry, and with a crash he and Griphook landed on the surface of the swelling treasure, and the sword flew out of Harry's hand. "GET IT!" he yelled, fighting the pain of the hot metal on his skin, as Griphook clambered onto his shoulders again, determined to avoid the swelling mass of red-hot objects. "Where's the sword? It had the cup on it!"

The clanking on the other side of the door was growing deafening - it was too late -

"I have it," shouted Phoebe. "No -" she added as she watched Griphook dive for the sword. "Ron, its right next to you - grab it!"

But before Ron could make a move, Griphook's long finger curled around the hilt of the ruby-encrusted sword and swung it high out of Ron's reach.

The tiny golden cup, skewered by the handle on the sword's blade, was flung into the air.

Phoebe waved her wand and pulled the cup towards her. She wrapped it quickly in her robe and stuffed it inside the beaded bag. "We need to get out of here!" she shouted to her friends. No sooner had she voiced her order, the vault door disappeared and they were all dispelled out into the outer chamber.

"Thieves! Thieves! Help! Thieves!" Griphook shouted.

"Griphook!" Harry bellowed. But the Goblin was already gone.

"_Stupefy_!" Hermione shouted, brandishing her wand at the Goblins and guards. Ron, Phoebe and Harry joined her within seconds. Jets of red flew into the crowd, and some goblins toppled over, but others advanced.

The tethered dragon let out a roar, and a gush of flame flew over the goblins. The wizards fled, doubled-up, back the way they had come, and inspiration flooded Phoebe's mind. She turned, wildly away from the advancing goblins and run straight towards the dragon.

It roared at her.

"Shh," Phoebe cooed, holding her hands up in defence. "Shh... it's OK... I'm not here to hurt you..."

The dragon backed away from her.

Phoebe drew closer, reaching out her blistered hands to touch the dragon's flaky skin. "Shh, nice dragon," she continued to coo, her fingertips inches away from the dragon's body. "I'm here to help you," she said, "you want to get out of here... and so do we... I can help you... I can set you free, but you're going to have to trust me."

The Dragon whined as Phoebe brushed her fingertips over his badly damaged scales.

"I know," Phoebe nodded. "You're hurt... you've been tortured and brutally abused... I won't let them hurt you, I promise."

"Phoebe, what are you doing?" Harry shouted. "Now is not the time to be making friends!"

Phoebe ignored him and looked up at the dragon. It was staring, unseeingly back at her. Then, without command and much surprise to Harry, Ron and Hermione, the Dragon lowered its huge body onto the floor and allowed Phoebe to clamber up onto its bag.

"Phoebe!" Hermione shouted. "What are you -?"

"Come on," Phoebe shouted, interrupting the Bookworm. "Come on, he'll take us out..."

"How can you -?" Ron started.

"TRUST ME!" Phoebe shouted. "Come on! Climb up!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged looks and, still shooting Stunning Spells at the advancing goblins, they sprinted towards the blind dragon.

Phoebe reached down and caught Harry's hand, pulling him up onto the dragon's back. He slid in behind her, and turned to help Ron, who in turn pulled Hermione up in front of him. The bookworm whimpered something but fell silent as Ron wrapped his arms around her stomach and hugged her from behind.

Pointing her wand at the thick cuffs chaining the dragon to the floor, Phoebe yelled, "_Relashio!_!"

The cuffs broke away with loud bangs.

"You're free!" Phoebe cooed, running her hand across the dragon's neck.

The creature roared and reared up. Phoebe dug in her knees, clutching as tightly as she could to the jagged scales as the wings opened, knocking the shrieking goblins aside like skittles, and it soared into the air. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe, flat on its back, scraped against the ceiling as it dived toward the passage opening, while the pursuing goblins hurled daggers that glanced of its flanks.

"We'll never get out, it's too big!" Hermione screamed.

"We'll get out," said Phoebe.

"How can you be so sure?" Ron started. Phoebe didn't answer as she leaned forward and whispered something to the dragon. The beast opened its jaws and belched flames again, blasting the tunnel, whose floors and ceiling cracked and crumbled. By sheer force of the dragon clawed and fought its way through.

Phoebe pointed her wand ahead of her. "_Defodio_!" she shouted, carving and even bigger passageway out of the chamber. The dragon beated its heavy wings and soared through.

Soon, following Phoebe's example, Harry, Ron and Hermione pointed their wands at the chamber and shouted: _"Defodio!"_

"Just a little further, Dragon," said Phoebe. "You're almost there! You can do... I know you can!"

The Dragon, pushed on by Phoebe's whisperings, burst through the cavern roof and into the marble hallway of Gringotts bank. Goblins and Wizards shrieked and ran for cover, and finally the dragon had room to stretch its wings.

"You did it!" Phoebe praised. "But you're not free yet!"

"It's not?" Hermione shouted from behind Harry.

Phoebe shook her head. "It can move around, yes," the elemental nodded. "But I'm not leaving it here! C'mon Dragon..."

Turning its horned head toward the cool outside air it could smell beyond the entrance, it took off, and with Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione still clinging to its back, it forced its way through the metal doors, leaving them buckled and hanging from their hinges, as it staggered into Diagon Alley and launched itself into the sky.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **It's short, I know. But since it is short I will post another chapter sometime tomorrow. Leave us a review and tell me what you think.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 13 February, 2013 at 01:42am**


	186. Chapter 186

**Author's Note:** Here is the second chapter as promised. It's another short one. Things are also about to get different from the plot as soon as they are back inside Hogwarts.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, dream lighting, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd **and an anonymous review.

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>There was no means of steering; the dragon could not see where it was going but it seemed to understand Phoebe and was taking directions from her, but despite all this Harry still felt uneasy. One sharp turn in any direction and they would find it impossible to cling onto its broad back.<p>

Nevertheless, as they climbed higher and higher, London unfurling below them like a gray-and-green map, their gratitude of an easy escape was overwhelming.

Crouching low over the beast's neck, Phoebe clung tightly to the metallic scales, and the cool breeze was soothing on her burned and blistered skink, the dragon's wings beating the air like the sails of a windmill.

From over her shoulder, Phoebe could hear Ron swearing at the top of his voice, although she wasn't sure if it was from fear or delight - he, just like her, loved Dragons. Hermione, however, seemed to be sobbing silently, her head bowed against the rising winds.

After five minutes or so, Harry learned forward and called to Phoebe.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"Far away as possible," Phoebe answered.

"Phoebe, we can't leave England..."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "I said 'far away...'," she answered, "not 'leaving London...' the Dragon's scared, Harry, it want's to be as far away from the underground prison as possible." There was a brief pause. "Give it another five minutes and I'll have him descend, OK?"

"OK," Harry agreed.

The dragon, Phoebe knew, was craving cooler and fresher air. It was impossible to tell how long it had been trapped underneath Gringotts. The Dragon climbed steadily higher until they were flying through wisps of chilly cloud, and no one could no longer make out the little coloured dots which were cars pouring in and out of the capital.

On and on they flew, over countryside parceled out in patches of green and brown, over roads and rivers winding through the landscape like strips of matte and glossy ribbon.

"What do you reckon it's looking for?" Ron yelled as they flew farther and farther north.

"No idea," Harry bellowed back.

"Water," Phoebe shouted from the front. "It's dehydrated. I'm waiting for the right place..."

"Any ideas _where_ that right place is?" Ron asked.

"Far away from civilization," Phoebe answered. "It hasn't eaten in a long time... it needs food and water."

"What if it knows we're here?" Hermione asked. "It could knock us off and eat us..."

Phoebe shook her head. "It won't," she promised. "He understands me."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I just know," said Phoebe turning back to the air in front of her.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The sun slipped lower in the sky, which was turning indigo; and still the dragon flew, cities and towns gliding out of sight beneath them, its enormous shadow sliding over the earth like a great dark cloud. Every part of Harry ached with the effort of holding on to the dragon's back.

As soon as she believed they had gone far enough, Phoebe leaned forward and whispered, "Here! Set us down here!" to the Dragon.

The Dragon grumbled and started it's decent.

Deep green mountains and lakes, coppery in the sunset lurked into view. The landscape seemed to grow larger and more detailed as they headed towards the smallest of the three lakes beneath them, the reflection of the sun flashed across the rippling surface.

Lower and lower the dragon flew, in great spiraling circles.

"I say we jump when it gets low enough!" Harry called. "Straight into the water."

"You go," Phoebe shouted, "I want to be completely sure that the Dragon's OK."

"Phoebe," Harry said, shaking his head.

"I'll meet you in the opposite bank," said Phoebe, nodding her head to the bank on the otherside of the lake. "Go! Now!"

Harry hesitated, before sliding over the side of the dragon and plummeting feet first toward the surface of the lake. Hermione and Ron followed after him, breaking the surface and splashing a spray of fresh water high into the air.

Phoebe glanced over her shoulder as her friends broke the surface of the lake; they turned in her direction and watched as the Dragon landed at last on a distant bank. The Dragon lowered his head toward the lake and started gulping down water like there was no tomorrow.

"You're safe now," said Phoebe, as she slid from the dragon's back and hurried to its head. Its blind eye sat, unmoving in its socket, while its good eye gleamed back at her in the sunset. It stared at her, huge, black and unblinking.

She reached out and run her hand across the metallic scales.

"I want to help you," she said. "But I don't know if I can..."

The Dragon whined and Phoebe smiled, resting her forehead against its neck and petting it like an overgrown pet. "I'm going to miss you," she said. "Just be safe, OK?"

Again, the Dragon whined.

"Goodbye," Phoebe whispered, kissing the metallic scales.

The Dragon raised its head from the rippling lake as Phoebe took several steps backwards. Its uninjured eye watched her make her way down the edge of the bank, where she turned on the spot and Disapparated.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The second she Apparated onto the same bank as her friends, Phoebe drew her wand and started casting the usual protective spells around them.

When she had finished, she joined the others. It was the first time that she had seen them properly since escaping Gringotts. All three of them had angry red burns all over their bodies and their clothes were singed away in places.

"C'mere," she said, pulling Hermione up and leading her down to the water's edge. She took her best friends hand and plunged it deep into the surface of the water. Instantly Hermione's burns soothed and healed.

"Thanks," the Bookworm said.

Phoebe nodded and motioned for Ron over. She took his hand, plunged it into the surface of the lake and healed his burns just as she had done Hermione's. After that she unhooked the beaded bag from around her neck and passed it to Hermione, who pulled out four bottles of pumpkin juice that she had brought from Shell Cottage and clean, dry robes for them.

They changed and then gulped down the juice.

"Well, on the upside," said Ron finally, who was sitting watching the dragon, "we got the Horcrux. On the downside -"

"- no sword," said Harry through gritted teeth.

"No sword," repeated Ron. "That double-crossing little scab..."

"Was it any different to what we were going to do to him?" Hermione asked. "We were going to double-cross him, weren't we? Didn't you say that we'd give him the sword...?"

"And we would have," argued Harry.

"When?"

Harry fell silent. He huffed and turned away.

Phoebe and Hermione exchanged looks.

Phoebe shook her head and pulled the Horcrux from the beaded bag, it was still wrapped up in her cloak. "Here," she said, setting it down on the grass in front of them. Glinting in the sun, it drew their eyes as they swigged their bottles of juice.

"At least we can't wear it this time, that'd look a bit weird hanging round our necks," said Ron, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.

Hermione looked across the lake to the far bank, where the dragon had resumed its drinking.

"What'll happen to it, do you think?" she asked. "Will it be all right?"

"You sound like Hagrid," said Ron. "It's a dragon, Hermione, it can look after itself. It's us we need to worry about."

Phoebe nodded. "Ron's right," she agreed.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know how to break this to you," said Ron, "but I think they _might_ have noticed we broke into Gringotts."

All four of them started to laugh, and once started, it was difficult to stop. Phoebe sighed as she flopped backwards into the grass and stared up at the reddening sky and laughed until her throat was raw.

"What are we going to do, though?" said Hermione, hiccupping herself back to seriousness. "He'll know, won't he? You-Know-Who will know we know about his Horcruxes!"

"Maybe they'll be too scared to tell him?" said Ron hopefully. "Maybe they'll cover up -"

"He'll know," said Phoebe.

"How do you know?"

"These Horcruxes are a piece of his soul, right?"

Ron and Hermione nodded. "Yeah," they agreed.

"Well, if they are a part of him then doesn't that mean that he would feel it when they are destroyed?" Phoebe asked.

"You think that he can feel the pain of a Horcrux being destroyed?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "We're destroying a part of him," she nodded, "a part of his soul... so yeah, why not?"

Hermione looked logical. "That's - actually a possibility... what do you think, Harry?" she turned to Harry, but the question ebbed away as she saw him slumped over backwards on the banking. He was shaking, his eyes closed and his lower lip trembling. "Harry? HARRY!"

Hermione threw herself forward onto her hands and knees, and she crawled to Harry's side. Ron followed her as Phoebe sat on her knees at Harry's head. She lifted his head up and rested it on her knees as Harry's eyes opened and his emerald gaze found her stormy grey one.

"What did you see?" Phoebe asked.

"He knows," he said, his voice sounding strange and low after Voldemort's high screams. "He knows, and he's going to check where the others are, and the last one," he struggled to sit up, but Phoebe held him down, she had wet the hem of her cloak in the lake and was dabbing it against is burning forehead. "The last one is at Hogwarts. I knew it. I _knew_ it."

"What?"

Ron was gaping at him; Hermione sat up looking worried, and Phoebe was avoiding eye-contact.

Harry roughly pushed himself away from the elemental, rolled to his knees and pushed himself, shakingly up onto his feet. "I knew it..." he said, staring down at Phoebe, "and so did you! But again, you chose to lie to me... to _us_! It wasn't just the Hallows you had knowledge about, was it?"

"I don't know what you're talking -?"

"Cut the crap, Phoebe," snapped Harry, "I know you know about the Horcruxes. I know you know where they are. You've been Dumbledore's right hand woman since the day you started at Hogwarts six years ago! Admit it; you've known this whole time!"

"I'll admit to one thing," said Phoebe, "I _have_ been in talks with Dumbledore on this mission. I _have_ had prior knowledge to You-Know-Who's activities since he left Hogwarts, but I have _not_ kept anything, other than he made seven Horcruxes, a secret."

"So you didn't know where they were hidden?" Ron asked.

"I had theories," Phoebe nodded. "And each of those theories I shared with you! I wasn't definitely sure where the Horcruxes were hidden... but I knew they were hidden in places that meant something to You-Know-Who, and Hogwarts means something to both you and him, Harry."

Harry shook his head in confusion.

"Hogwarts was the _only_ place either of you could ever call home,"

Harry fell silent as he stared at Phoebe. She had made it to her feet now and was staring back at him, she did not look angry at his accusation, nor did she look upset. In fact, she looked pleased that he had worked some of the puzzle out, granted he had had help, if you counted being inside Voldemort's mind as help then he had received a lot of help.

"How do you know that he knows?" Hermione asked, breaking the silence.

"I saw him find out about the cup. I - I was in his head, He's - he's seriously angry, and scared too, he can't understand how we knew, and now he's going to check the others are safe, the ring first. He thinks the Hogwarts one is safest, because Snape's there, because it'll be so hard not to be seen getting in, I think he'll check that one last, but he could still be there within hours -"

"Did you see where in Hogwarts it is?" asked Ron, now scrambling to his feet too.

"No, he was concentrating on warning Snape, he didn't think about exactly where it is -"

"Wait, _wait_!" cried Hermione as Ron caught up the Horcrux and Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak again. "We can't just _go_, we haven't got a plan, and we need to -"

"We need to get going," said Harry firmly. "Can you imagine what he's going to do once he realizes the ring and the locket are gone? What if he moves the Hogwarts Horcrux, decides it isn't safe enough?"

"But how are we going to get in"

"We'll go to Hogsmeade," said Phoebe.

"What good will that do?"

Phoebe sighed and looked up at the Bookworm. "I know how to get into the castle," she said, turning her gaze back to Harry, "undetected."

"How?"

"I'll tell you once we get there," said Phoebe. "Just get under the Cloak. We don't want to be separated this time."

"We're not eleven-years-old anymore, Phoebe," said Hermione, "we're not all going to fit -"

"It'll be dark," said Harry, shaking out the cloak and throwing it around himself. Ron stepped forward, disappearing from view as Phoebe gave Hermione a gentle push in his direction. "No one is going to see our feet."

The flapping of enormous wings echoed across the black water; the dragon had drunk its fill and risen into the air. Phoebe paused in their preparations to watch it climb higher and higher, now black against the rapidly darkening sky, until it vanished over a nearby mountain. Then Phoebe walked forward, wound her arm through Harry's as Hermione took her place between Harry and Ron.

Harry pulled the Invisibility Cloak down as far as it would go, and together they turned on the spot into the crushing darkness.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Eek! We're so close to the end... I believe there are about 10 chapters after this one left in the canon series... However, The Dark Lord's Downfall may have less. Catch you on the flipside.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 14 February, 2013 at 01:01am**


	187. Chapter 187

**Author's Note:** I've finally done it. I'm not sure what made me do it, but I have done it. What have I done you may ask? Well, I have finally posted on my Fictionpress account. It is my first Non-fanfiction story. It is only four chapters long and they are very short chapters, but I am hoping some of you will check it out. I'm The Muggleborn Slytherin on there and the link to my account is on my profile.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, dream lighting, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, PaulH024, Malfoy's Ferret **and an anonymous review.

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

**Fan of Fics:** It must be very hard for you to read about Phoebe and Harry's relationship deteriorating over the years. It has been hard for me too and I am the one writing it. Lol. Their relationship is similar to another one that I am writing in a different story, only this time it is through the eyes of someone who is the one being lied too. Her whole life has been kept a secret from her and her older sister knows just about everything but refuses to breathe a word of it to her (yet seems comfortable to spill the beans to other people) so in a way _**that**_ story is a reverse of the one we are reading here in DLD (Dark Lord's Downfall)

**Malfoy's Ferret:** I understand if you have been busy. Don't worry. Besides, I didn't leave much time between the last two updates for many reviews. Once half-term is over updates will go back to every Saturday and everyone will have a week to read and review without interruption; I just want to get as much of my stories finished as soon as possible because Uni is really starting to get to me lately and I can't focus on both Fanfiction and coursework (and I don't really want to leave you all hanging for months at a time).

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><p>Phoebe's heart lurched as a scream cut through the air.<p>

She and the trio had only _just_ Apparated into Hogsmeade. They were still hidden by the Invisibility Cloak but that did not mean that people knew that they were there; no sooner had the sound of the scream died away, the door of the Three Broomsticks burst open and a dozen cloaked and hooded Death Eaters dashed into the street, their wands aloft.

"_No!_" Phoebe hissed, reaching over to grab Ron's wrist as he raised his wand. There were too many of them to Stun. Even attempting it would give away their position.

One of the Death Eaters waved and roared, "_Accio Cloak!_"

Harry seized the folds, but it made no attempt to escape. The Summoning Charm had not worked.

"Not under your wrapper, then, Potter?" yelled the Death Eater who had tried the charm, and then to his fellows, "Spread out. He's here."

Six of the Death Eaters ran toward them. Harry, Ron, Phoebe and Hermione backed away as quickly as possible down the nearest side street, and the Death Eaters missed them by inches. They waited in the darkness, listening to the footsteps up and down, beams of light flying along the street from the Death Eaters' searching wands.

"Let's just leave!" Hermione whispered. "Disapparate now!"

"Great idea," said Ron.

"We know you're here, Potter, and there's no getting away! We'll find you!" shouted a Death Eater.

"They were waiting for us," murmured Phoebe. "They set up the Caterwauling Charm so it would alert them for when we Apparated onto the High Street - and no, I didn't know this was going to happen," she added to Harry. She may have known a few things, but she didn't know the Death Eaters plans to capture them.

"What about Dementors?" called another Death Eater. "Let 'em have free rein, they'd find him quick enough!"

"The Dark Lord wants Potter dead by no hand but his -"

"-an' Dementors won't kill him! The Dark Lord wants Potter's life, not his soul. He'll be easier to kill if he's been kissed first!"

There were noises of agreement.

"Down there," said Phoebe, pointing to a small set of steps. They led to the path that came out at the edge of Hogsmeade and led to the Hogs Head.

"We should just Disapparate," said Hermione.

"You can't," said Phoebe. "The Caterwauling Charm quells all magical escapes. We're trapped."

"How do you know that?"

"I was homeschooled until I was ten," said Phoebe. "I've learned things that they don't teach in school."

By now they were hurrying along the path towards the Hogshead. The lonely looking pub stood against the black backdrop of the sky. Phoebe knew that they would find help inside.

Suddenly, from around the corner, gliding noiselessly came Dementors, ten or more of them, visible because they were of a denser darkness than their surroundings, with their black cloaks and their scabbed and rotting hands.

Before anyone could stop him, Harry raised his wand and whispered, "_Expecto Patronum_!"

The silver stag burst from his wand and charged. The Dementors scattered and there was a triumphant yell from somewhere out of sight.

"It's him, down there, down there! I saw his Patronus, it was a stag!"

The Dementors had retreated, but the footsteps of the Death Eaters were becoming louder; but before any of the trio could panic, Phoebe seized their arms and pushed them into the Hogs Head. The door closed with a snap and Phoebe looked around at the person standing behind it.

"Don't take the cloak off," ordered a rough voice. "Upstairs and keep quiet!"

The tall figure re-opened the door and stepped out onto the street.

Phoebe pushed Harry towards the stairs and the four of them climbed in silence. The staircase opened up onto a sitting room with a threadbare carpet and a small fireplace, above which hung a single large oil painting of a blonde girl who gazed out at the room with a kind of vacant sweetness.

Shouts reached them from the street below. Still wearing the Invisibility Cloak, they crept toward the grimy window and looked down. The Hogs Head barman stood outside, it was easy to tell that it was him as he was the only one not wearing a hood.

"So what?" he was bellowing into one of the hooded faces. "So what? You send Dementors down my street; I'll send a Patronus back at 'em! I'm not having it!"

"That wasn't your Patronus!" said a Death Eater. "That was a stag, it was Potter's!"

"Stag!" roared the barman and he pulled out a wand. "Stag! You idiot - _Expecto Patronum_!"

Something huge and horned erupted from the wand. Head down, it charged toward the High Street and out of sight.

"What was that?" Hermione asked.

"A goat," answered Phoebe.

"That's not what I saw -" said the Death Eater, though he didn't sound at all certain anymore.

"Curfew's been broken, you head the noise," said another Death Eater. "Someone was out in the street against regulations -"

"If I want to put my cat out, I will, and be damned to your curfew!"

"_You_ set off the Caterwauling Charm?"

"What if I did? Going to cart me off to Azkaban? Kill me for sticking my nose outside my own front door? Do it, then, if you want to! But I hope for your sakes you haven't pressed your little Dark Marks and summoned him. He's not going to like being called here for me and my old cat is he, now?"

"Don't you worry about us," said one of the Death Eaters, "worry about yourself, breaking curfew!"

"And where will you lot traffic potions and poisons when my pub's closed down? What'll happen to your little sidelines then?"

"Are you threatening -?"

"I keep my mouth shut; it's why you come here, isn't it?"

"I still say I saw a stag Patronus!" shouted the first Death Eater.

"Stag?" roared the barman. "It's a_ goat_, idiot!"

"All right, we made a mistake," said the second Death Eater. "Break curfew again and we won't be so lenient!"

The Death Eaters strode back toward the High Street. Hermione moaned with relief, wove out from under the Cloak, and sat down on a wobble-legged chair. Phoebe ducked out from under the cloak and drew her wand, she waved it in the direction of the windows and the curtains drew themselves shut tightly.

Harry pulled the Cloak off of himself and Ron. They could hear the sound of the barman down below, re-bolting the door of the bar, then climbing the stairs.

The barman entered the room.

"You bloody fool, Blackheart!" he said gruffly, looking at Phoebe. "What were you thinking, bringing him here?"

"We had nowhere else to go," said Phoebe. "I didn't think they would set up a Caterwauling Charm around Hogsmeade. We just need someplace to lay low and figure out our next move. I remember Professor Dumbledore saying that you would help me if I ever needed it. And I can't thank you enough for saving our lives."

The barman grunted.

Meanwhile, Harry had crossed the room and was now standing in front of the fireplace. He turned to face the barman, studying his features for a few minutes. "It's your eye I've been seeing in the mirror," he said after a few seconds. "You sent Dobby and Winky."

The barman nodded and looked around for the two elves.

"Thought they'd be with you. Where've you left them?"

"They're in hiding," said Phoebe. "I sent them with my family when I had the chance. Bellatrix Lestrange almost killed Dobby; I didn't want to risk it happening again."

The barman nodded faintly and crossed the room to light the fire.

Hermione looked at Phoebe. "Who is he?" she asked.

"His name's Aberforth," said Phoebe.

"How did you get this?" Harry asked, pointing at the mirror on the fireplace. It was the twin of the one he had broken nearly two years ago.

"Bought it from Dung 'bout a year ago," said Aberforth. "Albus told me what it was. Been trying to keep an eye on you."

Ron gasped.

"The silver doe!" he said excitedly. "Was that you too?"

"What are you talking about?" said Aberforth.

Phoebe shook her head. "You'll have to excuse Ron," she said to Aberforth. "He's a bit short-minded."

"What?" Ron blinked.

"Brains like yours, you could be a Death Eater, son," Aberforth told Ron. "Haven't I just proved my Patronus is a goat?"

"Oh," said Ron. "Yeah... well, I'm hungry!" he added defensively as his stomach gave an enormous rumble.

"I got food," said Aberforth, and he sloped out of the room, reappearing moments later with a large loaf of bread, some cheese, and a pewter jug of mead, which he set upon a small table in front of the fire. Ravenous, they ate and drunk, and for a while there was silence but for the crackling of the fire, the clink of goblets, and the sound of chewing.

"Right then," said Aberforth when they had eaten their fill. "We need to think of the best way to get you of here. Can't be done by night, you heard what happens if anyone moves outdoors during darkness. Caterwauling Charm's set off, they'll be onto you like bow-truckles on doxy eggs. I don't reckon I'll be able to pass off a stag was a goat a second time. Wait for daybreak when curfew lifts, then you can put your Cloak back on and set out on foot. Get out of Hogsmeade, up into the mountains, and you'll be able to Disapparate there. Might see Hagrid. He's been hiding up in a cave up there with Grawp ever since they tried to arrest him."

"We're not leaving," said Harry. "We need to get into Hogwarts."

"Don't be stupid, boy," said Aberforth."

"We've got to," said Harry.

"What you've got to do," said Aberforth, leaning forward, "is to get as far from here as you can."

"You don't understand. There isn't much time. We've got to get into the castle. Dumbledore - I mean, your brother - wanted us -"

"My brother Albus wanted a lot of things," said Aberforth, "and people had a habit of getting hurt while he was carrying out his grand plans. How intact is yours and Potter's friendship, since you've been working for my brother, Phoebe?"

Phoebe's gaze lowered to the table. "It could be better," she said, honestly.

"How many secrets have you kept?" Aberforth pressed. "On Albus's orders?"

"Quite a few," said Phoebe.

Aberforth nodded and turned to Harry. "You see, boy? Albus makes friendships and then tears them apart at the seams for his great plans. You need to get away from this school and out of the country if you can. Forget my brother and his clever schemes. He's gone where none of this can hurt him, and you don't owe him anything."

"You don't understand," said Harry again.

"Oh, don't I?" said Aberforth quietly. "You don't think I understand my own brother? Think you knew Albus better than I did? There is only one person who knows Albus almost as well as I did, and she is sitting right beside of you." He nodded in Phoebe's direction. Phoebe refused to make eye contact with everyone.

"I didn't mean that," said Harry. "It's... he left me a job."

"Did he now?" said Aberforth. "Nice job, I hope? Pleasant? East? Sort of thing you'd expect an unqualified wizard kid to be able to do with overstretching themselves?"

Ron gave a rather grim laugh. Hermione was looking strained.

"There's a reason she -" Aberforth pointed at Phoebe again, "is with you, Potter."

"I-it's not easy, no," said Harry. "But I've got to -"

"'Got to'? Why '_Got to_'? He's dead, isn't he?" said Aberforth roughly. "Let it go, boy, before you follow him! Save yourself!"

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I -" Harry felt overwhelmed; he couldn't explain, so he took the offensive instead. "But you're fighting too; you're in the Order of the Phoenix -"

"I was," said Aberforth. "The Order of the Phoenix is finished. You-Know-Who's won, it's over, and anyone who's pretending different's kidding themselves. It'll never be safe for you here, Potter, he wants you too badly. So go abroad, go into hiding, save yourself. Best take these three with you." He jerked a thumb at Ron, Hermione and Phoebe. "They're in danger long as they live now, and she," he jabbed a finger once again at Phoebe, "will constantly be in hunted for her powers. She's wanted as much as you are, Potter."

"I can't leave," said Harry. "I've got a job -"

"Give it to someone else!"

"I can't. It's got to be me, Dumbledore explained it all -"

"Oh, did he now? And did he tell you everything, was he honest with you?"

Harry fell silent.

"What about you, Blackheart?" Aberforth asked.

Phoebe was still staring at the tabletop as she shook her head.

"I knew my brother, Potter. He learned secrecy from our mother's knew. Secrets and lies, that's how we grew up, and Albus... he was a natural."

The old man's eyes traveled to the painting of the girl over the mantelpiece.

"Mr. Dumbledore?" said Hermione rather timidly. "Is that your sister? Ariana?"

"Yes," said Aberforth tersely. "Been reading Rita Skeeter, have you, missy?"

Even by the rosy light of the fire it was clear that Hermione had turned red.

"Elphias Doge mentioned her to us," said Harry, trying to spare Hermione.

"That old berk," muttered Aberforth, taking another swing of mead. "Thought the sun shone out of my brother's every orifice, he did. Well, so did plenty of people, you four included, by the looks of it."

"Professor Dumbledore cared about Harry, very much," said Phoebe. "The decision to keep Harry alive and safe was a mutual agreement between the two of us."

"Was it now?" said Aberforth. "Funny thing, how many of the people you and my brother cared about and wanted to keep safe and alive ended up in a worse state than if you'd left 'em well alone, isn't it?"

Phoebe's eyes flickered fiercely. "That's not fair," she hissed. "It wasn't my actions that killed Blake. Blake died protecting Harry!"

"Was that planned by you and Albus too?" Aberforth asked.

"NO!" Phoebe cried. "Do you honestly think it would have affected me as much as it did if it had been planned?" she asked. "Blake was my best friend; his death was the _last_ thing I needed in fourth year! I'd just been through a traumatic ordeal of being kidnapped and locked in a trunk, only to be saved and told that one of my best friends - my brothers - was dead!"

Hermione stood and hurried around the table to her best friend. "That was a very serious thing to say," she accused Aberforth. "You can't accuse Phoebe of wanting Blake dead; but if that was where you were heading, why did you include your brother?"

"Never you mind!" snapped Aberforth.

"Were you - were you talking about your sister?"

Aberforth glared at her. His lips moved as if he were chewing the words he was holding back. Then he burst into speech.

"When my sister was six years old, she was attacked, set upon, by three Muggle boys. They'd seen her doing magic, spying through the back garden hedge. She was a kid, she couldn't control it, no witch or wizard can at that age. What they saw scared them, I expect. They forced their way through the hedge, and when she couldn't show them the trick, they got bit carried away trying to stop the little freak doing it."

Hermione's eyes were huge in the firelight, Ron looked slightly sick and Phoebe had her hand over her mouth in shock. She had known Dumbledore, quite well, but not once had he told her about his sister or about what had happened to her.

Aberforth stood up, tall as Albus, and suddenly terrible in his anger and the intensity of his pain.

"It destroyed her, what they did. She was never right again. She wouldn't use magic, but she couldn't get rid of it, it turned inward and drove her mad, it exploded out of her when she couldn't control it, and at times she was strange and dangerous. But mostly she was sweet and scared and harmless."

"Then your father went after them," murmured Phoebe.

Aberforth nodded. "Yes, and they locked him up for it," he said. "He never said why he'd done it, because if the Ministry had known what Ariana had become, she'd have been locked up in St. Mungo's for good. They'd have seen her as a serious threat to the International Statue of Secrecy, unbalanced like she was, with magic exploding out of her at moments when she couldn't keep it in any longer. We had to keep her safe and quiet. We moved house, put it about she was ill, and my mother looked after her, and tried to keep her calm and happy. I was her favourite," he said. "Not Albus, he was always up in his bedroom when he was home, reading his books and counting his prizes, keeping up with his correspondence with 'the most notable magical names of the day' _he_ didn't want to be bothered with her. She liked me best. I could get her to eat when she wouldn't do it for my mother, I could get her to calm down when she was in one of her rages, and when she was quiet, and she used to help me feed the goats."

"But that changed when you went to school, didn't it?" asked Phoebe.

"Yes."

"How old was she?"

"Fourteen," said Aberforth. "I wasn't there... If I had been there, I could have calmed her down. She had one of her rages, and my mother wasn't as young as she was, and... It was an accident. Ariana couldn't control it. But my mother was killed."

Phoebe felt a pang of pity for the man before her. She had read about Dumbledore's story in Rita Skeeter's story, but she also knew a bit about it from Thomas Chamberlain; but it was one thing to hear it second hand, it was another to hear it firsthand.

"So that put paid to Albus's trip round the world with little Doge. The pair of 'em came home for my mother's funeral and then Doge went off on his own, and Albus settled down as head of the family. Ha!"

Aberforth spat into the fire.

"I'd have looked after her, I told him so, I didn't care about school, and I'd have stayed home and done it. He told me I had to finish my education and _he'd_ take over from my mother. Bit of a comedown for Mr. Brilliant, there are no prizes for looking after your half-mad sister, stopping her blowing up the house every other day. But he did all right for a few weeks... till he came."

And now a positively dangerous look crept over Aberforth's face.

"Grindelwald. And at last, my brother had an _equal_ to talk to, someone just as bright and talented as _he_ was. And looking after Ariana took a backseat then, while they were hatching all their plans for a new Wizarding order, and looking for _Hallows_, and whatever else it was they were so interested in. Grand plans for the benefit of all Wizardkind, and if one young girl got neglected, what did that matter, when Albus was working for _the greater good_?"

Harry glanced at Phoebe; but she refused to meet his eye.

"But after a few weeks of it, I'd had enough, I had. It was nearly time for me to go back to Hogwarts, so I told 'em, both of 'em, face-to-face, like I am to you, now," and Aberforth looked down to Harry, and it took little imagination to see him as a teenager, wiry and angry, confronting his elder brother. "I told him, you'd better give it up now. You can't move her with you, wherever it is you're planning to go, when you're making your clever speeches, trying to whip yourselves up a following. He did like that," said Aberforth. "Grindelwald didn't like that at all. He got angry. He told me what a stupid little boy I was, trying to stand in the way of him and my brilliant brother... Didn't I _understand_ my poor sister wouldn't _have_ been hidden once they'd changed the world, and led the wizards out of hiding, and taught the Muggles their place?"

"I'm guessing that's when the argument broke out?" Phoebe muttered.

Aberforth nodded. "I pulled out my wand, and he pulled out his, and I had the Cruciatus Curse used on me by my brother's best friend - and Albus was trying to stop him, and then all three of us were dueling, and the flashing lights and the bangs set her off, she couldn't stand it -"

The colour was draining from Aberforth's face as though he was suffered a mortal wound.

"- and I think she wanted to help, but she didn't really know what she was doing, and I don't know which one of us did it, it could have been any of us - and she was dead."

His voice broke on the last word and he dropped down into the nearest chair.

Hermione's face was wet with tears, Ron was almost as pale as Aberforth, Harry seemed frozen and Phoebe was glaring at the flames, tears swimming in her stormy grey eyes. She wished that she hadn't heard it, wished she could wash it from her mind.

"I'm so... I'm so sorry," Hermione whispered.

"Gone," croaked Aberforth. "Gone forever."

He wiped his nose on his cuff and cleared his throat.

"'Course, Grindelwald scarpered. He had a bit of a track record already, back in his own country, and he didn't want Ariana set to his account too. And Albus was free, wasn't he? Free of the burden of his sister, free to become the greatest wizard of the -"

"He was never free," said Harry.

"I beg your pardon?" said Aberforth.

"Never," said Harry. "The night that your brother died, he drank a potion that drove him out of his mind. He started screaming, pleading with someone who wasn't there. 'Don't hurt them, please... hurt me instead.'"

Ron, Hermione and Phoebe stared at Harry. He had never gone into detail about what had really happened that night on the island on the lake; the events that had taken place after he and Dumbledore had returned to Hogwarts had eclipsed it so thoroughly.

"He thought he was back there with you and Grindelwald, I know he did," said Harry. "He thought he was watching Grindelwald hurting you and Ariana... it was torture to him, if you'd seen him then, you wouldn't say he was free."

Aberforth seemed lost in contemplation of his own knotted and veined hands. After a long pause he said, "How can you be sure, Potter, that my brother wasn't more interested in the greater good than in you? How can you be sure you aren't dispensable, just like my little sister?"

"No," said Phoebe, "Dumbledore loved Harry."

"Why didn't he tell him to hide, then?" shot back Aberforth. "Why didn't he say to him, 'Take care of yourself, here's how to survive'? Why didn't he tell you to go into hiding with your family?"

"Because Dumbledore didn't suggest that I hide my family," said Phoebe. "I knew that they were in danger and I decided that the best way to keep them safe to was 1) get them out of the country, and 2) keep them as far away from myself as possible; as long as I'm around they're in danger!"

"And on that note," said Harry, "you'll see that sometimes you've _got_ to think about more than your own safety! Sometimes you've _got_ to think about the greater good! This is war!"

"You're seventeen, boy!"

"I'm of age, and i'm going to keep fighting even if you've given up!"

"Who says I've given up?"

"'The Order of the Phoenix is finished,'" Harry repeated. "'You-Know-Who's won, it's over, and anyone who's pretending different's kidding themselves.' We know that Order isn't over. We've heard and seen other Order members; we know that they are just waiting for the perfect opportunity."

"Serefina Blackheart?" Aberforth asked.

Phoebe looked up at the mention of her godmother's name.

"Serefina Blackheart is fighting a losing battle," said Aberforth. "There is nothing she can do against You-Know-Who, she should just admit defeat, and so should you."

"Not going to happen," said Phoebe. "Once a Blackheart has made up their minds there is no changing it. Besides, You-Know-Who hasn't won! We still have a chance. Your brother knew how to finish You-Know-Who and he passed the knowledge on to me and Harry. We have to keep going... it is the only way."

"Only way?" Aberforth repeated. "Only way to what? To certain death? Is that really what you want, Blackheart? To be ripped away from your baby? Your family? If you keep down this path then the only thing you are going to find is certain death."

"We're going to keep going," argued Phoebe. "It's what Dumbledore would have wanted! Don't think I don't know how this whole thing could end, Aberforth, I've known for a very long time. I knew that at some point You-Know-Who would come for my power... that he would return to eliminate Harry... we've both known for a long time that we may not survive this war."

"But we're not going down without a fight," said Harry, suddenly grateful that he had Phoebe on his side. He was now reminded of why he loved her in the first place; plus, it felt like old times, when she was on his side, granted she may have been keeping secrets from him ever since first year but she had still been his friend. A very good friend for that matter.

"We need to get to Hogwarts," said Harry again. "Phoebe says that you _can_ help me... help us... but if you don't help us, we'll wait till daybreak, leave you in peace, and try to find a way in ourselves."

"And die trying?" Aberforth asked.

Phoebe bit her lower lip. "Some challenges are worth the risk," she said with a heavy sigh.

Aberforth remained fixed in his chair, gazing from Harry to Phoebe and then back again. At last he cleared his throat, got to his feet, walked around the little table, and approached the portrait of Ariana.

"You know what to do," he said.

She smiled, turned, and walked away, not as people in portraits usually did, out of the sides of their frames, but along what seemed to be a long tunnel painted behind her. They watched her slight figure retreating until finally she was swallowed by the darkness.

"Er - what -?" began Ron.

"As Ms. Blackheart has already told you," said Aberforth. "Ms. Blackheart must've already told you that they have all the other secret passageways covered at both ends, Dementors all around the boundary walls, regular patrols inside the school from what my sources tell me."

"Wow," said Phoebe, "the place got a real upgrade since the last time I was updated on its defenses. The school has never been so heavily guarded."

"Exactly," agreed Aberforth, "so how do you intend to break in undetected? Or here's a better question, how do you expect to do anything once you get inside, with Snape in charge and the Carrows as his deputies... well, that's your look out, isn't it? You say you're prepared to die."

"But what...?" Hermione said, frowning at Ariana's picture.

A tiny white dot had reappeared at the end of the painted tunnel, and now Ariana was walking back toward them, growing bigger and bigger as she came. But there was somebody else with her now, someone taller than she was who was limping along, looking excited. His hair was longer than the last time Phoebe had seen him, and he appeared to have suffered several gashes to his face and his clothes were ripped and torn.

Larger and larger the two figures grew, until only their heads and shoulders filled the portrait. Then the whole thing swung forward on the wall like a little door, and the entrance to a real tunnel was revealed.

And out of it, his hair overgrown, his face cut, his robes ripped, clambered -

"Neville!" Phoebe cried, throwing her arms around her fellow Gryffindor. She hugged him tightly and he hugged her back just as tight.

"I knew you'd come!" he said. "_I knew it!"_

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** This chapter literally has taken me 17 hours to write. Distractions are a major problem. I will try to update before Monday, if not, I will see you all next Saturday.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Sunday, 17 February, 2013 at 08:27pm**


	188. Chapter 188

**Author's Note:** The Final Battle is about to begin...

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **Fan of Fics, dream lighting, SoulVirus, KingdomHeartsNerd, PaulH024, Pixiescale1185, Malfoy's Ferret **and an anonymous review.

**Shout Outs:** Would like to say a big thank you too: **Croonsgirl** and **ilovemuffins** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>Neville cried out in delight has he spotted Ron and Hermione, and suddenly he was hugging them too. The longer Harry looked at Neville, the worse he appeared. One of his eyes was swollen yellow and purple, there were gouge marks on his face, and his general air of unkemptness suggested that he had been living rough.<p>

Nevertheless, his battered visage shone with happiness as he let go of Hermione and said again, "I knew you'd come! Kept telling Seamus it was a matter of time!"

"Neville, what's happened to you?"

"What? This?" Neville dismissed his injuries with a shake of his head. "This is nothing. Seamus is worse. You'll see. Shall we get going then? Oh," he turned to Aberforth, "Ab, there might be a couple more people on the way."

"Couple more?" repeated Aberforth ominously. "What d'you mean, a couple more, Longbottom? There's a curfew and a Caterwauling Charm on the whole village!"

"I know, that's why they'll be Apparating directly into the bar," said Neville. "Just send them down the passage when they get here, will you? Thanks a lot."

Neville held out his hand to Phoebe and helped her climb up onto the mantelpiece and into the tunnel; Ron followed, then turned to help Hermione; who was followed by Neville. Harry addressed Aberforth.

"I don't know how to thank you. You've saved our lives twice."

"Look after 'em, then," said Aberforth gruffly. "I might not be able to save 'em a third time."

Harry clambered up onto the mantelpiece and through the hole behind Ariana's portrait. There were smooth stone steps on the other side; it looked as though the passageway had been there for years. Brass lamps hung from the walls and the earthly floor was worn and smooth; as they walked, their shadows rippled, fanlike, across the wall.

"How long's this been here?" Ron asked as they set off. "It isn't on the Marauder's Map, is it, Harry? I thought there were only seven passages in and out of school?"

"They sealed off all those before the start of the year," said Neville. "There's no chance of getting through any of them now, not with curses over the entrances and Death Eaters and Dementors waiting at the exits." He started walking backward, beaming, drinking them in. "Never mind that stuff. Is it true? Did you break into Gringotts? Did you escape on a dragon? It's everywhere, everyone's talking about it, Terry Boot got beaten up by Carrow for yelling about it in the Great Hall at dinner!"

"Yeah, it's true," said Harry.

Neville laughed gleefully.

"What did you do with the dragon?"

"Released it into the wild," said Ron, "Phoebe and Hermione wanted to keep it as a pet."

"Don't exaggerate, Ron!" said Hermione.

"Who's exaggerating?" Phoebe asked. "I'd so happily keep it as a pet."

"But what have you been doing? People have been saying you've just been on the run, Harry, but I don't think so. I think you've been up to something."

"You're right," said Phoebe.

"But tell us about Hogwarts, Neville," interrupted Harry, "we haven't heard anything."

"It's been... well, it's not really like Hogwarts anymore," said Neville, the smile fading from his face as he spoke. "Do you know about the Carrows?"

"Alectro and Amycus Carrow?" said Phoebe.

Neville nodded.

"Yeah,"

"Aren't they teachers here?"

"They do more than just teach," said Neville. "They're in charge of all discipline. They like punishment, the Carrows."

"Like Umbridge?"

"Nah, they make her look tame," said Phoebe.

"You know them?" Hermione asked.

Phoebe shook her head. "I don't know _them_," she said, "but I know _about_ them. Aren't the other teachers supposed to refer you to the Carrows?" she asked Neville.

"'Supposed to' being the keywords," Neville nodded.

"So they don't?"

Neville shook his head. "You can tell that the teachers hate them as much as we do," he said. "Amycus, the bloke, he teaches what used to be Defense Against the Dark Arts, except now it's just the Dark Arts. We're supposed to practice the Cruciatus Curse on people who've earned detentions -"

"_What_?"

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Phoebe's united voices echoed up and down the passage.

"Yeah," said Neville. "That's how I got this one," he pointed at a particularly deep gash on his cheek, "I refused to do it. Some people are into it, though; Crabbe and Goyle love it. First time they've ever been top in anything, I expect."

"What about Alectro?" Phoebe asked.

"She teaches Muggle Studies," Neville answered. "It is compulsory for everyone. We've all got to listen to her explain how Muggles are like animals, stupid and dirty, and how they drove wizards into hiding by being vicious toward them, and how the natural order is being reestablished. I got this one," he indicated another slash to his face, "for asking her how much Muggle blood she and her brother have got."

"Blimey, Neville," said Ron, "there's a time and a place for getting a smart mouth."

"You didn't hear her," said Neville. "You wouldn't have stood it either. The thing is, it helps when people stand up to them, it gives everyone hope. I used to notice that when you did it, Harry."

"But they've used you as a knife sharpener," said Ron, wincing slightly as they passed a lamp and Neville's injuries were thrown into even greater relief.

Neville shrugged.

"Doesn't matter. They don't want to spill too much pureblood, so they'll torture us a bit if we're mouthy but they won't actually kill us."

Phoebe did not know what was worse, the things that Neville was saying or the matter-of-fact tone in which he said them.

"The only people in real danger are the ones whose friends and relatives on the outside are giving trouble. They get taken hostage. Old Xeno Lovegood was getting a bit too outspoken in _The Quibbler_, so they dragged Luna off the train on her way back for Christmas."

"Neville, she's all right, we've seen her -"

"Yeah, I know, she managed to get a message to me."

From his pocket he pulled a golden coin, and Phoebe recognized it as one of the fake Galleons that Dumbledore's Army had used to be send one another messages.

"These have been great," said Neville, beaming at Hermione. "The Carrows never rumbled how we were communicating, it drove them mad, we used to sneak out at night and put graffiti on the walls: _Dumbledore's Army, Still Recruiting,_ stuff like that. Snape hated it."

Phoebe ducked her head and smiled. _**Nah, Neville, he didn't hate it. He relished in the idea of you driving the Carrows up the wall.**_

"What are you smiling about?" Hermione asked her.

"No reason," said Phoebe. "Just the mere idea that Dumbledore's Army is still in session. I'm proud, Neville, you've really come a long way."

"Someone had to keep up the legacy," Neville smiled.

"What do you mean 'You _used to_'?" Harry asked.

"Well, it got more difficult as time went on," said Neville. "We lost Luna at Christmas, and Ginny never came back after Easter, and the three of us were sort of the leaders. The Carrows seemed to know I was behind a lot of it, so they started coming down on me hard, and then Michael Corner went and got caught releasing a first-year they'd chained up, and they tortured him pretty badly. That scared people off."

"No kidding," muttered Ron, as the passage began to slope upward.

"Yeah, well, I couldn't ask people to go through what Michael did, so we dropped those kinds of stunts. But we were still fighting, doing underground stuff, right up until a couple of weeks ago. That's when they decided there was only one way to stop me, I suppose, and they went for Gran."

"They _what_?"

"Yeah," said Neville, panting a little now, because the passage was climbing so steeply, "well, you can see their thinking. It had worked really well, kidnapping kids to force their relatives to behave, I s'pose it was only a matter of time before they did it the other way around."

"Let me guess," smiled Phoebe, "they bit off more than they could chew?"

Neville grinned. "You could say that," he confirmed. "It's an easy mistake. Little old witch living alone, they probably thought they didn't need anyone particularly powerful. Anyway," Neville laughed, "Dawlish is still in St. Mungo's and Gran's on the run. She sent me a letter," he clapped a hand to the breast pocket of his robes, "telling me she was proud of me, that I'm my parents' son, and to keep it up."

"Awesome!" said Ron.

"Yeah," said Neville happily. "Only thing was, once they realized they had no hold over me, they decided Hogwarts could do without me after all. I don't know whether they were planning to kill me or send me to Azkaban; either way, I knew it was time to disappear."

"But," said Ron, looking confused, "aren't - aren't we heading straight back to Hogwarts?"

"We are," Phoebe nodded. "You'll see."

"This 'keeping secrets' deal," said Ron, "not fun."

"It never is when you're stuck on the outside circle," said Phoebe, with a shrug, "but relax, Ronald, you'll see what I mean. Right, Neville?"

Neville nodded. "Yeah. We're all here." He said.

They turned a corner and there ahead of them was the end of the passage. Another short flight of steps led to a door just like the one hidden behind Ariana's portrait. Neville pushed it open and climbed through. Harry followed, turning to help Phoebe down as Ron helped Hermione through after him.

From the up ahead, they heard Neville call out to unseen people.

"Look who it is! Didn't I tell you?"

As Harry, Phoebe, Ron and Hermione emerged into the room beyond the passage; there were several screams and yells.

"HARRY!"

"It's Potter -"

"- and Blackheart!"

"It's Potter and Blackheart!"

"Ron!"

"Phoebe!"

"_Hermione_!"

Phoebe giggled as she looked around; smiling at the colorful banners that hung all over the walls, there were a few hundred lamps lit and tons of faces that loomed, smiling from all directions, at her and the others.

"OK, OK, calm down!" Neville called.

"Where are we?" Harry asked, as the crowd backed off he had had a chance to take in his surroundings. At first he had not recognized the place.

"Room of Requirement," said Neville. "Surpassed itself, hasn't it? The Carrows were chasing me, and I knew I had just one chance for a hideout. I managed to get through the door and this is what I found! Well, it wasn't exactly like this when I arrived, it was a load smaller, and there was only one hammock and just Gryffindor hangings. But it's expanded, just like you said it would, Pheebs, and as more and more DA members showed up, from other houses, it became the room you're looking at."

Phoebe grinned. "You've done well, Neville," she nodded. "I couldn't have chosen more suitable leader to take over in my absence. I'm really proud of you."

"And the Carrows can't get in?" asked Harry, looking around for the door.

"No," said Seamus Finnigan. His face was bruised and puffy beyond recognition. "It's a proper hideout, as long as one of us stays in here, they can't get at us, the door won't open. It's all down to Neville - and i'm guessing Phoebe since she left him specific instructions -"

Phoebe held up her hands. "I just told him that the Room would provide him with whatever he needed if he ever needs help this year," she smiled, "anything outside of those specifications is all Neville's doing. So you figured out the room, then?" she asked him.

"Yeah," Neville smiled at her. "You've got to ask it for _exactly_ what you need - like, 'I don't want any Carrow supporters to be able to get in' - and it'll do it for you! You've just got to make sure you close the loopholes!"

"Neville's the man!" Seamus gushed.

Phoebe nudged Neville and winked at him. "I knew you could do it," she smiled. "You'll have to tell me all about it!"

"It's pretty straightforward," Neville shrugged. "I'd been here about a day and a half, and getting really hungry, and remembering that you said Aberforth would help me if I told him who I was, who had sent me, and what I wanted, but I couldn't figure out how to get to the Hogshead without leaving the room, and that's when the passage opened up, it took me straight to the Hogs Head. He's been providing food, because for some reason, that's the one thing the room doesn't really do."

"Yeah, well, food's one of the five exceptions of Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration," said Ron.

Hermione beamed.

"So you've all been hiding out here?" Phoebe asked.

"Yeah," said Seamus. "We've been here for about two weeks now. The room makes more hammocks every time we need them, and it even sprouted a pretty good bathroom once girls started turning up -"

"- and thought they'd quite like to wash, yes," supplied Lavender Brown, whom Phoebe had not noticed until she had spoken. Now that she looked around properly, she recognized many familiar faces.

"Tell us what you've been up to, though," said Ernie McMillan. "There've been so many rumors; we've been trying to keep up with you on _Potterwatch_. You didn't break into Gringotts, did you?"

"They did!" said Neville. "And the dragon's true too!"

There was a smattering of applause and a few whoops; Ron took a bow.

"What were you after?" asked Seamus.

But before any of them could parry the question with one of their own; Harry swayed on the spot, his legs giving out from underneath him and he would have hit the ground hard had it not been for Ron and Neville catching him.

"Harry! Harry, are you alright?" Neville asked.

"Is he alright?" someone asked from the crowd.

Phoebe pushed her way to the front and knelt down beside her friend. "Harry? Harry! Can you hear me?" she asked, squeezing his hand and leaning forward. "Follow my voice, Harry, come back to here... come back now!"

Harry's eyes snapped open and his emerald gaze met Phoebe eyes. There were no words needed, Phoebe knew exactly what had just happened - Voldemort had just discovered the loss of one of the other Horcruxes.

Time was running out fast.

"We need to get going," mumbled Harry.

Phoebe nodded. "Neville," she looked around for the boy. "There is something that we -" she motioned to Harry, Ron, Hermione and herself, "need to look for."

"What is it?" Neville asked. "Tell us... we'll find it!"

"I can't tell you what it is," said Phoebe, shaking her head, "but I do need you to do something for me."

"What's that?"

"I need you to contact _all_ members of Dumbledore's Army... even those that have graduated... I need them all here at Hogwarts tonight! Can you do that?" she asked.

"Yes!"

"What are you going to do?" Terry Boot asked.

"Like I said," said Phoebe, "there is something we need to find."

"Can we help?"

Phoebe looked considerate. Her eyes dropped to the Ravenclaw patch on Terry's robes. "Maybe you can..." she murmured, turning to Harry has he grabbed her hand, she knew exactly what he was going to say. "He's in Ravenclaw!" she whispered. "He can help us get into Ravenclaw tower."

"But Dumbledore -"

"I'm done," said Phoebe, "I kept my end of the bargain. I promised Dumbledore I would keep you safe until the final battle was upon us, well, guess what, Harry? That time is now! The final battle is here... I'm free to do as I please and I want to destroy the Diadem so that you can end this War and I can go home!"

Harry stared at her for a few seconds - Merlin, he wanted to kiss her - "But -" he started to protest.

"Start the war? Not without us I hope!"

Phoebe glanced over Harry's shoulder as a familiar voice reached her senses. "Luna? Dean?" she frowned as the two in question climbed through the tunnel door. Seamus gave a great roar of delight and ran to hug his best friend.

"Bloody hell, Neville," said Phoebe.

Neville shrugged. "'_All D.A. members'_ you said," he pointed out. "There is only one reason you would want all graduated D.A. members as well as us... you're starting the war... I figured -" he broke off as Phoebe kissed his cheek.

"Call the others," she said. "Aiden and Ashlyn, James, Amelia and Sarah... I want them all here."

Neville nodded and returned to his designated job as Phoebe turned to Luna and Dean, both of whom had now been joined by Ginny, Fred and George, and Lee Jordan. Ginny gave Harry a radiant smile.

"Aberforth's getting a bit annoyed," said Fred, raising his hand in answer to several cries of greeting. "He wants a kip, and his bars turned into a railway station."

The tunnel door opened again and Cho Chang, Harry's ex-girlfriend, climbed through. She smiled at him.

"I got the message," she said, holding up her own fake Galleon, and she walked over to sit beside Michael Corner.

"So what's the plan?" asked George looking between Phoebe and Harry. He knew _one_ of them had a plan.

Phoebe looked at Harry and nodded.

Harry sighed and looked to the masses of people, some of whom had been there all along, and others that had just arrived. He didn't want to put them in danger any more than he already had, but he also knew that they were not going to stop arriving just because he said no. Phoebe was right, the war was upon them, and there was no running from it.

"Maybe you don't have to do everything alone, mate," whispered Ron.

"All right," he said quietly to the other three. "OK," he nodded at Phoebe.

Phoebe smiled and turned to face the room. "Alright, listen up," she shouted. All noise ceased instantly. Fred and George, who had been cracking jokes for the benefit of those nearest, fell silent, and all of them looked alert, excited. "There is something we need to find - something that'll help us defeat You-Know-Who. It's here, in the castle, but we don't know where." _**OK, maybe that was partially untrue.**_

"Do you know anything worth knowing about it?" asked George.

"It once belonged to Ravenclaw," said Phoebe.

"Um, well there is her lost diadem," said Luna. "Remember I told you about it?"

Phoebe nodded.

"Yeah, but the lost diadem," said Michael Corner, rolling his eyes, "is _lost_, Luna. That's sort of the point."

"When was it lost?" Harry asked.

"Centuries ago," said Cho. "Professor Flitwick says that the diadem vanished with Ravenclaw herself. People have looked, but," she appealed to her fellow Ravenclaw's, "Nobody's ever found a trace of it, have they?"

They all shook their heads.

"Sorry, but what _is_ a diadem?" asked Ron.

"It's kind of a crown," said Terry Boot. "Ravenclaw's was supposed to have magical properties, enhance the wisdom of the wearer."

"But none of you have ever seen anything that looks like it?" Harry asked.

They all shook their heads again. Harry sighed and looked to Phoebe. "Now what?" he asked her.

"Isn't there a bust of Rowena Ravenclaw inside the Ravenclaw tower?" the elemental asked, addressing Luna. The blonde nodded. "There should be an etching of the diadem on the bust, right?"

"Yes," Luna nodded again.

"Can you take us to it?" Phoebe asked. "If we can get a look at what this thing looks like, maybe we'll have an idea of what to look for." She knew that she didn't really need to look at the etching, but it was better than to just stand up and announce that she knew _exactly_ what the missing object look like _and_ where to find it. No, she'd have to play this one safe.

"I can take, Harry," said Cho.

Phoebe waved her off. "You're OK," she said, "Luna can take us. Right, Luna?"

"Oooh, yes, I'd like to," said Luna happily. Cho sat down, looking thoroughly disappointed and glaring at Phoebe.

"How do we get out?" Harry asked Neville.

"Over here."

He led Harry and Luna to a corner. Phoebe smiled at Cho and then turned to Harry and Ron. She shoved the beaded bag into Hermione's hands and leaned in to whisper in their ears. "Get down to the chamber," she said, "we need a Basilisk's fang, and the Chamber holds the corpse of the dead snake."

"Phoebe," Harry called, waving her over.

Phoebe nodded at him and looked back at Hermione and Ron. "Be careful," she warned them. "Just get to the Chamber. Get the fang, and get out! OK?"

Hermione nodded. "Be careful," she said, hugging the elemental.

"And you," Phoebe said, turning to Ron. "It's your turn to shine," she said. "One hair harmed on her head -" she nodded at Hermione, "and you'll _wish_ that the Carrows had dealt with you, am I clear?"

"Crystal," said Ron.

While in the past he would have argued with Phoebe, he knew that they were on the same page when it came to Hermione's safety.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Another short one. But I thought this to be an appropriate place to end the chapter. I did try adding another scene but it just didn't feel right and I felt like it ruined what I already had. Plus, ending a scene where Ron and Phoebe agree on something is a rarity.

Leave us a review.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, 20 February, 2013 at 01:34am**


	189. Chapter 189

**Author's Note:** More of Phoebe's secrets are about to be revealed... keep reading. Also, I wanted to ask: Do you guys think it is possible to get to 1,400 reviews by the end of this series? I can only do that if you lovely people review; some of you do it without fail but I know some people just read and then leave... please leave a review.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Fan of Fics, Alaina08, Miracles Happen94, SoulVirus, PaulH024** and** Malfoy's Ferret.**

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

**Fan of Fics:** The answer to the question that you seek; where did Phoebe learn about the Diadem is being hidden is answered in this chapter.

* * *

><p>It was late evening and the sun had just set. Aiden and Sarah were sitting alone outside of the manor they had been living in for the last year. Aiden had just finished training, he had been practicing for hours and he was starting to get stronger.<p>

"Do you think we'll ever go home?" Sarah asked, looking up at her boyfriend. She was curled up against him watching the stars flash across the indigo sky above.

"One day," Aiden nodded. "But I don't mind it out here..."

"Yeah," Sarah nodded. "But I could do without the constant protective Order Members."

Aiden smiled and kissed the top of her head. "It's just a precaution," he said, "When You-Know-Who is gone we'll be safe and can do as we please."

"Promise?"

Aiden placed his fingers under Sarah's chin and lifted her head up so that he could see into her eyes. "I promise," he swore, before leaning in to kiss her.

Sarah wound her arms around his neck when Ashlyn shouted from the manor.

"OI! LOVE BIRDS! COME INSIDE!"

Aiden and Sarah pulled away, exchanged a look of curiosity and then ran into the parlor.

Sarah noticed Serefina, Terence, Adrian, Ashlyn, Amelia, Elena and Jacob Blackheart, and Draco, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy standing around the room looking tense. "What is it?" the Hufflepuff asked. "What's the matter?"

"It's happening," said Ashlyn, grabbing a small golden coin from the table. She handed it to Aiden, who recognized it as the small DA coins that Hermione had created two years ago. He hissed as the coin started to warn in his hands.

Then six words flashed across the surface of the coin.

_CALLING ALL MEMBERS._

_HOGWARTS UNDER ATTACK._

**~*Phoebe*~**

Meanwhile, at Hogwarts, Phoebe, Harry and Luna had escaped the Room of Requirements and were running along the fifth corridor, ducking into alcoves and taking as many hidden passages as possible to get the Ravenclaw Tower without being caught.

Finally, without any problems, the three of them reach the bottom of the staircase that would take them to their destination. They climbed quickly, and at last reached a door. There was no handle and no keyhole; nothing but a plain expanse of aged wood, and a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.

Luna reached out a pale hand and knocked once. At once the beak of the eagle opened but instead of a bird's call, a soft, musical voice said, "Which came first, the phoenix or the flame?"

"Hmm... What do you think?" said Luna, looking to her friends.

"What isn't there a password?" asked Harry.

"Oh no, you've got to answer a question," said Luna.

"What if you get it wrong?"

"Well, you have to wait for somebody who gets it right," said Luna. "That way you learn, you see?"

"Yeah. Trouble is, we can't really afford to wait for anyone see, Luna."

Phoebe touched Harry's shoulder and turned to the door. "The answer is easy," she smiled, "Luna; you want to do the honours?"

"OK." Luna smiled. "I think the answer is that a circle has no beginning."

"Well-reasoned," said the voice, and the door swung open.

The deserted Ravenclaw common room was a wide circle room; airier than any Harry had ever seen at Hogwarts. Graceful arched windows punctuated the walls, which were hung with blue-and-bronze silks. By day, the Ravenclaws would have a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains. The ceiling was domed and painted with stars, which were echoed in the midnight-blue carpet.

There were tables, chairs, and bookcases, and in a niche opposite the door stood a tall statue of white marble.

"That's it," said Phoebe, pointing at the bust,

Harry strode right up to the marble woman, and she seemed to look back at him with a quizzical half smile on her face, beautiful yet slightly intimidating. A delicate-looking circlet had been reproduced in marble on top of her head. It was not unlike the tiara Fleur had worn at her wedding. There were tiny words etched into her. Harry stepped out from under the Cloak and climbed up onto Ravenclaw's plinth to read them.

Phoebe gasped as a hand was placed over her mouth and pulled her backwards.

"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure," Harry read out loud.

"Which makes you pretty skint, witless and defenseless," said a cackling voice.

Harry whirled around, slipped off of the plinth, and landed on the floor. The sloping-shouldered figure of Alectro Carrow was standing before him, her hand over Phoebe's mouth, her wand pointed at Luna, who was on the floor unconscious, but even has Harry raised his wand, Alectro lowered her own and pressed a stubby finger to the skull and snake branded on her forearm.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"A call to arms," Sarah murmured.

"I never thought I would live to see the day that Hogwarts was under attack," said Ashlyn. "What are we going to do?"

"We're gonna fight, of course," said Aiden. "We have to sound the alarm... send Patronuses to all other DA members, do you think James has had the message?"

Ashlyn shrugged as her fellow Slytherin looked her way. "If they're using the DA coins, then, yeah, I'd say so," she nodded.

"What about the rest of the Order?" Aiden asked looking towards his mother. "Are they ready?"

"They've ready for a year," said Serefina. "They are just waiting for a signal from me."

Narcissa looked mildly impressed. "You Blackheart's have everything under control, don't you?" she asked.

"Someone has too," said Serefina.

Suddenly a large silver dog flew in through the kitchen window. It landed on the floor, sat on its hunches and looked at the people surrounding it, when it spoke James' voice issued from it.

"_Did you get the message?_" it asked. "_Phoebe is at Hogwarts. Mum and I are leaving straight away. I'll see you there..._"

Ashlyn looked to Aiden and nodded.

Aiden grabbed Sarah's hand and pulled her towards the parlor doors. "I want you to stay here," he told her, "I can't risk anything bad happening to you!"

Sarah smiled and kissed his lips. "I'm coming with you," she said, "I can't sit here, waiting and wondering about what happens there... I want to come with you."

"I can't protect you there,"

"Then don't," said Sarah. "Just trust that I am strong enough to come out of this alive."

Aiden stared at her, worry and fear etched onto his face. "Fine," he caved, "but only if you promise me something."

"Depends on what it is," said Sarah.

Aiden reached into his pocket and pulled out a small white-gold ring. He held it up for Sarah to see. "When all this is over," he said, smiling at the tears in her eyes, "you'll marry me."

Choking back the tears, Sarah nodded. "Yes," she whispered. "Yes... yes... I'll marry you," she repeated, kissing him passionately.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The moment Alectro's finger touched the Mark, Phoebe saw Harry's eyes slide out of focus. Closing her eyes, and concentrating on her elemental powers as a whole, Phoebe felt power surge through her before exploding outward, similar to the night that Warrington had chased her through the school.

Alectro was thrown backwards through the air and crash landed against a bookcase on the otherside of the room.

Harry's eyes snapped open. "What happened?" he asked, looking at the unconscious Death Eater.

"Death by accident?" Phoebe suggested. "I used my elemental powers as one... she'll be likely to survive. Warrington didn't."

"You killed her?" Harry asked.

Phoebe shrugged. "She deserved it," she said. "Come on - _rennervate_ -" she pointed her wand at Luna, the blonde's eyes opened and she sat up, shaking her head. "We have to get out of here before -" she broke off as the sound of Alectro's brother sounded from the otherside of the room, "someone turns up."

But that wasn't all. The ceiling had started to tremble. Scurrying footsteps were growing louder from behind the doors leading to the dormitories. Phoebe's explosion had woken the Ravenclaw's sleeping above.

"Quickly, Harry," said Phoebe, "Get under the cloak!"

Harry nodded and threw the cloak around him. Phoebe grabbed Luna's hand and pulled her underneath it too. Two seconds later a door opened and a stream of Ravenclaws, all in their nightclothes, flooded into the common room.

There were gasps and cries of surprise as they saw Alectro lying there unconscious. Slowly they shuffled in around her, a savage beast that might wake at any moment and attack them. Then one brave little first year darted up to her and prodded her backside with his big toe.

"I think she might be dead!" he shouted with delight.

"Oh, look," whispered Luna. "They're pleased!"

"Yeah... great..." said Harry, before he closed his eyes.

Phoebe grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Stay here, Harry," she whispered. "I need you here!"

Harry squeezed her hand back reassuringly.

"Alectro? _Alectro_? Are you there? Have you got him? Open the door!" shouted Amycus, Alectro's older brother. He was rapping on the common room door, the clear voice issued loudly, but Amycus ignored it, still shouting for his sister.

Suddenly several loud bangs echoed from outside the common room; the first years whispered amongst themselves. They were terrified.

"_ALECTRO_! If he comes, and we haven't got Potter - d'you want to go the same way as Lestrange? ANSWER ME!" Amycus bellowed, shaking the door for all he was worth, but still it did not open. The Ravenclaws were all backing away, and some of the most frightened began scampering back up the staircase to their beds.

Then, another voice, this time familiar, rang out from beyond the door.

"May I ask what you are doing, Professor Carrow?"

It was McGonagall.

"Trying - to get - through this damned - door!" shouted Amycus. "Go and get Flitwick! Get him to open it, now!"

"But isn't your sister in there?" asked Professor McGonagall.

"She ain't answering, you old besom! You open it! Garn! Do it, now!"

"Certainly, if you wish it," said Professor McGonagall.

The cool and clear voice rang out again. "Where do Vanished objects go?" it asked.

"Into nothing, which is to say everything," replied Professor McGonagall.

"Nicely phrased," replied the eagle door knocker, and the door swung open.

The few Ravenclaws who had remained behind sprinted for the stairs as Amycus burst over the threshold, brandishing his wand. Hunched like his sister, he had a pallid, doughy face and tiny eyes, which fell at once on Alectro, sprawled unconscious on the floor. He let out a yell of fury and fear.

"What've they one, the little whelps?" he screamed. "I'll Cruciate the lot of 'em till they tell me who did it -"

"He'll do no such thing!" Phoebe hissed.

"- and what's the Dark Lord going to say?" Amycus shrieked, standing over his sister and smacking himself on the forehead with his fist. "We haven't got him, and they've gorn and killed her!"

"There is no way a student here at Hogwarts could have done this," said McGonagall. "I'm sure she'll be fine!"

"No she blundering well won't!" bellowed Amycus. "Not after the Dark Lord gets hold of her! She's gorn and sent for him, I felt me Mark burn, and he thinks we've got Potter!"

"'Got Potter'?" said Professor McGonagall sharply.

"He told us Potter might try and get inside Ravenclaw Tower, and to send for him if we caught him!" said Amycus, "and he's got that half breed with him! She's smart enough to go anywhere..."

"Why would Harry Potter and Phoebe Blackheart try to get inside Ravenclaw Tower? They belong in my House!"

"We were told he might come in here!" said Carrow. "I dunno why, do I?"

"Blackheart and Potter would not come to Hogwarts," said McGonagall. "They will not get in, you know that!"

Carrow ignored her and looked up towards the domed ceiling. "We can push it off on the kids," he said. "Yeah, that's what we'll do. We'll say Alectro was ambushed by the kids, them kids up there -" he nodded towards the starry ceiling "- and we'll say they forced her to press her Mark, and that's why he got a false alarm... He can punish them. Couple of kids more or less, what's the difference?"

"Only the difference between truth and lies, courage and cowardice," said Professor McGonagall, "a difference, in short, which you and your sister seem unable to appreciate. But let me make one thing very clear. You are not going to pass off your much ineptitude on the students of Hogwarts. I shall not permit it."

"Excuse me?"

Amycus moved forward until he was offensively close to Professor McGonagall, his face within inches of hers. "It's not a case of what _you'll_ permit, Minerva McGonagall. Your time's over. It's us what's in charge here now, and you'll back me up or -" he broke off as he was lifted off of his feet, thrown with a sickening crunch into the front of a bookcase.

He crumpled, insensible, to the floor.

McGonagall blinked and looked around. "Ms. Blackheart," she said, looking around. She knew Phoebe was here. Only an elemental could have done this sort of damage. Phoebe slunk out of the Invisibility cloak looking sheepish. "What were you thinking?"

"Well, for starters," said Phoebe, lowering her wand. "He wanted to torture innocent children and then he threatened you!"

"That was very kind of you, Phoebe," said McGonagall, "but do you have any idea what you have done?"

"Made my presence known," Phoebe nodded. "Yes, I am aware of that. But Voldemort is on his way here."

"Oh, are we allowed to say his name now?" asked Luna with an air of interest, pulling the Invisibility Cloak off of her and Harry.

McGonagall gasped when she saw him. "Potter - you're here! What -? How - ? Why - why are you here? What's going on?"

"I don't think it makes any difference what we call him," Harry said. "He already knows where I am."

"You must flee," whispered Professor McGonagall. "Now, Potter, as quickly as you can!"

"I can't," said Harry. "There's something I need to do!"

"It was madness for you to bring Potter into this castle, Phoebe!" said McGonagall. "Are you completely insane?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Some may argue that point," she said, "but given the circumstances... but for now, we have to go!"

"Go? Go where?" McGonagall asked.

"Back to the Room of Requirements," said Phoebe. "I need to get everybody out of there... I need it to change!"

Harry and Luna frowned.

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked.

"I know where the diadem is," said Phoebe.

"Where?" Harry asked.

"The Room of Requirements."

"We've just come from there!" protested Harry.

Phoebe sighed in annoyance. "Harry, listen to me!" she snapped. "You know as well as I do that the Room of Requirements can change into just about anything, right?" Harry nodded. "Well, think about it, whenever something is lost at Hogwarts where does it always end up?"

"I don't -" Harry shrugged.

"It's in the place where everything is hidden!" said Phoebe.

Harry looked lost before realization dawned on his face. "You mean to say," he said, "your brother - Malfoy - that place he spent all of last year -?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. Draco was the one who told me about the room within the Room of Requirements that seemed to have everything," she said. "He told me about some objects that he could remember seeing, so I showed him a picture of the Diadem and he remembered seeing it in there - but we don't have a lot of time left, so can we go?"

"Yes," said Harry, his scar was bursting painfully. "Yes. Yes! Let's go!" He turned to McGonagall and Luna. "Professor," he said to McGonagall, "I know you want us to leave, but that's not possible. We're acting on Dumbledore's orders, we must find what he wanted us to find! But we've got to get the students out while I'm searching the castle - it's me that Voldemort wants, but he won't care about killing a few more or less, not now -"

"You're acti_ng on Dumbledore's _orders?" McGonagall repeated, pulling herself up to full height. "We shall secure the school against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named while you search of this item - this object."

"Is that possible?"

"I think so," said Professor McGonagall.

"What about them?" asked Luna. She was pointing at Alectro and Amycus.

Phoebe shook her head. "They won't be going anywhere anytime soon," she said. "After what I hit them with..." she added, "they'll be lucky to be walking around by morning."

"Is this the same thing you did to Warrington?" Harry asked.

"No," said Phoebe, glancing at McGonagall out of the corner of her eye. The last thing she wanted to do was to admit to murdering another student in front of her Head of House.

Harry seemed to catch on and nodded promptly. "How can we go about protecting the school?" he asked his Head of House.

"We teachers are rather good at magic, Mr. Potter," said McGonagall. "I am sure we will be able to defend the school against You-Know-Who. We'll put our best efforts into it. Of course, something will have to be done about Professor Snape -"

"No, Professor -" started Phoebe.

"- and if Hogwarts is about to enter a state of siege, with the Dark Lord at the gates, it would indeed be advisable to take as many innocent people out of the way as possible. With the Floo Network under observation, and Apparition impossible within the grounds -"

"There's a way," said Harry quickly, and he explained about the passageway leading into the Hog's head.

"Potter, we're talking about hundreds of students -"

"We know, Professor," said Phoebe. "But if Voldemort and the Death Eaters are concentrating on the school boundaries they won't be interested in anyone who's Disapparating out of the Hog's Head."

"There is something in that," agreed McGonagall. "Are you sure that they are out of it, Ms. Blackheart?" she added, looking at the Carrow siblings.

"Completely," Phoebe nodded.

McGonagall nodded once and pointed her wand at the Carrow siblings. She waved it once and the two bodies came together, wrapped up tightly in a rope that snaked from McGonagall's wand, then, after another wave, a silver net fell upon the bound bodies, tied itself around them, and hoisted them into the air, where they dangled beneath the blue-and-gold ceiling like two large, ugly sea creatures.

"Come," McGonagall added, turning to the three students. "We must alert the other Heads of Houses. You'd better put that Cloak back on."

She marched toward the door, and as she did so she raised her wand. From the tip burst three silver cats with spectacle markings around their eyes. The Patronuses ran sleekly ahead, filling the spiral staircase with silvery light, as Professor McGonagall, Harry, Phoebe and Luna hurried back down.

Along the corridor they raced and one by ne the Patronuses left them. Professor McGonagall's tartan dressing gown rustled over the floor, and Phoebe, Harry and Luna had to jog to keep up. It was difficult to stay under the cloak while running.

They descended two more floors when another set of quiet footsteps joined theirs. Phoebe heard them first, and she grabbed Harry and Luna to stop them in their tracks as they stepped off the final stair.

Harry pulled out the Marauder's Map from the pouch around his neck, but before he could activate it, McGonagall too seemed to become aware that they had company. She halted, raised her wand and said, "Who's there?"

"It is I," said a low voice.

"Snape," Phoebe whispered, as the Potions Master stepped out from behind a suit of armor.

"Where are the Carrows?" he asked, also raising his own wand. He wasn't dressed in his night clothes, but rather his usual black cloak.

"Wherever you told them to be, I expect, Severus," said McGonagall.

Snape stepped nearer and his eyes flittered over Professor McGonagall into the air around her, as if he knew that Harry and Phoebe were there. Phoebe raised her hand, ready to attack if she needed too; right now their best defense was her elemental control.

"I was under the impression," said Snape, "that Alectro had apprehended an intruder."

"Really?" said Professor McGonagall. "And what gave you that impression?"

Snape flexed his left forearm. His Dark Mark was still burning.

"Oh, but naturally," said Professor McGonagall. "You Death Eaters have your own private means of communication, I forgot."

Snape pretended not to have heard her. his eyes still probing the air all about her, and he was moving gradually closer, with an air of hardly noticing what he was doing.

"I did not know that it was your night to patrol the corridors, Minerva."

"You have some objection?"

"I wonder what could have brought you out of your bed at this late hour."

"I thought I heard a disturbance," said Professor McGonagall.

"Really? But all seems calm."

Snape looked into her eyes.

"Have you seen Harry Potter or Phoebe Blackheart, Minerva?" Snape asked. "I know that you and Serefina Blackheart were close when she was a teacher here, I see no reason why you would not protect her goddaughter if she were to return."

"What I do to protect my own is none of your concern, Severus," said McGonagall. "As you know, Lions are much more protective than Snakes."

"Especially a mother when it comes to her cubs," Snape sneered. "But if you have seen either Potter or Blackheart then I must insist -"

Professor McGonagall moved faster than anyone could have expected. She slashed her wand through the air and for a split second there was an air of anticipation as to what would happen to Snape. Would he fall unconscious? But the intensity of Snape's shield charm did nothing but knock McGonagall of balance slightly.

She brandished her wand at a torch on the wall and it flew out of its bracket. Phoebe shoved Harry and Luna aside as the flames descended, watching as they became a ring of fire that filled the corridor and flew like a lasso at Snape -

Then it was no longer fire, but a great black serpent that McGonagall blasted to smoke, which re-formed and solidified in seconds to become a swarm of pursuing daggers. Snape avoided them only by forcing the suit of armor in front of him, and with echoing clangs the daggers sank, one after another, into its breast -

"Minerva!" said a squeaky voice. Looking over Harry's shoulder, Phoebe saw Professor Flitwick and Sprout sprinting up the corridor toward them in their nightclothes, with the enormous Professor Slughorn panting along at the rear.

"No!" squealed Flitwick, raising his wand. "You'll do no more murder at Hogwarts!"

Flitwick's spell hit the suit of armor behind which Snape had taken shelter. With a clatter it came to life. Snape struggled free of the crushing arms and sent it flying back toward his attackers.

Phoebe pushed out her hands and blasted it away. It smashed into the wall under the window and shattered.

"He's getting away!" shouted Slughorn.

"No!" shouted Phoebe, throwing off the cloak and chasing after him. Slughorn, Flitwick and Sprout gave a start as she rushed past them.

"Is that -?"

"Blackheart?"

"It is! It is Blackheart!"

"Phoebe," Harry shouted, chasing after her. "Wait!"

"Merlin!" gasped Slughorn. "Potter - Blackheart - They are back -?"

Phoebe tuned out the shouts of her name and followed Snape around a corner and into an empty classroom; she raised her wand as he stood at the window, his back to her.

"Going to attack me, Ms. Blackheart?" Snape asked his voice low.

"I shouldn't have too," said Phoebe. "I thought we were on the same team?"

"Guess you thought wrong."

Phoebe shook her head. "I'm never wrong," she said, "all evidence pointed to you being on our side. You _gave_ me the sword of Gryffindor... You never punished Neville and the others when they recruited new members of the DA... I know they didn't drive you up the wall... but what I _don't_ understand is why you just tried to kill Minerva McGonagall."

"The Dark Lord wants you and Potter alive, Ms. Blackheart," said Snape, turning to face her. "Think of how well he would reward me if I could hand you over to him? Minerva McGonagall was simply detaining me from that privilege."

"Who are you?"

"My name is Severus Tobias Snape," said the Potions Master, "and I work for the Dark Lord."

"You're a lousy liar," said Phoebe.

"If that were true," said Snape, "I'd have been killed a long time ago."

Phoebe glowered angrily at the Potions Master. "All those hours spent in Dumbledore's office," she said, "planning and re-planning Harry's protection. Dumbledore's death -" she paused, watching his face, "making sure that the plan was flawless. You're not a Death Eater, Severus. You never were!"

Snape growled and raised his wand.

There was a blast - like a gunshot - and Harry hurried into the room. The look on his face told Phoebe that he had heard relatively everything that had just be said. Snape scowled at the two Gryffindor's, waved his wand and disappeared into a mass of black smoke; smashing through the window and disappearing into the night.

"What happened?" Professor McGonagall asked, joining them.

Harry shook his head. He was a little confused by what had just happened, but his mind was also buzzing with the fact that Phoebe - his _friend_ - had conspired with Dumbledore and _Snape_ - of all people - in order to protect him and kill the Headmaster.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** I'm not completely satisfied with the way this worked out. What do you think? The battle will be next chapter and it may be a longer chapter than what I have been giving the last few nights.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 22 February, 2013 at 01:50am**


	190. Chapter 190

**Author's Note:** And so… the battle begins.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **PaulH024, Dream Lighting, KingdomHeartsNerd, SoulVirus, MiraclesHappen94** and **Fan of Fics**.

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>"Harry -"<p>

Harry took a large step backwards, away from Phoebe. The elemental dropped her hands, looking hurt, she knew that her secrets were bound to come out sooner or later and she knew that they would hurt Harry in the long run; but for once she found that there was nothing she could say or do to ease his pain.

She could easily say she was sorry, but sorry wasn't good enough in this situation. Instead, Phoebe shook her head and turned away from her fellow Gryffindor. "You need to find that Diadem," she said, her back to him, "you and Luna go back to the Room of Requirements. I'll stay here and help barricade the school."

Without a word, Harry took Luna's hand and pulled her out of the classroom.

Phoebe sighed and looked up at Professor McGonagall. "Why does it hurt?" she asked.

"Lies always do, Ms. Blackheart," said Professor McGonagall. "You remember how Mr. Higgs was hurt when he learned your true identity?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yes. But this... I - I was going to tell Terence the truth... But I could see how people hated my brother - my family - I didn't want them to hate me too."

"I know," McGonagall nodded. "But you must understand that while the truth hurts; secrets and lies hurt even more. Sometimes it is just easy to be honest with people."

"But Harry would've hated me more if I had told him the truth," said Phoebe, "he would have hated Dumbledore. I -"

Professor McGonagall put her hand on Phoebe's shoulder. "Hate is such a strong word, Phoebe," she said, soothingly. "Give Mr. Potter some time," she smiled, "he'll come around. You'll see."

Phoebe had to smile. "Thank you, Professor," she said, before looking out of the window. "What do you need me to do?"

"The enchanted shield needs to be at maximum power for it to keep out You-Know-Who," said McGonagall, "we'll have other defenses in place but it is the shield that we will depend on more."

"Leave it to me," said Phoebe. "I have just the spell."

She drew her wand and run towards the Snape-shaped hole in the wall. She pointed her wand out into the cool, dark air and shouted, in Portuguese, "Máxima proteção!" her voice rung out clearly and the shield, which was already descending down over the castle, shone a bright silvery-white which illuminated the darkness with an eerie glow.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Ashlyn clambered through the tunnel exit and stumbled into the Room of Requirements. She looked around for Phoebe but couldn't find the elemental anywhere; she did, however, spot James and Samantha Black and quickly made her way to their side.

"Where is Phoebe?"

"Nice to see you too, Ash," said James, looking disgruntled. A whole year they had been away from one another and all Ashlyn cared about was where Phoebe was.

Ashlyn smiled, faintly. "Sorry, but there'll be time for a reunion later," she said. "We have to find Phoebe."

"I know," said James, "but you could look happy to see me, at least."

Ashlyn rolled her eyes. "Sorry for having my priorities crossed," she muttered under her breath as Sarah, Amelia and the others joined them. James smiled and nodded at Sarah, despite the Hufflepuff being with Aiden; James couldn't help but hold out hope that they wouldn't last. But sadly they had.

Now he knew how Harry and Oliver Wood felt when Phoebe had chosen a Slytherin over them.

"Where is Phoebe?" Aiden asked.

James grumbled. "Isn't _anyone_ happy to see me?" he asked.

"I am," Sarah smiled. "How've you been, James?"

James blushed faintly. "Fine. How was France?" he asked.

"Beautiful," said Sarah, "but it is nice to be home..."

"But not under the given circumstances," said Amelia. "But where's -?"

"If you say Phoebe -" said James, warningly.

Amelia looked startled. "I was going to say Cedric," she said. "But, now that you mention it, where _is_ Phoebe? Shouldn't she be here?"

James threw his hands up in protest and muttered, "Unbelievable!" under his breath.

Samantha couldn't help but laugh at her son's distress.

A door crashed into view at the far end of the Room of Requirements. It swung open and everyone turned, expectantly, to see who had entered. It was Harry. He stumbled to a halt, his eyes roaming over the number of people that had arrived in his absence.

"Harry," said Lupin, pushing through the crowd. "What's happening?"

"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school - Snape's run for it - What are you doing here? How did you know?" Harry asked, all in one breath.

"We all received messages," said Fred. "You couldn't expect everyone to miss the fun, Harry, and the DA let the Order of the Phoenix know, and it all kind of snowballed."

Ashlyn pushed her way through the front. "Potter, where's Phoebe?" she asked.

"She's helping barricade the school," said Harry. "I left her with McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout and Slughorn. They're on the fourth floor."

Ashlyn looked over her shoulder at Aiden. Again, no words were passed between them, just a silent gesture that they were not needed on the seventh floor anymore. Aiden squeezed Sarah's hand, kissed her lips once and then took off to find his sister.

"Thanks," said Ashlyn, nodding at Harry. She then followed Aiden out into the corridor.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"You realize, of course, that nothing we do will be able to keep out You-Know-Who indefinitely?" squeaked Flitwick.

"But we can hold him up," said Professor Sprout.

"Thank you, Pomona," said Professor McGonagall.

Phoebe looked between the two witches and then turned to the Charm's Professor. "We may not have the defenses to keep him out indefinitely," she said, "but we don't really need to. The protective enchantments only really need to last until we can get as many of the younger students out as possible. Once they are safe any older students that have stayed to fight will be able to hold their own; I'd evacuate the whole school if I had my way, but I also know that there are students here who wouldn't _want_ to leave because of what Voldemort has put them and their families through, they'd want their own chance at his destruction as much as any of us."

"I suggest we finish establishing our protection around the castle," said Professor McGonagall. "Then gather the students in the Great Hall. Has Ms. Blackheart states, most, if not all, must be evacuated as of immediately. If any are over age and wish to stay and fight, I think they ought to be given the chance."

"Agreed," said Professor Sprout, already hurrying toward the door. "I shall meet you in the Great Hall in twenty minutes with my house."

And as she jogged out of sight, they could hear her muttering, "Tentacula. Devil's Snare. And Snargaluff pods... yes; I'd like to see the Death Eaters fighting those."

"We shall meet you and your Ravenclaws in the Great Hall, Fillius!" said Professor McGonagall, beckoning to Phoebe to follow her.

They had just reached the door when Slughorn rumbled into speech.

"My word," he puffed. "What a to-do! I'm not at all sure whether this is wise, Minerva. He is bound to find a way in, you know, and anyone who has tried to delay him will be in most grievous peril -"

"If you are afraid, Professor," said Phoebe. "Then you are most gladly welcomed to leave with your house. But I was under the impression that you were something that we could rely on. Dumbledore told me, it seems like a lifetime ago, that if I were ever in trouble then the best person to go to was you. The time has come for Slytherin house to choose where their loyalties stand, I know that few will stand with us, but there are some that will want to leave. Their families are Death Eaters, known very well by Voldemort, but if they had a conscious then they would realize that the Dark Lord does not own them, that they are they're their own person and can do as they so very well please."

Slughorn spluttered as Phoebe continued.

"For a long time my family - my _real_ family - were loyal to the Dark Lord," the elemental pressed on. "It wasn't until recently that they realized what they could very well lose in this battle. When my mother was reunited with me four years ago, I knew, right then, that she would happily swap sides just to protect me and Draco. My father visited me the summer between first and second year, I knew that he, just like mother, wanted what was best for me... it is why they gave me up at birth, you know, so I wouldn't have to life in fear of Voldemort coming after me; everything they did from the moment I was born was to protect me. They swapped sides for _me_... and I believe if some Slytherin's realize that, then they too will see that the Dark Lord does not control them in ways that he thinks he can."

There was a heavy pause.

"Courage is a lot stronger than fear, Professor," said Phoebe. "And I believe that all Slytherin's have courage somewhere inside them... it just takes the right person to find it."

Professor McGonagall put her hand on Phoebe's shoulder and led her from the room. She was pleased with her student. Once they were both free of the room, the Transfiguration professor stood in the middle of the corridor and drew her wand.

"_Piertotum_ - oh, for heaven's sake, Filch, not _now -_"

The aged caretaker had just come hobbling into view, shouting, "Students out of bed! Students in the corridors!"

"They're supposed to be, you blithering idiot!" shouted McGonagall. "Now go and do something constructive! Find Peeves!"

"P-Peeves?" stammered Filch.

"Yes, _Peeves_, you fool, _Peeves_! Haven't you been complaining about him for a quarter of a century? Go and fetch him, at once!"

Filch evidently thought Professor McGonagall had taken leave of her senses, but hobbled away, hunch-shouldered, muttering under her breath.

"And now - _Piertotum Locomotor_!" Professor McGonagall shouted.

All along the corridor the statues and suits of armor jumped down from their plinths, and from the echoing crashes from the floors above and below, Phoebe knew that their fellows throughout the castle had done the same.

"Hogwarts is threatened!" shouted Professor McGonagall. "Man the boundaries, protect us, do your duty to our school!"

Clattering and yelling, the horde of moving statues stampeded past Phoebe; some of them smaller, others larger, than life. There were animals too, and the clanking suits of armor brandished swords and spiked balls on chains.

"Now, Phoebe," said McGonagall, "you better get down to the Great Hall - I shall arouse the Gryffindor's."

Phoebe nodded and parted ways with her Head of House.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall was dark and scattered with stars, and below it the four long House tables were lined with dishellved students, some in traveling cloaks, others in dressing gowns. Here and there shone the pearly white figures of the school ghosts. Every eye, living and dead, was fixed upon Professor McGonagall, who was speaking from the raised platform at the top of the Hall. Behind her stood the remaining teachers, including the palomino centaur, Firenze, and the members of the Order of the Phoenix who had arrived to fight.

"... Evacuation will be overseen by Mr. Filch and Madam Pomfrey. Prefects, when I give the world, you will organize your House and take your charges, in an orderly fashion, to the evacuation point."

Many students looked petrified, while others, like Ernie Macmillan, were determined to stay.

"What if we want to stay and fight?" he shouted from the Hufflepuff table.

There was a smattering of applause.

"If you are of age, you may stay," said Professor McGonagall.

"What about our things?" called a girl from the Ravenclaw table. "Our trunks, our owls?"

"We have no time to collect possessions," said Professor McGonagall. "The important thing is to get you out of here safely."

"Where's Professor Snape?" shouted a girl from the Slytherin table.

"He has, to use the common phrase, done a bunk," replied Professor McGonagall, and a great cheer erupted from the Gryffindor's, Hufflepuff's, and Ravenclaws.

Phoebe shook her head and stepped up beside her Head of House. "Quiet!" she shouted. "I'd like to say something. Yes, Professor Snape has gone, and yes, I guess that does mean that some of you find that exciting or relieving, but you didn't know Professor Snape... at least, you didn't know him well."

The Hall was silent. All eyes were on Phoebe.

"Professor Snape was a good man," said Phoebe. "He was just -"

"A murderer!" shouted a boy from the Gryffindor table. "He was a murderer! Anyone who says otherwise is a fool!"

Phoebe growled in the direction of her housemate. "You didn't know him!" she snapped. "Everything Professor Snape has done this year was to keep you all alive! He has put his own life on the line for a number of years to keep every student at this school safe from Voldemort," students around the Hall shuddered. "Professor Snape is, and always will be, a true hero."

"A hero?" repeated a student from the Ravenclaw table. "He's a coward! He killed Dumbledore!"

"Yes, he did," Phoebe agreed. "But only on _Dumbledore's_ orders! Professor Dumbledore had been dying for the whole of last year; he was just too stubborn to admit it! Professor Snape didn't _want_ to kill him, but Professor Dumbledore didn't have any other choice. Lord Voldemort had agreed to use one of us, a student, to do the deed instead, a pure and innocent soul... do you know what murder does to the soul?"

There was a muttering of 'no's' from all over the Hall.

"It kills the soul," Phoebe explained. "Professor Dumbledore didn't want to risk tainting an innocent soul like that... he asked Professor Snape to do the deed instead. I'm not trying to make Snape out to be a murderer, nor am I trying to redeem his actions, all I am saying is that you cannot be so quick to judge a book by its cover when you have _not_ read the story inside."

Silence followed her words.

"Until you know the whole story," Phoebe added, "do not assume that you know the truth!"

Aiden, who stood beside his mother, smiled and stepped forward to take his sisters hand. He pulled her into a hug and returned to stand with the other Order Members. The two elementals had been reunited after a year apart half an hour ago when they had both collided with one another on the threshold of the Great Hall.

Ashlyn, who had also been with Aiden at the time of the collision, had practically thrown herself into her best friend's arms and hugged her for all she was worth. They had then separated once inside the Great Hall. Ashlyn had joined the Slytherin's with Draco, Aiden had joined Phoebe at the front of the Hall, Sarah and Amelia had joined the Hufflepuff's and James had rejoined the Gryffindor's.

"We have already placed protection around the castle," Professor McGonagall continued, as the Hall recovered from Phoebe's speech. It had brought a whole new perspective to Snape has a teacher, and as a Headmaster, maybe they could save him? Only time would tell. "But it is only temporary. I must ask you, therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects -"

But her final words were drowned as a different voice echoed throughout the Hall. It was high, cold, and clear. There was no telling from where it came; it seemed to issue from the walls themselves. Like the monster it had once commanded, it might have lain dormant there for centuries.

"I know that you are preparing to fight."

There were screams amongst the students, some of whom clutched each other, looking around in terror for the source of the sound.

"Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood."

There was silence in the Hall now, the kind of silence that presses against the eardrums, that seems to huge to be contained by walls.

"Give me Harry Potter," said Voldemort's voice, "and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you will be rewarded. You have until midnight."

The silence swallowed them all again.

Every head turned, every eye in the place seemed to have found Harry, to hold him frozen in the glare of thousands of invisible beams. Then a figure rose from the Slytherin table. It was Pansy Parkinson. She raised a shaking arm and screamed, "He's there! Potter's _there_! Someone grab him!"

There was a loud scraping of benches on stone flooring. The Gryffindor's rose from their seats and stood facing, not Harry, but the Slytherin's. The Hufflepuff's stood, and almost at the same time, the Ravenclaws, all of them facing the Slytherin table, wands emerged from everywhere, pulled from beneath cloaks and from under sleeves.

"Looks like your reputation is not what it used to be, Parkinson," said Phoebe. "Popularity not what it used to be?"

Pansy glowered at Phoebe from the Slytherin table.

"Thank you, Miss. Parkinson," said Professor McGonagall in a clipped voice. "You will leave the Hall first with Mr. Filch. If the rest of your House could follow."

"What if some of us want to stay?" Ashlyn asked.

Pansy turned to her. "You're a traitor, Black!" she hissed.

"No," said Ashlyn, shaking her head. "I'm just not stupid enough to choose the losing team!"

"C'mon," Pansy said, turning to her usually giggling group of girl-friends. Daphne Greengrass, who was usually Pansy's best friend, glanced at Draco and Ashlyn, before shaking her head and rising to the feet.

"No," she said.

"What?" Pansy hissed.

Daphne's gaze flashed back to Ashlyn. "You heard me, Parkinson," she said, swinging her legs over the bench and stepping away from the table. "I'm staying to fight!"

"You're choosing _them_?" Pansy shrieked.

"Yes," Daphne nodded. "Ashlyn's right, if we leave, we'll be on the losing team. My family has done enough for the Dark Lord, and I have lost several cousins, aunts and uncles to him, I will not lose my life for a cause that I simply do not care about."

Pansy's jaw almost hit the floor as she stared at her supposedly best friend. "You'd rather be a traitor?" she all-but whispered.

"I'm not the traitor, Parkinson," said Daphne. "I'm also not a murderer. I won't flee for the sake of it, and I will not fight on the Dark Lord's side, I am choosing my own fate, my own destiny! And I choose to stay - if that's alright?" she added turning to the front of the Hall.

Phoebe, who had watched the whole exchange, smiled and nodded. "Numbers do not win a battle," she said, "it takes courage and heart to want to keep fighting, even when at times it feels like you don't stand a chance. I can't guarantee that you will survive, I can't guarantee that _all of us_ will survive..." she shrugged, "but at least, if we do die, we die fighting for what is right."

There was a murmur between the four houses. Students exchanged looks amongst themselves. Harry gazed around the hall, hoping to catch a glimpse of Hermione and Ron, but they were nowhere to be seen; he could see Sarah and Amelia standing with the Hufflepuff's, they were nodding in agreement with Phoebe's words.

Even now, after everything that had happened, all that he had overheard, she was _still_ trying to protect him.

"Now that that is out of the way," said Professor McGonagall, "any Slytherin's that wish to stay and fight may do so, otherwise please follow your Prefects out of the Great Hall."

Several Slytherin's, Pansy Parkinson included, rose from their table and trooped out of the hall, many, however, remained behind.

"Ravenclaws follow on," cried Professor McGonagall.

Slowly the four tables emptied. The Slytherin table was half deserted, and a number of older Ravenclaws remained seated while their fellows filed out; even more Hufflepuff's stayed behind, and half of Gryffindor remained in their seats.

"Absolutely not!"

Phoebe looked up as the sound of Samantha Black reached her from across the hall; she was standing at the head of Gryffindor table facing her two children: Henry and Melissa.

"But, Mum -" Henry started.

"- We want to stay -" said Melissa.

"-and fight!"

"No, no, and just because you're going to whine about it again," said Sam, "no!"

"But why does -"

"- James get to stay?"

"James is older," said Sam, "but if I had my way he would be leaving the castle too!"

"Not in this lifetime!" said James, coming into the conversation. "I want my fair share of the action. I have waited too long for this moment, I am not backing down!"

Henry and Melissa looked awestruck; no one had ever stood up to their mother before.

Melissa pointed at her older brother. "We wanna help!" she protested. "Please, mum, please!"

"No!" Samantha yelled. "You're sixteen..."

"We'll have no one to look after us," said Henry. "Where will we go?"

"Back to the Room of Requirements," said Serefina. "If they promise to stay in the room, Samantha, then they will know what is happening with the fighting and will be safe from any unauthorized use of Death Eaters, what do you say?"

Sam looked hesitant before agreeing. "Yes, of course," she nodded. "Henry, Melissa, you will stay in the Room of Requirements. You will only be permitted to leave when it is _I_ who comes to release you, understood?"

The twin exchanged dubious looks. "Understood," they agreed, nodding together.

"Good," said Sam, "James, you will take them up to the Seventh Floor."

"_WHAT_?" James yelled. "But, Mum -"

"James Tobias Black," Sam yelled. "Just do as I say and do it now!"

James glowered angrily at his mother before turning to his younger siblings. He grabbed each of them by the shoulders and steered them out of the Great Hall.

Phoebe hurried over to Ashlyn, Adrian, Draco, Daphne, Amelia and Sarah, all sitting together at the Slytherin table.

"Where are Ron and Hermione?" Harry asked, approaching her. He grabbed her arm and whirled her around to face him. Aiden and Draco instantly drew their wands. "What did you tell them to do? Where did you send them?"

"I sent them down to the Chamber of Secrets," said Phoebe. "You need Basilisk venom for when you find the Diadem; which means you are going to need a fang from a Basilisk, and the only place to get one of those is the Chamber."

Harry sighed and dropped her wrist.

"You can thank me later." Phoebe said, turning away. Her gaze landed on Draco and she sighed. "Disarm him," she said to Harry.

"What?" both Harry and Draco asked.

Phoebe looked between them. "Let Harry disarm you," she said to her brother.

"Why?" Draco asked.

"Trust me," said Phoebe.

Draco hesitated and glanced at Harry. He did trust his sister, he wouldn't have been here if he didn't but he wasn't sure what kind of game she was playing. Why would he let Harry Potter disarm him without a fight?

Equally confused, Harry pointed his wand at Draco and muttered, "_Expelliarmus_!"

Draco's wand flew into the air. Aiden caught it and handed it back to his brother.

"Good," said Phoebe, "now we only have half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast! A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix, Professors Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters up to the three highest towers - Ravenclaw, Astronomy, and Gryffindor - where they'll have a good overview, excellent positions from which to work spells."

Adrian looked around. "Bletchley," he called to Miles and Kevin, both of whom had remained behind, "get over here! We're going to the Astronomy Tower with Professor Sprout!"

The twins nodded and hurried over.

"Meanwhile," added Phoebe, "Remus, Arthur and Kingsley are taking groups into the grounds. I've already spoken to Fred and George about organizing defenses at the entrance of the passageways into the school."

"Phoebe," Kingsley called from the centre stage. "We're dividing the troops. We could use a little inside help."

Phoebe looked around at her friends. She wanted them as far away from the main battle as possible. She needed them safe. "I'll take the grounds," she said, hurrying towards the other leaders. "Adrian, Ashlyn, Miles and Kevin can go to the Astronomy Tower," she added, "Sarah and Amelia can go too, they are Hufflepuff's after all, and James can go to the Gryffindor tower."

"What about you and Aiden?" Remus asked.

"I need Aiden with me," said Phoebe.

"And Malfoy?" Arthur asked, nodding at Draco.

"He stays with me too!" said Phoebe, glancing back at her twin brother.

Kingsley nodded and separated the rest of the troops into four different groups. Phoebe, Aiden and Draco were in the grounds group, while the rest of her friends had been sent to the highest towers, hopefully far away from the fighting.

"Potter," said Professor McGonagall, passing behind Phoebe as she hurried towards Harry. "_Aren't you supposed to be looking for something?_"

"What? Oh," said Harry, "oh yeah!"

He glanced at Phoebe from over McGonagall's shoulder. She stared at him as an unspoken truce passed between them. They could resolve their differences _after_ the battle.

"Then go, Potter, go!"

"Right - yeah -"

Harry turned around. He could feel Phoebe's eyes on him as he ran out of the Great Hall again, into the Entrance Hall which was still crowded with evacuating students.

**~*Phoebe*~**

James shook his head as he entered the Room of Requirements with his brother and sister. His intentions were to drop them off, tell Ginny what was happening, and then return to finding his friends and fighting in the war that they had all anticipated for a long time. However, when he returned to the Room he did not expect to find an array of different people waiting there.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"And you are?" asked an elderly woman. James recognized her as Neville's grandmother.

"James," answered the Gryffindor. "James Black."

"Ah, yes, Neville speaks quite fondly of you," she nodded. "Speaking of my grandson, where is he?"

"In the Great Hall," said James, "they're preparing to fight!"

"Naturally, he is on the front line," the elderly woman nodded.

Before anyone else could speak, the walls trembled and a door appeared. It flew inwards, depositing Harry, Ron and Hermione into the room with them.

"Is everyone OK?" Ginny and Terence asked.

"- 'S far as we know," said Harry. "Are there still people in the passage to the Hog's Head?"

"I was the last to come through," said Mrs. Longbottom. "I sealed it, I think it unwise to leave it open now Aberforth has left his pub. Now, if you will all excuse me, I must to and assist my grandson." With surprising speed she trotted off toward the stone steps.

James looked at Terence.

"I thought you were supposed to stay with Faye and Blake?"

"I couldn't stand not knowing -" Terence looked anguished. "Faye and Blake will be safe. They are with a friend... a good friend - have you seen Phoebe?"

"She was planning to lead a group of fighters into the grounds -" said Harry.

Without another word, Terence sped off.

"Phoebe is _not_ going to be pleased to see him," said James. "I wonder if that _good friend_ is Jackson. He is the only person I would really trust with Blake and Faye at the given time."

"You'll have to ask Terence," said Hermione.

James nodded. "Yeah, well, good luck with whatever it is you are doing," he said, making his way around the Golden Trio. "I have to get back to the battle. Melissa, Henry, stay here, Mum will flip her lid again if she finds out you've left and rejoined the battle. Behave and I'll see you later."

"James, be careful!" Melissa shouted as her eldest brother disappeared.

**~*Phoebe*~**

Flashed and red and green lights shot in several different directions.

The grounds of Hogwarts shook violently. The Blake Lake rose and fell rapidly. The wind hammered hard against any Death Eater, knocking them off balance within seconds, while small fires turned to intense ferno's within seconds.

Phoebe and Aiden held hands as they commanded the elements to do as they pleased.

Serefina Blackheart fought not that far away from her son and goddaughter; being a commander of Earth meant that she could assist Aiden and Phoebe by cracking open the ground and sending Death Eaters into the mess.

"_Crucio_!"

Serefina screamed.

"_Avada Kedvra_!"

The pain stopped and Serefina was left a crumpled mess, her breathing heavy.

A figure stood over her. Their wand lowered to their side as a hand appeared in front of her face. She took it and stood up, looking into the face of her childhood best friend, Lucius Malfoy. She smiled, faintly and nodded her thanks.

Grawp roared as he lumbered past. He was swinging what looked like a stone gargoyle torn from the roof and roaring his displeasure.

"Let's hope he steps on some of them!" shouted Draco.

"As long as it's not any of our lot!" said a voice. Phoebe glanced over her shoulder and saw Terence with his wand drawn. Even as she watched, Terence sent a well-aimed jinx into the ground of fighters.

Phoebe dropped Aiden's hand and raced towards her husband. She kissed him hard, but then grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards the castle, almost bumping to James who came crashing through the doors seconds later.

"Where do you need me?" James asked.

"Gryffindor Tower," said Phoebe. "We have an advantage from three separate towers. Ashlyn is up on the Astronomy Tower, McGonagall is expecting you in Gryffindor."

"Where's my Mum?"

Phoebe shook her head. "I don't know," she said, "she disappeared when I was drawing up a strategy plan with Kingsley. Where are Melissa and Henry?"

"Safe in the Room of Requirements."

"James," said Phoebe, her voice shaking, "Harry has to use the Room to find what he is looking for. Whoever is inside the room will have to leave in order for him to use it. Henry and Melissa are gonna come back down."

James shook his head. "My mum said no," he shouted.

"You really think they will listen?" Phoebe asked. "You Blacks are stubborn, and with all this -" she motioned to the chaos around her, "going on? You can't expect them to stay away. Would you?"

James looked alarmed. Turned toe and sprinted back into the castle, up the marble staircase and turned left at the top.

Phoebe turned back to Terence. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I couldn't stay away," said Terence, "not while you're here."

"But Blake and Faye -?"

"Are with a very good friend," reassured Terence.

Phoebe felt her heart begin to race exceedingly fast. Her nightmare surfaces and she had to suppress the tears that appeared in her eyes. _**NO!**_ she thought, desperately. She couldn't live through the worst nightmare. It was bad enough that she had to deal with it every time she closed her eyes, but to have to live through it in reality.

"No, Terence, please," she pleaded. "Please! I need you with Blake and Faye; they are what are important right now!"

"Hey, hey, Phoebe," said Terence, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "What's the matter?"

"_Please_," Phoebe begged. "Please! You have to go back..."

"Phoebe, what is -?"

Terence never got to finish his sentence as seconds later the air exploded.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Next chapter will be up soon... and we'll find out who is the first to die in the Battle of Hogwarts.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Saturday, 23 February, 2013 at 04:21pm**


	191. Chapter 191

**Author's Note:** Ready to find out dies? Well, here is the chapter for you. 1,400 reviews are close at hand. Can we read 1,500 before the end? I doubt it. But can you prove me wrong?

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **PaulH024, Malfoy's Ferret, Dream Lighting, HotaruKenobi, KingdomHeartsNerd, SoulVirus, Fan of Fics **and** MiraclesHappen94**.

**Shout Outs:** N/A

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>It seemed the world had ended, so why had the battle not ceased, the castle fallen silent in horror, and every combatant laid down their arms? Phoebe felt as if her breath had been taken away. Her lungs contracted and expanded but there was no air inside them to help her breathe. Her mind was in free fall as she, along with Draco crawled towards the body that lay on the floor between them, black and white hair covered their face, but their eyes stared without seeing into the distance.<p>

Draco brushed the hair from his mother's face, and softly closed her eyes with his hand. He was shaking. She was shaking. Neither of them was crying, but that was mainly because crying when in battle was a one-way ticket to joining their mother in the afterlife.

Phoebe looked around, she could see two Death Eaters standing a fair distance away, their wands were lowered but it was the laughter that had caught her attention; they may not have killed her mother but their actions afterword could easily have held them responsible.

She flourished her wand in their direction, hoisted them into the air and then blasted them, with a strong gust of wind, into the side of Hogwarts Castle.

"Get down!" Serefina shouted, as more and more curses flew through the night. She and Aiden had grabbed Phoebe and forced her to the floor, but Lucius lay across his wife's body, shielding it from further harm, and when Serefina shouted, "Lucius, come on, we've got to move!" he shook his head.

"Father!"

Phoebe saw tear tracks streaking the crime coating Draco's face as he seized his father's shoulders and pulled, but Lucius would not budge.

"Lucius, we cannot do anything for her," said Serefina, "We're going to -"

A scream caused Phoebe to look around. Her eyes widened as a monstrous spider the side of a small car was scrambling across the ground towards them. She pointed her wand at the creature and shouted, "_Arania Exumai_!"

There was a bright white light and the closest spider was blown backwards, its legs jerking horribly, and vanished into the darkness.

"It brought friends!" Aiden shouted to the others, glancing up to find more giant spiders scaling the side of Hogwarts. They seemed to be trying to enter the school from the hole that had been blasted in the side.

Terence flourished his wand at the spiders, sending several Stunning spells at them. He hit several spiders that fell away from the wall and tumbled back onto the grounds. Then more curses came soaring overhead.

"We need to move!" Aiden shouted. "NOW!"

He pushed Draco ahead of him with Terence and Phoebe.

Serefina, meanwhile, stopped to seize Narcissa's body under the arms. Lucius, realizing what Serefina was trying to do, stopped clinging to his wife's body and helped; together, crouching low to avoid the curses flying at them, they hauled Narcissa out of the way.

"There," said Serefina. She and Lucius had managed to pull Narcissa's body back into the Entrance Hall of Hogwarts and hide her in a niche where a suit of armor had stood earlier. Lucius could not bear to look at his wife a second longer than he had to, and after making sure that the body was well hidden, he turned back to his children.

Phoebe stared at the place that her mother's body was hidden. Silently vowing her revenge. Whoever had killed her mother would pay... she would make sure of that.

**~*Phoebe*~**

As the battle continued to rage, Phoebe turned to Aiden.

"I need to know where Voldemort is," she said.

Aiden blinked. "What?" he asked surprised.

"Voldemort," Phoebe repeated. "Where is he?"

Draco, Serefina, Terence and Lucius turned to the young Gryffindor. Each of them was equally confused on why she needed to know where the Dark Lord was.

"Phoebe, I don't think that matters at the moment," said Serefina. "We need you here, in battle."

"I _will_ fight!" Phoebe said. "I'll have too, to reach the snake!"

"What snake?" Draco asked.

"Voldemort's snake," Phoebe answered. "Nagini."

Lucius looked at his daughter. "Why do you want Nagini?" he asked.

"Because she's the last piece of the puzzle," said Phoebe. "If she isn't destroyed then this battle can go on forever. Mother will never be avenged. The only way to avenge mother now, is to find Nagini and destroy her. It'll help Harry destroy Voldemort."

Still looking hesitant, Aiden closed his eyes and focused on the jumble of scenes playing behind his eyelids. The screams and the bangs and all the discordant sounds of the battle drowned away until they became distant, as though he stood far, far away from them.

He was standing in the middle of a desolate but strangely familiar room, with peeling paper on the walls and all the windows boarded except for one. The sounds of the assault on the castle were muffled and distant. The single unblocked window revealed distant bursts of light where the castle stood, but inside the room it was dark expect for a solitary oil lamp.

With a gasp, Aiden pulled back and opened his eyes; at the same moment his ears were assaulted with the screeches and cries, the smashes and bangs of battle.

"Aiden," Phoebe said, grabbing his hand. "Where is he?"

"In a room," Aiden answered. "It looked like a bedroom. The windows were boarded up, save for one, and the walls were peeling. It looked like an old house."

"The Shrieking Shack," said Phoebe.

"Voldemort's sitting in the Shrieking Shack?" said a voice from behind. Phoebe turned to see Hermione, Ron and Harry hurrying down the marble staircase. It was Hermione who had spoken, and she looked outraged. "He's not - he's not even _fighting_?"

"He probably doesn't think he needs to fight," said Harry.

"But why?" asked Ron.

"He knows we're after Horcruxes - he's keeping Nagini close beside him - obviously we're going to have to go to him to get near the snake -"

"Right," said Ron, squaring his shoulders. "So you can't go that's what he wants, what he's expecting. You stay here and look after Hermione and I'll go and get it -"

"None of you are going anywhere!" said Serefina. "It is too dangerous!"

Phoebe shook her head and turned her godmother. "We have to go," she said. "We're the only ones who can."

"Why does it have to be you?" Draco asked.

But before anyone could answer him, a voice ripped through the air.

"BLACKHEART!"

Two masked Death Eaters stood there, but even before their wands were fully raised, Lucius Malfoy shouted, "_AVADA KEDVRA!_" and the Death Eaters dropped like stones.

"Get back!" shouted Ron, and he, Harry, Hermione, Phoebe and the others flattened themselves against a wall as a herd of galloping desks thundered down the marble staircase, across the Entrance Hall and out into the grounds. They were shepherded by a sprinting Professor McGonagall.

She appeared not to notice them. Her hair had come down and there was a gash on her cheek. As she turned the corner, they heard her scream, "CHARGE!"

Phoebe turned to Serefina. "Can you help the other teachers?" she asked. "I need to go with Harry."

"You must be careful, Phoebe," Serefina warned.

"I will," Phoebe nodded. "I promise." She turned to Aiden. "It's up to you now. I'm not gonna tell you where to go or what to do. Just promise me..." she sighed, "promise me you'll be safe."

Aiden nodded.

Finally, Phoebe turned to Harry, Ron and Hermione. "Let's go," she said, leading them out into the grounds. There was no point in using the Invisibility Cloak; the grounds were packed with fighting Death Eaters, Order members and Hogwarts students.

Glass shattered overhead and two bodies fell from a first floor window. Suddenly a gray blur that looked to be an animal sped across the grounds to sink its teeth into one of the fallen. It was Fenrir Greyback. Phoebe's heart raced and, pulling away from Harry, Ron and Hermione, she sped towards the werewolf, her eyes bright cobalt blue.

She extended her hand quickly and knocked the werewolf away from his victim. Phoebe didn't look to see who it was, all she could see was that they were covered in blood, their hand was moving feebly, but there was nothing she could do for them at the given time.

Greyback got to his feet, his mouth and chest was covered in the blood of his kill. He growled at her. "Well, hello there, beautiful," he rumbled, "Nice to see you again."

"Wish I could say the same!" Phoebe hissed.

Greyback lunged at her. He landed on her chest and pinned her to the ground. Leaning down, so that his face was centimeters away from her own, he spoke again. "You shouldn't have come here, darling. He's looking for you. He is very upset that you escaped... you and your pathetic excuse for a family." He reached up to stroke her face.

Phoebe snarled and extended her arm. She waved it through the air, feeling a pull of elemental magic. Greyback's eyes drifted to the pendent around her neck. It had flashed a bright yellow.

_Crack._

A large rock flew through the air and struck Greyback in the head, knocking him some distance away from the elemental.

"You'll pay for that, sweetheart," he said, baring his teeth.

There was a deafening _BANG_ and Greyback was blasted backward, mid-pounce. He struck a stone statue in the courtyard and struggled to return to his feet. Then, with a bright white flash and a crack, a crystal ball fell on top of his head, and he crumpled to the ground and did not move.

Phoebe looked over her shoulder and gave a shaky smile as Harry appeared in her line of sight. He offered her his hand and pulled her back to her feet. Nothing was said between them; instead, still holding her hand, Harry pulled her through the throng of fighters towards the edge of the courtyard.

They rounded the side of the castle and met up with Ron and Hermione who were waiting for them.

Screams of terror rent the air behind them. Glancing back the four Gryffindor's found the Death Eaters and Hogwartians fighting, not just each other, but a horde of Acromantula's that had burst out of the Forbidden Forest and were flooding toward the castle.

"Don't hurt 'em, don't hurt 'em!" rumbled a booming voice. Hagrid had just appeared on the grounds, brandishing his flowery pink umbrella.

Harry's blood ran cold.

"HAGRID, NO!" he shouted. Forgetting everything else, Harry sprinted back towards the fighters. He run bent double to avoid the curses illuminating the whole courtyard. Hermione, Phoebe and Ron exchanged stricken looks. They sighed, simultaneously and gave chase.

"Harry! Harry, come back!" Hermione shouted.

Pulling ahead of her friends, Phoebe reached Harry just before he reached the monstrous group of spiders, she had seen Hagrid disappear into the midst of spiders a few seconds ago, but she could only hope that they would not hurt him. They must have remembered him from when he raised Arogog, right? Harry, however, was a stranger, they would attack without hesitation.

"We can't!" Phoebe shouted catching onto Harry's arm and pulling him back from the spiders. "We can't help!"

"We have to try!" Harry struggled.

Phoebe held on tighter. "The only way you can help is by stopping this war," she said. "Let's get to the Shack! Find the Snake... it will be the only way that this will end."

"But Hagrid -?"

"Will be OK," said Phoebe. "He raised an Acromantula, remember?"

Still, Harry hesitated.

Phoebe sighed. "Harry," she shouted, pulling him around to face her. "Go find Hermione and Ron. I'll stay here and try and help Hagrid, alright?"

Knowing there was no point in arguing, Harry caved. "Alright," he sighed. "Be careful."

"Don't worry about me," said Phoebe. She squeezed his hand, turned him in the direction of Hermione, Ron and the Shrieking Shack and then pushed him forward.

With Harry going in the opposite direction, Phoebe turned back to the mass of spiders, she could have sworn she saw a massive hand wave from inside the mass but before she could act her way was impeded by a monumental foot, which swung down out of the darkness and made the ground on which she stood shudder.

Phoebe looked up. A giant stood before her, twenty feet high, its head hidden in shadow, nothing but its treelike, hairy shins illuminated by light from the castle doors. With one brutal, fluid movement, it smashed a massive fist through an upper window, and glass rained down upon Phoebe, forcing her to take shelter under a smashed doorway.

"HAGGER!"

Grawp, Hagrid's undersized giant brother, came lurching around the corner of the castle. The gargantuan monster trying to crush people on the upper floors looked around and let out a roar. The stone steps trembled as he stomped towards the smaller kin, and Grawp's lopsided mouth fell open, showing yellow, half-brick-sized teeth; and then they launched themselves at each other with the savagery of lions.

With a roar and an earth-quaking tremor, another giant came lurching out of the darkness from the direction of the Forbidden Forest, brandishing a club taller than any of them. He swung it, striking the side of the castle with a crushing force that caused stone to crumble and rain down onto the grounds.

"RUN!"

Startled, Phoebe looked up as Terence appeared on the stone steps of the castle. He jumped over unknown bodies, unknown soldiers and hurried to her side. Grabbing her hand he pulled her close. "We have to get out of here!" he told her, pulling her towards the open doors leading into the Entrance Hall.

Phoebe, who had started to follow her husband, paused when she heard a familiar, sinister laugh. An echo of a prior battle.

"Wait," she shouted over the wrestling giants. "Do you hear that?"

"All I hear are people dying, Phoebe," Terence answered.

Phoebe looked around. Students, Order Members and Death Eaters fought in all directions; but her senses were locked onto something else. Then she saw her, how could she not?

Bellatrix Lestrange seemed to have stopped everything she was doing just to shriek victoriously and laugh. She was standing over her latest victim, and it wasn't until Phoebe looked down did she realize who that poor unfortunate soul was.

Crumpled, lifeless on the ground was Remus Lupin.

"NO!" Phoebe screamed, desperately. Tugging her hand away from Terence's she lunged at her aunt, tackling her to the ground. She was blasted off by Rodolphus, who was later attacked by Terence; the two men fired spells at one another, each one trying to protect his wife.

"You filthy little half breed." Bellatrix snarled.

"I'd rather be a half breed than a product of incest!" Phoebe mocked. She waved her hand and, from the many shattered stones that littered the ground, a large rock flew into the air and zoomed at Bellatrix; the woman in question ducked to avoid the collision, but before she could fire back a cold voice echoed over the grounds, ceasing fire from either side.

"_You have fought valiantly. Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery. Yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste. Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity. Treat your injured_."

Bellatrix and Rodolphus exchanged looks before they disapparated.

"_I speak now to you, Harry Potter, directly to you. You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself. I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harry Potter, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every last man, woman and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour."_

Phoebe staggered backwards into Terence's arms. She clamped her hand over her mouth as sobs racked her body. She couldn't hold it any longer. It didn't seem so long ago that Remus was acting like a new pup, so happy and carefree, and bouncing with joy at the birth of his new son.

"Get up..." said Terence. "C'mon, Phoebe, just because it's a cease fire doesn't mean it is safe."

Still sobbing, Phoebe wrapped her arms tightly around her husband and hugged him. She had no words. Terence held her close and gently helped her off of the ground. Phoebe, unable to look at Remus, waved her wand and levitated into the air.

"C'mon," Terence whispered, kissing her forehead, and together the two silently made their way to the Great Hall.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The castle was unnaturally silent. There were no flashes of light now, no bangs or screams or shouts. The flagstones of the deserted entrance hall were stained with blood. Emeralds and Rubies were scattered all over the floor, along with pieces of marble and splintered wood. Part of the banister had been blown away.

Terence, still clutching Phoebe to him, led her across the Entrance Hall and into the Great Hall.

The House tables were gone and the room was crowded. The survivors stood in groups, their arms around each other's necks. The injured were being treated upon the raised platform by Madam Pomfrey and a group of helpers. Firenze was amongst the injured; his flank poured blood and he shook where he lay, unable to stand.

Bane, the head of the centaur herd, stood beside his brother with Serefina Blackheart.

The dead lay in a row in the middle of the Hall. Phoebe could see James, Ashlyn, Sarah and Aiden standing around a body that was covered in a white blanket. Silently, Phoebe and Terence drifted towards their friends and gently laid Remus next on the floor.

Aiden looked up.

"Phoebe," he whispered, pulling her into his arms. "What happened?" he added, looking at Terence. The older Slytherin shook his head. There would be time for explanations later, right now was a time for moaning.

"Who -?" Phoebe stuttered, her voice shaking. "Who died?"

"You don't have to do this," said Aiden.

Phoebe stared at her brother. "Who died?" she repeated.

"Phoebe, I -"

"Who is it, Aiden?"

Aiden sighed and turned to his friends. "Amelia," he answered, kneeling down and pulling the white sheet away from the Hufflepuff.

Phoebe felt her breathing catch as her friend stared back at her. Fresh tears flowed down her cheeks and she turned away. "Who else?" she asked.

Aiden swallowed. "Phe -" he started, not wanting to upset her further. He knew that, despite everything she had said about not knowing if everyone would survive, he knew that his sister would take it to heart of the people who had died. They didn't deserve it, he knew that, but they could have left when they had the chance.

Phoebe knew that too. But that didn't stop the pain.

"Samantha Black died half an hour into the battle," said Aiden, pointing to another white sheet a few feet away. James was kneeling beside him. "Melissa and Henry were killed shortly after, no one knows what happened, but it is believed that Samantha was killed as she tried to protect her twins."

Phoebe felt her heart break. The mere thought that Henry and Melissa were dead was hard to fathom.

"Amelia was killed within the first quarter of an hour," Ashlyn said. "It was a surprise attack. One of those giants knocked half of the Astronomy tower down. Miles and Kevin were buried underneath the rubble. We seem to think that Amelia took a hit to the head and never got back up."

More and more tears were flowing fresh and fast down Phoebe's cheeks. She yearned not to feel.

"Narcissa Malfoy, as you know," continued Aiden, "was caught in the blast that took out half the castle. Fred -" he pointed across the hall to where George was kneeling at the head of another body; Mrs. Weasley was lying across the chest, her body shaking. Mr. Weasley was kneeling beside her, stroking her head while tears cascaded down her cheeks, "was also caught."

Phoebe wished that she could rip out her heart, her innards, everything that was screaming inside her.

"Remus..." Aiden trailed off. "I don't know what happened there... you brought him in," he said to Terence, "what happened?"

Terence heaved a sigh. "We didn't see what happened," he said. "We just caught the end of it. Bellatrix Lestrange was celebrating another kill... Remus was at her feet."

Unhooking Aiden's arm from around her shoulders, Phoebe turned away from the dead. She didn't want to see or hear anymore, her heart was beating a mile a minute, and her body was shaking again with sobs.

Wordlessly, she left the Great Hall.

She didn't want to think at the moment.

All she wanted to do was to be alone.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Monday, 25 February, 2013 at 04:00am**


	192. Chapter 192

**Author's Note:** More deaths ahead. Please don't hate me!

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **MiraclesHappen94, Fan of Fics, ZabuzasGirl, Malfoy's Ferret, KingdomHeartsNerd, and SoulVirus.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you too: **Rhymenocerus, 28mandy28, ic3e, Eclipsegirl4488** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mates.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

* * *

><p>The castle was completely empty; even the ghosts seemed to have joined the mass mourning in the Great Hall. Phoebe walked without thinking, stopping finally at the end of the corridor and seating herself on a low windowsill over-looking the Black Lake.<p>

Images of the dead flashed in front of her closed eyes as she rested her forehead against the cool windows. She had given them a chance to leave, right? She had told them that she didn't know if they would survive or not. If she had made sure that they understood that point, then why did she feel so guilty?

Was it because the dead had died to protect a cause that had nothing to do with them? Died in the places of her and Harry? Why had she let them fight? Why hadn't she told them to flee when they had the chance? Should have taken the precautions and evacuated the entire school like she had wanted.

"Hey," said a soft voice.

Phoebe drew a short breath and looked up at her brother. "Dragon…" she whispered, tears in her eyes.

"Hey, shh," Draco cooed taking her in his arms and hugging her tightly. "Shh, it's OK."

"No, it's not OK," said Phoebe. "I let them die… I failed them – I failed Amelia, and Remus, and Mother…"

Draco shook his head and run his fingers through her hair. "You didn't fail anyone," he promised. "They all knew the risk of staying. They all knew what could have happened; you gave them the chance to leave but they wanted to stay. It wasn't your fault."

"It feels like it is," said Phoebe. "I shouldn't have told Neville to call Amelia and the others back; I should have left them in France. Why didn't I leave them in France?"

"Phoebe!" Draco scolded, but he didn't relinquish his hold on her. "Do not think like that. You did the right thing. Like you said before the battle 'Number's do not mean that we will win,'" he paraphrased. "'It takes courage, heart and strength to win a battle.' The others understood the risks; and I am sure that they do not blame you for what has happened."

"James probably hates me," said Phoebe, tears falling freely down her cheeks. "His whole family is dead!"

Draco shook his head and held her tighter as she sobbed. Her tears soaked through his shirt but he refused to let her go. What more could he say? She was determined to believe that the others would hate her that he couldn't change her mind, at least not when she was in this state.

Instead all he could do was hold her and wait until she cried herself out.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The two siblings sat for what felt like an hour; Phoebe had stopped crying, but Draco still refused to let her go.

And then, suddenly, a cold and eerie voice whispered through the walls of Hogwarts.

"_Harry Potter is dead! He was killed as he ran away, trying to save himself while you lay down your lives for him. We bring you his body as proof that your hero is gone._"

There was a moment's pause.

"_The battle is won. You have lost half of your fighters. My Death Eaters outnumber you, and the Boy Who Lived is finished. There must be no more war. Anyone who continues to resist, man, woman, or child, will be slaughtered, as will every member of their family. Come out of the castle now, kneel before me, and you shall be spared. Your parents and children, your brothers and sisters will live and be forgiven, and you will join me in the new world we shall build together."_

Untangling herself from her brother's arms, Phoebe and Draco made their way back down from the first floor, cross the Entrance Hall as several people crept out of the Great Hall and followed them down into the courtyard.

Voldemort stood at the gates, facing the castle. His Death Eaters stood behind him, and Hagrid stood off to the side, something in his arms.

"NO!"

Phoebe jumped and turned to see Ginny standing behind her. Tears were falling freely from her eyes and she clutched her mother's tightly, burying her face in her arm.

Bellatrix laughed at Ginny's despair and Phoebe felt her blood boil in anger. She should have finished Bellatrix when she had the chance.

"No!"

"_No!"_

"Harry! HARRY!"

Ron and Hermione's voices joined Ginny's.

"SILENCE!" cried Voldemort. Silence fell. "It is over! Set him down, Hagrid, at my feet, where he belongs."

Hagrid lowered Harry onto the grass.

"You see?" said Voldemort. "Harry Potter is dead! Do you understand now, deluded ones? He was nothing, ever, but a boy who relied on others to sacrifice themselves for him!"

"He beat you!" yelled Ron, and the charm broke, and the defenders of Hogwarts were shouting and screaming again until a powerful bang extinguished their voices.

"He was killed while trying to sneak out of the caste grounds," said Voldemort with relish in his voice, "killed while trying to save himself -"

Movement caught Phoebe's eye and she turned to see Neville pushing his way through the crowd. She moved to stop him, but was stopped herself by Draco. Neville burst out of the crowd of Hogwarts defenders and run straight at Voldemort - there were screams of his name but he ignored them.

Voldemort laughed, waved his wand and Neville was blasted backwards into his friends.

"What were you thinking, Longbottom?" Dean asked.

"He's lying!" Neville grunted, shrugging his friends off. He staggered forward again.

Voldemort laughed, picked up Neville's wand and threw it aside.

"And who is this?" he said in his soft snake's hiss. "Who has volunteered to demonstrate what happens to those who continue to fight when the battle is lost?"

Bellatrix gave a delighted laugh.

"It is Neville Longbottom, my Lord! The boy who has been giving the Carrows so much trouble! The son of the Aurors, remember?"

"Ah, yes, I remember," said Voldemort, looking down at Neville, who was struggling against his friends who were determined to keep him back. "But you are a pureblood, aren't you, my brave boy?"

Neville, finally free of his friends, staggered forward, unarmed and unprotected, into the no-man's-land between the survivors and the Death Eaters. Neville's empty hands curled into fists.

"So what if I am?" he said loudly.

"You show spirit and bravery, and you come of noble stock. You will make a very valuable Death Eater. We need your kind, Neville Longbottom."

"I'll join you when hell freezes over," said Neville. "DUMBLEDORE'S ARMY!" he shouted, and there was an answering cheer from the crowd, whom Voldemort's Silencing Charms seemed unable to hold.

"Very well," said Voldemort, and Phoebe heard more danger in the silkiness of his voice than in the most powerful curse. "If that is your choice, Longbottom, we revert to the original plan. On you head," he said, quietly, "be it."

Voldemort waved his wand and seconds later, out of one of the castle's shattered windows; some that looked like a misshapen bird flew through the half-light and landed in Voldemort's hand. He shook the mildewed object by its pointed end and it dangled, empty and ragged: the Sorting Hat.

"There will be no more Sorting at Hogwarts School," said Voldemort. "There will no more Houses. The emblem, shield, and colours of my noble ancestor, Salazar Slytherin, will suffice for everyone. Won't they, Neville Longbottom?"

He pointed his wand at Neville, who grew rigid and still, then forced the hat onto Neville's head, so that it slipped down below his eyes. All throughout the crowd that stood in front of the castle, wands were raised; the Death Eaters mimicked their actions opposite them.

"Neville here is now going to demonstrate what happens to anyone foolish enough to continue to oppose me," said Voldemort, and with a flick of his wand, he caused the Sorting Hat to burst into flames.

Screams split the dawn, and Neville was aflame, rooted to the spot, unable to move.

Phoebe Blackheart had had enough.

She raised her hand and snapped her fingers, extinguishing the flames from the Sorting Hat. Voldemort, along with every other onlooker in the courtyard turned silently towards the elemental. Her eyes were ablaze as she glared at Voldemort.

Just then, Aiden stepped out of the crowd and seized his sister's hand.

"Well, well, well..." said Voldemort, with a snide smile. "What do we have here? The twin cores, perhaps? Don't look so surprised, dears, I know all about the legendary twin cores. Your individual parents were the twin cores once..."

Draco gave a silent gasp and glanced around at Lucius and Serefina. They stood, impassively, in the doorway to the Entrance Hall, regarding Voldemort with similar looks of deep loathing.

"Don't come any closer," Phoebe warned as Voldemort took a step towards her and Aiden.

Phoebe's pendent flashed yellow and a huge tremor ripped through the courtyard, stopping Voldemort in his tracks.

"Aren't we testy?" he said, clicking his tongue. "How many times do you need to be disciplined before you learn your lesson?"

He raised his wand but before he could react hell broke loose.

Creatures of all kind burst into the courtyard. Centaurs. Thestrals. Hippogriffs.

There was a crash from inside the hall and an army of House Elves from the kitchens forced their way through the Freedom Fighters, ambushing the Death Eaters with knives and other kitchen appliances.

Phoebe heard a squeaky voice and looked around to see Kreacher, Dobby and Winky charge towards Voldemort. "Fight! Fight! Fight!" Kreacher was yelling. "Fight for my brave master, defender of House Elves! Fight for the brave Regulus!"

"Fight for Phoebe Blackheart!" Winky squeaked. "Fight for Phoebe Blackheart, the liberator of all creatures!"

Then there was an uproar from the distant boundary of the school as what sounded like hundreds of people came swarming over the out-of-sight walls and pelted toward the castle, uttering loud war cries. At the same time, Grawp came lumbering around the side of the castle and yelled, "HAGGER!"

His cry was answered by roars from Voldemort's giants. They ran at Grawp like bull elephants, making the earth quake.

In on swift, fluid motion, Phoebe waved her hand at Neville, breaking the Body-Bind Curse from him; the hat fell from him and he drew from its depths something silver, with a glittering rubied handle -

The slash of the silver blade could not be heard over the roar of the oncoming crowd or the sounds of crashing giants or of the stampeding centaurs, and yet it seemed to draw every eye. With a single stroke Neville sliced off the great snake's head, which spun into the air, gleaming in the light flooding from the Entrance Hall and Voldemort's mouth was open in a scream of fury that nobody heard.

Phoebe and Aiden seized Neville's arms and hauled him backwards into the Entrance Hall with the rest of the Hogwarts Defenders.

Chaos reigned and the battle continued.

**~*Phoebe*~**

The charging centaurs were scattering the Death Eaters, everyone was fleeing the giant's stamping feet, and nearer and nearer thundered the reinforcements that had come from who knew where. Phoebe recognized half of them as healers from the Elemental Academy in Portugal, Catrin Holloway; the headmistress led her students forward.

Fires burst to life all over the place, the Black Lake exploded into the air. Strong winds whipped around Death Eater and Freedom Fighters alike, and the Earth trembled violently. The Thestrals and Hippogriffs were soaring around the giant's heads, scratching at their eyes while Grawp punched and pummeled them; and now the wizards, defenders of Hogwarts and Death Eaters alike, were being forced back into the castle.

Phoebe, Aiden and Draco, all of whom had found one another the ruckus, were firing jinxes and curses at any Death Eater they could see. Voldemort, who was still screaming instructions to his followers as he sent curses flying left and right, stood opposite the three Malfoy's as he backed into the Great Hall.

Voldemort pointed his wand at Terence and Sarah. "_AVADA KEDVRA!"_ he shouted.

"_PROTEGO!"_ Terence shouted.

The Shield charm failed and the jet of green soared towards him and Sarah.

"_DEFLEXÃO_!" Aiden and Phoebe shouted in Portuguese. Two cobalt blue shields burst from their wands and surrounded their friends. The Killing Curse shattered upon impact. Voldemort snarled at the two Elementals, firing two more curses in their direction.

A bright white light exploded in front of Aiden and Phoebe. The two curses dissolved into nothing and the white light split into four separate pieces, before solidifying into four separate people. A gasp rippled around the Hall as the Four Founders materialized as the light dimmed.

Phoebe grinned. "Salazar!" she exclaimed.

"No, it cannot be," said Voldemort. He was staring wide-eyed at the Four Founders of Hogwarts.

"We will have time for a reunion later, Little One," said Helga Hufflepuff.

Phoebe nodded and turned back to the raging battle.

Voldemort, who was still stunned at the sudden appearance of his ancestor flourished his wand once more at random people. He was at the point that he didn't care who he hit Death Eater or not. He wanted to draw Phoebe Blackheart to him; she was more valuable to him than ever before now, especially since she had connections to the Four Founders.

More and more people were storming up the front steps, and Phoebe saw Charlie Weasley overtaking Horace Slughorn, who was still in his emerald pajamas. They seemed to have returned at the head of what looked like the families and friends of every Hogwarts student who had remained to fight, along with shopkeepers and homeowners of Hogsmeade.

"Lookie what we go here,"

Phoebe spun around to the sound of a gruff voice behind her. Two Death Eaters stood opposite her, they wore no masks and she could see the familiar brown eyes of Oliver Wood staring back at her; he looked exactly as she remembered him, the only difference this time was he was not wearing the usual scarlet and gold colours of Gryffindor; instead he wore a basic black cloak and hood.

"Ollie," she whispered.

Marcus Flint stood alongside Oliver. He sneered at Phoebe and brandished his wand in her direction. Phoebe blocked and waved her wand lazily in his direction, muttered a jinx in her native tongue and watched as Flint was blasted off of his feet.

She turned back to Oliver. "Why?" she asked. "Why did you switch sides?"

"The Dark Lord had so much to offer me," said Oliver.

"I thought you were smart, Oliver," said Phoebe. "I thought you were in the right mind to realize that Voldemort would _never_ win! All throughout school I was under the impression that you did not agree with him! What changed?"

Oliver's gaze flickered over her shoulder and landed on Terence, who was fighting with another Death Eater. Phoebe glanced back and sighed, turning back to her once best friend.

"You can't have everything, Oliver," she said.

"I had you before he ever came into the picture," said Oliver.

Phoebe shook her head. "I'm not some trophy!" she snapped. "No one _had me_ before anyone! You were my _best friend_ nothing more and nothing less!"

"I loved you!"

"Don't..." Phoebe whispered, shaking her head. She had lived through enough years with Harry pining after her, declaring his love since fourth year; she didn't want Oliver to start doing the same.

"Admit it, Phoebe," said Oliver, stepping closer. "Admit you love me too."

Phoebe shook her head. "I -" she stammered.

"What?"

He was right in front of her now. All he had to do was reach out and touch her. He lifted his hand, flexed his fingers and brushed them across her cheek when -

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!"

There was a clatter of hooves, a flash of grey, and Bane drove Oliver backwards. The centaurs had entered the Entrance Hall and spotted Oliver and Phoebe. The Death Eater's closeness to their Princess was too close for their liking and they knew that they had to do something about it.

Bane charged towards Oliver, who disappeared in a wisp of black smoke. Flint remained unconscious on the floor. Blood trickled down from a gash on his forehead, and his wand lay absently by his side.

Ronan and Magorian turned to Phoebe.

"Are you OK, Princess?" Magorian asked.

"Yes," Phoebe answered, her breathing a little shaky. "Thank you."

Bane nodded and patted her shoulder.

"Phoebe Blackheart, Miss! Phoebe Blackheart, Miss!" squealed a tiny voice.

Phoebe spun around to see Winky being backed into a corner. Her huge glassy eyes shimmered in the glare of the torches above her.

"Hey!" Phoebe shouted, firing off three spells in the Death Eater's directions. They dropped like stones and Winky flew into Phoebe's arms, wrapping her tiny arms around Phoebe's neck and hugging her. "Are you OK, Winky?"

The House-elf nodded.

"Phoebe Blackheart saved Winky!" she squeaked. "Winky is forever grate -" she broke off as a well-aimed curse from across the Hall hit her in the back. Her wide eyes found Phoebe, who had gone as pale as a ghost; she then slumped forward into the elemental's arms.

"Winky?" Phoebe whispered, turning the little elf over.

But Winky didn't move.

Her eyes stared, glassy and reflective, but unseeing.

"Winky, come on!" said Phoebe, her voice shaking.

Oliver laughed as he strode towards the weeping Gryffindor. He still loved her, he would _always_ love her, but she had chosen her fate when she chose a Slytherin over him. It was because of her that he had been booted from Puddlemere United, he couldn't focus on Quidditch without thinking about her - not since Quidditch reminded him of her - he had lost a few important matches because he was thinking of her so much; they had booted him after the fifth game lost.

She had ruined him.

Captured his heart and then ripped it apart.

Ruined his reputation as a Quidditch player and got him booted from a professional team because he couldn't stop thinking about her. Becoming a Death Eater had been the only way he could think of for getting back at her, for making her pay for what she had done to him. He could have easily gone after Terence Higgs; but this way he could cause torment to those he had a grudge against, but he could also get his satisfaction for eliminating the one person who had caused him so much torment and misery over the years.

Higgs would be broken without Phoebe, he would fully understand how Oliver felt, and Phoebe would be out of his life forever.

"You failed again, Phoebe," said Oliver, pointing his wand at her. "You couldn't save Amelia, or Remus, or even your own mother! And now..." he laughed at the house-elf, "you couldn't even save _one little house-elf!_"

"C'mon, Winky, talk to me!" Phoebe muttered, her tears spilling over her cheeks and landing on Winky's.

Oliver laughed again. "She can't hear you, Phoebe," he said. "Not where she is now. She's dead! And it is your fault!"

"_NO!"_ Phoebe screamed. Her voice high-pitched, almost like a banshee's shriek. The Entrance Hall began to shake violently, dust fell from the ceiling as more and more stone shattered from the walls, windows that were still intact shattered instantly, showering Death Eaters and Hogwarts defenders that still fought in the hall with glass.

Oliver stumbled as the floor beneath his feet started to crumble away and, seconds later, a large crack opened up beneath him. He screamed as he slipped through into the darkness beneath the castle, several of his Death Eater comrades followed him, while a protective barrier seemed to protect the Hogwarts Defenders from sliding inside.

As fast as the crack appeared, it closed, the shaking stopped and Phoebe turned back to Winky. She didn't want to believe that the House-elf was dead, she had already lost a friends, very good friends, and she didn't want to lose another. Winky, who fit nicely in Phoebe's arms, did not reply.

Phoebe took a shuddering gasp and hugged Winky closer to her. Tears spilled down her cheeks as sobs racked her body, she muttered Winky's name numerous times in hopes that it would bring her back, but she knew that it was too late. Winky didn't have a wound that Phoebe could heal; she had been hit with a dark curse, a curse that had killed her instantly.

"I'm sorry, Winky," Phoebe murmured, kissing the elf's forehead. "I am so sorry!"

Suddenly, there came an explosion of fury from inside the Great Hall.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted <strong>

**A/N: **"Deflexão" means "Deflection"

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Wednesday, February 27, 2013 at 12:34am**


	193. Chapter 193

**Author's Note:** Just a quick short chapter to end the battle.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, Dream Lighting, MiraclesHappen94, PaulH024, Fan of Fics** and** SoulVirus.**

**Shout Outs:** Big thank you to** FFwriter11** for adding this story and/or me to their alerts. Appreciate it mate.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs'a and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>Voldemort raised his wand and directed it at Molly Weasley.<p>

She had just killed his last, best lieutenant, and in doing so she had signed her own death certificate. However, before he could act a Shield Charm expanded outward in the middle of the Hall, and Voldemort was left looking stunned as many fighters looked around for the culprit.

Half of them expected to find Phoebe or Aiden to have cast the protection charm, what they didn't expect was to find Harry Potter pushing his way through the crowd. The yell of shock, the cheers, the screams on every side of 'Harry!', 'HE'S ALIVE!' were stifled at once. The crowd was afraid, and silence fell abruptly and completely as Voldemort and Harry looked at each other.

Phoebe entered the Hall and quickly located her brothers. They were at the front of the crowd, watching Harry and Voldemort circle one another. Phoebe pushed her way through the other fighters, securing her arms through Aiden and Draco's. The Four Founders materialized around her - it looked, from other on-lookers - that they were protecting her.

"I don't want anyone else to try to help," Harry said loudly, and in the total silence his voice carried like a trumpet call. "It's got to be like this. It's got to be me."

Voldemort hissed.

"Potter doesn't mean that," he said, his red eyes wide. "That isn't how he works, is it? Who are going to use as a shield today, Potter? Maybe the pretty little elemental, Phoebe Blackheart? You like her, don't you? Some may even go as far as to say that you _love_ her."

Harry glanced at Phoebe out of the corner of her eye; she was glaring at Voldemort, but she caught his glance and smiled, encouragingly at him. He felt elated and powerful, like he could do anything from walk on water to destroying Voldemort forever. Why did she always seem to have this effect on him? She had done so since their first year.

Voldemort's sneer curled into an evil smirk, but before he could say anything, Harry spoke:

"I am not going to use anyone, Tom," he said, simply. "There are no more Horcruxes. It's just you and me. Neither can live with the other survives, and one of us is about to leave for good..."

"One of us?" jeered Voldemort, and his whole body was taut and his red eyes stared, a snake that was about to strike. "You think it will be you, do you, the boy who has survived by accident, and because Dumbledore and Blackheart pulled the strings?"

"Accident was it, when my mother died to save me?" asked Harry. They were still moving sideways, both of them, in that perfect circle, maintaining the same distance from each other, and for Harry no face exited but Voldemort's. "Accident, when I decided to fight in that graveyard? Accident, that I didn't defend myself tonight, and still survived, and returned to fight again?"

"_Accidents_!" screamed Voldemort, but still he did not strike as if petrified, and of the hundreds in the Hall, nobody seemed to breathe but they two. "Accident and chance and the fact that you crouched and sniveled behind the skirts of greater men and women, and permitted me to kill them for you!"

"You won't be killing anyone else tonight," said Harry. "You won't be able to kill any of them ever again. Don't you get it, Tom? Don't you understand? I was ready to die to stop you from hurting these people -"

"But you did not!" said Voldemort. "And I will kill again tonight... I will start with your one true love... I will start with Phoebe Blackheart."

"Don't listen to him, Harry," Phoebe called from the sidelines. "I'm useless to him if I am dead!"

Harry, who had heard Phoebe, decided to not reply. Voldemort sneered in her direction as he and Harry continued to circle one another.

"I meant to die for them," said Harry, "and that's what I did. I've done what my mother did. They're protected from you. Haven't you noticed how none of your spells you put on them are binding? You can't torture them. You can't touch them. You don't learn from your mistakes, Riddle, do you?"

"_You dare _-"

"Yes, I dare," said Harry. "I know things you don't know, Tom Riddle. I know lots of important things that you don't. Want to hear some, before you make another big mistake?"

Voldemort did not speak, but prowled in a circle, and Phoebe knew that Harry had him temporarily mesmerized and at bay, held back by the faintest possibility that Harry might indeed know a final secret.

"Is it love again?" said Voldemort, his snakes face jeering. "Dumbledore's favourite solution, _love_, did not stop him falling from the tower and breaking like an old waxwork? _Love_, which did not prevent me stamping out your Mudblood mother like a cockroach, Potter - and nobody seems to love you enough to run forward this time and take my curse, not even Phoebe Blackheart, how does it feel, Potter? To love someone who doesn't love you back?"

"Honestly? It sucks," Harry admitted. "But she's chose right by her... and as long as she's happy," he shrugged, "that's all I really care about."

Phoebe smiled, her gaze finding Terence in the crowd on the opposite side of the Hall.

"How cute," Voldemort sneered. "But it won't save you, Potter, nothing will stop you from dying now when I strike!"

"You're sure about that?"

"If it is not love that will save you this time," said Voldemort, "you must believe that you have magic that I do not, or else a weapon more powerful than mine."

"I believe both," said Harry.

"Phoebe Blackheart cannot help you, Potter," sneered Voldemort, "while her elemental magic and original magic is strong, she cannot manipulate the elements from inside this Hall. Her powers are limited to outside use only. You are at a disadvantage!"

Voldemort began to laugh, and the sound was more frightening than his screams; humorless and insane, it echoed around the silent Hall.

"If you do not have Phoebe Blackheart as your savior, Potter, then you have nothing against me. You may _think_ that you know more magic than I, Harry Potter. Than Lord Voldemort, who has performed magic that Dumbledore himself never dreamed of?"

"Oh, he dreamed of it," said Harry, "but he knew more than you, knew enough not to do what you've done."

"You mean he was weak!" screamed Voldemort. "Too weak to dare, too weak to take what might have been his, what will be mine!"

"No, he was cleverer than you," said Harry, "a better wizard, a better man."

"I brought about the death of Albus Dumbledore!"

"You thought you did," said Harry, "but you were wrong!"

For the first time, the watching crowd stirred as the hundreds of people around the walls drew breath as one.

"_Dumbledore is dead_!" Voldemort hurled the words at Harry as though they would cause him unendurable pain. "His body decays in the marble tomb in the grounds of this castle, I have seen it, Potter, and he will not return!"

"Yes, Dumbledore is dead," said Harry calmly, "but you didn't have him killed. He chose his own manner of dying, chose it months before he died, arranged the whole thing with the man you though was your servant, and a girl you think you could control!"

"What childish dream is this?" said Voldemort, but still he did not strike, and his red eyes did not waver from Harry's.

"Severus Snape wasn't yours," said Harry. "Snape was Dumbledore's, Dumbledore's from the moment you started hunting down my mother. And you never realized it because of the thing you can't understands. You never saw Snape cast a Patronus, did you, Riddle?"

Voldemort did not answer.

"Snape's Patronus was a doe," said Harry, "the same as my mother's because he loved her for nearly all his life, from the time when they were children. You should have realized," he said as Voldemort's nostrils flared, "he asked you to spare her life, didn't he?"

"He desired her, that was all," sneered Voldemort, "but when she had gone, he agreed that there were other women, and of purer blood, worthier of him -"

"Of course he told you that," said Harry, "but he was Dumbledore's spy from the moment you threatened her, and he's been working against you ever since! Dumbledore was already dying when Snape finished him!"

"It matters not!" shrieked Voldemort, who had followed every word with rapid attention, but not let out a cackle of mad laughter. "It matters not whether Snape was mine or Dumbledore's, or what petty obstacles they tried to put in my path! I crushed them as I crushed your mother, Snape's supposed great _love_! Oh, but it all make sense, Potter, and in ways that you do not understand."

Phoebe exchanged a look with Aiden.

"Dumbledore was trying to keep the Elder Wand from me! He intended that Snape should be the true master of the wand! But I got there ahead of you, little boy - I reached the wand before you could get your hands on it, I understood the truth before you caught up, I was surprised, however, but I guessed that Phoebe Blackheart would have kept you well enough away from Hogwarts. You shouldn't have listened, if you had not you would have had the Elder Wand first. Did you listen to her because you loved her, Potter? Because she wanted to protect you? Or did she threaten to leave you? Which would have hurt you more? Her leaving you... or her lying to you?"

Harry ignored him. Phoebe's lies had hurt, but now he knew... now he fully understood why she had done what she done. She had done everything to protect him, none of it had been to protect herself, not like she had said, it had all been for him and him alone.

"I understood the truth ahead of you, Harry Potter," Voldemort continued. "I killed Severus Snape three hours ago, and the Elder Wand, the Deathstick; the Wand of Destiny is truly mine! Dumbledore's last plan went wrong, Harry Potter."

"Yeah, it did," said Harry. "You're right. But before you try to kill me, I'd advise you to think about what you've done... Think and try for some remorse, Riddle."

"What is this?"

Out of everything that had been said. Harry asking Voldemort to consider remorse was the one thing that shocked him above all others.

"It's your last chance," said Harry, "it's all you've got left... I've seen what you'll be otherwise. Be a man... try... try for some remorse..."

"You dare -?" said Voldemort again.

"Yes, I dare," said Harry, "because Dumbledore's last plan hasn't backfired on me at all. It's backfired on you, Riddle."

Voldemort's hand trembling on the Elder Wand.

"That wand still isn't working properly for you because you murdered the wrong person. Severus Snape was never the true master of the Elder Wand. He never defeated Dumbledore."

"He killed -"

"Aren't you listening? _Snape never killed Dumbledore_! Dumbledore's death was planned between himself and Snape!" he said, purposefully leaving out the fact that Phoebe had been involved in the pre-planned murder. "Dumbledore intended to die undefeated, the wand's last true master! If all had gone as planned, the wand's power would have died with him, because it had never been won from him!"

"But then, Potter, Dumbledore as good as gave me the wand!" Voldemort's voice shook with malicious pleasure. "I stole the wand from its last master's tomb! I removed it against its last mater's wishes! It's power is mine!"

"You still don't get it, Riddle, do you? Possessing the wand isn't enough! Holing it, using it, doesn't make it really yours. Didn't you listen to Ollivander? _The wand chooses the wizards_. The Elder Wand recognized a new master before Dumbledore died, someone who never even laid a hand on it. The new master removed the wand from Dumbledore against his will, never realizing exactly what he had done, or that the world's most dangerous wand had given him its allegiance..."

Voldemort's chest rose and fell rapidly, and Phoebe could feel the cursing coming, feel it building inside the wand that was pointed at her friend.

"The true master of the Elder Wand was Draco Malfoy..."

Aiden and Phoebe glanced at their brother. He was staring at Harry with a look of pure shock on his pale features. Reaching forward, Phoebe wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him, tightly, she had a faint idea what was going through his mind. What was stopping Voldemort from killing him here and now to obtain the Elder Wand?

"He can't hurt you, Dragon," Phoebe whispered. "Remember?"

"Remember what?" Draco asked.

"I had Harry disarm you," said Phoebe. "You're no long in possession. Don't worry, you're not going anywhere!"

Draco smiled and hugged his younger sister. She really was two steps ahead of everyone else.

"Even if you are right, Potter, it makes no difference to you and me. You no longer have the phoenix wand. We duel on skill alone... and after I have killed you, I can attend to Draco Malfoy and his annoying brat of a sister."

"But you're too late," said Harry. "You've missed your chance. I got there first. I Disarmed Draco hours ago. I took his wand from him. So it all comes down to this, doesn't it? Does the wand in your hand know its last master was Disarmed? Because if it does... I am the true master of the Elder Wand."

A red-glow burst suddenly across the enchanted sky above them as an edge of dazzling sun appeared over the sill of the nearest window. The light hit both of their faces at the same time, so that Voldemort's was suddenly a flaming blur. Harry heard Phoebe scream his name, and he knew that she was warning him of the final attack.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

_"Expelliarmus!"_

The bang was like a cannon blast, and the golden flames that erupted between them, at the dead center of the circle they had been treading, marked the point where the spells collided. Phoebe gasped as Harry's red jet hit Voldemort's green, and the Elder Wand rebounded, flying high into the air and then falling towards the ground.

Harry, with the unnerving skill of a Seeker, caught the wand in his free hand as Voldemort fell backwards, arms splayed, the slit pupils of the scarlet eyes rolling upward.

Tom Riddle hit the floor with a mundane finality, his body feeble and shrunken, the white hands empty, the snakelike face vacant and unknowing.

Voldemort was dead.

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** Leave a review, please, we're almost at the end.

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 01 March, 2013 at 03:03am**


	194. Chapter 194

**Author's Note: **See you at the bottom.

**Dedications:** Chapter goes out to the following: **KingdomHeartsNerd, MiraclesHappen94, HotaruKenobi, Dream Lighting, SoulVirus, PaulH024, Malfoy's Ferret** and **Fan of Fics.**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs'a and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p>A shocked silence echoed around the Great Hall and then a tumult broke as the screams and the cheers and the roars of the watchers rent the air. The fierce new sun dazzled the windows as the on-lookers thundered toward him. Phoebe was the first to reach him, followed by Hermione and Ron, and it was their arms that were wrapped around him, their incomprehensible shouts that deafened him.<p>

Then Ginny, Neville and Luna were there, followed by Ashlyn, James, Aiden and Sarah, and then Kingsley, and McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout. Harry could not hear a word that anyone was shouting, nor tell whose hands were seizing him, pulling him, trying to hug him, hundreds of them pressing in, all of them determined to touch the Boy Who Lived, the reason it was over at last -

The sun rose steadily over Hogwarts, and the Great Hall blazed with life and light. Harry was an indispensable part of the mingled outpourings of jubilation and mourning, of grief and celebration. They wanted him there with them, their leader and symbol, their savior.

Phoebe had already left the Hall. She had wandered around the courtyard for a while before returning to the windowsill at the end of the first floor corridor, the same place that Draco had found her before Voldemort's announcement of Harry's death. She needed time; time to process what had happened these last few hours.

The dead had been moved down to the Great Hall; Phoebe had been forced to identify more friends that had died for the cause. '_They knew what they were getting themselves in for..._' '_You can't save everyone..._' her brothers' words had echoed inside her head with each face she saw, but hearing these words and knowing the truth behind them did not ease the feeling of pain and guilt.

Some of those that had died had been too young to even have been fighting: Colin and Dennis Creevey were amongst the dead. How was she supposed to face their parents had tell them that their children would not be coming home? Especially when her own children were safe and alive and waiting for her? She couldn't do it, it wasn't fair.

A hand landed on her shoulder.

Phoebe jumped and spun around. A sigh escaped her slightly parted lips as Harry, Ron and Hermione stood in front of her. She had been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't heard them coming.

"It's over," said Harry, his voice sounded awfully strange.

"I know," said Phoebe.

"Then why aren't you happy?" asked Hermione.

"I am," said Phoebe, with a small, strained smile. "I'm just thinking about how I am going to tell the parents' of those that died. Colin and Dennis's parents, I don't think I can face them."

Ron looked confused. "Why should you have too?" he asked. "I thought that would be a job for the Ministry."

"It is," Phoebe nodded. "They have letters prepared and everything."

"But?" Harry asked as Ron and Hermione exchanged looks.

Phoebe sighed. "But I do not think that a letter is appropriate," she said. "I mean, their children are dead, the families need closure. They need comforting. They do not need letters. Words can only bring you so much... and it seems a little impersonal. It doesn't really show that you care."

"I still don't see how this should be your problem," said Ron.

"Kingsley asked me to be a part of the team," explained Phoebe. "They want me to help break the news. I've been assigned the Creevey brothers - did you know that they had a little sister? Or that their mother is terminally ill with cancer? She doesn't have that long to live. I don't think I can tell them..." she trailed off uncertainly. "That family seems to have enough going on. How am I supposed to tell them that Colin and Dennis died in a war that they had no part of? Why did they have to come back? Why didn't they just stay away?"

Hermione wrapped her arms around her best friend as tears flooded her stormy grey eyes, and her body quivered with the emotions that she was trying to hide.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"Really gives a feeling for the scope and tragedy of the thing, doesn't it?" asked James.

He was standing in the Entrance Hall with Ashlyn, taking in the desolated space. Great chunks were missing from the marble staircase, part of the balustrade gone, and rubble and bloodstains occurred every few steps as they climbed.

Somewhere in the distance they could hear Peeves zooming through the corridors singing a victory song of his own composition:

_"We did it, we bashed them, wee Potter's the one,_

_And Voldy's gone moldy, so now let's have fun!"_

"Happiness will come," said Ashlyn. "But not yet. Everyone is just exhausted; we've taken a heavy blow. Fred, Lupin, Narcissa, Miles, Kevin, Amelia, your mum, Melissa and Henry, Colin and Dennis, Lavender, Winky, Philip and Josephine Higgs and fifty or so more..." she shook her head, and glanced back at her cousin, "now is a time for mourning."

"Do you think we'll ever move on?"

Ashlyn shook her head. "No," she said. "I still mourn my parents and they have been dead for sixteen and seventeen years!" she touched James's shoulder. "We'll never forget them, James, but they are always with us. The pain..." she paused, "the pain will get easier to live with." She smiled.

James returned her smile, but within seconds it became a frown again. He heaved a heavy sigh and turned back to the Great Hall. They had moved Voldemort's body from the Hall and laid it in the trophy room away from the bodies of the fallen defenders, why should he get the chance to rest with then? He had been the reason they had died.

He may not have killed them personally, but he had been the reason they were fighting and was therefore to blame for their untimely deaths.

The House tables had been replaced, but nobody was sitting according to House anymore; all were jumbled together, teachers and pupils, ghosts and parents, centaurs and house-elves, and Firenze lay recovering in the corner, and Grawp peered in through a smashed window, and people were throwing food into his laughing mouth.

James spotted Ginny sitting at the Gryffindor table; she was sitting with her head on her mother's shoulder. He saw Neville, the sword of Gryffindor lying beside his plate as he ate, surrounded by a knot of fervent admirers. Draco Malfoy was sitting at the Slytherin table with Aiden and Sarah; the young Hufflepuff was clutching her boyfriends - no, correction - her fiancé's arm as they talked.

Serefina Blackheart stood not that far away, deep in conversation with Lucius Malfoy and, despite having just lost his wife; Lucius looked pretty close with the Earth elemental.

But where was Phoebe?

As if reading her cousin's face, Ashlyn said, "She's taking a breather. Kingsley has asked her to be a part of the committee that informs Muggle parents that their children have been killed."

"That'll destroy her," said James.

"I know," Ashlyn said. "But it was her idea that they inform those who have lost in person. Letters are apparently too impersonal."

James rolled his eyes. "Why can't she just be normal for a change?" he asked.

"Because I believe she has a point," said Ashlyn. "Would you have wanted to be informed of Henry, Melissa and Sam's death by letter or person?"

James heaved a sigh. "Fine. I see your point," he nodded. "But still, to volunteer herself? When she knows that she cannot bare it?" he asked.

"I don't think she did volunteer herself," said Ashlyn. "She merely suggested the idea and Kingsley automatically recruited her. You know, Phoebe, she'd never turn down a position if she knows that she can help. I think she is just feeling guilty because she has to explain why someone's children will not be reading when her own children are waiting for her at home."

James nodded in understanding. "Good point," he murmured, "and although they are waiting..." he added, "they are not at home."

"What do you -?"

"Auntie Ashy! Auntie Ashy!"

Ashlyn looked up. Standing at the top of the marble staircase was Faye, her eyes wide as she looked around at the destruction that had been caused, the castle that Phoebe had told her about did not look half as magnificent as Phoebe, Draco or Ashlyn had described.

"Faye," Ashlyn smiled, opening her arms and catching the toddler as she jumped into them. She and Faye had hit it off instantly, there had been no hurdles or obstacles, just like there had been none with Draco, unfortunately Faye still did not trust James or Terence, and she was slowly starting to warm up to Aiden, Sarah and Amelia, and she already loved Blake unconditionally.

Terence arrived behind her, cuddling Blake in his arms, and holding his younger sister, Bambi's hand. He nodded at Ashlyn as she hugged Faye and smiled, tensely at James has he handed over his son. James happily accepted his Godson and hugged him tightly. He was still trapped in turmoil of pain as he tried to understand and come to terms with the fact that his whole family was dead.

Ashlyn had said that the pain would get easier to deal with, but it would never go away. He wasn't completely sure if he even wanted it to go away or not? He just wanted to know why he was so conflicted; why didn't he want the pain to leave him. Was he afraid that if the pain of losing his whole family disappeared that they would to? What if he forgot them?

What if -?

What if -?

The questions were endless and each one was as absurd as the last. He would never forget his family. His father, his mother, his brother or sister. They were always with him... maybe not solidly with him, but they were always there in spirit and memory, right?

So why were the answers that he sought so difficult to understand?

His family was gone and they were never coming back... but that did not mean he would forget them. He would think about them each and every day.

**~*Phoebe*~**

"I'm sorry, Harry," Phoebe apologized. Harry had just recounted what he had seen in Dumbledore's Pensieve, in Snape's memories. "I am terribly sorry for not telling you... I just thought that you would hate Dumbledore if you knew the truth; and while it hurt to imagine that you would hate me... I just couldn't allow you to hate Dumbledore."

"I know," Harry nodded. "Dumbledore explained everything, Phoebe, I do not hold anything against you."

Phoebe smiled. What had Dumbledore said to make him forgive her so easily? Sadly, just before she could ask him for the specific, they had arrived at their destination - Dumbledore's office. The gargoyle guarding the entrance had been knocked aside; it stood lopsided, looking a little punch-drunk.

"Can we go up?" Harry asked.

"Feel free," groaned the statue.

They clambered over him and onto the spiral stone staircase that moved slowly upward like an escalator. Harry pushed open the door at the top.

There was an earsplitting noise - and applause - it was coming from the walls, the headmasters and headmistresses of Hogwarts were giving him a standing ovation; they waved their hats and in some cases their wigs, they reached through their frames to grip each other's hands; they danced up and down on the chairs in which they had been painted.

Dexter Fortescue was waving his ear-trumpet; and Phineas Nigellus called, in his high, reedy voice, "And let it be noted that Slytherin House played its part! Let our contribution not be forgotten."

But Phoebe had eyes only for one man who stood in the largest portrait directly behind the headmaster's chair. Tears were sliding down from behind the half-moon spectacles into the long sliver beard, and the pride and the gratitude emanating from him filled Phoebe with the same balm as Fawkes song.

Dumbledore smiled and nodded firmly at the Elemental, who felt that she would burst into tears all over again.

At last, Harry held up his hands, and the portraits fell respectfully silent, beaming and mopping their eyes and waiting eagerly for him to speak. He directed his words at Dumbledore, however, and chose them with enormous care. Exhausted and bleary-eyed though he was, he knew that he had to make one last effort, seeking one last piece of advice.

"The thing that was hidden in the Snitch," he began, "I dropped it in the forest, I don't know where exactly, but I'm not going to go looking for it again. Do you agree?"

"My dear boy, I do," said Dumbledore, while his fellow pictures looked confused and curious. "A wise and courageous decision, don't you think, Phoebe?"

The elemental looked startled at the fact that she was being asked to contribute to the conversation. But, nonetheless, she answered with something that sounded like she had been expecting the question all along. "Of course," she nodded, "but it is no less than what I would have expected of Harry, Professor."

Dumbledore smiled fondly at her. "Does anyone else know where it fell?" he asked, directing the question at Harry.

"No one," answered the boy, and Dumbledore nodded his satisfaction.

"I'm going to keep Ignotus's present though," said Harry, and Dumbledore beamed.

"But of course, Harry, it is yours forever, until you pass it on!"

"And then there is there's this."

Harry held up the Elder Wand.

"I don't want it," said Harry.

"What?" said Ron loudly. "Are you mental?"

"I know it's powerful," said Harry. "But I was happier with mine. So..."

He rummaged in the pouch hung around his neck, and pulled out the two halves of holly still just connected by the finest thread of phoenix feather. Phoebe had said that they could not be repaired, that the damage was too severe. But at the time she did not consider the Elder Wand. If this did not work, then nothing would.

Harry glanced at Phoebe.

"Try it," the elemental said with a smile.

Harry took this as a sign of knowing and laid the two halves of the broken wand on the headmaster's desk, touched them with the very tip of the Elder Wand, and said, "_Reparo_."

The wand resealed and red sparks flew out of its end.

Phoebe smiled. "Nicely done," she nodded in approval.

Harry carefully picked up the holly and phoenix wand. "I'm putting the Elder Wand," he told Dumbledore, who was watching him with enormous affection and admiration, "back where it came from. It can stay there. If I die a natural death like Ignotus, its power will be broken, won't it? The previous master will never have been defeated. That'll be the end of it."

Dumbledore nodded.

"Are you sure?" said Ron. There was the faintest trace of longing in his voice as he looked at the Elder Wand.

"I think Harry's right," said Hermione, quietly.

"Me too," agreed Phoebe. "With great power comes great responsibility. And, while I do believe you are responsible with power, Harry, I also believe that putting the wand back where it came from is a more responsible choice. The Elder Wand is more trouble that it is worth... and I also believe that you have had enough excitement - I mean, trouble - for one lifetime."

_**The End.**_

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><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N: **_Though I have loved writing The Dark Lord's Downfall, all good things must come to an end eventually. I hope you guys loved reading this series as much as I loved writing it._

_Yet, with every end comes a new beginning. I may have finished this series, but that doesn't mean I have finished with the Harry Potter series in general. I might come back with a few deleted scenes (scenes that were written but never published. For example: Snape's Memories.)_

_And, before I go, I wanted to give a big thank you to everyone who has left reviews/comments/constructive criticism. Your support has made my writing so much better, and so much easier, it means the world to me and I'm so thankful to have you all on board reading and reviewing._

_Also a big thank you to everyone who has added me and/or this story to their alerts. Knowing that you have enjoyed it enough to favourite it has been amazing enough. You guys are the best! A project this big couldn't have been so successful without you!_

_Well, that's all folks! Thank you for reading everyone and I hope to see you all again sometime. You never know, I may return with a new series... my brain is always working; thinking of new things, so you never know what is around the corner._

_Bye._

_xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx_

**Chapter updated Sunday, 03 March 2013 at 07:25pm**


	195. Epilogue: Nineteen Years Later

**Author's Note:** Several people wanted an epilogue. Word of warning, it is _not_ like the book. In fact, it is completely different and only includes one, maybe two or three, reoccurring characters from the Dark Lord's Downfall story. I'll keep the disclaimer, but, honestly, there are no characters from the actual Harry Potter story used in this chapter.

**Author's Note Two:** A few months back I started writing Wikia pages for this story. You can find the link on my profile if you wish to find out more information, that probably didn't make it into the series. Or you can message me and I'll send you the link.

**Several people have added me to their favourites since I finished this story back in March, and I have received many reviews since then too and I am forever grateful to everyone for it. You are all truly amazing.**

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Harry Potter belongs to Jo Rowling and Warner Brothers. I am merely borrowing them for my own personal enjoyment. I do, however own a small fraction of the story and half the plot. All OCs' and anything that is unrecognizable belong to me also. And no profit has been made in the making of this series.

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><p><strong>Babbitty Rabbitty and her Crackling Stump.<strong>

_A long time ago, in a far-off land, there lived a foolish King who decided that he alone should have the power of magic. He therefore commanded the head of his army to form a Brigade of Witch-Hunters, and issued them with a pack of ferocious black hounds. At the same time, the King caused proclamations to be read to every village and town across the land:_

_**Wanted by the King, an Instructor in Magic.**_

_No true witch or wizard dared volunteer for the post, for they were all in hiding from the Brigade of Witch-Hunters._

_However, a cunning charlatan with no magical power saw a chance of enriching himself, and arrived at a palace, claiming to be a wizard of enormous skill. The charlatan performed few simple tricks, which convinced the foolish King of his magical powers, and was immediately appointed Grand Sorcerer in Chief, the King's Private Magic Master._

_The charlatan bade the King give him a large sack of gold, so that he might purchase wands and other magical necessities. He also requested several large rubies, to be used in the casting of curative charms, and a silver chalice or two, for the storing and maturing of potions. All these things the foolish King supplied._

_The charlatan stowed the treasure safely in his own house and returned to the palace grounds. He did not know that he was being watched by an old woman who lived in a hovel on the edge of the grounds. Her name was Babbitty, and she was the washerwoman who kept the palace linens soft, fragrant and white. Peeping from behind her drying sheets, Babbitty saw the charlatan snap two twigs from one of the King's trees and disappear into the palace._

_The charlatan gave one of the twigs to the King and assured him that it was a wand of tremendous power._

_"It will only work, however," said the charlatan, "when you are worthy of it."_

_Every morning the charlatan and the foolish King walked out into the palace grounds, where they waved their wands and shouted nonsense at the sky. The charlatan was careful to perform more tricks, so that the King remained convinced of his Grand Sorcerer's skill, and of the power of the wands that had cost so much gold._

_One morning, as the charlatan and the foolish King were twirling their twins, and hopping in circles, and chanting meaningless rhymes, a loud cracking reached the King's ears. Babbitty the washerwoman was watching the King and the charlatan from the window of her tiny cottage, and was laughing so hard she soon sank out of sight, too weak to stand._

_"I must look most undignified, to make the old washerwoman laugh so!" said the King. He ceased his hopping and twig twirling, and frowned. "I grow weary of practice! When shall I be ready to perform real spells in front of my subjects, Sorcerer?"_

_The charlatan tried to sooth his pupil, assuring him that he would soon be capable of astonishing feats of magic, but Babbitty's cackling had stung the foolish King more than the charlatan knew._

_"Tomorrow," said the King, "we shall invite our court to watch their King perform magic!"_

_The charlatan saw that the time had come to take his treasure and flee._

_"Alas, Your Majesty, it is impossible! I had forgotten to tell Your Majesty that I must set out on a long journey tomorrow -"_

_"If you leave this palace without my permission, Sorcerer, my Brigade of Witch-Hunters will hunt you down with their hounds! Tomorrow morning you will assist me to perform magic for the benefit of my lords and ladies, and if anybody laughs at me, I shall have you beheaded!"_

_The King stormed back to the palace, leaving the charlatan alone and afraid. Not all his cunning could save him now, for he could not run away, nor could he help the King with magic that neither of them knew._

_Seeking a vent for his fear and his anger, the charlatan approached the window of Babbitty the washerwoman. Peering inside, he saw the little old lady sitting at her table, polishing a wand. In a corner behind her, the King's sheets were washing themselves in a wooden tub._

_The charlatan understood at once that Babbitty was a true witch, and that she who had given him his awful problem could also solve it._

_"Crone!" roared the charlatan. "Your cackling has cost me dear! If you fail to help me, I shall denounce you as a witch, and it will be you who is torn apart by the King's hounds!"_

"He's mean..." interrupted a small voice.

Phoebe Blackheart, who had been reading the story of Babbitty Rabbitty, blinked and looked down at the small blonde toddler curled up beside her. "Yes, Anna," she nodded. "Yes, he is very mean indeed. Do you wish for me to continue?"

"Yes, please, Grandmama." Four-year-old Anna smiled, patting her grandmother's arm energetically.

Phoebe smiled and wrapped her arm around the toddler. She was a year younger than her mother, Faye, had been when Phoebe had found her nineteen-years-ago in Ottery St Catchpole, in England, during the second Wizarding War. Faye had become like a daughter to Phoebe, and the elemental had grown rather attached to the toddler, adopting soon after the war had ended.

Faye, who had grown into a beautiful young witch, had attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 2004 at the age of eleven and had been sorted into Ravenclaw house, much to her Phoebe and Terence's pleasure. Faye had always shown signs of being a Ravenclaw. She had later graduated, top of her class, in 2011. A year later she had married her long-term boyfriend, Thomas Waverly and given birth to a beautiful daughter, Anna Waverly in 2014.

Anna was the diamond in her mother's eye, overly doted on by her whole family, and loved above and beyond by her grandparents.

_Old Babbitty smiled at the charlatan and assured him that she would do everything in her power to help._

_The charlatan instructed her to conceal herself inside a bush while the King gave his magical display, and to perform the King's spells for him, without his knowledge. Babbitty agreed to the plan but asked one question._

_"What, sir, if the King attempts a spell, Babbitty cannot perform?"_

_The charlatan scoffed._

_"Your magic is more than equal to that fool's imagination," he assured her, and he retired to the castle, well pleased with his own cleverness._

_The following morning all of the lords and ladies of the kingdom assembled in the palace grounds. The King climbed on to a stage in front of them, with the charlatan by his side._

_"I shall firstly make this lady's hat disappear!" cried the King, pointing his twig at a noblewoman._

_From inside a bush nearby, Babbitty pointed her wand at the hat and caused it to vanish. Great was the astonishment and admiration of the crowd, and loud their applause for the jubilant King._

_"Next, I shall make that horse fly!" cried the King, pointing his twig at his own steed._

_From inside the bush, Babbitty pointed her wand at the horse and it rose high into the air._

_The crowd was still more thrilled and amazed, and they roared their appreciation of their magical King._

_"And now," said the King, looking all around for an idea, and the Captain of his Brigade of Witch-Hunters ran forwards._

_"Your Majesty," said the Captain, "this very morning, Sabre died of eating a poisonous toadstool! Bring him back to life, Your Majesty, with your wand!"_

_And the Captain heaved on to the stage the lifeless body of the largest of the witch-hunting hounds._

_The foolish King brandished his twig and pointed it at the dead dog. But inside the bush, Babbitty smiled, and did not trouble to life her wand, for no magic can raise the dead._

_When the dog did not stir, the crowd began first to whisper, and then to laugh. They suspected that the King's first two feats had been mere tricks after all._

_"Why doesn't it work?" the King screamed at the charlatan, who bethought himself of the only ruse left of him._

_"There, Your Majesty, there!" he shouted, pointing at the busy where Babbitty was concealed. "I see her plan, a wicked witch who is blocking your magic with her own evil spells! Seize her, somebody, seize her!"_

_Babbitty fled from the bush, and the Brigade of Witch-Hunters et off in pursuit, unleashing their hounds, who bayed for Babbitty's blood. But as she reached a low hedge, the little witch vanished from sight, and when the King, the charlatan and all the courtiers gained the other side, they found the pack of witch-hunting hounds barking and scrabbling around a bent and aged tree._

_"She has turned herself into a tree!" screamed the charlatan and, dreading lest Babbitty turn back into a woman and denounce him, he added, "Cut her down, Your Majesty, that is the way to treat evil witches!"_

_An axe was brought at once, and the old tree was felled to loud cheers from the courtiers and the charlatan._

"She's not dead is she, Grandmama?" Anna asked her eyes wide and interested as she looked up at Phoebe. "They didn't cut her down, did they?"

Phoebe smiled and brushed a blonde curl from her granddaughter's face. "Shall we find out together?" she asked.

Anna nodded and rested her head back on Phoebe's stomach.

_However, as they were making ready to return to the palace, the sound of loud cackling stopped them in their tracks._

_"Fools!" cried Babbitty's voice from the stump they had left behind. "No witch or wizard can be killed be being cut in half! Take the axe, if you do not believe me, and cut the Grand Sorcerer in two!"_

_The Captain of the Brigade of Witch-Hunters was eager to make the experiment, but as he raised the axe the charlatan fell to his knees, screaming for mercy and confessing all his wickedness. As he was dragged away to the dungeons, the tree stump cackled more loudly than ever._

_"By cutting a witch in half, you have unleashed a dreadful curse upon your kingdom!" it told the petrified King. "Henceforth, every stroke of harm that you inflict upon my fellow witches and wizards will feel like an axe stroke in your own side, until you will wish you could die of it!"_

_At that, the King fell to his knees too, and told the stump that he would issue a proclamation at once, protecting all witches and wizards of the kingdom, and allowing them to practice their magic in peace._

_"Very good," said the stump, "but you have not yet made amends to Babbitty!"_

_"Anything, anything at all!" cried the foolish King, wringing his hands before the stump._

_"You will erect a statue of Babbitty upon me, in memory of your poor washerwoman, and to remind you forever of your foolishness!" said the stump._

_The King agreed to it at once, and promised to engage the foremost sculptor in the land, and have the statue made of pure gold. Then the shamed King and all the noblemen and women returned to the palace, leaving the tree stump cackling behind them._

_When the grounds were deserted once more, there wriggled from a hole between the roots of the tree stump, a stout and whiskery old rabbit with a wand clamped between her teeth. Babbitty hopped out of the grounds and far away, and ever after a golden statue of the washerwoman stood upon the tree stump, and no witch or wizard was every persecuted in the kingdom again._

Anna giggled. "She turned into a bunny," she said, wiggling her nose.

"Yes, she did." Phoebe nodded, closing the book and setting it on the table in front of her. She was sitting, curled up on a couch, in one of the studies at Blackheart Manor. She was dressed in her bedclothes, as was Anna, both of them shared story time every night in the study on the second floor and then Phoebe would carry Anna off to bed.

"Can I have a bunny, Grandmama?"

Phoebe smiled and looked down at her granddaughter. "What Bunny would you like?" she asked. "One like Babbitty?"

Anna nodded her head.

"If I grant you this, you must take him to bed, straight away, alright?" said Phoebe, drawing her wand. "Promise? He'll be very sleepy, you see."

"I pwomise." Anna said, eyeing her grandmother's wand. She loved watching her family do magic.

"OK." Phoebe breathed, twirling her wand between her fingers. She pointed it at the centre of the room, muttered a spell in Portuguese, and watched as the familiar shape of a rabbit started to appear out of thin air.

Anna squealed in delight and rushed to pick up the animal.

"Careful." Phoebe said, as the toddler scooped up the rabbit. "You must be really careful with animals, Anna, too much pressure and you can really hurt them. Unlike us, animals cannot say if they are hurt, which is why we must be extra careful in handling them."

"Like you do with Athena?"

Phoebe nodded. "Exactly. Athena is very old. She has been in my family for many years, but that does not mean she doesn't need respect and nurturing." She explained.

"I promise to take care of bunny, Grandmama." Anna said. "I go bed now."

She turned her back on her grandmother and headed for the door of the study, it opened, however, before she could reach it.

"Mum, you in - what do you have there, Anna?" Phoebe's eldest child, Blake, asked as he stepped into the room. He knelt down so that he was eye-level with his niece and reached out to pet the rabbit in her arms. "He's cute. What's his name?"

"Babbitty Bunny."

Phoebe smiled and shook her head. "What is it, Blake?" she asked, drawing her son's attention to her. He had obviously been looking for her when he had come in.

"Oh, I was wondering if you had seen Connor." Blake asked. "He needed help with one of his reports before going back to school, I'd said I'd help him, but he's not in his room."

"Have you checked the stables?" Phoebe asked. "He and Jayden were supposed to go riding before bed."

Blake nodded, remembering that his brother had said he was going riding with their cousin, Jayden during dinner.

Jayden Chamberlain was the only son to Aiden and Sarah Chamberlain. He had been born in Salem, Massachusetts in 2006 and attended The Elemental Academy in 2015. He was currently eleven-years-old and about to go into his third year at the academy.

"I'll check there now, thanks, Mum." He said, turning to leave. "Hey, Anna, you want me to read you a story before bed?"

"No thank yous." Anna said, walking past her uncle. "Grandmama already read me Babbitty Wabbitty."

Phoebe laughed as Blake chuckled and turned to look at her.

"I remember that one," he said with a light nod. "Goodnight, Mum."

"Goodnight, baby." Phoebe said, crossing the room and kissing his cheek. "Tell Connor and Jayden not to be too late. I realize they do not return to school for another two days, but if they want to come to London tomorrow then we have to leave early. Ashlyn and James are expecting us at 10:45am, which means we'll have to leave here at 10:30. Will you be joining us?" he asked.

Blake shook his head. "I can't," he apologized. "Dad and I are working at 9:00am, and Faye has a hospital appointment at 10, did you forget?" he asked.

"Of course not." Phoebe replied.

"You did, didn't you?" Blake chuckled.

Phoebe put her hands on her hips and drew herself up to her full height. "Sue me," she said. "I'm old and I'm cranky."

"You're not old, Mum," Blake said, reassuringly. "You can be a _little_ cranky... but you're not old."

"You're sweet." Phoebe smiled, ruffling his hair. "Now, go and find your brother and cousin. I'm going to tuck Anna into bed. Has your father come home yet?"

"Yes, he's probably in the shower now." Blake said, heading towards the stairs at the end of the hall. "Sweet dreams, Mum."

Phoebe shook her head as he disappeared; she then turned to the door on the opposite side of the hall. It was painted purple, a colour that Anna loved above all others. There was a small golden pattern of butterflies on the front of the door; each one glittered every time their wings beat against the invisible wind.

"All tucked in?" Phoebe asked, sweeping around the bed.

"Yup." Anna nodded. "Babbitty Bunny and I are ready for bed."

Phoebe smiled and leaned over to kiss her granddaughter's forehead. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Grandmamma." Anna replied.

"Sweet dreams, my little princess."

From the doorway, leaning against the threshold, Terence Higgs, Phoebe's husband, watched with a loving smile. Even after all these years his wife was still as loving and gentle as she had been the first day he met her.

* * *

><p><strong>Copyrighted ©<strong>

**A/N:** So, who's gonna leave me one final review? Since I did write you all an epilogue. Also, I would like to say that I have started a new HP story, only difference this time is the fact that it is a crossover story and in the crossover section. It is called **Search for an Alpha**. I was kinda hoping that you'd all venture over to my profile, click the link and check it out. It's actually my first crossover story, and one that is _not_ set in the Golden Trio era. It actually involves Teddy Lupin and my OC.

Check it out, pretty please?

**Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**

**Chapter updated Friday, 14 June 2013 at 03:04am**


	196. IMPORTANT NOTICE

**IMPORTANT NOTICE!**

_**Hello, readers of The Dark Lord's Downfall. Due to new ideas, grammar errors, spelling mistakes and inconsistencies throughout the plot of this story, I have decided to revamp it.**_

_**The new story will remain "The Dark Lord's Downfall" but will have some major changes to its plot line. I have already posted this story, on my profile.**_

_**If you are loyal to the original don't fret because I won't be deleting it, I will be keeping it simply for comparison purposes.**_

_**I hope you show your support to Phoebe and her friends by checking out the revamped version, and I do hope you enjoy it as much as the original. If not then I understand.**_

_**Thank you so much for reading this. ^_^**_

**~ xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx**


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